It’s really great to finally get this amazing young country singer show over the line. Joshua’s Uk tour had been cancelled twice
With character-driven songs and an anti-Nashville look, Joshua Ray Walker has been winning hearts and ears since his debut in 2019 by fearlessly breaking the country music mold.In April Joshua made his Grand Ole Opry debut with “Sexy After Dark,” a rollicking anthem celebrating the giddy freedom of anonymity, alcohol and proximity of a packed bar late at night. Switching tone, he followed his first song with “Voices,” a dulcet, brooding first-person reflection on a moment of acute mental pain. While the playful energy of “Sexy After Dark” is instantly accessible, “Voices” asks the audience to slow down and listen. The Grand Ole Opry audience did just that, but couldn’t help erupting into cheers when Walker held the long, haunting falsetto note that concludes the song’s chorus. Appearing on the Opry’s stage remains a quintessential stop in any country musician’s career, and the Nashville institution holds a singular power to anoint stardom. And although 31-year-old Walker received a standing ovation at the prestigious venue, he isn’t your typical country musician.
A Dallas, Texas native, Walker’s music picks up where some of his state’s singer/songwriter greats like Guy Clark, Townes Van Zandt and Billy Joe Shaver left off. He grew up in a musical tradition that celebrated Willie Nelson and Waylon Jennings for rejecting rigid Nashville country norms and carving out the outlaw country genre away from Music City’s neon lights.