At just 25 years old, jazz vocalist Samara Joy is already a three-time Grammy winner and is poised to add two more trophies to her collection at this Sunday’s awards ceremony. Her latest album, Portrait, has garnered critical acclaim and is fueling even more awards buzz, solidifying her status as one of the most exciting voices in jazz today.
Joy’s meteoric rise is all the more remarkable given her relatively recent introduction to jazz. Born and raised in the Bronx, New York, Joy first encountered the genre in 2017 as a high school junior when she was invited to sit in on a jazz band practice. Captivated by the emotional depth and technical brilliance of legends like Ella Fitzgerald and Sarah Vaughan, she quickly immersed herself in the music.
“The pure emotion combined with the technical prowess of all of the musicians that I heard—their creativity and seemingly never-ending ideas—grabbed me,” Joy told PBS NewsHour’s Jeffrey Brown during a recent interview at Van Gelder Studios in Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey, where she recorded Portrait. “I thought, maybe I could do this.”
Joy’s journey from jazz novice to Grammy-winning artiste has been nothing short of extraordinary. After enrolling in the jazz programme at the State University of New York at Purchase, she caught the attention of her professors, who encouraged her to enter the prestigious Sarah Vaughan International Jazz Vocal Competition in 2019. She won, using the prize money to fund her debut album, Samara Joy, released in 2020.
Her second album, Linger Awhile, catapulted her to stardom, earning her two Grammys in 2023 for Best Jazz Vocal Album and Best New Artiste. The latter award was particularly significant, as Joy triumphed over nominees from all genres, marking a historic moment for the jazz community.
Joy’s success is deeply rooted in her family’s musical legacy. Her grandparents, Ruth McLendon and Elder Goldwire, were gospel singers in the Philadelphia group The Savettes, while her father, Antonio McLendon, is a professional musician who toured with gospel icon Andrae Crouch.
“It’s the essence of what dreams are made of,” Antonio McLendon said of his daughter’s rise. “I often go between tears and smiles when I think about it and when I see her perform. There’s always something about her performance—she gets me every time.”
Joy has increasingly woven her gospel roots into her jazz sound, a fusion that shines on her 2023 Christmas E.P., A Joyful Holiday, which features collaborations with family members. This blending of traditions has resonated with audiences, introducing many to jazz for the first time.
“There are people who say, ‘This is my first time ever going to a jazz concert,’” Joy shared. “Some parents tell me, ‘My kids introduced me to you. I’m a fan, and I’ve never been into jazz before.’”
With Portrait, Joy is not only paying homage to jazz legends but also carving out her own creative path. The album features original lyrics and compositions, reflecting her desire to contribute to the jazz canon.
“I want to put my best effort forward to figuring out what I love about it and how I can make it better,” she said. “So that 20, 30 years down the line, I have a better sense of my writing and compositional style. The crafting of it starts now.”
As Joy prepares to embark on a five-month world tour, including a debut performance at New York’s Carnegie Hall on April 30, she remains grounded and grateful for the whirlwind journey.
“It’s been faster than I ever imagined,” she said. “I knew I loved to sing, and I knew my family had this beautiful legacy of music, but I never knew where it was going to take me.”
- Image: Samara Joy/X
