Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Joshua Keever. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Joshua, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. How did you learn to do what you do? Knowing what you know now, what could you have done to speed up your learning process? What skills do you think were most essential? What obstacles stood in the way of learning more?

Most of what I know I’ve either taught myself or shadowed others that know what they’re doing when it comes to music performing, engineering, and production. When I started out I was super averse to doing things the way that other people do, and in doing so I stood in my own way of learning so much. It’s difficult to be part of the music machine but it’s also crazy hard to not get in my own way. I’ve spent a lot of years (and therapy) working on understanding myself better to figure out why I do what I do so I can grow as a person and as an artist.

Hands down the most essential music skill I’ve learned is how to properly understand a the function and purpose of a compressor in both studio and live mix situations. I produced my own music for 7 YEARS before I learned about compressors because I was too stubborn to go online and learn (PLEASE don’t follow my example). Knowing concepts like EQ and compression can help up your music creation game across the board. Artists can also benefit from a better appreciation of live audio engineers and producers who use these tools on almost any sound that needs to be mixed.

One other skill I think is really important is to have a basic knowledge of keyboarding and music theory. In the age of siq beats it’s not that important to know either of these because you can make great, great music without them. However, knowing a bit of theory can help you understand how your chords and melodies are working together to create the structure of your song. It’s like loving pie, baking a pie based on intuition, then learning HOW and WHY the ingredients and process work together to make said pie so damn tasty. Now I’m hungry.

It’s important to seek and listen to people who DO know what they’re doing so you can apply their knowledge to your own craft. There’s obviously a ton of info on YouTube which can make learning a lot easier if you don’t know someone. With a bit of searching online you can find your way into communities of like-minded people who will be more than excited to share what they’ve learned with you. Artists and audiophiles are nerds and love to talk about it (Thanks for the interview, CanvasRebel!).

As difficult as is to be part of the music machine it’s also super hard to not get in my own way! I’ve spent a lot of years (and therapy) putting my past behind me so I can stop walking backwards through life.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I’m primarily a songwriter and producer of my own music, though I have a background in live sound and studio production/performance for other bands and projects. My whole life I’ve orbited the music industry and made efforts to get past the entrance barrier so I’m really thankful for a few important people that have helped me get my foot in the door. Then again, I’m not sure if there really is an “entrance barrier” to working in music but for it felt very real to me and I had no idea where to start. I can at least say I didn’t get here on my own. Creatives are a lot more independent than before when it comes to building a career but I still think everybody needs a little help at some point.

I’ve slowly stepped away from working on other projects so I can focus on producing and touring my own music. I’ve been working with Cloudscape Records for the last few years to setup the brand and build a road map (literally and figuratively) to get us playing live and things are going really well! It feels really good to take my songs out of the bedroom (where I do most of my work) to the stage, especially after helping other artists push their own projects for so long. Most of my songs have pretty storied histories because I tend to work on them over long periods of time. There’s a lot of magic to be found in capturing a special moment with a song but there’s also something to be said about writing over the span of many moments and finding the magic in each one. It can be tough to carry around unfinished and potentially really great song ideas for so long but it’s always worth it.

That all said, we’re doing a west coast tour from July 25-Aug 4 2024! Hop on over to to https://linktr.ee/jjbravesofficial and find the show near you! (If this article is posted after the tour then I just want you to know it went great)

Is there mission driving your creative journey?

I’ve wanted to do this since I was 5 years old. A lot of life can get in the way of a lot of things and that’s pretty much how it went but at this point I’ve got a great opportunity and powerful dreams of the future. I’ve spent too long stagnant. 2024 is my year.

How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?

Jeez, I put my entire life on hold for years to work in the church as a tech director and worship leader before leaving for good. I gave up everything and dedicated myself to my faith and the church community because I felt at the time it was the answer to all my problems. Through a lot of complication and hardship I found myself on the other side of belief looking for answers and not knowing what to do with my life. It was a really dark time but I figured I’d put all my eggs in the music basket and see what happens since I really felt I had nothing to lose. It’s taken me down a lot of weird backroads and hectic main drags but now that my show is on the good road it all feels a lot more tangible. Everything feels like it’s led to this moment and I’m so thankful for how things have gone so far. There’s a ton of hard work ahead but it’s gonna be worth it.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://linktr.ee/jjbravesofficial
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jjbravesofficial/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jjbravesofficial/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/jjbravesmusic
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@jjbravesofficial
• Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/jjbravesofficial