Tell us about yourself and your music
My musical journey is a bit unconventional. I grew up in a household that appreciated music but by no means was anyone a musician. My mom whistled around the house and my brother and I played drums in the marching band. In high school I learned that I really thrives in front of a crowd so I decided to join the school musicals and ended up with the lead roles my last 3 years of school.
After that, I didn’t do much with music until a breakup about 2 years ago when I decided that I would try and win back my ex girlfriend by playing guitar and writing her a song. I had owned a guitar but always made an excuse for why I couldn’t play it. Well this breakup gave me the means and the inspiration for it. I quickly became obsessed with it, playing every day after work, at work, in my car or every chance I could.
Long story short after about 3 months, I hd written so many sad sappy songs that I wanted her to hear, so I mustered up the courage to play an open mic night at a bar right next to her house. Still she didn’t show up, so I played my three songs for the crowd and was going to finish up. Then the bartender came up to me and asked me if I could play more. At this point I knew about 12 songs so I played them for about an hour. Once I was finished, the bartender asked me if she could book me for the summer to come back for an actual gig. I didn’t know what that took so I went home, learned about 30 songs, one thing turned into another then by about three months, I was playing every day of the weekend and it was my “side job”
At the end of that summer, after being invited to play a couple music festivals, my patio gigs were starting to dry up and I was looking to keep playing so a friend of mine had recommended meeting one of her friends on the other side of Cleveland. The intention was so we could share different places for each other to play. After meeting her once, she asked if I’d ever be interested in playing music in Key West with her because someone had bailed last minute. Not knowing anything about her or Key West, I agreed and then left the following week.
When I was there, I loved it and figured out that I might be able to actually perform full time. When her and I were playing, we met someone that had given me their number Incase I ever needed a room if I decided to come back.
When I came back from Key West, I was working my job, selling paper and copiers when one snowy miserable gloomy Friday about two months later, I got in my car to look at the snow and said “I’ve gotta get out of here.” I text the person who gave me their number, asked if they had the room open and gave my two weeks notice and left Ohio.
I packed everything in my Jetta and headed south with no real plans or guarantees of success. All I knew was that I was never going to be happy behind a desk constantly asking myself “what if?” So far it’s been the greatest decision of my life and I’m enjoying every day of my adventure.
Talk to us more about your latest release
I released my latest (second) single titled “Hangover Baby” about two months ago. I was realizing some things when I came down to Key West and still hung up over my ex girlfriend, when one day I said to myself, “Dang man, she’s just a little hangover baby” because I couldn’t swear her off. Just like alcohol, even though you swear it never again, you end up drinking again.
So I wrote that song about whatever that thing is that you can’t swear off.
https://linktr.ee/Nickwalkerofficial
What inspired you to write this release?
Like I said, I feel like everyone has that something or someone in their lives that they can’t ever quit. This is my anthem to them.
Describe the writing and recording process
It’s crazy the different writing processes that go on every time I write a song. Sometimes I sit dormant for months without any good material that even can go through my brain and then there’s a month where it all just flows out.
I can sit down and mess around with a chord progression and the start singing along to it and that’s where some melodies come from. From there, it’s kind of a feeling. Literally one time I was playing a soft slow progression and then I said, “man it’s got me thinking about love or something” and then I wrote a song called “Thinin bout Love” that’s all about the time you spend with a woman in those early stages watching her make you think you love her.
it’s all different and that’s the best part.
Any plans to release a video?
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCeR4inMYpMR1RXMSg-z49yw
Any plans to hit the road?
Absolutely.
Come May I’ll be headed my way up South Florida all the way to Ohio. I’ll be stopping at a few places along the way (beach towns) then I’m headed to Put-in-Bay Ohio for a couple of weeks, headed back to Nashville, Savannah, Hilton Head, Myrtle Beach, Finger Lakes New York, Buffalo and Niagara Falls.
As an indie artist, how do you brand yourself and your music to stand out from the rest of the artists out there?
I feel like I’m just trying to be myself. It seems like Nashville has this mood that you have to fit into. I’m trying to float the main stream but at the same time trying to put as much of myself into my performing and writing at the same time.
Who have you been listening to lately?
I like to keep updated with what Nashville is doing so I listen to a lot of that. I find myself listening to a lot of Tom Petty, CCR , Southern Rock as well though when I have a chance.
Who are your biggest influences?
Biggest influences in music are the new songwriters that are paving the way. I really got into the country music scene when I started listening to Old Dominion. I knew they were writing these songs for other main stream artists at the time and it really got my brain moving and realizing people do write music for other artists and that’s how they take off. Them and Shane McNally we’re doing some awesome things with Sam Hunt and Kenny Chesney at the time when I started getting into music so they definitely are binge influences for me
Tell us about your passions
I mean I feel like the obvious answer here is music. I’ve always loved being on a stage, entertaining and being the center of attention. When I got into music it got me to realize I could turn that passion into a career, so I learned how to play guitar, learned how to sing and packed up my car to head for Key West where I’ve been for the last year. I’ve been obsessed with it ever since.
What else is happening next in your world?
I am actually currently gearing up and getting ready to go to Los Angeles for a preferred audition for “The Voice”. They reached out to me and had me come out there for an audition and I couldn’t be more excited for it.
Thanks for an awesome interview, Nick Walker
Connect with Nick Walker
Website: https://www.nickwalkermusic.comFacebook: https://m.facebook.com/nickwalkerofficial/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nickwalkerofficial/Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCeR4inMYpMR1RXMSg-z49yw
