Joshua Paul LaRose, aka Joshie Paul, was born April 16, 1991 to Chad and Tina LaRose from Thibodaux, Louisiana. Joshua showed his first interest in music at the age of 1, when his godfather introduced him to the music of the rock band KISS. Growing up, the LaRose household was never dull. Joshua was constantly entertaining his family with his play guitars and dress up stage gear, particularly his homemade KISS costumes designed by his mom and granny. Around the age of 7 or 8, Joshua discovered that the guitar he use to play with when he was younger was his dad’s small child’s size acoustic guitar, now hanging on the wall as memorabilia from his dad’s childhood growing up. Josh asked his dad if he could start playing it; his dad removed it from the wall as to what once was a wall decoration to now being the main focus of Joshua’s future. Joshua’s interest in music grew over his childhood years. He participated in his first school talent show in the 5th grade, which he sang the song “My Sacrifice†by Creed. At the age of 12, when asked by his parents what he wanted for his 13th birthday, Joshua stated that he was starting to outgrow his dad’s small child’s size acoustic guitar and wanted his own electric guitar and lessons to go along with it. His mom took him to a local music store to see the guitars. What Joshua didn’t know is that he was actually picking out his birthday present. For his 13th birthday, Joshua’s wish came true. He got his first real electric guitar and lessons to go along with it. Joshua’s dedication to learn the guitar turned into a 24/7 learning experience. Day in and Day out, from the time he got up, to the time he went to bed, Joshua lived and breathed guitar. By the age of 14, just one year later, he began helping his guitar teacher to teach other students around his age basic guitar skills and songs. Josh formed his first band Haven with several friends from a local music academy, Rock n’ Roll Academy, and played several gigs before the band dismissed when two members moved due to Hurricane Katrina. By the age of 15, Josh encouraged a few school friends to form another band, called Khaos. That same year, Joshua had the opportunity with his band Khaos to play at the Gumbo Festival in Chackbay, Louisiana as the opening band for the music group Chee Wheez. This opened up a whole new door for Josh and Khaos….gigs at local clubs. Joshua’s interest for guitar was growing that his parents took him to his first Kramer guitar convention in Nashville at the age of 15, which he got on stage and played with other professional musician from around the country. At the age of 16, Joshua and his band Khaos, had another opportunity to be the opening band for his mom’s fundraising music festival for students with learning disorders called the Southern Music Fest, featuring the rock band Lillian Axe. Joshua’s guitar playing and stage performance impressed everyone. Little did they know, that Joshua suffered with his own learning disorder, Dyslexia. That same year, in the summer of 2008, Joshua’s parents created their own guitar company called LaRose Custom Guitars & Repairs, LLC which featured Joshua as the company’s guitar repair technician and custom guitar designer, a whole new aspect to his music career. With this in mind, his parents took him again to Nashville to the Kramer Guitar Convention and to represent and promote the company at the NAMM Convention. Later that summer, Joshua was invited to attend a week long session at the Power Chord Academy in Dallas, TX. Impressed with Joshua’s playing ability for his age, they set up a special closing ceremony performance featuring Joshua playing lead guitar on a cover version of Ozzy’s Crazy Train. The instructors, students, and audience were moved off their feet by his unforgettable performance. That same summer, Joshua and a friend formed a new band and started looking for other band members to complete the group, thus forming HeadShott. HeadShott immediately took off with their first gig for a private party at the Beau Rivage Casino in Biloxi, MS. With Joshua as the band’s lead guitarist, local bars booked HeadShott on a regular basis and the opportunity to be the headlining band for the Lafourche Parish’s Relay for Life Event for the American Cancer Society. And now word was starting to spread about Joshua’s rock n’ performances and musical talent that he started to gain a fan following. Joshua is currently working on other projects adding to a broader range of musical experiences. What lies ahead for Joshua..…is that his unforgettable, impressive musical talent for guitar will take him farther than his wildest dreams!!!
