John Elefante

==1985–1994==
In 1985, "Young and Innocent" appeared on the soundtrack to ''[[St. Elmo's Fire (film)|St. Elmo's Fire]]'' and was credited to "Elefante" – a collaborative effort by John and his brother Dino Elefante.<ref>{{cite web|title=Original Soundtrack St. Elmo's Fire|url=http://www.allmusic.com/album/st-elmos-fire-mw0000650808|publisher=All Media Network}}</ref>

With both John and Dino Elefante as the band's primary producers, Petra's already popular Christian pop/rock niche was given a timely boost. Their accolades include multiple gold albums, 10 consecutive ''[[CCM Magazine]]'' Reader's Choice Awards, induction into the [[Gospel Music Hall of Fame]] and [[Hard Rock Cafe]], and becoming the only artist to ever have four albums in the [[SoundScan]] top-100 Christian chart.

In 1987, while producing a various-artists album called ''California Metal'', the album's production team of John and Dino Elefante ended up one track short and they decided to add a song which had been written for Kansas called "Wasn't It Love" (originally titled "What About Love") as the band [[Mastedon]]. Regency later requested a full-length album which became Mastedon's debut, ''It's a Jungle Out There''.

He produced Petra's further releases, and 30 other albums. He usually performed on them, often sharing songwriting credits. He was committed as producer, eschewing other opportunities such as an offer to replace [[Bobby Kimball]] as lead singer for Grammy winners, [[Toto (band)|Toto]].

Elefante focused on heavier music in the early 1990s, including the [[Guardian (band)|Guardian]] release, ''[[Fire and Love]]'', reaching regular rotation on MTV. He continued [[Mastedon]] with his brother.<ref>{{cite web|title=Mastedon: '80s melodic rock band led by the Elefante brothers|url=http://www.nolifetilmetal.com/mastedon.htm|publisher=No Life Til Metal|access-date=May 9, 2008}}</ref> The band's name is a pachyderm-inspired reference to the brothers' last name. Its albums feature multiple lead singers and performances by other artists, creating an eclectic sound anchored by Elefante's songwriting. His brother Dino was songwriter and main guitarist.

Mastedon's first release is ''[[It's a Jungle Out There!]]'' (1989). In 1990, the band released ''[[Lofcaudio]]''. This album continued the guest performance theme, though Elefante sang more of the lead vocals. Unfortunately, John and Dino's production schedule preempted any touring to commercially support the album (though the band did appear at least one Christian rock festival, [[Cornerstone Festival|Cornerstone]], in 1991). The albums charted at No. 25 and No. 10, respectively.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nolifetilmetal.com/mastedon.htm |title=No Life 'til Metal – CD Gallery – Mastedon |publisher=Nolifetilmetal.com |access-date=January 1, 2012}}</ref>

John and Dino Elefante formed their own record label, Pakaderm. Most of the music they produced in the next 10 years was released from it. With major distribution through [[Word Records]] and [[A&M Records]], Pakaderm became an important element in the brothers' success. Their label afforded them and their artists significant creative control, while still benefiting from major label resources.

With intense recording schedules in 1993, the brothers built their own {{convert|28000|sqft|m2|adj=on}} recording studio in [[Nashville, Tennessee|Nashville]], called Sound Kitchen. In addition to their own productions, the brothers planned to rent time in the studio to other artists and producers.