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Alexa Ray Joel

 
Artist: Alexa Ray Joel
Home > Library > Entertainment & Arts > Pop Artists

Similar Artists:

MoZella, Norah Jones, Alice Smith, Tori Amos, Corinne Bailey Rae, Christina Aguilera, Kelly Clarkson

Influenced By:

Billie Holiday, Randy Newman, Ella Fitzgerald, Joni Mitchell

Relationship With:

Billy Joel
  • Born: January 01, 1986, New York, NY
  • Active: 2000s
  • Genres: Rock
  • Instrument: Cover Art

Biography

Listening to Alexa Ray Joel's music, it's not difficult to imagine the young singer, songwriter, and pianist had parents who nurtured her love of music and encouraged her to follow her muse. You might not guess that one of them was pop star Billy Joel, given the jazz-influenced textures and deeply personal yet playfully insouciant lyrical perspective of her songs. Alexa Ray Joel was born to Joel and his wife Christie Brinkley on January 1, 1986; she's said that her love of music began with her father singing nursery rhymes to her at his piano, and she began writing simple tunes as a youngster. At age 11, Alexa began taking classical piano lessons, which she continued for five years, aided in part by the perfect pitch she inherited from her dad. At 17, Alexa attended a five-week workshop for budding musicians at the Berklee College of Music, which she cites with encouraging her to explore her gifts as a singer and performer. After completing high school, Alexa enrolled at New York University as a musical theater student, but in her freshman year she took a leave of absence and opted to focus on launching her career as a musician. Assembling a band with Demian Sims on guitar, Jimmy Riot on bass, and Scottie Garapolo on drums, Alexa began working up material and played her first gigs at Maxwell's, a venerable indie rock venue in Hoboken, NJ, when she was 19. While Alexa has cited her parents with offering great support to her career, both she and her famous folks insist she's followed her own musical path without interference and at her own pace. In the fall of 2006, Alexa released her first CD, a six-song EP called Sketches, featuring five original tunes and a cover of Neil Young's "Don't Let It Bring You Down," with a full-length album scheduled for release in 2007. ~ Mark Deming, All Music Guide
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Wikipedia: Alexa Ray Joel
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Alexa Ray Joel

Alexa Ray Joel autographing a CD for a fan after an August 2009 concert.
Background information
Born December 29, 1985 (1985-12-29) (age 23) [1][2]
Origin Manhattan, New York, U.S.
Occupations Singer-songwriter
Instruments Vocals, piano
Website alexarayjoel.com/

Alexa Ray Joel (born December 29, 1985) is an American singer, songwriter and pianist. She is the daughter of popular singer Billy Joel and his second wife, supermodel Christie Brinkley.[1] Her middle name Ray is in honor of the late musician Ray Charles.[3][4]

Contents

Biography

Alexa Ray Joel began writing songs at a very early age. Growing up in a musical household, she developed a gift for singing and songwriting and was always encouraged by her mother Christie Brinkley [5]. Her deep love of music stems from as early as the tender age of two, when her father would sing and play nursery rhymes for her on the piano. Like her father, she pursued classical piano training for quite a few years before developing a knack for songwriting. She would soon find that her skills in classical piano provided a solid foundation for her songwriting.

At 17, she attended the Berklee College of Music's Five Week Music-Fest, where she honed her skills as a performer. She attended New York University, but by the summer after her freshman year, she started to pursue a career as a singer/songwriter. By that fall, Alexa performed her first show at Maxwell's in Hoboken, New Jersey, followed by other gigs in the New York City area. She has most recently been performing at colleges and venues around the Northeast United States, and finished up a nationwide Hard Rock Cafe Tour in May 2006.

After playing nearly 100 shows since leaving NYU’s Musical theatre program, Alexa put out her first musical creation in August 2006--a six song EP called Sketches. [6] This EP not only included her original songs with piano accompaniment but some original artwork as well. The EP is available through Target and iTunes. Alexa is the very first independent artist to ever have exclusive rights through Target to distribute an EP.

In her appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live, Alexa stated that the ballad "Lullabye (Goodnight, My Angel)," found on her father Billy Joel's album River of Dreams, was written for her, and is her favorite song of his.[7]. The song "The Downeaster Alexa," on Billy Joel's Storm Front album, shares her name. Alexa wrote the song “Now It's Gone” about her mom’s split from Peter Cook after the allegations of his infidelity.

Notable media appearances

See also

References

  1. ^ a b "Joel and his `uptown girl' have a girl". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution: p. A3. 1985-12-31. "Model Christie Brinkley has given her husband - singer-songwriter Billy Joel - something new to sing about, a 6 1/2-pound daughter, a spokesman for the family said Monday." 
  2. ^ "Brinkley, Joel Parents of `Uptown Girl'". Los Angeles Times: p. 2. 1985-12-30. "The 6 1/2-pound girl, as yet unnamed, was born in a Manhattan hospital at about 11:45 p.m. Sunday, said the spokeswoman, Geraldine McInerney." 
  3. ^ Stout, Gene (December 3, 1986). "Billy Joel Delivers - Few Surprises". seattlepi.com. Retrieved on July 21, 2009.
  4. ^ "Billy Joel biography". http://dreamcatchercalendars.com/travelogue/blog/?p=208. 
  5. ^ "Alexa Ray Joel's myspace page". http://www.myspace.com/alexarayjoel. 
  6. ^ "Alexa Ray Joel a Strikes Chord of Her Own". People magazine. 2006-10-08. http://www.people.com/people/article/0,26334,1542997,00.html. 
  7. ^ "Alexa Ray Joel: Q&A". American Songwriter. http://www.americansongwriter.com/2007/05/alexa-ray-joel-q-a/. 

External links


This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)

 
 
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Sketches (2006 Album by Alexa Ray Joel)
Alexa Ray Joel (Rock Artist, 2000s)
Christie Brinkley (Model)

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Artist. Copyright © 2009 All Media Guide, LLC. Content provided by All Music Guide ®, a trademark of All Media Guide, LLC. All rights reserved.  Read more
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