A sit-down with Joey Stuckey

Hey Joey!! 2019 is coming to a close – share with us what has been happening in your world in 2019!

It has been a really busy year full of changes that have brought both exciting new opportunities and some new challenges that I have tried to meet with humor and digaty LOL.

I have been performing a lot and it has been a real joy to meet so many new fans and interesting people with their own stories to share! We have truly been road runners, driving for 5 hours to play a show in Nashville, then playing the show and driving back to Macon, all in one day and to have the very next day hop a plane to LA for several shows. We also did a 6 hour drive there and back to perform in South Carolina, but again so worth it!

I released a new record recorded at the famous Sun Studio in March of this year called “In The Shadow Of The Sun” and that is the record we have been touring behind. But in July, I got an opportunity to record some Christmas music, so I released my first Christmas project on 10/31 of this year and we have been doing really well with radio play in the EU and UK with over a hundred and fifty stations playing my original song “Santa That Plays Guitar” and here in North America, we have about 50 stations that picked the record up.

I have also have fun having two custom guitars made for me this year by my friend and luthier  Danny Boyles and I have also been playing Furch Guitars which are amazing!

This year, I started teaching music technology at a second university and I have so enjoyed getting to share the art and science of recording with students!

I also finally got my wife, Jennifer, to watch “Game Of Thrones” with me and we are currently binge watching “The Mandalorian”.

So, it has been really crazy but wonderful!!!

Can you share with us what your creative process is like when you sit down to write new music?

Writing is like any other skill. There are times when you might be a little short on inspiration but you can slog though and write knowing that if today isn’t the best writing day, tomorrow will be better. I really never have writer’s block and part of the reason is that I have lived so much and had such an eventful life that I have lots of stories to tell. As a child I had a brain tumor. That tumor took my sight and also left me with some other health challenges that I have to deal with every day.

I also write for a verity of different projects, not just music. I have been a music journalist for years and write a lot of articles and of course spend time being interviewed, like now LOL and I also write technology blogposts for my students and others, so I think variety is the spice of life and I have a lot of that to draw upon.

But, basically, I can sit down anytime and write something. My typical process is to let ideas germinate in my mind. I will reflect on a topic for a bit, not really trying to write anything, just think. Then when I sit down, I do the work on writing those ideas in musical form. I will go as far as my inspiration will take me and then let the song sit for a bit, just a few days. Then I’ll come back and if I still like what I have I will then refine using my training as a professional musician to sand off the rough edges and I am all done and ready to move on to the next project.

When I first get that inspiration for a song, I hear the lyrics, melody and chords all at once— they come to me as a complete concept. I also usually hear the drums and bass as well. Then later I’ll add other arrangements like horns and strings, if needed.

How much revising do you do when writing a song?

Usually very little. Again, most of it comes all at once and I either like it or don’t LOL.

Tell us if you had to pick one – what would be a good theme song for your life?

Hmmm, “The Pink Panther” song—it is kind of sexy and kind of silly and a great well-written and recorded song, so you got it all LOL!

Do you prefer pen and paper or a computer when you write lyrics, or does that not matter?

As a blind guy, if I use a pen and paper I won’t be able to read it and neither will you—LOL. So I have to type on the computer using my speech software or get someone to write it down or I just pull out the iPhone and record the idea on the voice recorder.

Anything else you would like our readers to know?

Never give up on your dreams. If a blind brain tumor survivor with a metal hip and metal shoulder can do it, so can you!

List your social media link and Spotify please so our readers can find you.

Christmas EP website https://found.ee/stuckeychristmas 

YOU TUBE: https://www.youtube.com/user/SenateRecords 

TWITTER: https://twitter.com/Jstuckeymusic 

IG https://www.instagram.com/jstuckeymusic/ 

End of Interview