Today we’d like to introduce you to Josue Guevara.
Josue, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
My love for music started in El Salvador. My great-uncle was a huge fan of the 60s and 70s rock, especially The Beatles, and he would listen all the time while I was there. He would teach me the chord progressions from the songs on a Casio mini keyboard and on his guitar. Fast forward 10 years later, now I’m in Texas, recording a Knon radio mix show on a cassette tape thinking to myself, “I wanna be a DJ.” I convinced my parents to buy me a 2-channel mixer, and I would connect 2 Discman portable CD players to it and mix songs back and forth, no tempo control, no effects, nothing, just the original songs, LOL. One day a friend of mine bought 2 turntables, and I would be at his house day and night learning how to spin. That’s when my friends and I created Proper Inc, which began as a group of 4 DJs and an MC. Pretty soon, I’d be DJ’ing in the Dallas circuit at different bars and clubs, playing music and making people dance.
That love of spinning evolved into producing and recording. I decided to attend Full Sail University and received my BS in Audio Production now, I have my own studio to continue producing, recording, creating, and continuing the Proper Inc name as more of a label/umbrella. Now I have Joe Sway Audio as my audio business under Proper Inc., And I still have 2 turntables I spin with from time to time.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back, would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
There have definitely been some challenges along the way. When I was DJ’ing, there’d be times where I wouldn’t get booked; gigs got canceled, I wouldn’t get paid, etc. All of this prepared me for a long road ahead in a competitive audio market. Gaining enough consistent clientele to keep my audio business going has been tough, but I still love what I do. Recording artists’ vocals and sound design gigs are the 2 of the areas where I’ve been working on increasing my clientele. The struggles in the DJ’ing world taught me to try different ways of getting gigs, I have that same mentality now, just trying different ways to gain more business. It also helps to have a corporate job.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
Joe Sway Audio is my audio business. I record vocals, instruments, foley, and audio. I also mix/master engineer songs for artists are wanting a much more professional sound. I also do sound design, sound editing, and all audio production. With my education and knowledge of different music genres, I’m able to satisfy all clientele requests. www.joeswayaudio.com.
Joe Sway is my artist and producer name. I mostly produce Hip Hop and Drum ‘n’ Bass/Jungle. My recent DJ gigs have been Drum ‘n’ Bass/Jungle having opened up for acts such as Diesel boy, Sound Weapon, DJ Fresh, Logistics, DJ Craze, and DJ Titan, who’s from Dallas, TX as well. Proper Inc is the umbrella/label for Joe Sway Audio, Joe Sway, and MC Mnemonic. Mnemonic is a local MC and rap artist from Dallas, TX, who is the original MC of Proper Inc. We are currently working on his LP. He is most known for his Drum ‘n’ Bass vocals and is also very talented as a hip-hop lyricist.
Where we are in life is often partly because of others. Who/what else deserves credit for how your story turned out?
I am surrounded by amazing people. From my parents and family to friends who have been supporting my aspirations since day 1 have all been such a huge part of my overall success. I’m truly blessed to have such an amazing support system. Shout out to the original Proper Inc crew, who all took a chance in chasing our musical dreams.
Pricing:
- Mix & Master $130
- Mixing $100
- Mastering $50
- Studio Time $50 per hour
Contact Info:
- Website: www.joeswayaudio.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/joeswayproper/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/joeswayproper
- SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/joe_sway_proper
