Biography
Joesef (Joseph Traynor) is a Scottish singer-songwriter from Glasgow, born in July 1995 and raised in Garthamlock in the city's east end.[1] He worked as a bartender and spent a year at music college before friends encouraged him to sing at an open-mic night, and he has spoken about growing up as a queer kid in a deprived area where a music career felt out of reach.[2]
He played his first show at King Tut's Wah Wah Hut in 2019, won Best Breakthrough Artist at the Scottish Music Awards that year, and was long-listed for the BBC's Sound of 2020.[1] His EPs include Play Me Something Nice, Does It Make You Feel Good? (nominated for the Scottish Album of the Year Award) and Late To The Party, and his debut album Permanent Damage followed in January 2023.[1] He has cited Tyler, the Creator, The Cure, A Tribe Called Quest and Arlo Parks as influences.[1]
Joesef has been open about past depression and describes music as his main emotional outlet.[2] In 2026 he returned with "Separate," a club-inspired single co-produced with Barney Lister.[3]
References
- Joesef (Wikipedia) — Biography, awards and discography
- Joesef: A Soul Stripped Bare (Rolling Stone UK) — Upbringing, depression and the meaning of Permanent Damage
- Joesef has returned with club-inspired new single 'Separate' (Dork) — Details on the 2026 single Separate