Joy Williams
Joy Williams Bio
Twenty-two-year-old singer/songwriter Joy Williams can't help
but smile when she talks about her life as though it's just
now beginning. And in many ways, it's true.
It's been nearly five years since Joy emerged onto the music
scene with the 2001 release of her critically-acclaimed, self-titled
debut album. Just 17 years old then, she was juggling the
challenges of high school with the demanding schedule of a
recording artist. By the time her sophomore effort, By Surprise,
released in 2002, Joy had logged more than 400 days on the
road performing before crowds around the world.
Joy's engaging personality has always transcended her music
and earned her legions of loyal fans across the globe. Her
industry accolades include five Dove Award nominations, including
a nod for the prestigious Female Vocalist of the Year honor
for three consecutive years. Her radio success includes the
No. 1 single "Every Moment," and CCM Magazine (2/2002)
readers even voted Joy the "Best New Artist."
On being an artist, Joy admits, "I realize this crazy
life is a privilege and I know that not everybody gets to
do this, especially at such a young age, and I'm grateful
for the chance. However, I was expected to grow up quickly
and there were moments when I had to deal with my feelings
over that. I was college-bound, wanting to go to that Ivy
League school and take the scholarship I'd worked so hard
for. But college was not in the blue prints for me, I had
signed on to a different life instead. And I would have moments
where I'd find myself so jealous of friends at college who
would talk about professors they loved or trips abroad they
were taking. In the end, what has been so remarkable is the
fact that this path I've taken has included many life journeys
I had hoped for."
Those journeys have included some pretty monumental moments
in Joy's life, not the least of which is her recent marriage
to husband Nate Yetton in June of 2004. Some of the best and
most memorable music happens when life and art come together,
and it's no accident that Joy's newest album, Genesis, has
taken more than two years to come to fruition. Those two years
brought maturity, experience and confidence to a performer
who already owned a sense of insight and artistry shared by
few.
"There have been some pretty solid jumps in terms of
my life," Joy shares. "So much has changed since
I started! From growing up a bit on the road, to becoming
more independent over time, to meeting the man that I now
get to grow old with. There have been steps made - not in
terms of miles, but in terms of life. I feel like there have
been a lot of new avenues to walk down."
In his classic My Utmost for His Highest, Oswald Chambers
poses the question, "God's purpose, or mine?" Our
focus, he suggests, should not be on the end goal, but on
trusting God through the process. And it's that same truth
that Joy has learned and can share with her audience. "I've
wriggled underneath God's thumb at times," she admits,
"but that's the creativity of life. As I've learned to
trust God and abandon myself to Him, I've realized that His
hand has always been open and kind towards me. I'm excited
about the path I'm getting to walk now. I have giggled at
Heaven over His obvious sense of humor with me. My blueprint
plan didn't turn out the way I thought it would at all, but
it's better than anything I'd ever hoped for."
Genesis will undoubtedly create new opinions and deeper appreciation
of Joy's artistry from both critics and fans alike. Produced
by Matt Bronleewe (Natalie Imbruglia, Jars of Clay, Michael
W. Smith), it is the first album on which Joy has co-written
every song. There is also a dynamic feel to her music that
is original and fresh. When asked how to explain the sound,
Joy says, "The only way I can think to describe it is
this: like London fog rolling into the California Bay Area."
Its progressive pop rock sound combines unique programmed
elements, ambient electric and acoustic guitar, driving piano
and even stringed instruments recorded in Prague.
"Working with Matt was incredible," says Joy. "I've
never had more fun working on an album. We spent more time
laughing than recording, I think! He really encouraged me
to find myself and to find the music within me. It was very
much a team effort. His confidence in what I was doing spurred
me on to work harder and dig deeper into this project than
on any other before."
And it shows. "I think this album may cause people to
blink twice," she adds. "It's a real change for
me, but I think (and I hope) there's a musical style here
that evidences growth and draws people in. Over the past couple
of years, I really began to fall in love with various kinds
of music, and tried for the first time to infuse this love
of what I listened to into the kind of music I wanted to make."
Collaborating with co-writers like Jason Ingram, Matthew
West, Ian Eskelin, Ben Glover and Jason Houser, Joy crafted
a collection of songs that are more vulnerable and personal
to her than any she's ever recorded, while remaining universally
relevant. "People who have made the most impact on me
in my life are the people who lived out what they believed
instead of just telling me about it. I have a passion to be
like that, and wanted to make an album that reflected this
desire. There are lyrics in these songs where you can hear
me literally wrestling with God. There are moments where you
can hear me falling in love with my husband and celebrating
that. This album is a picture of life on a heart level. These
songs are conversations I would have with some of my closest
friends sitting in our living room or in a coffee shop."
The whole album is the journey of self-discovery, wading
through dark seasons, embracing times of questioning, reeling
from love, and celebrating new beginnings. "My fingerprints
are all over this CD," Joy admits. "And what's crazy
is that I really feel like this is a debut album."
"Hide," the album's first radio single, is a powerful
anthem and has already become an audience favorite, setting
records for an unprecedented first-week number of adds on
the Christian AC format. In talking about the inspiration
behind the hit song Joy explains, "Nearly a year ago,
I had a counselor friend of mine point out how much I hid
my pain away. And there is no way any of us will be able to
heal our cracked hearts by spackling them ourselves. We need
God to do that. We need others around us to encourage us in
the process. This song is really an invitation for anyone
who's ever felt unlovable, disappointed, lonely…to link
arms with another broken soul like mine, and to realize that
you're never alone."
Genesis showcases Joy's natural ability to take some of those
intimate life lessons learned and reach into the heart of
each listener, who identifies her questions and her struggles
with their own. That honesty hits home with tracks like "Silence,"
in which Joy discusses the distance she felt from God when
going through a spiritually dry season. "God Only Knows"
is a song Joy relates to the near-fatal incident that almost
took the life of her only sister that shook her entire family.
Perhaps more than any album before, Genesis is bound to connect
Joy to any audience no matter what their age, gender or faith.
Her keen ability to paint an honest picture of her own life-with
all its highs and lows-will not be lost on those who hear
the album.
"I'm just trying to figure out life like everybody else
is," says Joy. "Connecting is what makes me feel
alive-knowing I'm not the only one who has ever felt alone,
or angry at God, or misunderstood, or insecure, or naïve,
or whose made stupid mistakes. That's been me, in my journal
- it's in my life - it's in the fabric of who I am."
Certainly the "new beginnings" and changes in Joy's
life have brought about a new outlook that demonstrates the
maturity and growth of an artist who has consistently triumphed
as a multi-talented singer, songwriter and performer, while
allowing her faith to remain at the forefront of everything
she does.
"If I can encourage somebody else, then that's what
it comes down to," Joy says. "I just hope that God
will allow me to connect with people well. Because this is,
in and of itself, just music. I know that music has touched
my heart throughout my life. The chance to reach out to someone
through my music is the chance of a lifetime…and I hope
this album will do that." Courtesy Provident
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