Hailing from the Bronx New York and raised in Philly, Samara Joy’s new career has been catapulting like a rocket ship! As of yesterday, at only 23 years old Samara is now the winner of two Grammy awards: “Best New Artist” and “Best New Jazz Vocal Album” for her latest project “Linger Awhile”.
The singer comes from a legacy of music and a strong background in both Gospel and Jazz. Her paternal grandparents, Elder Goldwire and Ruth McLendon, sang in the famous soul gospel Philadelphia group, The Savettes. Joy’s father is Antonio McLendon, a singer and bassist who toured for years with another gospel star, Andraé Crouch.
In 2020, a viral Facebook video of Joy singng Ella Fitzgerald’s “Take Love Easy” as a thank you for receiving the Ella Fitzgerald Scholarship in 2020 while a student at State University of New York at Purchase led to her receiving a record deal. Her viral video caught the attention of actors like LaKeith Stanfield and Regina King, the latter of whom credits Joy’s music with helping her get through the pandemic.
There are few other ways to describe it. Samara embodies a sound of the past echoing all of the jazz greats from Ella Fitzgerald, Billie Holiday, Sara Vaughan and more. The ArtSoul staff has been following Samara for a couple years now. At first listen, it was clear that she is the future of jazz bringing in both a new younger and older audience of the genre that is quickly becoming enamored by her talent as she re-introduces songs like “Can’t Get Out of This Mood”, “Guess Who I Saw Today”, “Someone To Watch Over Me and More”.
What happens when a 23 year old beauty from the Bronx brings back classic jazz standards? Apparently Tik Tok goes crazy!
In addition to going viral on Facebook where she was originally discovered during the pandemic, Joy has continued to go viral on Instagram and Tik Tok. In addition to growing new listeners to her music, new remixes of Joy’s songs have also been popping up from young Gospel and Jazz fans and musicians such as Producer and YouTube/IG&TikTok sensation Yaahn Hunter Jr who created a Chill Hip Hop infused version of Joy’s single “Can’t Get Out of This Mood” which is still trending on Tik Tok. Listen below…
The video below left many wondering if Samara was lip singing! But, as she has proved live on TikTok from her room and all the way to Paris, France on tour, Samara continues to show us all that she is the real deal!
We are excited to watch Samara Joy’s career continue to thrive as she continues to grow and leave audiences in awe. If you have never seen her live, do yourself a favor and show up to one of the stops on her current tour beginning February 11th through September 11th.
ArtSoul Radio is a 24/7, online Christian Radio Station and Entertainment news site promoting new and diverse sounds in Christian music! We highlight both indie and mainstream artists in Contemporary Gospel, Pop, Soul, Hip-Hop, Alternative, and Spoken Word Poetry.
Grammy award winning artist, author and long time activist Common teamed up with Grammy award winning artist Jonathan McReynolds for a special performance at the 2024 Democratic National Convention (DNC) in Chicago in support of Kamala Harris.
The two artists sang a song made custom for the occasion! Jonathan McReynolds sang a portion of his song “God Is Good” blended with exerpts of Common’s song “Fortunate”.
These two artists have seen many victories in their careers since their beginning origins from the south side of Chicago. Michelle Obama has a similar story hailing from the same part of the city. It was a special night to see Jonathan and Common open up the night as Michelle Obama closed it out with her speech just before introducing her Husband, our former President Barak Obama. Having each of these powerful artists, speakers and leaders present in Chicago for one cause was a special moment for many that will now forever be etched in history.
Hulvey announced on Instagram today that he will be releasing a surprise remix of his single “Altar” with the Ciara! This was unexpected, but we’re here for it!
On Easter, April 1st of this year, Hip Hop artist Hulvey received the surprise of his life when Ciara and her Husband Russel posted a clip of her family celebrating Easter using his song “Altar” in the background. Who knew that this would have led to the release of a new remix of the single together! Did this come as a surprise to you as much as it did for us?
Legendary Producer Rodney “Darkchild” Jerkins recently announced the official launch of his new label “Alienz Alive”! His starting roster for this faith based label includes some of the hottest names in CHH and Christian R&B/Soul music: Gawvi, Jonkeith, Alex Jean, Imrsqd and TJCarroll.
Darkchild’s Production credits include a number of celebrity greats such as Michael Jackson, Beyonce, Justin Beiber, Whitney Houston, Brandy and too many more to name! And according to his vision, he is looking to bring that same diversity of sound to his new label. Speaking of the label’s direction of sound, Jerkins shared, “Sonically speaking the influences are Hip Hop, R&B, and Indie Rock. As long as it glorifies God and it’s dope, all are welcome.”
While many are surprised by a mainstream producer of this calliber creating a faith based label, others who have followed his career know that he has been both Gospel and “CHH” adjacent for years. Jerkins who rapped in church as a child and was featured in Kirk Franklin’s song “Revolution” reflects on launching a company that aligns with his faith describing it as a full circle moment:
“When I first thought about launching a new company, I knew I had to do something that reflected my faith. What’s crazy, and people might not know this; I was rapping in church as a kid. I was also featured on Kirk Franklin’s Revolution so this is a full circle moment for me because now I’m doing something revolutionary by launching this label. Alienz Alive is a collaborative community of creatives that are Christ-centered where artist development is key. We encourage our artists to use their gifts to uplift and inspire. Sonically speaking the influences are Hip Hop, R&B, and Indie Rock. As long as it glorifies God and it’s dope, all are welcome.”
There is a lot of new movement in the music industry right now that is bringing more attention than ever to Christian music as more mainstream labels, producers and more are entering this space. Let us know your thoughts about it all on IG! Join the conversation!
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