Joe Tafoya is the latest addition to Magneti’s stellar design crew — and we’re stoked to have him here.
When he isn’t knee-deep in the creative process, whipping up wicked cool designs, he’s probably playing the drums, hanging out with his dog, trekking up a 14’er, or listening to an underrated indie rock band.
We hope you enjoy getting to know him (and walk away with some killer music recs!).
What drew you to Magneti?
What drew me most to Magneti is the research-based approach. I’ve always been a proponent of having a strong foundation when embarking on any creative project. I love creating purposeful design and Magneti is a great place to do that!
What are your top 5 favorite bands?
Music’s been a big part of my life and it’s difficult to choose only 5 bands as my favorites so I’ll go into 5 that have influenced my life throughout the years:
- Blink-182 – Like many people my age, Blink was sort of a gateway into punk/pop-punk music and culture. Travis Barker is who got me into playing drums.
- Copeland – Definitely a less-known indie band, if I had to choose just one favorite it would probably be this band. I have lyrics from one of their songs tattooed across my chest.
- Death Cab for Cutie – Probably the band I’ve seen the most live, including 3 times at Red Rocks.
- The Wonder Years – For when angsty teenagers become angsty twenty-somethings. This new wave of pop-punk came into my life at a very opportune time and for me, The Wonder Years are the quintessential band.
- Citizen – I would place Citizen as one of the new wave emo bands (at least their earlier albums) and this is what’s currently playing for me right now.
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If you had one extra hour in the day, what would you do with it?
I’d like to think that I’d use the time to do something productive, like learn a new skill an hour at a time but, in all honesty, I would probably spend the time playing with my dog or reading.
What advice would you give to your younger self?
Don’t stress too much, there will be bigger problems soon enough.
What is your favorite part of design?
My favorite part of design is probably the process. Pushing pixels to make things look cool is fun and all, but for me, creative problem-solving and concepting is the best way to flex the creative muscles.
Your future biography will be titled:
A Master of None: The Boy Who Tried to Dabble in Everything
