A STAR IN THE MAKING

Up-And-Coming Country Music Singer Joe Noto From Royal Palm Beach Has A Newly Released Single

Did you know a kid named Joe Noto who grew up in Royal Palm Beach in the early 2000s? Whether you did or didn’t, you’re going to want to give a listen to this up-and-coming country music star’s newly released single, “Every Time the

Based on a personal break-up, and all the painful reminders that followed, it’s Noto’s first single and what could be a big step toward country music fame.

Born in Buffalo, New York, and raised in Royal Palm Beach, Joe Noto IV grew up in a music-loving family. His paternal grandfather (Joe II) was renowned on the Las Vegas circuit for his ability to play two different melodies on two different trumpets — both at the

“My grandfather played with Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin, as well as in western New York and at Sunfest,” Noto recalled. “He made sure I had an instrument in my hand every day, even though, often, I had no idea what I was doing. My grandfather passed in 2003, but I’m fortunate to have gotten to play some of the same spots he did.”

Developing his craft as he grew, Noto began taking music lessons at the Melody School of Music in Wellington when he was five, and later at School of Rock in Palm Beach Gardens.

“That’s where I began playing in a band setting,” recalled Noto, who, at the time, played the drums. “I fell in love with being on stage and never got enough of it.”

Other family members eventually introduced him to the joys of the guitar. “I was fascinated by them,” Noto said. “The drums were too rigid for me.”

It took a while for his love of country music to develop.

“It wasn’t very hip in Royal Palm Beach to listen to country music — particularly old country music,” he said. “Michael Jackson was my ‘greatest artist of all time.’ I loved songs with groove. Bon Jovi was another idol. But when I went to Western Pines Middle School, and when I went out with my friends, it was the Zac Brown Band having a bunch of number ones and crushing it in their scene. So, I started diving into the genre — discovered more artists every day, got my first acoustic guitar and taught myself to play.”

He was 12 at the time.

“Once I got into country, I began to understand music,” Noto said. “I don’t know music theory, and I can’t read music. My teachers wanted to teach me, but I wasn’t interested. I just wanted to play my favorite songs. It was through country that I learned how different chords played into each other.”

He also began to understand how to write country music.

“The storytelling was what I fell in love with,” said Noto, remembering two songs that provided the initial inspiration. “They impacted me so much that I remember where I was when I heard them. They’re both by Alan Jackson — ‘Remember When’ and ‘Where Were You when the World Stopped Turning?’”

But music wasn’t the young Noto’s only talent. Excelling in volleyball and cross-country, he received an athletic scholarship to the Oxbridge Academy for high school. From there, he went on to Florida State University.

He started writing songs while in college, thanks to a push from country star Morgan Wallen, who had appeared on “The Voice.”

“In 2017, he played a show that a great friend of mine [country artist Maggie Baugh] was opening for and, after the show, a couple of my buddies and I offered to show him around Tallahassee,” Noto recalled.

That led to a memorable evening.

“We had ourselves a night and a half and ended up in my dorm room, passing the guitar back and forth,” Noto said. “Then he said, ‘Play one of your own songs.’ I said I didn’t have any, and he said, ‘You’d better get to writing.’”

Noto dropped out of college and moved to Nashville, signing with The Artist Management Group, co-founded by Rob Beckham and headlined by mega-star Brad Paisley.

“I was very blessed with recording in general, though Nashville always works with you and wants you to create the best work,” Noto said. “Rob extended a contract to a kid who didn’t have a lot of buzz because he believed in me, believed in my vision. He pays for me to get into the studio.”

Yet once in the studio, Noto isn’t about to sit back and see where things go.

“I look at it differently than most,” he said. “I’m very hands-on. I believe music is all feeling. So, after the studio musicians have listened to an acoustic demo, I explain to them what I’m looking for, sound wise. I tell them, ‘Nothing that you are about to play is going to be wrong. I’ll tell you if there’s something I don’t like, but we can improve on it.’ I let the song speak to them and want them to let their feelings come out in their music.”

It is that process that led to his new single.

“I think we captured magic that day when we recorded ‘Every Time the Wind Blows,’” Noto said.

It’s a song of heartbreak. The girl who inspired “Every Time the Wind Blows” was a college girlfriend of Noto’s while he was at FSU. “She had had some rough relationships in the past, and she just didn’t know if she wanted to continue with ours,” he said, explaining that they eventually broke up. “Still, everything in Tallahassee reminded me of her — we went there; we ate there. Inherently, every time I turned around and the wind blew, I was reminded of her.”

Having released his first single, Noto has already adopted the Nashville way of life and is ready to “pay it forward” to young musicians coming up the ranks.

“Studios, singer/songwriters — the best way to find them is through social media,” he said. “I’ve got a bunch of great connections, and I want to help everyone else succeed. Reach out to me.”

Generous that way, Noto is also the kind of guy who values his roots.

“I’m family oriented, but I keep my friends as close to my heart as I keep my family,” he said. “I moved to Nashville, but I stay in touch with friends all the way back to middle school. They’re so supportive of me. It also makes doing music really cool because I’ve had certain opportunities come up where I can include them — things that us normal kids from Royal Palm Beach would never get to experience.”

He wouldn’t trade his formative years here for any other experience.

“I’m so appreciative to have been raised in Royal Palm Beach, where we had a little bit of every culture, and it shaped me into the person I am — from the teachers in my grade schools to my neighbors, to the recreation center, to the people at the Western Communities Football League, and on down the list of amazing people in Royal Palm. People love to tell me, ‘I don’t identify Florida with country music.’ My response is, ‘Come out with us.’ We have the city, the country, the beach and everything in-between.”

Breaking into country music is not easy, and Noto is thankful for the support that has come his way.

“I’m fortunate with my management, and I’m fortunate to be here in Nashville with Jake Owen, a Vero Beach native that I idolized when I was growing up,” Noto said. “He’s a great resource for me. He invites me here and there and answers my questions. Just to be able to call him my friend is amazing!”

Noto considers himself a wellrounded person, thanks to all the fantastic people he grew up with in Royal Palm Beach. “Without my faith, family, friends and neighbors, I wouldn’t be the person I am today. Royal Palm Beach has been great for me and fantastic for my cousin, Jordan Travis, too. He’s the quarterback at Florida State,” Noto said. “I want everybody to know that no matter where this career takes me — and God will determine my peak — I want to be a friendly face for everybody. I’m excited to be on this journey, but this is bigger than me.”

“Every Time the Wind Blows” is available now on Spotify, Amazon Music, Pandora, Apple Music and anywhere you stream music. For more information, visit www.joenotomusic.com.