Jazz singer of Generation Z: Who is Samara Joy?

Look, the American jazz press is already keen on placing Samara Joy's name alongside Ella, Billie, and Sarah. The American jazz world gets hooked on a new guy every decade, and the lucky new one was Joy. If the artist proves stable, support increases. Now the process is working for Joy.

After the young artist appeared on the TODAY Show, her videos were watched millions of times on TikTok, which is why they call her the Generation Z jazz artist. Then, she released her first album "Linger Awhile". She also received the Grammys' Best New Artist and Best Jazz Vocal Album awards.

Samara Joy McLendon (born November 11, 1999) is an American jazz singer. She released her self-titled debut album in 2021 and was subsequently named Best New Artist by JazzTimes. Her second album, Linger Awhile (2022), reached number one on the Billboard Jazz Albums chart. At the 2023 Grammy Awards, she won the awards for Best Jazz Vocal Album and Best New Artist. Her 2023 single "Tight" won Best Jazz Performance at the following ceremony.

Very young and with a really good voice, Samara Joy from Brooklyn, whose family background was related to jazz, was a child who was fed by her family's interest in gospel. Joy is also a woman interested in jazz history. She won the prestigious Sarah Vaughan Jazz Vocal competition in 2019. She played with masters such as Christian McBride and Bill Charlap, was mentored by Barry Harris, and started to stand on her feet with the brightness of the first fire she lit. We will follow this young artist with curiosity, whom we will talk about a lot in the coming years.

Who is Samara Joy?

The artist, born in 1999, completed her music education in 2021. In the same year, she was selected as "Best New Artist" by JazzTimes with her self-titled debut album. She appeared in Broadway, Inc.'s Women of Color music video for Porgy and Bess' "Summertime". Film director Regina King described her in an interview as "a young woman who seems to bring Sarah Vaughan and Ella Fitzgerald to life in her own body."

A young and dynamic icon

She has released numerous viral video performances, including a video that has been viewed over 1.5 million times as of October 2020. These videos reached 200,000 followers on TikTok as of November 2022. Partly on the strength of this success, she toured Europe, including a series of sold-out concerts in Italy and Austria. She has performed at the most prestigious jazz festivals and concert halls in the USA, including the Monterey Jazz Festival, Lincoln Center Summer For The City's Jazz Underground series, and Winter Jazzfest.

Samara Joy seems to be on a mission to popularize jazz music among the younger generation. The New York Times says of Joy, "She brings a youthful spin to jazz."

Samara's music draws on a rich musical heritage with roots in the Bronx, New York. This journey, from gospel music to the depths of jazz, is felt in Samara's every performance.