In Rotation: The Joy

Five young men from South Africa are currently harmonizing through my speakers, building entire rhythmic worlds using absolutely nothing but their vocal cords. The Joy is a five-member vocal group, and they have been my absolute obsession all week. We’ve heard South African choral music cross over stateside before. Anyone who knows their history remembers what Ladysmith Black Mambazo did for Paul Simon’s Graceland back in the eighties. The Joy taps into that same deep ancestral lineage, but they inject a modern youthfulness into the arrangements. They first made noise with their 2021 EP Amabutho. Clash magazine caught it early, praising the single "Isencane Lengane" for its gentle flow. By the time they dropped "Egoli" in late 2022, they had fully locked into their pocket. A cappella music usually gets boxed into novelty territory. The Joy shatters that entirely. When the lead vocal cuts through the heavy bottom-end harmonies on their official video for "Mama ka Nomthandazo," you feel the physical vibration in your chest. The bass voices sit low, acting as the kick and snare, while the higher melodies weave rapidly around the main progression. It makes most over-produced modern R&B feel completely plastic by comparison. That is a hill I will gladly die on. The momentum is shifting in real time. Their track "Precious" just cracked Spotify’s New Music Friday playlist at number 86, sitting right next to the major label machines. Independent radio programmers are waking up too, with stations from WOWD in Takoma, Maryland to KHOL out in Jackson Hole putting them in heavy rotation. Good music travels, no matter the language. Watch the video below.