Music City is an outlaw town. Drawing inspiration from the likes of Johnny Cash, Bob Dylan & Willie Nelson, Josh Gray has begun planting his own roots in the heart of Americana-Nashville, TN. After three years in writing, Songs of the Highway debuted in April (2019), setting the scene for progressive rebellion and lending a voice to the disenfranchised. On this 11-track LP, Josh Gray challenges the establishment and his listeners to act instead of acquiescing to circumstance.
An old soul in a new age, Gray rallied fans in a 30-day Kickstarter campaign generated by the power of social media; raising almost $9,000 to help complete the project. Recorded at the renowned Bomb Shelter in Nashville, TN, Josh Gray called on the assistance of an all-star cast to bring Songs of the Highway to life.
In this interview spotlight, I chat with Josh Gray about the latest project, challenges, technology and more.
Full Q&A along with links and music below.
Where are you from and what style of music do you create? (In your own words, not necessarily in marketing terms or by popular genre classifications.)
I’m originally from San Francisco, CA but I grew up in Maryland. My music is a mixture of everything I listen to. There’s blues, rock, folk, country, bluegrass. Some songs on this new album are more rock, some are more folk/Singer-Songwriter. I don’t really care how it’s classified as long as people are listening.
What led you down this path of music and what motivates you to keep going?
It started with writing bad poetry when I was younger. Then I got a guitar and played bad melodies. I put them together and wrote bad songs. Then fast forward fifteen years and I was writing what I consider good songs. I stuck with it and really paid attention to the art of songwriting.
I’m motivated by the need to create. I travel through the world with the eyes and ears of a songwriter. I take notes and record memos all the time.
How is this new release different than previous ones? Were you trying to accomplish anything specific?
My previous release was a stripped down EP featuring just me and a guitar. This new full length album has some stripped down songs but for the most part it’s full band. We also brought in a bunch of guest artists. This is the album I’ve always wanted to make.
Name one or two challenges you face as an indie musician in this oversaturated, digital music age? How has technology helped you (since we know it does help)?
The real challenge is just attempting to cut through the clutter and have your music heard.
One way technology helps is having instant feedback and discussions directly with fans which is invaluable.
What was the last song you listened to?
Last song I listened to was Dave Van Ronk’s version of “He Was A Friend of Mine.” I was driving from Knoxville back to Nashville with the band and we were listening to an old folk playlist I had created.
Which do you prefer? Vinyl? CDs? MP3s?
Vinyl is my favorite, it’s the one format that isn’t really portable. It takes effort to get up and switch songs. You sit there and listen to whole albums in the order they were intended.
I still buy CD’s, I like having the booklet and case. I like seeing where songs were recorded and who played what.
Mp3’s are convenient, I get it. But there’s also something depressing as an artist to Mp3’s. You spend all this time making your album sound great only to have it majorly compressed. Not only that but this is the only way most people will hear it.
How about this one…. Do you prefer Spotify? Apple Music? Bandcamp? Or something else? Why?
I think Spotify is the best right now for playlists alone. Collaborating on playlists and discovering new songs through them.
Where is the best place to connect with you online and discover more music?
You can find my music on www.joshgraymusic.com . Join my email list to see when I’ll be in your area and get a free download of my song “Ghosts.”
Anything else before we sign off?
Do me a favor and give the album a listen. If you like it and want to buy it that really helps us out. If you don’t have the money I totally understand, follow me on Spotify. The band and I just want to get our music out there. Thanks for the interview!
