Joy Oladokun

Born in Casa Grande, Arizona, into a Nigerian family, Joy Oladokun develops a writing that sits at the crossroads of folk, Americana, pop, and R&B, with a song-centered approach, guitar, and often understated arrangements. Based for a time in Los Angeles and then Nashville, Joy Oladokun released the EP Cathedrals in 2015 before her debut album Carry in 2016. Her journey takes on another dimension from 2019–2020 with tracks like Sunday, Mercy, or I See America, where intimate questions, spirituality, queer identity, and a social view of the United States intersect. This period leads to In Defense of My Own Happiness (The Beginnings) in 2020, then to In Defense of My Own Happiness in 2021, two records that broaden her audience while asserting a contemporary folk format open to rock and soul. Joy Oladokun continues this evolution with Proof of Life in 2023, an album nourished by collaborations with Noah Kahan, Chris Stapleton, Mt. Joy, Manchester Orchestra, and Maxo Kream, followed by Observations from a Crowded Room in 2024. On stage, Joy Oladokun moves between folk, Americana, and pop circuits, and also appears as a supporting act for artists like Hozier.