Super-talented Dutch-born artist from half Caribbean, half West African descent, and producer Joshua J is back with a hot new track. The fresh tune ‘Call Me’ continues his impressive body of work as the first record from his upcoming ‘Better Times’ EP.
‘Call Me’ rocks a golden summer vibe with its hazy electric piano chords and languid guitar licks. A melancholy intro cuts against Joshua’s uplifting voice, soon dropping into the lush harmonies of the chorus and deep grooving hip-hop beat that recalls J. Dilla at his finest. His mellifluous, melodic delivery weaves throughout the track, the short and sharp verses never overstaying their welcome as the sweet production keeps things moving.
The official music video of ‘Call Me’ will follow on February 19th along with the second single ‘No Reply’. The ‘Better Times’ EP is comprised of six tracks that were written in 2019 right after the release of his debut album ‘1998’.
Joshua J: “These two records came about right after I went through my first break up. On ‘Call Me’ I’m basically saying that the person who I used to date can always call me if she needs a hand to hold. On ‘No Reply’ I explain that I’m not settling for anything less than what I’m envisioning. Everything that doesn’t meet the expectations will receive ‘no reply’.”
Joshua J: “‘1998’ was about my youth growing up in foster care, away from all biological family members except for my younger sister. On the ‘1998’ release day I moved away from a village to live in Amsterdam. After making that decision I started making notable developments on both musical and personal levels. I became surrounded by more like minded individuals and got some really great opportunities because of the album’s release. For the first time it felt like I could leave behind the hardships I went through and focus more on the now. The ‘Better Times.”
Joshua J’s previous music has received praise from the likes of Dr. Dre, Complex, EARMILK, Julie Adenuga, and Noisey, and he has supported leading artists including Anderson.Paak, Boyz II Men, and Saba in the live arena. Making a big impression in the US and the UK, he is one of only a few Dutch singers making waves in the international arena.
ABOUT JOSHUA J
The youngster kicked off his musical journey at an early age. He started taking classical piano lessons at only six years old. It didn’t take long for people to notice that music ran through the veins of little Joshua J!
When he went on to high school he found out about DJ’ing. He joined DJ classes and was mentored by one of the greatest turntablists from the Netherlands, ‘Dj Sueside’. Sueside has a impressive track record. All throughout the 90s he deejayed for one of the most legendary HipHop groups ever called the ‘Wu Tan Clan’. He took Joshua J under his wing and guided by his experience and knowledge Joshua J started competing in several DJ’ing competitions. In 2016 he won the first prize in the biggest national DJ competition called ‘Dancetour’. This victory got him spots on MainStages of the biggest festivals his country had to offer like: Dancetour, Amsterdam Open Air, 7th Sunday, We Are Electric, Mysteryland, and Amsterdam Dance Event.
During his time as a DJ Joshua J figured out how to make his own beats using Logic Pro X. What started off as pre-mature-sounding instrumental sketches grew out to the release of his very first instrumental EP, called ‘Flowers’ which saw the light of day at the end of 2017. The independently released EP came in at the ‘Best of the week’ chart in 29 countries on Apple Music. This impressive achievement was followed by a placement in ‘New Music Friday USA’ (Spotify) and eventually getting co-signed by Dr. Dre in his ‘Beats of the week’ playlist on Apple Music!
Then something special happened..
While sitting in his bedroom studio in the attic of the foster home Joshua J grew up in, he started working on a beat consisting of a guitar sample and some drums he recorded.
For once he decided to write something himself and use his own vocals. What started out as an innocent experiment grew out to be one of his biggest successes yet.
Unaware of his vocal talents he finished the song and releases it independently on the 23rd of February (2018).
The song called ‘Lock My Door’ hit a million streams on Spotify in NO TIME!
It got media coverage by Noisey and Wonderland Magazine (UK), airtime on national and international radio and it was the kick-off of a major switch in both Joshua J’s life and career. As a result, he decided to leave DJ’ing for what it was to develop his writing abilities and performance skills.
On his 20th birthday, he released his sophomore EP called ‘Forbidden Fruits’ which contained out of six vocal-driven songs that were written and produced by Joshua J himself. Shortly after the release of ‘Forbidden Fruits’ he got invited to join up-and-coming Canadian artist ‘ODIE’ on his ‘Anologue Tour’, and play as an opener in one of the most iconic venues in Amsterdam.
On March 8 of 2019, Joshua J released his debut album called ‘1998’. 1998 tells the story of his difficult childhood years growing up in foster care. The album got picked up by blogs like Complex UK, Earmilk, London in stereo, and Hunger Magazine. It got support by Julie Adenuga on her Beats1 show and it even led up to Joshua J playing support acts for artists like Anderson .Paak, Saba, Boyz II Men, Col3trane and Thecolorgrey.
5 months after the release of his debut album Joshua J announced his first headline concert ever in Amsterdam. The Venue sold out and Joshua gave a very memorable debut show! Two months after he announced a second headline show at the ‘Soho House Members Club’ in Amsterdam.
The journey of Joshua J is a special one.This young adult breathes music. The passion and dedication he puts into his craft shine through everything from his lyrics to his artworks, and from his video’s to his live performances on stage.