Today we’d like to introduce you to Joey Villalobos.
Hi Joey, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
I’m really just a guy that loves my family, cars, and playing guitar. Everything else came with it. My father was a guitar player, so I have always had a musical influence. I finally asked him to teach me something on guitar when I was 11. I also joined my school band as a trumpet player so I could learn to read music.
Guitar has kept me grounded and has always been an outlet for me to work through things. Before I knew it, people started to really appreciate my playing which motivated me to take it a little bit more seriously and practice. I grew up in Schertz, Texas and eventually I moved to Maryland when I was 13. In eighth grade, I won second place playing my own compositions on guitar in a talent show which boosted my confidence.
Right after that, I came back to Texas and immediately broke my right arm. I was devastated, but it still didn’t keep me from playing. In fact, my dad had to take away the guitars while I healed because I refused to stop playing, even with a broken arm.
In my sophomore year of high school, word spread about my playing and the band directors asked me to play guitar for the marching band instead of trumpet I became the first guitar player in the marching band for Samuel Clemens High School. I’ll always appreciate the faith that the directors and teachers put in me by giving me that opportunity.
I moved to Virginia my junior year of high school and even in a new environment, I seemed to get the same enthusiastic response as I did in Texas, and more opportunities to perform and write came. My Theater teacher approached me with an opportunity to choreograph scenes of a play to my music. I was inspired by seeing my music be part of something bigger.
After that, I spent one-year playing at venues along the coastline of Maryland, Virginia, and North Carolina. The shows were reasonably small and tame, but it was a different demographic up there, you know? In an effort to use the San Antonio music scene to move forward, I returned to Schertz and started a 3 piece band. We played around and picked up any gig we could. We got so desperate for a platform, we played in a McDonald’s parking lot.
Eventually, we parted ways but I had gotten my name out. I ended up running into other guitar players around San Antonio like Jyro Alejo. He was phenomenal so I was flattered when he asked me to play with him in Jessikill. It was good, I opened up to a lot of big names while I was playing with them.
We parted ways down the line and I stopped playing guitar altogether for months, which was the longest I had gone without playing since I had picked up a guitar. In 2016, I got a message from Mike Flynt (Riot V guitarist) asking if I could fill in for Nick Lee. This was a dream come true for me which pulled me out of my funk. The shows were great and I got a real taste of what it was like to be an established musician.
That run set me up for other bands to pick me up and gave me credibility. In 2019, I finally got the chance to audition for the band I had been coveting since I got back to Texas, The Heroine. It was so fast, we were on tour within 2 weeks. The Heroine is endorsed by Gibson, so when we made it to Los Angeles, the band stopped by the Gibson showroom.
Our rep gave me my Les Paul “Eleanor” and I was beyond ecstatic. Everything felt like it was falling into place. I remember walking down the sunset strip and all I could think of was all the band documentaries I had watched and the scenes of them playing on the strip. There was like a sense of euphoria when I got there. I was hooked and fell in love with the idea of making it to Los Angeles.
We played a phenomenal show at the Viper Room on that tour and the band got invited to play at Winter NAMM for the first time. I met my wife in August of 2019 at a show and I knew she was the one within the first hour of meeting her. We married in December of 2019. Everything was lining up perfectly, I was tripping on how fast everything was moving at this point.
The NAMM performance went incredibly well and opportunities were coming at me from all angles. The only problem was that the performance was in January of 2020… soon after everything shut down because of Covid and we lost steam fast. It wasn’t all bad when the shutdown happened. My wife told me the best news I could’ve heard in the midst of it all. I was going to have a second son!
The break gave me time to settle into married life and have a family of my own. Don’t get me wrong, the shutdown was a bummer because shows were put off indefinitely but I appreciated having time to focus on my new life. I worked tirelessly with Lynnwood (vocalist for the Heroine) at his other company, Vision Co., installing doors, windows, and cabinets.
After my son was born, my wife and I got enough funds together to move to Los Angeles and the lights started coming back on at all of the venues that had spent over a year vacant. Now that we have made it to the “new normal” The Heroine has put out an album, go on three tour runs and we are planning our fall tour now.
While we build-up for that, I am able to connect with Los Angeles artists and learn, grow and thrive.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Breaking my arm, hurting myself while working at numerous jobs, mental health, and moving to California were stressful.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I’m most proud of my music and guitar playing. My live performances. I like to think my talent and accomplishments set me apart from others. Come see me play live sometime and you’ll understand more.
We love surprises, fun facts, and unexpected stories. Is there something you can share that might surprise us?
I’m not very social at all and the networking that I have done so far has been out of my comfort zone.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.joeyvillalobos.com
- Instagram: Instagram.com/kitties_cars_guitars
- Youtube: https://youtube.com/channel/UCOgBhlp-ydi-pQ3s__ub40g
Image Credits
Stacey Lovett
