Exclusive Interview: Joey Arena of Ovtlier Talks “Warrior,” Touring, and What’s Next
By Kirby Lee Bailey
At The Cobra in Nashville, TN, I had the pleasure of sitting down once again with Joey Arena, lead vocalist of Ovtlier, just before the band took the stage. This marks our third conversation, following our previous chat at the Madison Theatre in Covington, KY. A lot has happened since then—including a notable release and a few surprises on the horizon.
Kirby: This is your third time on our show! Last time we spoke in Covington, you hinted at a future collaboration with Chris Motionless from Motionless in White. Not long after, you dropped “Warrior.”
Joey: Chris is a great guy to work with. Wait—we haven’t talked since then?
Kirby: Nope, but I’ve been keeping up. “Warrior” has racked up around 800,000 streams.
Joey: It’s moving, man. What’s exciting is that we didn’t even put ad dollars behind it initially. We let it grow organically. Once we noticed the numbers slowing down a bit, we ran a small campaign to reach a new audience.
Kirby: It’s a powerful track. I was surprised it didn’t stay longer on Octane. I thought for sure it’d hit #1 on the Biguns Countdown.
Joey: We’re just grateful it got picked up at all. This is probably the eighth song Octane has supported for us. As an independent band, it’s hard to maintain long rotation, but Octane has been huge for us.
Kirby: Fans are still hoping to see you on tour with Motionless in White.
Joey: We’d love that. We were actually scheduled to join them on the original Black and Blue Tour in March 2020 with Knocked Loose and Stick to Your Guns, but COVID shut everything down. I remember being on the set of our “All I Need” video when Chris called and said, “Hey, you’re going to be my Octane Takeover.” He’s always been in my corner and truly genuine.
Kirby: It’s been over a year since our last chat. What have you been working on since?
Joey: We’re working on a full record right now. We actually share a producer with Motionless—Ricky—and another co-producer who’s worked with bands like Ice Nine Kills. But Ricky’s on tour, so scheduling has been tricky. I’ve been sitting on this record for a while, but that’s how it goes with so many moving parts.
Kirby: Any word on a release date?
Joey: We’ll be announcing the release soon. Until then, we’re continuing the singles game—we’ve put a lot of time, money, and effort into those. But yeah, we’ll drop a few more singles, then the full album. One more track to finish, and we’re there.
Kirby: I noticed you’ve got a new bassist. Who’s the new face? And will there be another tour after this one?
Joey: Yeah—we officially have a permanent bassist now. His name’s Cosmo. He was actually our original bassist and has been a longtime friend of mine. It just made sense. Things are snowballing. After this run, we’ve got another tour lined up. Can’t reveal too much yet, but something’s coming in June… and again in August.
Since this interview, Ovtlier has officially announced an upcoming tour with Dead Posey—tickets are on sale now. Don’t miss your chance to see this rising force in modern rock as they continue to bring raw energy and unshakable passion to the stage.
