We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Joseph Walker a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Joseph, thanks for sharing your insights with our community today. Part of your success, no doubt, is due to your work ethic and so we’d love if you could open up about where you got your work ethic from?
My father was an international high school superintendent and my mother was a social worker, and I got a lot of my work ethic and practices from seeing their example growing up. My brother and I had after school jobs in middle school and high school, participated in work/study programs in college, and always left room in our lives for service and volunteer opportunities. That tendency has carried over to my adult life where I am constantly striving to achieve more and to surround myself with individuals who are equally driven to succeed, devoted to self-improvement, and aware and proactive when it comes to doing for others. Whenever I find myself struggling, I look back to the lessons learned from my father and mother and how they relate to the goals I’m currently setting or achieving.
Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?
Having grown up in South America for 17 years before moving to Minnesota instilled in me a passion for culture and sounds which I have been chasing after ever since. My name is Joseph Walker and I’m a musician and primary songwriter for my group, The Walker Brothers Band. My brother Jay plays keyboards and melodica, and I play guitar and sing, and have been writing songs for most of my life. I was fortunate to record my first album in Venezuela when I was 17 years old, which brought me success during and after my college years before an unscheduled 7 year break from music to focus on self-improvement. This break taught me the value of working on personal health first, and let me know that it’s okay to take some time off. Music and I found each other again in the Winter of 2022 and, making up for lost time, I connected with two other world class musicians to form the rest of my quartet in the Fall of 2023. With scheduled performances at Valley Fair and Music in the Parks (Roseville) and with out first Single (“Diamonds”) released on April 1, we are enjoying success and excited about the next steps in this journey. For more information, visit www.josephwalkermusic.com
There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?
The first quality that has positively impacted my journey is being genuine. When you’re authentic, people pick up on that and they respond authentically. Whether it’s taking an extra moment to express gratitude, not being afraid to ask difficult questions, getting the gig or inviting someone to be a part of project, being genuine in that communication goes a long way. Don’t be afraid to ask for advice! The second quality is being mindful. Having self-awareness and awareness of others takes energy, but more is wasted from neglecting mindfulness than anything else and time is our most precious resource. This goes back to having a clear mission, setting simple goals, and ensuring that there’s alignment between those areas and my daily or weekly actions. A big part of this is surrounding myself with a small handful of trusted people to assess my plans and direction, and being humble enough to listen to advice that requires me to change my point of view. That, and checklists. Lots and lots of checklists.
The third is being generous. Every step in this adventure has its uncertainties, but I know that as long as I’ve done the work ahead of time and that I show up with the correct attitude, doors will open no matter what. It’s incredible how many opportunities I have come across by simply showing up, and how many wonderful experiences I’ve had by trusting the process, and how many lessons I’ve learned by adopting the philosophy of a student. I believe that the more we give, the more we receive, whether it’s sharing the stage with other artists, giving opportunities to others, or being generous and giving in other ways, it always comes back tenfold. Just be sure to watch your energy, know your worth, and hold clear boundaries.
How can folks who want to work with you connect?
As a musician and songwriter, collaboration and partnership is a huge part of what we do. Whether it’s finding singers to breathe new life into an existing tune, musicians to team up with on finishing song ideas, producers or industry experts who can reimagine sounds or bring finished products to another level, there is no limit to the forms of collaboration in this business. With the technological advances we’ve seen in the past few years, my team and I have been able to find musicians and collaborate on recordings with individuals located in England, Colombia, Brazil, and Australia. This was unimaginable not so long ago, and is now one of the most cost effective ways to produce music.
Collaborators come from some unlikely places and times and often completely by chance. We might be a good fit for collaboration if you have a passion for the craft of songwriting, a love for music and lyrics, an interest in products in Spanish and Portuguese in addition to English, and can-do attitude and a unique personal take on music, images, words, symbols, design, or any other aspect of the music business. More information can always be found on www.josephwalkermusic.com and we would love to hear from you.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.josephwalkermusic.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/josephwalker_music/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61556077933776
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2xThqEkNbXU
- Other: https://open.spotify.com/track/3S8jKdIXmmj2VCagRs5b47?si=9103038798f74216
Image Credits
@pics_by_jans @Matt Buyens @Cali Carper
