Polished and precise, yet buoyed with an airy grace, Joy Ike paints with a broad palette that defies easy categorization. Born to Nigerian immigrants, the singer/songwriter’s music, voice, and writing have drawn comparisons to female musicians such as Nina Simone, Laura Nyro, and Regina Spektor. But her percussive piano-playing and soaring vocals give homage to her African upbringing.
Leaving her career as a publicist in 2008, Joy has spent the last 14 years playing thousands of shows across the country. A write-up on NPR's All Things Considered says "The depth of subjects she tackles in her poetic lyrics are perfectly complemented by a unique blend of neo-soul, with just the right dash of pop...a truly compelling act to watch in person, with the ability to create an intimate setting in locations big and small."
Ike began playing music in earnest while in college, gravitating to piano as a tool to aid her greatest passion - songwriting. “I believe good music is simply poetry with a soundtrack” she says. Out of college she worked her hometown scene in Pittsburgh, PA at night while working for a book publishing firm during the day. The untimely 2008 passing of her brother caused a sudden shift in perspective. “For the first time, I truly felt the brevity and uncertainty of life” says Ike. “I left my job one week after he died.” Rushing headfirst into uncertainty shaped her 2008 debut LP Good Morning, which explored themes of starting fresh and beginning again. Five years of striving towards her dream of making it as an artist lead to 2011's Rumors, and 2013’s All or Nothing. Through those years Ike garnered praise from the likes of NPR's All Things Considered, who called her “...a voice and talent beyond her years,” and SoulBounce which described her music as “...a sensational slice of urgent piano-soul.”
As a singer/songwriter/storyteller, artist and public speaker, Joy believes that music and art have the power to transform hearts and connect people who would otherwise be strangers at best and enemies at worst. She speaks regularly on her journey into music-making as the daughter of Nigerian immigrants, using music to process and enter into meaningful conversations. As a former publicist, she teaches workshops on branding, marketing, and using your authentic story to engage your audience. Joy is passionate about art as a vehicle for change, empowerment and empathy and sees art as a way to openly and thoughtfully wrestle with the uncertainty of life.
Ike's most recent album, Bigger Than Your Box was written over a four-year period that included a relocation from Pittsburgh to the gritty, thrumming metropolis of Philadelphia. The record is joyously defiant, standing proud and wrapped in blasts of rich, vibrant color. It dares us to believe in ourselves, to knock down the walls of fear and doubt we build around ourselves. “This is an open-armed invitation to dive head first into the unseen”, says Ike. Bigger Than Your Box boldly explores what Ike often refers to as divine discontentment; the restless middle ground between what is and what ought to be. “The spiritual mystery of life and the ever-present Spirit of God that embraces us in our most helpless state.”
For more details visit www.joyike.com
You can find her through her artist consulting project, Cultivators, or at www.joyike.com, Facebook, and Instagram.