We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Joshua Higginbotham . We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Joshua below.
Hi Joshua , thanks for joining us today. We’d love to hear about a project that you’ve worked on that’s meant a lot to you.
I would have to say two meaningful projects I’ve worked on would be, putting out my first album “The Billi Show” as a music artist and having a track I produced off Mac Millers last album musically. I started as a music producer/musician, growing up in church I learned how to play instruments, which set the pathway for me to compose my own songs and starting my production career. I got into the game producing under the super producer duo Produced By THC. Under their network as a ghost producer, I started to get paid and work with major artist. I produced a track that winded up being placed with Mac Miller called “Wedding” that’s on his postpardomous album recently released last year called “FACES”. It’s a legendary placement and I’m glad I’m a part of his musical history for life. What’s funny is the production of the beat to me is ok, I say this meaning that it’s not necessarily my best beat and i made it in 2013 but all his fans love it. I’ve received messages about how that song has gotten people through hard times, read comments on the song on youtube, and some people have said it got them through high school. I love how my music through Mac has touched the world. My first album “The Billi Show” showed me I can do what the top artist I’ve produced for do and do it well, I reached heights I never thought I could with the release of both projects. So these two would be my most meaningful so far, I’m working on my sophomore project “Stuck To The Plan” which will be released this year, which will be my final release as an artist as I focus on getting my master’s.
Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers
I’ve been a musician and music producer for over 10 years. I worked with several major artists in the Hip Hop and R&B side of the entertainment business. I’ve worked with Nipsey Hussle, Casey Veggies, Tank, Siya, Mac Miller, Kendrick Lamar, Charlie Bereal, and several more independent to major artists. I also produce my own music as an artist from the beat production to the words to the performance, I do it all and help many artists in the industry do it too. What sets me apart is I’m a one-stop creative hub, I can write, produce, record, and play instruments, I know how to get music on all DSPs and I can set up legal services as well. I’ve toured the world with the artist as a DJ, and I’ve sold out shows independently at the Viper Room in Hollywood. I’m most proud of my consistency, I’ve been paid by the top labels and artists in this game, and I can’t wait to keep adding to my resume musically with my next release as a musical artist. I have a single called UDK ft ATibz and my album Stuck To The Plan. I went from just chasing music to becoming a UCLA student with honors on my way to getting my master’s in psychology. I did this so I can have a solid backup plan for my music career. I can’t wait to be done with school so I can have more resources to put into my music. This is a blueprint I encourage all my peers to follow.
Any resources you can share with us that might be helpful to other creatives?
Yes, I wish at the beginning of my career I knew what my percentage was in a song on any work I contribute to musically either by the music or the songwriting. As a creative you produce a track with no help, you own 50% of the song from the music side which is really 100% individual. If you write the song you’d actually own about 25% of the writing side which is about 75% of the song including the music side, if you write a song and produce it on your own like I do all my music, that’s 100% of the publishing you own. Most placed songs are collaborations with others so you split the pie according to the model of 100%. Legally the only way someone can change these numbers is by buying your own and having this in contact. If not you legally can sue and if you can prove your rights, you can get aid whats legally. Said all this to say, if I knew this when I first started I would have never been taken advantage of business-wise and lost so many placements, for example, when I worked under produced by THC I would accept random payments for $1500 as a broke kid trying to make money in music, that was a lot, little did I know when I accepted payments I lost all my publishing and rights to the beats they placed with the artist, If I knew I had money then or resources I could have got a lawyer but I didn’t and had to learn the hard way.
Have you ever had to pivot?
When the pandemic happened, the music industry closed completely. Right then and there I decided I wanted to have a better option that didn’t shut down the industry, to where I can always make money. in 2021 I went back to community college at Santa Monica College and I earned 3 degrees and graduated with honors in 2022, I got into UCLA where I double Major in Sociology and Psychology, and I plan on getting my masters hopefully at LMU and ill be able to be a school psychologist for kids K-12th grade and have a good job if needed for the rest of my life. Music treats me well, but I’m no Kanye, I still have ways to go and I’m working towards that daily in more ways than one. Education was the best choice to have while navigating the industry.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.joeebilli.com
- Instagram: @JoeeBilli
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/JoeeBilli/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joshua-higginbotham-75401993/
- Twitter: @JoeeBilli
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@joeebillivevo9113