I think that whether you're a casual listener or a geek with encyclopedic knowledge, every music fan has at least one artist that they have to do a little campaigning for. You say that you like them and for any number of reasons, you encounter resistance from your peers and the questioning of your taste. So, you state a case - yours and theirs - to convince them that not only is your fanship justified, but that they should get on board.

For me, that artist happens to be John Mayer.

The popular blues-influenced singer/songwriter is a guy that I initially liked when I first heard "Room For Squares" back in college. And even though the majority of his material then consisted of Dave Matthews-esque acoustic pop gems that mostly provided guys and girls a suitable soundtrack for dorm room make-out sessions, I encountered little ridicule for my enjoyment.

Now, things have changed. The platinum-selling, Grammy-winning, Jennifer Anniston-dating superstar with compulsive Twitter habits is getting his share of backlash. If you see any article posted online on Mayer's music or personal life, the haters come out in droves. And personally, when he gets brought up in conversation or my friends walk in and see a framed concert poster on my apartment wall, I get a bit of flak. My music snob friends think he's a Dave Matthews knockoff. Musicians seem to appreciate his talent on guitar but say he's just copying the greats. Other people I've talked to think his music is boring. Everyone says that he makes some of the weirdest facial expressions while playing guitar.

First off, that last observation I totally agree with. Scientists are still trying to figure out what his muscles are doing to get that guitar face (no truth to this). In regard to the other claims, I always end up stating just how much of a rarity John Mayer is in today's popular music.

When you get past acoustic songs like "Your Body Is A Wonderland" and "Daughters," the two songs Mayer is most known for, he is probably the most successful blues-based artists out there today. How many blues artists do you know today who make consistent appearances on the Billboard pop charts? And when kids hear a John Mayer song sandwiched between Britney and Lady Gaga on Top 40 radio, they are hearing an artist whose music reflects influences from the likes of Curtis Mayfield, George Harrison, Marvin Gaye, Sting, Stevie Ray Vaughn and Fleetwood Mac. I can definitely live with that.

But what is more surprising is what Mayer has done outside of the blues genre. Sure, he's shared the stage with guitar greats like Eric Clapton, B.B. King and Buddy Guy. That's cool enough. But the guy also has appeared on hip-hop collaborations with Common and Kanye West and shared the spotlight on stage with country artists Brad Paisley and Taylor Swift, pop-punkers Paramore and hip-hop legend Jay-Z. Name another artist who can legitimately do all of that and not get laughed off the stage?

On Nov. 17, Mayer's fourth studio album "Battle Studies" comes out, and I plan on getting it. It's a concept album about the warfare that goes on in troubled or broken romantic relationships. Ideally, I would like the battle to convince other people that John Mayer should be better appreciated by more listeners. He might be a pop star, but at least he's a pop star delivering something much better than what we normally get.