Meet Stephen Walker

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

Hi Stephen, why did you decide to pursue a creative path?
I grew up in a musical home. I remember being in junior high and having the realization that not everyone’s dad played an instrument. That was weird to me ha! So really, the creative/artistic side of things for me has always sort of been there. Doing music as a ‘career’ wasn’t really a thought until later in to high school.

I grew up in Katy and went to a local church called Grace Fellowship. Wayne Kerr, a Houston based recording artist also happened to call Grace Fellowship home. Wayne traveled as an independent christian recording artist as his ‘job’ at that point in time and I got to see some of the ins and outs of what that looked like. I think he helped paint a picture for me of the possibilities of pursuing music as more than just a hobby. Jimmy Needham, another christian recording artist also attended Grace when I was in high school and he was closer in age to me. So getting to know him some and see his path to doing music as a career also set an example for me of what was possible. I didn’t realize until I was out of college just how rare it was for me to see someone, let alone two someones, pursuing their passions as a ‘career’.

It sort of freed me up from the ‘how do I do that?’ thinking or ‘is that even possible?’ thinking to realize my passions are worth pursuing, period. Both of those guys didn’t necessarily start out thinking I’m going to make a career out of this…they just were bold enough to say I’m going to live in to this passion that God has put on my heart. That was super influential for me in terms of why I have pursued a career in music.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
I have played music for most of my life. When I was in high school, I joined the student worship band (which was a new thing at our church). My buddy, Rob Goates, was the first student leader for that band. I got to see him figure it out and learned so much from that. My senior year, my youth pastor, Jeff Campbell, asked me to take over leading the student band. I still don’t know why but it set a fire in my heart. This was really the start of me discovering my passion for music and songwriting.

Most of the time, my music is a conversation between me and God or it stems from a conversation between me and God. I have written some worship songs through the years but most of what I write comes from my struggles as a man, husband, father, son, believer. I resonate with king David in that I know God is the source of all that is good and yet I still try and determine and chase what I think is good, often to my own detriment. Songs have been the easiest way’s for me work this stuff out. I hope that my music is set apart in that it’s authentically me. I don’t know how to be someone else and I’m a terrible actor ha! So if my story in anyway helps even one person gain perspective on their story, then mission accomplished.
I’ve been playing music, writing songs and leading worship for a little over 20 years. Getting to where I am today was both easy and hard. It was easy in that I really live my life trying to just take the next step. That’s the easy part because I’m not too hung up on where I will be in 5 years or if my music is or is not ‘successful’. The hard part is life. Life is hard! It’s full of pain and disappointment and yet, I believe live is also fully immersed in Hope. I don’t always feel hopeful. I don’t always live as if I have hope. But I KNOW that I do have hope through Jesus. He makes things easy. I make things hard!

My desire is to sow hope into the soil of the world. I have Hope and I think it’s worth sharing however I can. Music has been a vehicle to help me do that.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
I would take them to the Heights! My favorite part of town is the Heights. The vibe, the food, the music. I love it!

I think we would start out by hitting a coffee shop or breakfast spot somewhere in the Heights. My wife and I love to try lots of different places. Homestead Kitchen and Bar has been our go to the last few times we’ve had a free morning.

From there I think we might head over to Fuller’s Vintage guitar shop. They have so many amazing guitars and the guys that work there are great. Plus it’s got air conditioning and I’m just making the assumption it would be too hot outside to do much.

Going to see some live music would be on the list too. There are both local and big time acts that roll through the venues in that part of town. I’ve seen some awesome shows at White Oak Music hall and at The Heights Theater.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
My wife is my biggest advocate. Her name is Heather and she is awesome.

My kids also drive me to follow the passions God has put on my heart. I want to show them that they are capable of doing things they love and leaning in to those things brings a tremendous amount of life!

Paul Helbig, Willie Dewlen, Jim Leggett, Jeff Campbell, Wayne Kerr, my Dad are all huge parts of my story as a songwriter and believer. Those guys have all in some way shaped and impacted my life.

Website: https://stephenwalkerband.com

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

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/stephen.walker.897093/

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@StephenWalkermusic

Other: Spotify:

Apple Music:

https://music.apple.com/us/artist/stephen-walker/1803752148

Image Credits
Ben Chai

Loft Photograhpy

Grant Sides Gs Media