First And Last: Samara Joy Talks GRAMMY Win, ‘Cheetah Girls’ Fashion, And More
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First And Last is a video series that uncovers surprising moments in the lives of our favorite figures in entertainment, music, and more. As the subjects are hit with rapid fire questions — forcing them to think of their earliest to most recent bits on the spot — they give us a genuine look into who and what made them into who they are today.
Samara Joy, the GRAMMY award-winning jazz singer/songwriter, sat down with VIBE for the latest episode of First And Last. The young musician spoke about how the Cheetah Girls inspired her fashion sense and her career milestones thus far, like winning two GRAMMYs.
To kick off the conversation, the “Can’t Get Out Of This Mood” singer detailed how she fell in love with jazz music. “[It was] ‘Lover Man,’ sung by Sarah Vaughan,” she said, right before gently breaking out in song. “Because I saw a video of her singing it live on YouTube, and she was like, ‘I don’t know why/but I’m feeling so sad.’ I was like, ‘Oh, I’m sad, too. I’m sad, too.'”
The jazz singer also showed love to the Cheetah Girls as she opened up about her first collaboration with Theory. To celebrate the feat, she disclosed her first “fashion girly” moment, and Raven-Symoné’s Galleria Garibaldi was to blame.
“Okay. Because I wanted to be Galleria Garibaldi. Okay. Raven-Symoné, if you’re out there. Okay, you inspire. I wanted to learn how to sew. I wanted to learn how to make clothes just because of that. I was so inspired. I mean, I can’t sew, but it made me want to. It made me want to look fly going to middle school and stunt on everybody in the cafeteria,” she said laughing.
“I literally went to Barcelona where they shot Cheetah Girls 2 and was in the exact same spot that they filmed that song in the park. I [got in my bag] a little bit. I did a little bit. It was a lot of people, but I still did it.”
As for her career, Samara disclosed that it’s been a while since she’s gotten nervous before a show. Joy opened up about hitting the road as a touring artist since high school and how that experience molded her mindset.
Additionally, the songbird also shared a story about her immediate thoughts after winning and then holding a golden gramophone for the first time.
“The last time I was nervous to perform. It’s been a minute. I’m not going to lie. The last time I was nervous. I’ve been on the road since I graduated. We’ve been touring nonstop. I’ve gotten a lot of experience over the past couple of years. The last time I was nervous. I performed in Umbria opening for Tom Jones in Italy and it was like 5,000 people there. Maybe that was probably the last term that I got nervous.”
“My first thought was like, ‘Dang, my speech is on my phone and my phone is on the table.’ I wrote that whole thing out and I left my phone on the table,” she expressed, giggling. “I was just in shock when they were like, ‘And the best new artist is,’ and I close my eyes. They had the cameras on us, but I closed my eyes. I was like, ‘Okay, if it happens, it happens. If it doesn’t, it doesn’t.’ The camera catches me the moment I opened my eyes and was like, ‘Oh, shoot, it’s me.’ I was like, ‘I’m thankful.’ I’m seeing all these people standing up, Adele and Lizzo and stuff. I look back at the video, I was like, ‘Oh, this is real. This is really happening.’ It felt like a dream, honestly. I don’t think anything has ever felt that much like a dream than that moment right there.”
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