Samara Joy McLendon, a jazz singer from the Bronx, New York, was named Best New Artist at the 65th Grammy Awards. She is nominated in a category with Anitta, Omar Apollo, DOMi & JD Beck, Muni Long, Latto, Maneskin, Tobe Nwigwe, Molly Tuttle and Wet Leg. The award was presented to the artist by Olivia Rodrigo, the previous winner of the same title.
In her speech at the 2023 Grammy Awards, the artist expressed her deep astonishment and gratitude that she deserved the award.
She stated:
“I’ve been following you on TV for a long time…. Thank you very much for this award, and thank you to everyone who heard me and supported me… I’m grateful to be here for who I am… to be here just by being me, by being what I was born to be.”
In addition to the award for best new artist, Samara also won the award for best jazz vocal album for her recent song Linger Awhile.
All about Samara Joy McLendon
Samara Joy McLendon was born and raised in the Bronx, New York. She was born on November 11, 1999 and grew up in a musical family. Elder Goldwire and Ruth McLendon, her grandparents, were members of the Philadelphia-based gospel group The Savettes. She told NPR that her immediate family was also musically oriented.
She stated:
“My father is a bass player, so there was a lot of funk, soul and R&B. But he was also the one who mostly grew up in the church and played in the church.”
McLendon chose music for her further education after being inspired by her musical history, which led her to enroll in the jazz studies department at the State University of New York. There she was taught by Jon Faddis, a lecturer and trumpeter. Samara rose to fame in high school while attending Fordham High School of the Arts. She played with the school’s jazz band and won the “Essentially Ellington” competition at Fordham University in New York.
Continuing her success, the singer received the Samara McLendon International Jazz Vocalist Award in 2019. In 2021, she graduated with high honors and released Samara Joy, her debut studio album, in collaboration with Matt Pierson, who later became her manager. During this time, she also posted numerous TikTok performances that went viral and received over a million views. She won a Grammy for her second album, Linger Awhile, which was released in 2022.
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Categories: Entertaintment
Source: HIS Education