Reinvented: Willie Joe

My mother once told me that you never get old as long as you keep growing. I live by that. I see people all the time who seem stagnant in their lives and jobs, primarily because they don’t see a place for growth in themselves. You have to applaud people who find a way to extend their life by finding something new. 

I look at my guest today as someone who also practices that theory. 

When I first met Wille Joe, he was on stage rapping songs from his latest mixtape. At the time, the Vallejo native was one of the many young artists in Atlanta who were primed to blow up and become the next big thing in hip-hop. Signing with Jazze Pha was supposed to be the first step. 

As it is in music, not everything turns into gold. After signing with the producer, Willie parted ways with his label after a lack of movement in his career at the time. He would take a break and take it back to the bay. That’s where he got back to his roots and revitalized his music career. He even made a song that became a bay area classic during that time.  

As fate should have it, rather than Willie becoming that next hip-hop star, he became the person who would help develop the next hip-hop star. 

Today, Joe is head of A&R at Generation Now. Founded by Dj Drama and Don Cannon, the label is the home for the likes of Lil Uzi Vert and Jack Harlow. Joe has found a new calling and is thriving and growing in it. 

For this episode, Willie and I reminisce about his past music career, barely missing out on the hyphy movement, going back to the bay and creating a classic, pivoting into an executive role, and the rise of Jack Harlow and his favorite strains. 

Stream our full interview now. 

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