name

Joe Billy

Where do you live?

I currently live in Clifton.

When did you move there?

I can’t actually remember the year, but my family moved to Clifton almost 20 years ago.

Where did you grow up?

We originally lived in Passaic and moved to Clifton when I was a child.

How do you earn your living? Or: What is your daily passion?

I’m a musician and songwriter, primarily a drummer, and do a lot of freelance work for many bands and artists. I also have a solo project under my name where I sing and play guitar. When I’m not doing all that, I work full time at School of Rock Montclair where I teach drum and performance classes, lead the house band, and handle most of the production and audio side of our live shows and live streams.

Coffee, tea or …?

Oh, I’m a huge tea fan. Peppermint tea is the best when I want to relax or settle my stomach. Green tea is the second best when it comes to a little pick-me-up! Otherwise, I’m a big fan of good old-fashioned water.

What does a perfect weekend day look like for you?

Oh man, let’s see… Go to a show, play a show, hang out with my friends, write or make music with my friends, spend time with my partner, go on a scenic hike, maybe go kayaking, enjoy some top-notch gluten-free or Chinese food, have the opportunity to take it easy and just play some video games, do something for yourself, maybe even go to a spa to really unwind. It would be impressive to pack all of that into one weekend. I guess you could say there are a lot of things I enjoy, haha! Honestly, though, I enjoy spending time with my folks, no matter what we’re doing.

What is your favorite local restaurant?

If we talk about Clifton, Taste of Tuscany is hands down the best choice. As for Montclair, since I consider it my second home; although I love so many restaurants in Montclair, I have to choose TS Ma.

What is on your bedside table?

Not much really. I just have a little space to put my phone and sometimes some water while I sleep. And usually some tissues because I’m always having problems with sinusitis or allergies.

What do you hear?

Oh man, that’s always a tricky question! What I listen to varies a lot depending on what bands I like, what podcasts I listen to, and what songs I need to get to know from bands I work for. Lately though, I’ve been listening to bands like Morning Glory, The Interrupters, Escape From The Zoo, and Alkaline Trio. The podcasts I listen to a lot are Distractible and Brain Leak.

What are your current preferences?

Aside from writing music, I recently started replaying Red Dead Redemption II, one of my favorite video games, for the third time.

What talent would you most like to have?

Have a better memory! Honestly, I’ve found over time that I don’t remember things as well, or at least I have a stubborn memory that really needs to be triggered by something in order to be able to recall things clearly. I would love to be able to remember things easily.

What is your city’s worst (or best kept!) secret??

Hmmmm, I’m not so sure. Now I feel like I need to have more adventures. Haha!

What do you want people to say about you at your funeral??

Well, I really try to live a good life and live each day to the fullest. I try to wake up a better person than I was yesterday. And I try to be a friendly, welcoming energy to everyone around me. I try to do something, anything, to help the people around me. I try to reach people with my music and hope that they resonate with it and encourage them to be thoughtful and look at things bigger than themselves. I want everyone to take what I leave behind as an inspiration to keep going and live life to the fullest every day and create a better world.

Something like that, probably.

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