His studio apartment was nestled comfortably down a side street of south east London. An area where leaving your front door open is not traditionally regarded as a good idea.

Instruments, amps, and recording apparatus litter the apartment. They are connected by leads that snake across the floor, like the roots of some sort of mechanical creature, breathing through the hum of equipment.

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Joe is 20 and looks his age, with a friendly but boisterous face, not usually associated with a highly skilled jazz pianist and vocalist. Having opened for the likes of Ady Suleiman and Ed Sheeran, Joe was raised in a small village on the outskirts of Portsmouth.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

“There was nothing there, I was sat down at the piano for hours and hours a day because it was all there was to do.”

From the age of ten, Joe learnt the keys exclusively by listening to his favourite artists and mimicking them, he explains: “I was just listening, ripping them off, and then finding my own way.”

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At 14, Joe was introduced to a new means of expressing his unconventional style. “I found the freedom I wanted in music, I found jazz,” Joe says.

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 He was immediately hooked, and at 16, accepted into a specialist jazz college.

The prospect of singing in front of huge crowds is one that for most people is confined to nightmares. For Joe, it is a regular occurrence. However, this was not always the case.

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Joe says singing was “something I couldn’t do, and other people could”. He would only sing backing vocals and his uncertainty about his voice slowly grew into a paralysing fear. He says: “Opening up and singing felt so personal, I struggled to expose myself like that.”

Then everything changed. Joe lost his father over summer break 

at college and turned to music, particularly singing, as an outlet for his pain. He explains: “It really changed things… I spent a lot more time alone…singing became my coping mechanism.”

After finishing school, Joe moved to London to study at Goldsmiths, University of London, looking for a fresh start, “It’s inevitable, as a musician you’re always going to end up in London,” he says.

Moving to London and establishing his new identity as a musician, he described as a revelation. He says: “The moment I sat down all the fear just went.” As Joe speaks I notice his fingers tapping rhythmically on the desk, perhaps the pianists curse, a constant state of composition.

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Making contacts through university, and while gigging around London venues, he met artists and producers including rapper Piers James and singer Isaac Waddington.

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Joe released his debut track, ‘Enjoy the Ride’ in late 2018 after collaborating with Isaac and Mathilda Homer. “I didn’t know what was gonna happen, but that song got a great reception and gave me a huge confidence boost,” Joe says.

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The song blew up on Spotify, catapulting him into the spotlight. He was then invited to support Ady Suleiman on London dates.

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Joe’s tempestuous journey, from a lost little boy playing piano in his bedroom, to sitting at the keys in front of 40,000 people at Chantry Park.

 

Supporting Ed Sheeran, Joe’s biggest performance of his career, he says that when he got on stage his nerves vanished: “I got behind the keyboard and it was just me and the band…I was so caught up in the moment. Then it was over and I was like, what the fuck just happened?”

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Offhandedly he mentions that he and the band caught up with Ed after the gig and had a few drinks with him: “He’s a really genuine guy, really down to earth.”

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Having released his debut album ‘Comfort Zone’ just 2 months ago, it is available on all major music streaming services.  Joe’s modesty and understated manner make his achievements that much more incredulous. However, he still doesn’t feel that he’s clear of the grind.

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“There is a very slim chance of making any money out of music, and that’s my drive to do it…I love that risk.” I realise as I leave the cluttered apartment, and close the door behind me, that it is strangely appropriate: a musician that lives for risk, who never locks his doors.