Joy Oladokun (born April 6, 1992) is an American singer-songwriter. Oladokun's music spans the genres of

folk Folk or Folks may refer to: Sociology *Nation *People * Folklore ** Folk art ** Folk dance ** Folk hero ** Folk music *** Folk metal *** Folk punk *** Folk rock ** Folk religion * Folk taxonomy Arts, entertainment, and media * Folk Plus or Fol ...

, R&B,

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...

, and pop and is influenced by her identity as a

queer ''Queer'' is an umbrella term for people who are not heterosexual or cisgender. Originally meaning or , ''queer'' came to be used pejoratively against those with same-sex desires or relationships in the late 19th century. Beginning in the lat ...

woman of color The term "person of color" ( : people of color or persons of color; abbreviated POC) is primarily used to describe any person who is not considered "white". In its current meaning, the term originated in, and is primarily associated with, the U ...

. She has released three studio albums: ''Carry'' (2016), ''

In Defense of My Own Happiness (The Beginnings) ''In Defense of My Own Happiness (The Beginnings)'' (stylized in all lowercase and originally titled ''In Defense of My Own Happiness (Vol. 1)'') is the second studio album by American singer-songwriter Joy Oladokun. The ten-track album was releas ...

'' (2020), and ''

In Defense of My Own Happiness ''In Defense of My Own Happiness'' (stylized in all lowercase) is the third studio album and major label debut by American singer-songwriter Joy Oladokun. It was released on June 4, 2021, by Amigo Records, Verve Forecast Records, and Republic Recor ...

'' (2021).

Early life

Oladokun grew up in

Casa Grande, Arizona , settlement_type = City , image_skyline = Casa Grande-Casa Grande Union High School-1920-2.jpg , imagesize = 250px , image_caption = Historic Casa Grande Union High School which now serves as the ...

, listening to

country A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. It may be a sovereign state or make up one part of a larger state. For example, the country of Japan is an independent, sovereign state, while the ...

and folk music, as well as

Bob Marley Robert Nesta Marley (6 February 1945 – 11 May 1981; baptised in 1980 as Berhane Selassie) was a Jamaican singer, musician, and songwriter. Considered one of the pioneers of reggae, his musical career was marked by fusing elements o ...

and

Lauryn Hill Lauryn Noelle Hill (born May 26, 1975) is an American singer, songwriter, rapper, and record producer. She is often regarded as one of the greatest rappers of all time, as well as being one of the most influential musicians of her generation. ...

. Both of her parents are

Nigerian Nigerians or the Nigerian people are citizens of Nigeria or people with ancestry from Nigeria. The name Nigeria was taken from the Niger River running through the country. This name was allegedly coined in the late 19th century by British jour ...

immigrants to the United States. Her family regularly attended a Christian church, where Oladokun was chosen to lead worship. Later, Oladokun left the church because it limited her creativity. When Oladokun was 10, a video of Tracy Chapman inspired her to learn guitar. After college, at a friend's suggestion, Oladokun moved to Los Angeles to pursue her music career. She later moved to

East Nashville East Nashville is an area east of downtown Nashville in Tennessee across the Cumberland River. The area is mostly residential and mixed-use areas with businesses lining the main boulevards. The main thoroughfares are Gallatin Ave (also known as Ga ...

, where she signed with Prescription Songs.

Career

In 2015, Joy Oladokun self-released her debut EP, ''Cathedrals''. Her debut studio album, ''Carry'', was funded by

Kickstarter Kickstarter is an American public benefit corporation based in Brooklyn, New York, that maintains a global crowdfunding platform focused on creativity. The company's stated mission is to "help bring creative projects to life". As of July 2021, ...

and released on April 29, 2016 through Well Records. Oladokun released the single "Sunday" in 2019, saying Sunday' is the song that 12-year-old Joy, seated in the back of church youth group, needed to hear. She needed to hear that you can be queer and happy. Queer and healthy. Queer and holy. She needed to see married women kissing and playing with their kids." The music video highlights people in

LGBTQ ' is an initialism that stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender. In use since the 1990s, the initialism, as well as some of its common variants, functions as an umbrella term for sexuality and gender identity. The LGBT term is a ...

relationships and has a predominantly queer cast. In 2020, during the

Black Lives Matter Black Lives Matter (abbreviated BLM) is a decentralized political and social movement that seeks to highlight racism, discrimination, and racial inequality experienced by black people. Its primary concerns are incidents of police bruta ...

movement Oladokun released "Who Do I Turn To?", a ballad co-written with

Natalie Hemby Natalie Nicole Hemby Wrucke (born March 24, 1977) is an American country music songwriter and singer. She has written songs for Lee Ann Womack, Eli Young Band, Toby Keith, Miranda Lambert, Sunny Sweeney, Little Big Town, Jon Pardi, Kacey Musgrav ...

. Oladokun’s song "Mercy" follows in the same theme, describing her experience as a

Black Black is a color which results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without hue, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness. Black and white have o ...

person in the United States, while the single "I See America" criticizes

systemic racism Institutional racism, also known as systemic racism, is a form of racism that is embedded in the laws and regulations of a society or an organization. It manifests as discrimination in areas such as criminal justice, employment, housing, healt ...

. NPR listed "I See America" on its 100 Best Songs of 2020. On July 17, 2020, Oladokun released her second studio album, ''In Defense of My Own Happiness (Vol. 1)'', with White Boy Records. ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

'' described the album as a "stunningly emotional collection". Mitch Mosk, editor-in-chief of

Atwood Magazine Atwood Magazine is a digital music magazine that focuses on emerging and established artists from around the world. The magazine was founded in 2012 and is currently run by editor-in-chief Mitch Mosk. History Atwood Magazine was founded in 20 ...

, called it a "a sweeping, soaring, and stunning sophomore record oozing heart and soul." In 2021, Oladokun received a grant from

YouTube YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...

's "#YouTubeBlack Voices Fund". The same year she signed with Amigo Records,

Verve Forecast Records Verve Forecast is a record label formed as a division of Verve Records to concentrate on pop, rock, and folk music. Founding Jerry Schoenbaum of Verve and Moe Asch of Folkways created Verve Folkways in 1964 to take advantage of the popularity ...

, and

Republic Records Republic Records is a New York City–based American record label owned by Universal Music Group (UMG). It was founded by Avery Lipman and Monte Lipman as an independent label in 1995, and was acquired by UMG in 2000. Republic was initially an ...

. On June 4, 2021 she released her third studio album, ''In Defense of My Own Happiness''.

Discography

Studio albums

Compilation albums

Extended plays

Singles

As lead artist

As featured artist

Music videos

Notes

Accolades

References

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Oladokun, Joy African-American women singer-songwriters American contemporary R&B singers American women pop singers American women rock singers American folk singers American folk musicians American people of Nigerian descent American pop musicians American rock musicians American rock songwriters Contemporary folk musicians LGBT African Americans American LGBT singers Living people People from Casa Grande, Arizona Queer musicians Queer women Republic Records artists Verve Forecast Records artists 21st-century African-American people 1992 births 21st-century African-American women Singer-songwriters from Arizona