Rearview Full Of You by Seth Walker (Interview 2026)

Your music began as a deeply personal gift for your mother. At what point did you realize those songs could also connect with a wider audience?

“I originally intended to make only one song as a personal gift for my mother. Then my dad encouraged me to register to collect royalties, my mom asked me to make another song, and after I finished that one, my best friend said, “Where’s the video?” From there, everything just kept building.

The moment I truly realized the music was connecting beyond my immediate circle was when I looked at my Apple Music data and saw that people outside my group of friends were listening—including people in places I had never visited and where I didn’t know anyone. I was honestly blown away. These deeply personal songs were somehow reaching complete strangers.

As I continued, I also saw how deeply the music moved my mother and how much happiness it brought her. At the same time, songwriting gave me a way to express feelings that were sometimes difficult to put into ordinary conversation. Then listeners began sharing their own experiences with aging parents, long-distance relationships, caregiving, grief and wishing for more time with the people they love.

That is when I understood that although the details of my songs come from my own family’s journey, the emotions behind them are universal. *Rearview Full of You* came from leaving my mother in Iowa and driving back to Florida, but that feeling of watching someone you love disappear behind you—and carrying them with you as you drive away—is something many people understand.”

Every release seems to document another chapter of your family’s journey. How do you decide which moments become songs?

“I usually don’t consciously decide that a moment should become a song. It often begins with a feeling, a phrase or an image that stays with me. Many of my ideas come to me while I’m working out on the elliptical, when I can clear my head and reflect, or during long drives when I have time alone with my thoughts.

*Rearview Full of You* came together during my long drive back to Florida after visiting my mother in Iowa. As different thoughts, memories and lines came to me along the way, I wrote little notes so I wouldn’t forget them. By the end of that drive, those pieces had begun forming the heart of the song. The physical distance became a metaphor for time, change and the feeling of leaving someone you love behind. If a moment continues to follow me after it has passed, that is usually when I know there may be a song inside it.”

You have often mentioned that you create music primarily by ear rather than through traditional music notation. How has that shaped your songwriting process?

“Creating by ear makes my process very instinctive. I begin with the emotion I want the listener to feel, and then I build the melody, rhythm and production around it. I’m not thinking about what a song is technically supposed to do—I’m listening for what feels honest. That freedom allows me to experiment and follow unexpected ideas.

With *Rearview Full of You*, I wanted the music to capture both movement and reflection: the feeling of driving forward while emotionally looking backward.”

Your music blends heartfelt storytelling with electronic and dance-pop production. What attracts you to that combination?

“I love the contrast. Electronic and dance-pop music can feel energetic, expansive and uplifting, while the lyrics can carry something much more vulnerable. Life often holds both emotions at once—we can be hurting while continuing to move forward.

That combination allows a song like *Rearview Full of You* to tell a deeply personal story without becoming overwhelmed by sadness. The production gives the emotion momentum, almost like the road itself, while the lyrics reveal what the person behind the wheel is carrying.”

Where can we hear more, and why should we?

“You can hear more of my music and follow my journey through my Linktree, which brings together my streaming platforms, music videos, social media and latest releases:

linktr.ee/sethwa…studio

I hope people listen because these songs are more than individual releases—they are chapters in an ongoing story about family, distance, resilience and holding on to the people we love. Although the music began as a gift for my mother during her battle with Parkinson’s Plus, its message extends to anyone who has watched a loved one change, cared for someone from a distance or wished for just a little more time.”

Anything to add here?

“I would simply encourage people not to wait to say what someone means to them. Make the phone call, take the drive, preserve the memory and say “I love you” while you still can. Music has given me a way to capture moments with my mother that time cannot take away. If these songs help even one listener appreciate someone they love—or feel less alone in their own family’s journey—then they have fulfilled their purpose.

Thank you to *The Talent Manual Magazine* for giving me the opportunity to share both my music and the deeply personal story behind it.”