Based in Los Angeles, Joyeur is the brainchild of singer-songwriter Joelle Corey with the help of long-time production collaborator Anna Feller. As the story goes, a decade ago prior to her attempt to return to singing, Corey had a psychological block where she felt her voice was trapped inside of her. She spent a whole year visiting various doctors, vocal coaches, and therapists before experiencing her breakthrough. As soon as she met Feller, the two hit it off in the studio and the rest was history.
Now, Joyeur is excited as ever to be releasing her new single titled “Don’t Wanna T,” holding fans over until the release of her forthcoming LP titled How to Love Yourself & Not Destroy Everything, arriving sometime in May. Arriving on the scene as a breath of fresh air, straddling the genres of alternative R&B and pop, Joyeur prides herself in making music that ensues movement, melody, and effortless hooks.
Read our exclusive interview below!
For those who won’t know, who is Joyeur?
I’m Joyeur but most people call me Jo (Joelle Corey). I write songs to make sense of myself, usually with my long-term producer and BFF Anna Feller.
What’s the inspiration behind your name?
A “joyeur” is someone who gets off on watching other people get happy. I made it up after taking drugs at a festival and spending the entirety of the experience finding people to sing to and spread joy. It was the moment I felt I had found my purpose as cliche and LA as that sounds.
How does being from LA play into your artistry?
Car culture and the lazy demeanor of LA has definitely prompted musical moments for me, whether it’s the laidback tempo of a song I’m starting or writing songs in the car while driving on the 101 and singing billboard text out loud as lyrical placeholders. I’d say there’s a sunny disposition that disguises a lot of my songs that underneath are really exploring such dark human themes. For a lot of this album though, I was locking myself in my bedroom writing for hours, then going outside like, “oh yeah, it’s super nice out!!” It’s possible I play with that juxtaposition of light and dark, for sure.
Biggest influences?
Little Dragon, Michael Jackson, Motown, my parents’ Broadway cast albums.
What was the turning point in your music career?
When our music started getting synced to TV, commercials, films. It showed me I could sustain a creative life. I honestly had no idea that was possible and it was incredible to see people finding our songs from all over the world.
How does it feel to release “Don’t Wanna T”?
This song feels like the first page of a brand new chapter for me. It was me surrendering to a slower, more soulful part of me that just wanted to come out. With this song, it’s starting off a roll out of so many pieces I truly resonate with and feel so proud of.
What’s one thing you want fans to take away from it?
I want people to feel released from their thoughts with this one. In DWT, I’m talking to a lover, saying just let it be, we don’t always need to create structure, to control every situation, to know what’s going to happen. Hopefully, it can encourage the listener to let things unfold as I’m asking this person to.
What are you most excited for with your forthcoming LP, How to Love Yourself & Not Destroy Everything, arriving in May?
This album speaks to something deep within me. I feel I’ve finally written the songs that express my fears: what drives me. Fear of rejection, fear of late blooming, fear of self-sabotage, fear of not being good enough. I’m releasing it all into the music, so the fear can turn into fuel that then transmutes into radical self-love and acceptance.
Goals for yourself as an artist?
To continue learning how to put the words to the feelings and hopefully giving those words to those who need them too. I also want to explore leaning even further left of center in my creations and asking myself am I playing it safe? There’s so much more to explore. So many songs that need to be written.
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