If you've heard Joy's voice, you might be surprised to learn she's only been pursuing jazz for a few years. In an interview with NPR, she discussed her Jazz Studies work at Purchase College and her feelings of uncertainty around longtime jazz devotees.
"Everybody was really supportive, but I still had this feeling like, 'I don't know if I belong,'" she explained. "Because I didn't have this preconceived notion of what it's supposed to sound like. But as it turns out, that allowed me to be a sponge and just soak everything in."
Now, she cites jazz influences like Betty Carter and Sarah Vaughan, while also acknowledging the different musical landscape today.
"I couldn't do this without that foundation that they've laid," she told NPR. "But I am 23, and I'm singing jazz in 2023, and I come from a different background than all of those artists. So I think that carrying on the tradition is progressing as you grow, and not being in a singular box."