Samara Joy wins two Grammys: Best New Artist, Best Jazz Vocal Album — CONCERT SOLD OUT!

It was a great night for Samara Joy.
It was a great night for jazz.
It was a great night for Boscov’s Berks Jazz Fest fans.

Samara, the dynamic 23-year-old singer, was named Best New Artist at the 65th Grammy Awards on Sunday, a rare victory by an artist from a relatively specialized field in a category dominated for years by high-profile pop and hip-hop stars.
Joy also won the Grammy for Best Jazz Vocal Album on Sunday with Linger Awhile, her debut LP for the storied Verve label, which features her stately yet sensual renditions of classic standards.
The last non-pop, hip-hop musician to win best new artist? Another jazz singer, Esperanza Spalding, who famously defeated Drake and Justin Bieber for the coveted award in 2011.
Among the more recognizable acts Joy beat Sunday were rapper Latto, R&B singer Muni Long, Brazilian singer Anitta and the rock bands Wet Leg and Måneskin.
“I’ve been watching y’all on TV for like so long,” Samara told the crowd at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, as she accepted the best new artist prize in apparent disbelief. “All of you are so inspiring to me, so to be here because of who I am… by just being who I was born as, I’m so thankful.”

And lucky Berks Jazz Fest fans are thankful that they can see Samara perform live during the 32nd annual fest when she takes the stage for a sold-out concert on Sunday, April 2, 3:00 p.m., at the Miller Center for the Arts.

Samara grew up the granddaughter of Elder Goldwire and Ruth McLendon, who performed with a Philadelphia gospel group, the Savettes. Yet as a kid, Samara also sang in school musicals and absorbed the soul and R&B music of Marvin Gaye, Aretha Franklin, and Chaka Khan. In 2019, while studying jazz at the State University of New York at Purchase, Samara won the prestigious Sarah Vaughan International Jazz Vocal Competition. The following year, she went viral on TikTok with over 1.5 million views.

In addition to Samara, The Manhattan Transfer, and Gerald Albright – both Berks Jazz Fest headliners -- were Grammy nominees.

The Manhattan Transfer, celebrating its 50th Anniversary and currently on its Final World Tour, also was nominated in the Best Jazz Vocal Album category for its latest release “FIFTY,” a collaboration with the WDR Funkhausorchester. The Manhattan Transfer have won 10 Grammys during their extraordinary career.

TMT’s performance during the Berks Jazz Fest is set for Saturday, March 25, 6:00 p.m., at the Scottish Rite Cathedral. Reserve your tickets now!

Gerald Albright was nominated in the Best Improvised Solo category for his sax performance on the song Keep Holding On. The Grammy went to Leo Genovese for performance on Wayne Shorter’s Endangered Species. Gerald was a special guest on Hank Bilal’s CD “The Black Aquarius,” which featured Albright’s performance on Keep Holding On.

Albright’s performance during the Berks Jazz Fest is set for Saturday, March 25, 1:00 p.m., at the DoubleTree by Hilton Reading Grand Ballroom. Get your seats for Gerald Albright now!