For people who discovered Walker through his Lizzo cover, you had to wonder if What Is It Even? was made because he dreamt of working with these artists he's highlighted with his favorites. Songs from Beyoncé, Cher, Whitney Houston, Dolly Parton and others showed some of his inspirations. “It was really hard to narrow down the list. I probably had like 80 songs that I wanted to do and I had just kept whittling it down,” Walker says, calling from his home in Dallas. “It came down to songs that I could cover well, I just wanted to do a good job.”
Walker says some of these artists had more influence on him than others. “Most of them were nostalgic covers. Things I just remember singing in my mom's car as a kid,” he says, adding he wanted to mix in modern artists like Lizzo and Sia into What Is It Even? “And then Regina Spektor was on there. I found her in high school. At the time, I was 15 or 16. Soviet Kitsch was one of the first records I ever listened to where the lyrics engaged me more than the music, so I actually paid attention to the lyrics.”
He’s in a moment of downtime before hitting the road for the Tropicana Tour, which supports his new album that’s out June 13. Fans have supported Walker through his chemotherapy treatment after being diagnosed with Stage 3B colon cancer in 2023 and then having to face the odds when the cancer spread to his lungs with the likelihood of it being restaged to Stage 4. After numerous health updates, it’s a blessing that Walker is now cancer-free to tour his new songs on Tropicana, a beach-friendly album made for sipping on umbrella drinks and pitching beach cabanas.
On the cover, Walker is photographed with a macaw named Thomas, laughing at the camera. “I think that was a nervous laugh that was captured,” he says, launching into a story about taking a family trip when he was around five to Rainforest Cafe in Corpus Christi. He took a picture with a macaw similar to Thomas at the restaurant, a ‘90s-style photo opp that caused distress when the bird bit his ear.
“I was never scared to not be around birds or anything like that. I just didn’t necessarily want to touch them or hold them or get my face close to them,” he says. “My producer John Pedigo and my friend Casey Kinney, who took the photo, said they had access to this bird. I was hesitant. And then I was like, ‘Well, I got to do it. It’s going to make for really good pictures.’”
Walker has been doing shows since he was 13, typically moving all over the country. During chemo, it forced him to stay in Dallas, which affected him mentally. “I was pretty burned out going into surgery and chemo,” he says. “I didn't know why I felt the way I did, but I didn't feel good for quite a few months. I was just tired and I was like, ‘Okay, silver lining, I’ll get some time to rest up.’ Two weeks in, I was like, ‘Okay, I’m bored.’ I gotta find something to do.”
He didn’t want to prolong his treatments. His immune system was weakened at this point, limiting him from going outside. He couldn’t hit the highway anymore, bringing down his morale. “I felt stuck,” he says. “And then also, I haven’t gone on a vacation in maybe 10 years. I’ve been grinding so, so much. I had this epiphany. I was like, ‘I finally have time off, but I can’t do anything enjoyable.’ So I just started thinking about traveling and going not just for work but for fun. It wasn’t a conscious decision, but these beach songs just started coming out naturally.”
What he could do was head down the block to Pedigo's house, a longtime music collaborator he’s worked with for years, shaping his songs that blend autobiography and fiction. Walker says he learned of Pedigo sneaking into bars in Deep Ellum at around 14 years old, catching him playing guitar in his early bands like Slick 57 and Boys Named Sue. Walker kept seeing Pedigo around the local music scene as his bands frequently played in theaters like the Granada. Growing up, Walker says Pedigo became a big part of his adolescent life seeing him perform while he was trying to make music. “He’s always been in bands that are regionally successful,” Walker says. “He could cut through the noise and get atop of the local scene really quickly.”
Once Walker turned 21, he remembers playing with The Ottoman Turks at a show in Bryan, Texas where they opened for The O's. He exchanged numbers with Pedigo and they continued to run into each other. After about six years of talking about making music, they worked on an EP and cut a demo for “Canyon,” which eventually got Walker to sign with the independent Dallas-based label State Fair Records. He and Pedigo did three albums after that.
The pair shares common goals of keeping talent in Dallas and building up the city’s music scene. They also share a love for El Fenix, bonding over their Wednesday enchilada special during their early days, making music together. They’ve become best friends because they supported each other through personal hardships, remaining loyal even when faced with challenges.
“Whenever I was going through chemo, and I would go over there and hang out at his house, it was one of the only places I could go besides my house where I felt really like at home and comfortable,” Walker says. “At the time, I was like, ‘Man, John has got a lot of free time because every time I'd hit him up, he was like, ‘Yeah, come hang.’ And looking back now, I was like, ‘Oh, he definitely shuffled things around in his schedule to make sure that he was available when I needed somewhere to go.”’
Inspired by the glory days of ‘90s country, Walker and Pedigo set out to create an oasis where you can imagine Tropicana to be anywhere you want it to be, making geographical references to cities like Panama City, Laguna Beach, South Carolina Lowcountry and Texas Gulf Coast. “In my mind, it's a '50s and '60s style, little beach art deco, little Havana style. I imagine it is it's a little two-story hotel, neon sign, really great pool, big outdoor bar and it's right on the beach,” Walker says of his visualization of Tropicana.
What makes Tropicana so enticing for Walker fans is hearing a different side of him. Just seen in the promotional art, Walker is wearing fun Hawaiian shirts and smiling, embracing his new lease on life. Songs like “Keys to the Tacoma,” “Heavy Stones” and “Whiskey to My Heart” are sunny melodies that he was meant to write after surviving cancer. The results are plenty of summer bangers to let loose with him as he tours again.
“It was an escape writing the record, thinking about the record and making the record,” Walker says. “I just wanted to have a good time and not think about life. I've written songs on previous records that are a good time to listen to, but you can’t just throw my whole record on in a cookout. It’s not the right vibe.”
“Tropicana is a party record. You can throw it on with your friends in the summer while you’re grilling out, you’re on a boat, whatever,” he adds. “I never tried to make a summer, good times record. I’m excited to get this out in the world.”
