Jamie Walters Returns With His Third Album, 'Believed'
Jamie Walters is back with his third album titled, Believed, which is exactly what he did to make this latest project become a reality. Walters is an accomplished musician and songwriter whose 1992 chart-topping ballad, "How Do You Talk To An Angel" was the theme to the short-lived television series, The Heights, in which he also starred. From LAUNCH media
, September 2002
But Walters may be best remembered for his two-year stint as Donna's (Tori Spelling's) abusive, guitar playing boyfriend Ray Pruitt on the long-running series Beverly Hills 90210. (Fans of the series will recall that Pruitt was the guy who threw Donna down a flight of steps.)
Walters released two gold albums on Atlantic Records--his self-titled debut in 1994, and Ride in 1997--but he soon parted ways with the label after feeling pigeon-holed into the role of a TV pop star: "You know ironically they both recouped, but they didn't pick me up for a third record, and so I sort of, you know, had to reassess where I was at and what I wanted to do. And I took a little bit of time to put this group of songs together. And I feel like this one actually really reflects sort of a truer sense of where I'm at now."
Walters wrote all of the music on Believed, and he produced 10 out of 11 tracks on the album. In fact, Walters was confident enough in his songwriting abilities to release his latest album as an independent artist on Leisure Records without the backing of a major label, or a hit television show--and that suits him just fine for now: "It doesn't have anything to do with any characters on TV shows or any corporate record companies that are saying, 'Yeah, well you know, you kind of need to go in this direction because this is what we say and we're giving you the money.'"
Although Walters is enjoying his artistic freedom, he admitted that without a major label funding his latest effort he had to do things a little bit differently than before. "The only way for me to do that was to do it sort of low budget and do it at home. But I'm really happy with the way it turned out. And I think that the songs stand up on their own," he said. The guitar-driven set is highlighted by tracks such as "Evilyn," "Just Like You," and "Butter," which really show how Walters has improved at his craft since his last release.
In addition to occasionally performing at clubs in the Los Angeles area, Walters is attending school to get his paramedic certification. "I've got my EMT certification and I've been working out here doing that for a little over a year now. I really enjoy it," he said. "It's really rewarding and it kind of balances out all of the entertainment business stuff. It gives me a chance to feel like I'm doing something productive in a completely different way."
If you are involved in an car accident or other emergency in the Los Angeles area, there's a chance that the former 90210 star will come to your rescue. Walters has been riding on an ambulance as an EMT for the last year, but he's looking forward to eventually working as a paramedic with his local volunteer fire department. "You know ever since 9/11 fire departments around the country have tried to increase their paramedic numbers, and they want to have one paramedic on every engine, so they can spread people out a little bit better," he explained.
Meanwhile, Walters is just starting to promote his latest effort, and he plans to put more effort into getting the word out about the new album after he completes his training for his paramedic certification. "I'm hoping that the fanbase that I had out there before both in the United States and in other parts of the world is still kind of hungry for a little more Jamie Walters, and they want to see what I've been up to for the last couple of years," he said. To find out more about what Walters has been up to please visit jamiewalters.com or leisurerecords.com, and to purchase a copy of his new album go to cdbaby.com.