Episode 5: Joseph - “Fighter”
When it comes to the members of the band Joseph, music runs in their blood.
Possibly quite literally.
The folk-pop trio is made up of Natalie Closner Schepman and her younger twin sisters, Allison and Meegan Closner.
The talented siblings seem as though they’ve been singing together for their entire lives, but that’s not necessarily the case.
Natalie had been actively working on a solo music career for several years, having been classically trained in college, but was feeling as though something was missing. That’s when she had the idea to recruit her sisters to sing harmonies on one of her tracks…and everything finally came together.
While speaking with Paste in 2016, Natalie recalls the goosebump-inducing instant she realized it was time shed her solo career in favor of a project with her sisters.
“So I had the idea to invite Meegan and Allie in at that point, and then when we actually started singing together, it was like, ‘Wow! This important! This needs to happen!’” she recalled.
The Portland-based group went on to self-release their debut album Native Dreamer Kin in 2014. Their first major label release came two years later with I’m Alone, No You’re Not via ATO Records.
When Joseph recorded with us in Detroit, they were on tour promoting their 2019 record Good Luck, Kid, which had dropped just days earlier.
The album was met with praise from fans and critics alike thanks to their stellar songwriting and trademark three-part harmonies, and reached number four on Billboard's Heatseekers Albums chart. It also took on a more pop-heavy sound for the trio, thanks in part to their collaboration with producer Christian "Leggy" Langdon.
“This guy was an underdog,” Natalie said of Langdon in an interview on Acoustic Cafe. “He doesn’t have a lot to his personal credit yet. But our manager knew him through another project and was like ‘You gotta give this guy a chance.’”
“With us being what we are, we need a producer to really bring it, because they’re kind of creating this whole landscape,” she continued. “And we came in and he had put something together for ‘Fighter’ and we were just totally blown away.”
Episode 5 of The District Sessions featuring “Fighter” can be seen above.
With a career that began with performing at intimate house shows and crowd-sourcing their albums and gigs, Natalie, Meegan and Allison recognize how far they’ve come, and they continue to be moved by how they’ve been embraced by fans and the industry.
“We’ve been totally taken under the wing of [other artists],” Natalie said on Acoustic Cafe. “Amos Lee has been incredible. He’ll just text me ‘How ya doing? Are you hanging in there, kid?’ And James Bay…He’s always putting our name out there.”
“People have been so good to us,” she added. “It’s helped to have those mentors because it’s insane. It’s the Wild West.”
While the band waits to get back to touring, they have continued to make music remotely through some social-distanced recording projects and online concerts, which can be found on their various social media platforms.
We can’t wait to see what’s next from Joseph. Once you hear their music, you’ll be a fan for life.
Be sure to follow the band on Instagram and Facebook for all of their latest updates, and check out their website to purchase and download their music.