Meet Joe Allred | Singer-Songwriter

We had the good fortune of connecting with Joe Allred and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Joe, what role has risk played in your life or career?
No risk, no reward. No guts, no glory. Taking risks is everything. The other day I saw something my friend posted about how from ages 21 to 30 is the decade people give up on their dreams. If people are in that decade of life it is the refiner’s fire for those who will able to reach their dreams and those who will settle for school or a job. My dad is a pathologist (an MD) and he wanted me to be a dentist. For a while I thought that I would do that. But while I was doing my undergrad I was always writing songs. I would study all the time. But the only thing I would do more was play my guitar and sing. And it felt more natural than studying. As the years went on, while I was in school and writing songs I could see the crossroads getting closer everyday. It caused me extreme anxiety. I stopped sleeping. I would think about how I could mess up my whole life if I chose wrong. But that is where I go back to the feeling I get when I stand in front of a microphone and see people’s expressions change to words I wrote and sing. It was a huge risk not going to dental school and sacrificing my relationships and the prospect of always having a medical job that has insurance and pays well. But the music is in my soul and for better or worse I must go when it calls. Any other career, no matter how much it pays, would feel like a cage. Karma is real and fortune favors the bold, I did what scared me and I was rewarded. You need to jump off the cliff and then build your wings on the way down.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
What sets me apart from other artists right now, is that I am playing the guitar and singing differently. The great thing about being alive today is the sheer amount of influences I have been exposed to. There are elements of hip hop, soul, and rock in my songwriting. If Marvin Gaye, John Mayer, and Jimmy Page had a baby it would be Joe Allred.

I have been playing music since I was a child. I was classically trained on the piano. But things took off for me when I went to college at PSU and got in contact with the amazing producer and rapper Erik King. Things happened really quickly after meeting him. My songs got better, my following grew. This isn’t to say that it was easy though. There were very lean, hard times: but I kept on.

Making a career in music is exceptionally hard. But what I learned was: if it gets harder I need to lean in more. There is sunshine on the other side of the rain. I remember, literally, only having like $2 in my bank account the day I submitted my song “Lay Down” to my distributer. I woke up the next day and my song had all these streams. I remember crying because all the sleepless nights, all the parties I didn’t go to, and all my suffering had been validated overnight.

I want the world to know that attitude, optimism, and love are the strongest forces in the universe. People all working towards the same goal is a different type of power. A higher law. This is the light at the end of the darkest tunnel. This is the message of my music. This is love.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Peace Pies is fire! There is a pizza there for everyone. I get the veggie pizza there. The flavors are so fresh: olives, artichokes, tomatoes. You can’t go wrong. Cafe Gratitude has the best breakfast in the world. Bar none. Decadent strawberry waffles smothered in powdered sugar, coconut cream, and real maple syrup. After either of these there is nothing like a day spent at Sunset Cliffs, seeing the sunset there is a transcendent experience. Beginning the day or ending the day at Ocean Beach always has me smiling. Sometimes you have to go in the morning and at night.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I had a teacher named Diane O’hearn when I was in middle school. She introduced me to U2, Sting, and the book The Four Agreements. All of which have had a huge impact on my development and ethos. I didn’t really have a mother growing up and Diane stepped in. She didn’t have to, no one asked. It was as if she could see through all the noise that I needed a mother figure and she was that for me. The unconditional love she showed me has kept me warm on the coldest days and is a light to me on the darkest ones too. This love will burn like a fire in my heart forever. Thank you Diane.

Website: https://linktr.ee/joeallred

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/joeallredofficial/

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCQt6VePgleDbCXDSTfe-yeQ/featured

Other: https://open.spotify.com/artist/3G11G9JsM23Gk2eFq0ustc?si=0tQbJeVfR4mUqBcIuIbEaA&dl_branch=1

Image Credits
Christian Waite