Former Yellowcard bassist and Near Miss guitarist, world traveler, space nerd, cat lover, ‘80s metal freak, ‘90s rock geek, mental health advocate, and way too nice dude with way too cheesy puns. Alter-ego is Jef Leppard of the band Great White Lion Snake.
I’ve seen “Peewee’s Big Adventure” more times than you.
1. Tell us your name, where you were born, and your first memory you have from where you began!
Hello! I’m Josh Portman. Born in Warner Robins, Georgia waaay back in ‘79, haha.
After I was born we pretty much immediately moved to Wisconsin, so my earliest memories are there. My first one though!? Hmm…I really don’t know. I guess pre-school? I have little snippets of memories from that time…drinking these plastic little juice drink thingies that looked kinda like grenades and had a foil top.
Anyone? No? Okay, maybe that was a dream. I don’t know.
(I’m totally about to try and find these things online now though…)
editor's note: found 'em
2. What did you like least about where you grew up? What did you like most?
There’s really a couple of very different chapters in my 'growing up’ years. My earliest, and fondest, childhood memories took place in Middleton, Wisconsin (a suburb of Madison) where we lived until I was about 10. Everything about life was great back then…even the brutal winters! We then moved to Atlanta where I spent 4th and 5th grade. Also very fond memories from those years. Things changed pretty drastically for me after that though. We shipped down to Perry, GA where my mother grew up and that’s where I would remain throughout middle school and high school. It was VERY different. Total culture shock. I made some great friends and had good times, but I really disliked the town and having nowhere cool or exciting to ever go. I definitely felt like an outcast. I had a pretty rockin’ punk band in high school though called Zero Racecar and that was awesome. It was the very beginning of me getting to play shows frequently, sometimes even out of state, and developing quite a taste for that. Being 15 or 16 in a town that small, and that Southern, it was a pretty big deal, haha!
3. What was the first big idea you ever had? Did it come to fruition in some sense?
MTV in the ‘80s was an incredible thing. I was always glued to it, watching all the videos of all my early heroes and wanting to be them.
"I wanted more than anything in the world to be a rockstar and play
huge concerts and travel the world."
That never really changed for me. Although I don’t really consider myself a “rockstar”, I never gave up on my dream and one day it finally all came together for me. To date, I’ve been fortunate enough to perform in 35 countries on 6 continents. I definitely feel a great sense gratitude and accomplishment for sticking with it and making it happen.
4. What was the first full album you purchased/found and couldn’t get enough of? What did it make you feel?
This is an interesting question considering the devastating news from a few days ago. I was absolutely shocked to hear of the passing of Eddie Van Halen…the greatest guitar player who ever lived and my #1 hero. It literally stopped me in my tracks and truly broke my heart. That first album you’re asking me about…it was Van Halen’s “1984.” I got the tape when I was about 5 years old, at the dawn of MTV basically, and the videos from this album were always on. There was nothing cooler or more exciting to me. I wore that tape out several times over. It was constantly in my Walkman. That was the moment. I was going to do what THEY do. I had to. I wanted to be Eddie so badly. The music made me happy, excited, energized…it made me dream of my future. RIP Eddie Van Halen. The greatest of all time. Thank you for everything!
5. What hobbies, sports, events, arts, were you drawn to before the age of 10? Do you feel like you’re still interacting with these same genres in your current time in life? Do you miss any of them?
Not a lot of people know this but I was, in fact, a pretty big sports guy at one point in my life. As a kid in the ‘80s and early ‘90s I was super into football, baseball, and basketball and super into PLAYING soccer and basketball. I played both until I got my first guitar at age 12. Sports pretty much disappeared for me after that, haha. But I was always way more into skating and BMX’ing and that whole culture and the music I loved that was tied into it. Music and skate culture-wise, I still interact for sure. The other sports though…I’m fine with watching games here and there but I don’t have “a team” or keep up with the players or anything anymore. It just doesn’t really interest me, to be honest.
6. Who was your first best friend? What is your most vivid memory of your friendship?
My first best friend was Greg Donino from 1st through 3rd grade in Wisconsin. We lost touch ages ago but I still think about that dude from time to time. I vividly remember skating and listening to Metallica with him all the time. We’d pick which member of the band we were for the day and then thrash around the house performing our air instruments to the albums, haha. 30 years later and I’m still basically the same dorky kid!
7. Where do you go to find your peace?
Meditating in the park or even running generally makes me feel peaceful. Ultimately though, Japan is my favorite place to go find my peace. Japan is just my favorite place period.
8. What is a lifelong goal you can’t wait to start?
Learning Japanese! I’m totally going to live there one day.
9. Where do you wish to travel to that you have never been? Why?
I’d love to do more of South America. I’ve been to Brazil a few times, but that’s it. There’s so many amazing countries down there I need to explore. Hopefully I can make that happen sometime in the near future. I really just love checking out new places. Thailand and Vietnam are also very high on my list.
10. How do you connect best with other people?
Having in-person relationships and/or friendships. Endless texting from morning to night, or constant social media messaging, scrolling, clicking, etc. totally drains my lifeforce, man!
11. Favorite song of the moment?
Hmm…I can’t say I have one favorite song at the moment, or even an entire album for that matter. I’ve been listening to even more Miles Davis lately than usual though, so there’s that. He calms my busy mind. 12. What are you most proud of at this exact moment in time?
My 79-year-old dad just kicking kidney cancer’s ass!
13. What is the thing you are most shy about? What is the worst that could happen if you did it?
Ugh, public speaking for sure. It’s so not my jam. I have no idea why. Class presentations or speeches were always the worst for me. Full-on panic attack mode. Put me on a stage with a guitar or bass in front of 60,000 people though I’m all good, haha! So weird. 14. What are the qualities that you value most in a friend today?
Loyalty, honesty, and courtesy. If you need to change plans, something comes up, or you just simply don’t feel like getting together…just freakin’ tell me! It’s all good. Don’t be a flake and ghost though. Nothing pisses me off more than that.
15. How do you find your calm in tumultuous times?
I went through a very dark and challenging time in 2017. Yellowcard broke up and I found myself going from years of living the most exciting life traveling the planet, basically non-stop, playing rock shows and exploring new worlds, to basically not knowing what I would do next or who I even was anymore. Without going into too many details about that extensive period of utter lost-ness, I did finally find some things to incorporate into my daily life that helped tremendously. I dug deep into meditation, mindfulness, Buddhism, yoga, acupuncture, and even a regimen of microdosing for a few weeks, haha! But I think all these things sort of worked together in helping me get out of the headspace I was drowning in and got me really thinking about myself, others, and my surroundings in a very different light. Things gradually became significantly less heavy. So I still turn to most of these things regularly to keep my head on straight and attempt to get my zen on.
16. What is your current greatest fear?
Full-blown, uncontrolled chaos in America. 17. What brings you the most joy?
When the people I love and care about are in good places and happy.
…And loads of ‘80s metal, of course!
editor's note: follow @GWLSband for more metal mischief 18. What advice would you give your 10 year old self? What advice would your 10 year old self give you?
I think my 10-year-old self would just remind me to remember my 10-year-old self. How and why music moved me and made me feel, and the purity of it all back then. He would tell me to lighten up sometimes and to be proud of achieving the things I dreamed of at that age. Probably the only advice I would give my 10-year-old self would be to actually take guitar lessons (as well as vocal and piano) and stick with them! I’d also give him the names of a few girlfriends to avoid in the coming years, haha.
19. What projects are you working on now that you are most excited about? Why are they so valuable to you ?
I actually have an EP that is finally about to be released for this intercontinental musical project (that’s what we like to call it, haha) that started a couple of years ago. It’s called Broken Trophy and features my good friend Jeff Caudill from Gameface on vocals, Matt Cade on guitars, Kye Smith on drums, and myself on bass. We did a couple of songs for a very limited vinyl release and our parts were all recorded separately where we live…L.A., U.K., Australia, and Nashville, respectively. So it was a cool process getting the tracks done and put together and we’re pumped to finally get this thing out super soon.
There’s also another musical project that actually just came about a couple of days ago, but unfortunately I can’t give any details about that just yet. Stay tuned!
20. Who would you have coffee with dead or alive? Why?
I’m going to go back to a question from a moment ago here. It would be Eddie Van Halen for sure. I would have loved to have met him. He’s just the ultimate guitar player and I’m not sure what would have become of me if it weren’t for him. I’d like to pick his brain and really just to thank him. Thich Nhat Nanh would be great too. His teachings/writings help me find balance, peace, and inspiration. I think actually being in his presence would be like getting an IV of it.
21. Who do you find most inspiring at this current time in your life?
My brother and sister. They are both younger and totally have their shit together. Marriage, kids, homes, etc. They have amazing families, work hard, and are happy. Meanwhile I’m over here, the old rocker brother, trying to piece my life back together and find my new path.
22. Do you have a morning or night routine? If so, why are they important to you?
Well, these days routines are pretty screwy. But typically I’ll get up in the morning and have a cup of coffee (I switched almost exclusively to decaf though recently, so that’s been weird, haha) and a banana. Then some meditation and maybe a workout. Nighttime I’ll make some popcorn and check out something good on the ol’ ‘Flix. Routines definitely make me feel more balanced and productive though. I need to get back to a better one for sure.
23. What is the craziest thing you want to do?
Move to another country and ditch all of my social media accounts!
24. What is your favorite meal to cook when you need something fast, and when you are ready to invest in the kitchen?
Sadly, I’m not really much of a cook. I guess that’s from so many years on the road. I do enjoy opening a good bottle of red, throwing on some Sinatra, and then making some pasta on occasion though. That’s a vibe! 25. What is your favorite question to ask others?
What are you listening to lately?
27. What are your favorite travel tips?
Immerse yourself in the world that you happen to be in, wherever that is. Local foods, customs, landmarks, etc. If you’re only in a city or country for a day or two, seek out the things that MUST be seen and done, and do them. You may never find yourself back in that place again.
28. And of course, what is your go-to travel snack?
Haha, good question. There’s only one snack that I absolutely worship, but it tends to be a pain in the ass while traveling: chips & salsa.
Josh currently resides in Nashville, Tennessee. He can be found at : @joshportman
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