We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Joe Michaels. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Joe below.
Joe, we’ve been so fortunate to work with so many incredible folks and one common thread we have seen is that those who have built amazing lives for themselves are also often the folks who are most generous. Where do you think your generosity comes from?
I think it was fostered by my parents and grandparents. We didn’t have a lot when I was growing up, but I had a really strong support system. My parents and grandparents taught me from an early age to be kind to others and treat everyone you meet with respect, regardless of their position in life. I feel like the generosity flows from that, if you treat people with respect you will always find a way to be generous with those people too.
Some people confuse generosity with money, and yes you can be generous with your money, but being generous with your time or your attention and giving back in some fashion is even more important. One of the ways I like to give back is to our veterans, police, firefighters, and their families. These brave men and women sacrifice more than we will ever know. They put their lives on the line every single day so we can live out our dreams. Without them making those sacrifices we would be living in a much different place.
Thanks for sharing that. So, before we get any further into our conversation, can you tell our readers a bit about yourself and what you’re working on?
Like so many of us here in Nashville, I’m a songwriter and artist. To an outsider, it might seem really glamorous and in some ways it can be. But it takes time, the right connections, a lot of hearing “no”, and being okay with that (and being able to keep going). You don’t just show up in Nashville and start making money from performing or from writing songs. Even the artists that seem like they just “blew up” have been here grinding away for years.
For me, the grind looks like this, up every day at 5 a.m., do about 2 hours of barn chores before I go to my “9-5” to pay the bills. Then I might be off to a cowrite, looking for pitch opportunities, band rehearsal, playing a show, or going to some of the local writer’s rounds to network. Networking is probably the single biggest thing you can do to help yourself in this town. ( I have to confess that I haven’t been doing nearly enough of that lately and need to get back to it.)
I think the thing that I’m most excited about is some of the new music I’ve been working on and writing. It’s edgy, gritty, and honest (not really mainstream country, but that’s never really been me anyway). I am excited to see other artists who are not mainstream getting recognition now, It gives me hope that people’s taste in country music is kind of getting back to its roots and hopefully as writers, we’ll see more publishing opportunities.
Over the last year, I’ve gotten to play on some pretty amazing stages, open for Scott Haggard, and Tyler Farr, play for our veterans, play the Nashville / Davidson County Fair, and a bunch of other cool stuff. This coming year I’d really like to focus on getting back into the studio and getting some new music out to y’all and maybe even a small tour.
Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?
The first is persistence, I know it’s cliche but it’s true, you have to have a never-give-up attitude. That is one thing that anyone who knows me will tell you, once I get a hold of something I do not give up.
Another quality would be being fearless. I am not afraid to put myself out there, to put my art in front of people. I was talking to one of my friends who is a veteran and writer as well, I said performing is probably a piece of cake compared to what he had done in the past. I was really shocked when he told me that performing his own songs seemed more stressful than the things he had done in the Army. He said, “When you play a song that you wrote you are putting yourself out there for everyone to judge and criticize and making yourself really vulnerable which you can’t do in war.” Not that I’m comparing getting on stage to going to war, I just found his perspective to be really interesting.
The final quality is faith. Things don’t always go like you think they should, and sometimes it’s really easy to get down on yourself, but I have faith in God that no matter what, I am where I’m supposed to be at that moment. I may not be where I think I should be but there is a reason why God leads us down a certain path and sometimes that journey needs to be a little longer. Faith gives me the strength to be persistent and fearless in whatever I do.
As far as advice, I would say do the work, put in the time, get a coach (or two), never give up, and always have faith that you will get to where you want to be.
How can folks who want to work with you connect?
I’m always looking to write with other artists and writers. I like writing with people who complement my style but I also enjoy writing with artists and writers who are outside of “my box”. Writing with people from different genres or styles can really expand your ability to look at your songs differently and you will always come out a better writer or artist.
So if someone wants to connect (writers, producers, publishers, record labels or just a fan) the best way is through email which can be found on my website.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://joemichaelsmusic.com/home
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/joemichaelsmusic
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/joemichaelsmusic
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/joemichaelsmsc
- Youtube: https://youtube.com/channel/UCgGTwJ5x1AMzAvkmZec18FA
- Other: Tik Tok –https://www.tiktok.com/@joemichaelsmusic
Spotify –https://open.spotify.com/artist/699LALJKemik0Doijtj7r5
Image Credits
Artisan Imagery Nashville
