When New London-based R&B vocalist and recording artist Brian "Brian Jai" Johnson was just 16 years old, his father recorded him belting out the holiday classic "This Christmas" into a microphone in his mother's Montville basement.

This year, the father and son teamed up to produce a duet cover of the 1968 Donny Hathaway hit and filmed a music video of the performance that features stunning views of downtown New London.

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The viral music video, which has garnered more than 6,700 views on YouTube this month, is set entirely downtown on Bank Street and State Street. As the first notes of the duet begin to play, the camera focuses in on the twinkling lights and shining ornaments on the city's Christmas tree.

Johnson, a New London resident and business owner, said he knew he wanted to record a holiday song this year and wanted to produce a video to go along with it. When he saw the tree downtown, he knew that's where he wanted to film.

"I'm from the area and there's no place better to do something like that than where you're from," the singer said. "And the way they set up the area downtown is super seasonal, it's got Christmas vibes and Christmas energy."

When he's not making his own music, Johnson also is a co-owner of two local businesses, Rhythm Lounge and The Hit Room studios, both located at 140 State St.

Johnson, 22, opened his first makeshift studio in Montville while he was still in middle school, after his dad, Robert Johnson, gave him some equipment. Growing up with the elder Johnson, a vocalist and DJ known as RJ the DJ, and vocalist mother Nancy Menhart, Johnson was destined to work in the music industry.

By the time he was 13, he had his first recording studio clients and had released his first EP, "Love Note," a collection of pop love songs.

While working on "Love Note," Johnson played in rock bands, testing out the drums and guitar, recorded his friends' beats and did whatever he could — from mowing lawns in the neighborhood to pooling his birthday money for a new computer — to pursue his dreams.

"For me to be able to chase my dream, I had to have money to be able to do so," Johnson recalled.

Eventually, he opened his first studio on Bank Street and began building a client list.

"I might as well use music to make the money I need to create music," he remembers thinking to himself.

Johnson taught himself to mix and master other musicians' work without any formal training or education — he learned it all from hours of YouTube tutorials, he said.

Now, as a business owner who is about to release his first full-length album, he set his sights on creating a new holiday hit of an old favorite song.

"I've wanted to release a holiday song for a while and this felt like the perfect time," he said.

Johnson said that this was the first time he and his father recorded a full song together and that it was a great experience for them both.

"It was a crazy feeling afterward to hear us both working together vocally," Johnson said.

The elder Johnson said that, as a musician himself, he's always loved watching one of his four sons follow in his footsteps, and that getting to work together with him on this song was a special bonding experience.

He also said he thinks the father-son dynamic helped with the song's success.

"I think it made a lot of people feel happy to see a Christmas song and see a father and son doing it together," the elder Johnson said. "I think it's (been so popular) because we showed the love that we have for each other and families enjoy it."

A New London resident, as well, he said he was excited to highlight the city and especially enjoyed the drone footage used in the video to capture expansive aerial views of downtown during the holiday season.

"People can see how pretty it is and people who come into New London this time of year can recognize it from the video," he said, noting how many folks in the area have recognized him from the video.

"We've always walked around downtown New London singing so it was great to do that with this song," he said. "We captured it at the right time."

In addition to filming the city sights, both father and son noted that many local businesses, including the Thames River Greenery and Northern Gems, can be seen in the video, which they both hope will help grow support for locally owned businesses.

The video was filmed and creatively co-directed by Groton-based Colin Strunk, owner of Elite Entertainment.

Strunk also is helping Johnson with the visuals for his first full-length album, "You Deserve It," which is set to be released Jan. 20.

t.hartz@theday.com