A 3-time Grammy Award winner, Samara Joy has been one of those rare artists whose trajectory is truly comet-like.  Raised in the church and doubtless influenced by gospel singing grandparents and a father who toured with gospel master Andrae Crouch, jazz has been part of her passion since singing in the jazz band at Fordham High School in Bronx, NY.  While there she copped a Best Vocalist Award at Jazz at Lincoln Center’s annual Essentially Ellington competition. Her second recording, Linger Awhile, boasts not only her uncommon maturity and gifts in service to classic jazz songs – she put her improvisational art on full display, not only with her reading of Jon Hendricks’ vocalese lyrics to Thelonious Monk’s classic “Round Midnight,” but also with her easeful, old-soul twist on more vocalese as she sang lyrics based on bop legend Fats Navarro’s 1947 recording. Check out Samara performing “Can’t Get Out Of This Mood”