Josh Weathers Returns to Music to Fight Human Trafficking

Local artist Josh Weathers, steeped in rock and soul, returned to the music scene after a trip to India with his wife resulted in the launch of a charity program.

With a career spanning more than two decades, Weathers has expanded his audience in the American South with a variety of soulful melodies. Since 2005, Weathers has performed with his five-piece band and solo shows across the country.

“I found a guitar in a friend's garage. This is the first guitar on which I learned to play my few chords. My uncle taught me how to play,” Weathers said The Dallas Express in an exclusive interview. Soon after, Weather's father gave him an upgraded guitar and the rest turned into a music career.

A Fort Worth native, Weathers wasn't far from home on May 2, where he played a variety of originals interwoven with covers of iconic classics in the heart of Colleyville. Music fans were treated to a special evening as Weathers performed a private concert.

Beyond the stage, Weathers and her family are on a mission to make a difference in the world through their nonprofit, Love Like You Mean It (LLYMI). The initiative focuses on providing critical resources and educational support to help prevent the scourge of sex trafficking and promote overall safety in communities both internationally and within the United States, according to the LLYMI website.

In Dallas, according to the city's victim demographic dashboard, there have been 65 recorded incidents of commercial human trafficking. The majority of victims were under the age of 18, with the youngest being 11.

“The objective has always been to build a home for girls, but also a mixed school. Well, COVID and some pressure from the government made us say, “Okay, we're going to do school first and do everything we can to do that.” » [first].' … We have 280 students, some on the waiting list, 12 full-time teachers. … Getting back into music has been good for that,” Weathers said.

Weathers was able to bring recognition to his campaign through his performances and his most recent release, Wild Ones (2019). Wild Ones not only received critical acclaim, but also served as a platform to amplify LLYMI's message.

Weathers said he received some minor criticism for attending Trump's inauguration in 2016. However, he noted that it was a difficult opportunity to pass up for a variety of reasons, including the fact that the event benefited the armed forces. Yet the concert didn't seem to slow down the musician, nor his family's efforts to raise awareness for children in need internationally.

“Our goal is to educate children and families, so that they are not victims [to the sex trade] — [which] is so endemic globally that people don't even realize it. The immediate intent and goal is to educate the children, to give them a safe haven, a safe place to go every day,” Weathers explained.

To see Josh Weathers live, visit his official website for a list of tour dates.