"Goin' Up" With Joey Golden
We had a sit down with artist Joey Golden to chat about his latest single and his creative routine and processes.
Fresh from working with real life producers TeedotEinsoff and Thxk_U BKA Lo_Tek, Joey Golden dropping the first single “Goin up” from my entirely AI produced project from my FTW (for the win) series. The 3rd installment will be all AI produced beats designed, prompted and therefore after mixed by Joey Golden. “Goin Up”
We sat down with artist Joey Golden to chat about his latest single “Goin’ Up” prod. by William Niltshire Esq. and we talk about that and quite naturally the conversation ends up taking a bunch of twists and turns, we end up talking about the importance of routine in your creative process, why it’s important to be grounded in yourself and views whilst pursuing your goals, and our thoughts on the music industry and where it’s headed.
I’m going to preface with, this was a very eventful conversation, we were almost at the 2 hour mark when we decided to bring you all on the journey next time so expect a part TWO in the future and on a different medium (perhaps).
HIP HOP IS BACK.
It never truly left but people like Joey Golden remind us why we love this art form so much. Full transparency with you all, the hip-hop genre has been BORING me the past couple of years with the exception of a handful of artists but its an art form like any other that has people that truly love the art and continue to refine it. Joey Golden is that guy. A true student, connoisseur, fan, you name it. But he’s someone that truly loves this art form and it shines through beautifully in his music. His bars, his flow, cadence, passion and most important subject matter, are all things that embody what the art form is. He DOES this. It’s a part of who he is.
His latest single “going up” takes us on a stroll through Joey’s evolution as an artist and as a person:
“This song is a raw and powerful anthem about breaking free from old cycles and reinventing oneself. It captures the emotional toll of transformation—shedding the past to embrace the new, but with a hardened edge of cynicism that lingered due to the verbal torment we overcame. It’s a visceral journey of struggle, growth, and the complicated aftermath of self-discovery, told through gripping lyrics and evocative melodies.” - Joey Golden
In our conversation, we talked about Joey’s decision to separate himself from the things this world has normalized and how that helps him continue on this path.
“I made a decision about 15 years ago to be out of the loop, I don’t want anything else, I want to be me, practice the art. That’s all I want to be a part of. I don’t care for the groups or what anyone else is doing, I just want to be me.”
As artists, we are constantly being pulled in one direction or the other and the world is constantly trying to tell us what they think they want us to be which completely rejects and goes against what artistry is.
We end up feeling stuck, frustrated, and abandon the craft all together. To Joey, the antidote to that is to carve your own lane and stay in it but while you’re in it, look around, take it all in, and create your own narrative. You don’t have to continue to succumb to what the “industry standards” are. Be you, first and the rest will figure itself out.
There was something that really stood out to me in our conversation and it’s how Joey mentioned that he doesn’t get creative blocks. As someone who deals with this more often than I’d like to admit, my ears perked up. He discussed how the antidote to writers/creative blocks is to go out into the world and to simply exist. Observe it, Take it all in. Look at the trees, birds, fully submerge yourself in the minutiae of the world around you. Unplugged without any agenda. It’s nearly impossible to be blocked if you’re taking the world in with this perspective. This was such a simple and yet substantive take because it really IS that simple to be an artist. We allow all these outside influences and perspectives to tell us otherwise.
It really isn’t that deep. Just create what you feel called to and keep showing up. Joey is someone that speaks life into the world by simply existing. I felt motivated and encouraged to reexamine how I view my artistry throughout this conversation and then he dropped this gem on us:
“What’s for me, is for me. I don’t have to do the extra stuff to get what I want, you just have to keep showing up as yourself. Fight the good fight, stay honest, and it has already happened, just keep moving towards it.”
That’s it. It’s that simple. Don’t over complicate it. Get comfortable with yourself and show up authentically every day, in everything you do and keep moving forward. The rest will unfold and fall into place as its meant to.
Check out Joey Golden’s latest single and all of his other works here:
If you’d like to continue to support all of the great art Joey is creating, check out his stuff here on Bandcamp.
