GRAMMY Best New Artist Winner Samara Joy Announces ‘A Joyful Holiday’ EP
2X GRAMMY winner Samara Joy is set to release a holiday EP ‘A Joyful Holiday’ next month. The 6-song collection of seasonal favorites is an extension of her latest album Linger Awhile and features a similar cast of jazz musicians - Pasquale Grasso on guitar, David Wong on bass and Kenny Washington on drums - plus Sullivan Fortner on piano. The tracklist includes previously-released singles “O Holy Night” (performed with multiple generations of her family) and “Warm in December,” in addition to a new recording of Stevie Wonder’s “Twinkle Twinkle Little Me” and both a studio and live version of “The Christmas Song.” Produced by Matt Pierson, the EP is set for release on October 27 via Verve and will be available as an exclusive D2C emerald green color variant LP. Pre-order / Pre-save ‘A Joyful Holiday’ HERE.
The “Verve Vinyl Collection” - comprised of Joy’s 3 Verve LPs ‘Linger Awhile,’ ‘Linger Awhile Longer,’ and ‘A Joyful Holiday’ - has also been announced today, set for release on November 17. Pre-order HERE.
With today’s announcement, Samara Joy has unveiled a lightly-swinging arrangement of “Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas.” Listen HERE.
The holiday EP continues a whirlwind year that saw Joy take home the auspicious Best New Artistand Best Jazz Vocal Album awards at this year’s GRAMMYs. Since her breakout wins, Linger Awhile has reached #1 on Amazon Best Sellers, Billboard Jazz, Pandora Trendsetters, iTunes and Amazon’s digital-music and CD sales, and more. Joy has garnered over 1 million followers on social media, and her tour dates all over the world have rapidly sold out. Her voice, rich and velvety yet precociously refined, has already earned her legions of fans in addition to millions of likes on TikTok — cementing her status as perhaps the first Gen Z jazz singing star.
Throughout the remainder of 2023, Samara Joy will be touring across the globe, making stops in Athens, Berlin, Paris, London and more. The “A Joyful Holiday Tour” featuring members of the McLendon family kicks off December 1 in Houston, and includes shows in Nashville, Atlanta, Philadelphia, and two highly-anticipated hometown shows at the Apollo Theater in NYC. For all upcoming tour dates, please visit https://www.samarajoy.com/.
“Singing alongside my family has always been a special time kept between us but this December, I’m excited to share that special feeling with you all! This holiday season, it brings me great joy to present my first role models, the McLendon Family, on a month-long tour throughout the US. Join us for a show you’ll never forget!”
- Samara Joy
‘A Joyful Holiday’ Tracklist
1. Warm In December
2. Twinkle Twinkle Little Me ft. Sullivan Fortner
3. The Christmas Song
4. Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas
5. O Holy Night
6. The Christmas Song (Live)
Photo credit: Ambe J. Williams
Samara Joy 2023 Tour Dates
9/28 - 10/1 – Seattle, WA @ Dimitriou's Jazz Alley Jazz
10/4 – Davis, CA @ Mondavi Center
10/6 - 7 – New York, NY @ Rose Hall at The Lincoln Center
10/14 – Kansas City @ Folly Theater
10/15 – Denver, CO @ Newman Center
10/18 – Easton, PA @ Williams Center for the Arts / Performance Series
10/20 – Storrs, CT @ Jorgenson Center
10/22 – Brookville, NY @ Tilles Center
10/24 – Columbia, MO @ Missouri Theater
10/25 – Iowa City @ Hancher Auditorium
10/27 – Chicago, IL @ Chicago Symphony Orchestra
11/4 – Zurich, Switzerland @ Gessnerallee
11/5 – Athens, Greece @ Megaron Athens
11/7 – Hamburg, Germany @ Elb Philharmonic
11/8 – Berlin, Germany @ Pierre Boulez Saal
11/12 – Paris, FR @ Le Trianon
11/15 – Madrid, ES @ Fernan Gomez Theater
11/17 – Bologna, Italy @ CUBO Centro Unipol Bologna
11/18 – Milan, Italy @ Teatro La Bolla
11/19 – London, UK @ Barbican Center, London Jazz Festival
12/3 – Austin, TX @ Bass Concert Hall, UT Austin
12/4 – Nashville, TN @ Nashville Symphony
12/7 – Los Angeles, CA @ Younes and Soraya Nazarian Center for the Performing Arts
12/8 – Santa Barbara, CA @ The Granada Theater
12/12 – Chesterfield, MO @ The Factory
12/14 - 12/15 – New York, NY @ Apollo Theater
12/19 – Atlanta, GA @ Atlanta Symphony Hall
12/22 – Philadelphia, PA @ Kimmel Center
12/23 – North Bethesda, MD @ Strathmore
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