Acclaimed singer, songwriter, producer and performer Joy Oladokun will release her anticipated new album, Observations From a Crowded Room, October 18 via Amigo Records/Verve Forecast/Republic Records (pre-order/pre-save here). In advance of the release, two new songs, “NO COUNTRY” and “I’D MISS THE BIRDS,” are debuting today. Hear them both below…
Written, produced and largely performed by Oladokun alone, the album marks a personal and creative turning point for the Nashville-based artist and was crafted during a period of intense introspection and questioning. The 15-track collection—comprised of 12 songs and 3 spoken interludes—finds Oladokun reflecting on her place in the world, both as a person and an artist, while blending her pop-folk roots with electronic and psychedelic elements
Reflecting on the project, Oladokun shares, “This album became a way for me to write things, feel things, process things. Because, as the producer, I just had to sit with these songs for so long. It became really healing in a sense of, ‘I made this. I’m listening to an album that I genuinely love. All the sounds and bits and bobs came from me with the help of just an engineer.’ It was transformative. So, it started out as, ‘I quit,’ and it has ended up as a fresh start.”
The new music follows Oladokun’s recent rendition of Beyoncé’s “II Most Wanted” for Apple Music Sessions and the Jack Antonoff collaboration, “I Wished On The Moon,” featured on the official soundtrack for Apple TV+’s The New Look. Known for her powerful live performances, Oladokun will continue to tour through this fall including several dates with Hozier in Australia and New Zealand. See below for full details.
OBSERVATIONS FROM A CROWDED ROOM TRACK LIST
1. LETTER FROM A BLACKBIRD
2. AM I?
3. OBSERVATION #1
4. STRONG ONES
5. DRUGS
6. QUESTIONS, CHAOS & FAITH
7. NO COUNTRY
8. OBSERVATION #2
9. HOLLYWOOD
10. flowers
11. DUST/DIVINITY
12. GOOD ENOUGH
13. OBSERVATION #3
14. I’D MISS THE BIRDS
15. GOODBYE
JOY OLADOKUN CONFIRMED TOUR DATES
September 15—Asbury Park, NJ—Sea.Hear.Now Festival
September 21—Saratoga Springs, NY—Farm Aid
September 22—Richmond, VA—Iron Blossom Music Festival
September 28—Johannesburg, South Africa—Marabi Club
October 3—Cape Town, South Africa—Rocking the Daisies
November 5—Perth, Australia—RAC Arena*
November 6—Perth, Australia—RAC Arena*
November 8—Adelaide, Australia—Adelaide Entertainment Centre*
November 12—Melbourne, Australia—Sydney Myer Music Bowl*
November 13—Melbourne, Australia—Sydney Myer Music Bowl*
November 15—Sydney, Australia—Qudos Bank Arena*
November 18—Brisbane, Australia—Riverstage Brisbane*
November 20—Auckland, New Zealand—Spark Arena*
November 22—Christchurch, New Zealand—Wolfbrook Arena*
November 23—Christchurch, New Zealand—Wolfbrook Arena*
May 5-7—Miramar Beach, FL—Moon Crush: The Sea & ME
*with Hozier
