Summer Is Officially Here With Joshua Ray Walker’s New Album ‘Tropicana’

It’s always a good day when you wake up to new Joshua Ray Walker music.

The country music world was shaken to its core when Walker announced he was diagnosed with colon cancer back in 2023. Things took a dive for the worse after 6-months of chemotherapy when he was told the cancer had spread to his lungs and moved to stage 4, but near miraculously, it turns out some of the worries were for naught.

He went in for a biopsy in October of last year and doctors discovered that the original diagnosis was incorrect and there was no sign of cancer in his lungs. Even better, they were unable to find evidence that there was cancer anywhere in his body, which doesn’t mean he’s out of the woods but beginning the road to remission is literally the best news any of us could have hoped for.

Here’s part of his statement:

“Hi y’all, thank you for your patience while I heal. I’ve been anxious to update you, but I wanted to wait until I was off pain meds and all the most recent scans, tests, and lab results had come back. I’m so excited to share with you that my pre-surgery diagnosis was incorrect, I’ve beat the odds and to everyone’s complete surprise, my lungs are cancer free!

As far as my doctors can tell, there is no discernible amount of cancer anywhere in my body at the moment! I am ecstatic, and I couldn’t have done it without y’all’s love and support.”

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Heck yes, brother. Heck yes.

About a week and a half ago, Walker let us know that he’d be releasing a surprise album titled Tropicana and today we finally get to hear it.

Warning: It’s going to make you want to toss on a Hawaiian shirt and put down some frozen daiquiris, so maybe wait until the work day’s over or, heck why not start the weekend early?

The project was written while Joshua was stuck inside during chemotherapy and could only day dream of days in the sun, in the sand, at the beach. The songs were inspired by Jimmy Buffett and some early, vacation-minded George Strait hits, all with a classic 90’s twist:

“I was at home for a year, without the ability to play shows or even take a vacation. Since I couldn’t leave town and go see a palm tree in real life, I started writing about them.

It’s the sort of place where you can order a piña colada at the pool bar and go wander down a nondescript beach. I couldn’t go to the beach, so I decided to bring the beach to me. Music has always been an escape for me.”

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While there’s plenty to be said about the easy-going themes that run across the tracks, one that stood out for me was “Heavy Stones”, which seems to reference the hard times that lead to this easy living music.

“Got a checkered past, a half full glass 
And a hell of a long way to go
I learned enough lessons to keep on betting on the only damn thing I know

If you wanna be strong 
You gotta lift heavy stones
Gotta wake up early
And party all night long”

As we’ve come to expect from Joshua Ray Walker, the album is rock solid and will certainly be a heavy part of my rotation this summer…

Drinks up for Joshua Ray Walker, a healthier and happier man.

“Heavy Stones”

“Laguna”

Tropicana Tracklist:

1) Tropicana
2) Keys to the Tacoma
3) Laguna
4) Dance With Who You Came With
5) I Don’t Wanna Be Alone
6) Heavy Stones
7) Dirty Laundry
8) Whiskey to My Heart
9) Novella
10) I Hope I Have Fun Dying

Tour Dates:

6/13 – San Antonio, TX – The Lonesome Rose
6/14 – Austin, TX – Sagebrush
6/24 – Los Angeles, CA – The Desert 5 Spot
6/27 – Queens, NY – Gottscheer Hall
8/14 – Little Rock, AR – Revolution! Music Room
8/15 – Memphis, TN – Hernando’s Hideaway
8/16 – Indianapolis, IN – Duke’s Indy
8/17 – Ferndale, MI – The Loving Touch
8/19 – Cleveland, OH – Beachland Ballroom & Tavern
8/21 – Nashville, TN – Skinny Dennis
8/23 – Macon, GA – Grant’s Lounge
8/24 – North Charleston, SC – Marcus King Band Family Reunion
9/23 – Hopwell, VA – The Beacon Theatre #
9/25 – Wilmington, NC – Greenfield Lake Amphitheatre #
9/26 – Carrboro, NC – Cat’s Cradle #
9/27 – Asheville, NC – The Orange Peel #
9/28 – Knoxville, TN – Tennessee Theatre #
9/30 – Savannah, GA – Victory North #
10/1 – Orlando, FL – The Plaza Live #
10/2 – Clearwater, FL – The Nancy and David Bilheimer Capitol Theatre #
10/4 – Atlanta, GA – Variety Playhouse #
10/10 – St. Louis, MO – The Hawthorn #
10/11 – Lawrence, KS – Liberty Hall #
10/12 – Omaha, NE – Slowdown #
10/14 – Bozeman, MT – The ELM #
10/16 – Seattle, WA – The Showbox #
10/17 – Portland, OR – Roseland Theater #
10/18 – Medford, OR – Holly Theatre #
10/19 – Redding, CA – Cascade Theatre #
10/25 – Denver, CO – Ogden Theatre #
11/12 – Appleton, WI – Poplar Hall #
11/13 – Wausau, WI – Grand Theater #
11/14 – Minneapolis, MN – Varsity Theater #
11/15 – Stoughton, WI – Stoughton Opera House #
11/16 – Iowa City, IA – The Englert Theatre #

# – with Molly TuttleThe post Summer Is Officially Here With Joshua Ray Walker’s New Album ‘Tropicana’ first appeared on Whiskey Riff.