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Grammy-winning jazz vocalist Samara Joy lands in Melbourne, performing show at King Center

Alastair Mac
1 hour ago
3 min read

Fresh from winning The Best Jazz Vocal Album for Portrait at 68th Annual Grammy Awards, Samara Joy heads to the Space Coast

Grammy-winning jazz vocalist Samara Joy lands in Melbourne, performing at King Center on February 17

Six-time GRAMMY Award-winning jazz vocalist Samara Joy is bringing the joy to the Space Coast when she takes to the stage at Melbourne's King Center on Tuesday, February 17.

Few figures in jazz history have experienced the kind of meteoric success that vocalist Samara Joy has, especially at such a young age.

At just 26, her career is nothing short of sensational. Her latest album, Portrait, her third studio album was released on October 11, 2024 by Verve Records and contains eight tracks of jazz standards and covers from the Great American Songbook, and was recently named Best Jazz Vocal Album at 68th Annual Grammy Awards on February 1.

Fans in Melbourne can expect to hear these tracks and more, as will fans across the country as the singer embarks on an extensive North American Tour, happening now through May.

Kicking off in Florida, the tour includes stops in Georgia, Texas, California and more.

Don't miss your chance to hear Joy live on stage in Melbourne. Get tickets now:

https://www.kingcenter.com/events/detail/samara-joy

A native of the Bronx, Samara Joy became entranced by classic R&B as a child and cut her teeth as a singer in her church’s gospel choir. And while her family history is deeply musical—her grandparents helmed the Philadelphia gospel group the Savettes, and her father, the musician and songwriter Antonio McLendon, has produced, composed and arranged his own astounding original work—she didn’t delve into the jazz tradition until college at SUNY Purchase.

During her studies there she won the 2019 Sarah Vaughan International Jazz Vocal Competition, which introduced her to the larger jazz scene as a rising star to watch. She was heard, by audiences and critics alike, as a masterful interpreter of jazz standards and a rightful heiress of the sound, technique and charisma that defined her jazz heroines—including Vaughan, Betty Carter, Abbey Lincoln and Carmen McRae.

Joy released her self-titled debut on the Whirlwind label in 2021, followed a year later by Linger Awhile, her breakout Verve debut, of which Down Beat said, “With this beautiful recording, a silky-voiced star is born.” The album earned her a Grammy for Best Jazz Vocal Album in addition to a headline-making win for Best New Artist. A deluxe edition of the album was released, as well as the EP A Joyful Holiday, which took home Grammys for Best Jazz Vocal Album and Best Jazz Performance in 2025.

Her new Verve album, Portrait, which Joy co-produced with the veteran trumpeter/bandleader and multi-Grammy winner Brian Lynch, showcases the intimate, soulful chemistry she’s developed with her touring band, already earning her an NAACP Image Award this year for Best Jazz Album. Portrait also spotlights her burgeoning gifts as a lyricist, in ingenious arrangements that meld her thoughtful words with music by Charles Mingus, Sun Ra and her late mentor Barry Harris.

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