Joyce

Far from just another talented Brazilian singer, the multi-talented artist known simply as Joyce combines song-writing, guitar-playing, vocal skills and a flair for feminist themes in her lyrics in a way that makes her unique among a group of celebrated peers that includes such one-of-a-kind interpreters as Gal Costa, Maria Bethania and Nara Leã.

On her Blue Jackel debut Astronauta — Songs of Elis, Joyce lends her sunny, jazz-savvy voice and bossa-esque guitar work to a program of beloved Brazilian classics recorded in the '60s and '70s by the late Elis Regina, the revered vocalist widely regarded as Brazil's most beloved and influential female singer of the century.

In recognition of Joyce's growing international stature as one of Brazil's most distinctive contemporary musicians and one of the few singers of her land who possesses innate jazz sensibilities, Astronauta features a cast of Brazilian and North American jazz musicians of global renown. The talents of Grammy-winning tenor saxophonist Joe Lovano and pianists Mulgrew Miller and Renee Rosnes meld effortlessly with Joyce's voice and guitar and noted singer/guitarist/composer Dori Caymmi, drummer Tutty Moreno, bassist Rodolfo Stroeter, guitarist Romero Lubambo and percussionist Guello. —Courtesy Calabash Music