So I decided to put together a band, friends, who used to play together back in Bali and who I wanted to play with. I was surprised and also thankful for the support and people that still want to come and see me play live music.
Last month, we were in Jakarta and I was approached by a tour promoter who gave me an idea to perform in my birthplace for the very first time, in a long time.
Especially me, I’m growing as a composer, and I really want to share my original work. We are not able to do what we love which is to get out there and perform and share the music. It’s been hard for all musicians around the world. What have you been doing during the pandemic? You can put together a group of different people from all over the world and they play as a language. Sometimes it looked like random jazz players knew each other when playing for the first time. My parents would take me to live shows and I was just blown away seeing how musicians were interacting. I never thought music would become my life, until I started seeing musicians play in Bali. When I started doing it, I knew it took commitment and conviction. So I watched him play gospel and could see how fun it was. I had a Dad who loved and played music, not professionally, but he had a passion for music. How did your love affair with music begin? His razor focussed demeanour is measured beyond his years, and as someone who has swapped Bali life for the concrete jungle of New York to pursue his musical dreams, he is quite simply, inspirational. Talking to Joey, it’s easy to see how he has become the toast of the jazz world. And let’s not forget the busy job of growing up. Since then, there’s been five album releases (most recently “Warna”), global travel and performances at live festivals and concerts, countless interviews and television performances including TED Talks and an appearance on 60 Minutes. That’s how the Joey Alexander rollercoaster ride began. He was ‘discovered’ on Youtube by jazz legend Wynton Marsalis, who invited him to come and play in New York. Not bad, not bad at all!Ī lot has happened to Joey throughout the years. He is, after all, a globally recognised jazz pianist having recorded his album My Favourite Things (Motema) at the tender age of 11, which earned him the first of his three Grammy Nominations. With his brand new album release and an exclusive live "Homecoming" concert right here on the island, we sat down with Joey Alexander to talk all things jazz and the beauty of Bali.Ĭritically acclaimed, grammy-nominated, and internationally celebrated are just some of the grand phrases used to describe 17-year-old Joey Alexander.