Billy's little girl is growing up and following in his footsteps... You can find news about Alexa Ray Joel and her budding music career here on Alexa Ray Joel in the News. Enjoy!
Bring your appetite downtown
... The event also features entertainment, such as the Sammy awards (between acts Friday night) and performances by Eddie Money and Alexa Ray Joel (both Saturday ...
posted by Matt at 9:11 AM
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Brangalina Baby Could Be the Future Isabella Rossellini or Kate ...
ABC News -
... Meara. And how can we not acknowledge Alexa Ray Joel, darling daughter of pop music giant Billy Joel and Christy Brinkley? The daughter ...
The daughter of the Piano Man and the Supermodel now has a budding music career.
posted by Matt at 9:10 AM
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Alexa Ray leaves university to pursue music
ChronicleHerald.ca -
TORONTO — Alexa Ray Joel, daughter of piano man Billy Joel, says it took a bit of convincing to get her pop idol dad and supermodel mom Christie Brinkley to ...
See all stories on this topic
TORONTO — Alexa Ray Joel, daughter of piano man Billy Joel, says it took a bit of convincing to get her pop idol dad and supermodel mom Christie Brinkley to support her recent decision to leave university and become a musician.
"It wasn’t hard for me because I . . . just felt it. I knew that I needed to do it or I would not be very happy," the 20-year-old piano-playing singer said over the phone Tuesday.
"It was just a matter of convincing my parents who, of course, were very disappointed at first but now they couldn’t be more proud."
Joel — whose middle name is an homage to the legendary Ray Charles — is on a Hard Rock Cafe Tour with three bandmates this month in an effort to get her bearings as a performer before she embarks on a recording session for her debut album.
The brown-haired beauty, who is scheduled to perform a free concert at
But last summer when she announced that she was taking an "open leave" from
"I think it surprised them," she confessed in an interview just an hour after arriving in the city.
"They did not think I was going to pursue this whole thing so quickly and with such vigor and it’s gone so well that they don’t even mention school to me anymore, which is funny."
The New York City-based pop vocalist also finds it funny considering her parents also left school to pursue their careers.
"He didn’t even graduate high school," she said of her father, who has since received five or six honorary degrees, including a doctorate of fine arts from
"And my mom didn’t graduate college and I always throw that back at them too. I’m always like, ‘You can’t say anything!’"
The younger Joel, who grew up mostly in
Don’t count on seeing him at any of her shows, though — they’ve both agreed "it would be a bad idea."
"If he came to all the shows . . . it would immediately direct all the attention onto him," said Joel.
"He’s been to a couple — you know, he’s kind of snuck in and kept a low profile — and he’s going to come to a few more later on. But he could never just start coming to them on a regular basis."
posted by Matt at 10:30 AM
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Alexa Ray Joel Concert
Alexa Ray Joel Concert0/0: last modified: Wed, 17 May
Joel will finish her national Hard Rock Cafe tour on Monday, May 29, ...
Alexa Ray Joel - baltimoresun.com
Singer-songwriter Alexa Ray Joel, the 20-year-old daugher of Billy Joel, performs
at the Hard Rock Cafe
New Images of Alexa Ray
Singer-songwriter Alexa Ray Joel, the 20-year-old daugher of Billy Joel, performs at the Hard Rock Cafe Atlanta.
Alexa Ray Joel performs at the Hard Rock Cafe Foxwoods in
(AP photo)
Alexa Ray Joel performs with her band at The Lincoln Theater in downtown
(Photo by Jon Gardiner)
Alexa Ray Joel stands outside The Lincoln Theater in downtown
(Photo by Jon Gardiner)
posted by Matt at 9:07 AM
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Joel Follows in Her Father's Footsteps
andPOP -
Alexa Ray Joel, daughter of singer Billy Joel and model Christy Brinkley, has decided she wants to follow in her father's footsteps and become a singer, the ...
Alexa Ray Joel, daughter of singer Billy Joel and model Christy Brinkley, has decided she wants to follow in her father's footsteps and become a singer, the Toronto Star reports today.
There's only one problem – she doesn't have a record deal yet.
However, the Star says she has embarked on her career with money and support from her parents, and her MySpace page, which has become very popular. She has begun touring to get the word out
Joel will hit the Hard Rock Café tomorrow in Toronto to perform some of her songs.
posted by Matt at 8:25 AM
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The other Joel helps beef up 15th Cook-Off music lineup
Cleveland Plain Dealer -
Like peanut butter and jelly but much more tasty, ribs and music -- at least in
Alexa Ray Joel
Apparently, Billy Joel turned down an invite to the Rib Cook-Off but he sent a close relative. Some aspiring musicians have the weight of the world on their shoulders. For 20-year-old Alexa Ray Joel, daughter of Billy Joel and Christie "Uptown Girl" Brinkley, the weight is not only a piano, but the Piano Man himself.
Just as Pops found an audience in Cleveland nearly 30 years ago, his daughter is hoping to create a Northeast Ohio following with two Rib Cook-Off gigs (Thursday night and tonight), her second visit to the Rock Hall city in as many months.
With a debut album in the works, Joel's set garners attention for what it doesn't include.
"People are always asking me to do my Dad's stuff, songs that are associated with me like Lullabye (Goodnight My Angel)' or The Downeaster Alexa,' " Joel said. "But what they don't understand is even though I'm a huge fan of my Dad's, it's really important that I make it on my own."
Spin Doctors
As for the Spin Doctors, "Little Miss" really was wrong as this one-hit wonder from 1992 failed to last until 1993. Still, the band's cover of Creedence Clearwater Revival's "Have You Ever Seen the Rain?" is the third best song on the 1994 "
posted by Matt at 9:26 AM
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She’s daddy’s girl, but …
Chicago Daily Herald (subscription) -
Alexa Ray Joel, the daughter of singer Billy Joel and supermodel Christie Brinkley, is now a rising music star in her own right. ...
She has her father’s face, but fortunately, she inherited his musical talent, too.
Alexa Ray Joel, the daughter of singer Billy Joel and supermodel Christie Brinkley, is now a rising music star in her own right. As part of her first national tour, the soulful-sounding 20-year-old will stop in
She recently shared with us some thoughts on her career, her dad (who’s her best friend) and her annoyance with people calling her “The Piano Girl.”
Q. Is it hard to be taken seriously in the music business? Do they just see you as “Billy Joel’s daughter?”
A. They do, but I’ve been getting more respect than I thought I would because of the way I’ve gone about pursuing this. I’ve really been practicing and doing so many shows in small clubs without any hype. I’m not just looking for a free ride because of my dad. I’m starting to get some media attention now … and they always play up who my dad is. It’s a double-edged sword. There are always these corny headlines like, “The Piano Girl.” It’s a little annoying.
Q. When you were growing up, did a lot of famous musicians come to your house?
A. Yeah, I guess. I mean, I met Michael Jackson, Paul McCartney, Bette Midler, Mariah Carey, Whitney Houston — people like that. But I just thought of them as people.
Q. Are Billy Joel fans also Alexa Ray Joel fans?
A. Oh yeah. That’s how they find out about me. I’m a huge fan of my dad’s — he’s my best friend — but just as long as you leave my show a fan of my music as well, that’s the goal.
Q. How do you describe your sound?
A. I’ve been calling it pop/rock/soul, but I honestly don’t know how to describe it. It has so many influences.
Q. Are you getting any radio play?
A. A little bit. I have some demo tapes, but I don’t have a CD out yet. I’m touring for the sole purpose of fine-tuning what I’m doing. It’s not for the purpose of promoting a CD.
Q. So you’re not having your dad hook you up with a record company?
A. He’s not hooking me up at all. I want to have my own team of people and I want to do my own thing. But it’s going to take a while.
To hear a sample of Alexa Ray Joel’s music, go to www.myspace.com/alexarayjoel.
posted by Matt at 8:58 AM
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Baltimore City Paper: EVENTS
Alexa Ray Joel. Sunday, May 21 at 8 pm. EVENT PHONE: 410-347-7625. Location.
Hard Rock Café
posted by Matt at 11:21 AM
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Joel's daughter followsfootsteps
StarPhoenix -
SCHOOL'S OUT FOR EVER
Vogue.com -
ALEXA RAY JOEL, daughter of Billy Joel and supermodel Christie Brinkley, admits it took some work to convince her parents to let her leave university and ...
ALEXA RAY JOEL, daughter of Billy Joel and supermodel Christie Brinkley, admits it took some work to convince her parents to let her leave university and follow a career in music. "It wasn't hard for me because I just felt it," the 20-year-old singer told the Canadian Press. "I knew that I needed to do it or I would not be very happy. It was just a matter of convincing my parents who, of course, were very disappointed at first but now they couldn't be more proud." Currently on a Hard Rock Café tour, Alexa, whose middle name is an homage to the legendary Ray Charles and who has been singing since she was one, is attempting to make her name as a performer before going ahead debut album. "I think it surprised them," she said, of the moment she told her parents she was leaving
posted by Matt at 9:51 AM
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Billy Joel's daughter, Alexa, makes Toronto stop as she launches ...
Canada.com -
See all stories on this topic
TORONTO (CP) - Alexa Ray Joel, daughter of piano man Billy Joel, says it took a bit of convincing to get her pop idol dad and supermodel mom Christie Brinkley to support her recent decision to leave university and become a musician.
"It wasn't hard for me because I ... just felt it. I knew that I needed to do it or I would not be very happy," the 20-year-old piano-playing singer said over the phone Tuesday.
"It was just a matter of convincing my parents who, of course, were very disappointed at first but now they couldn't be more proud."
Joel - whose middle name is an homage to the legendary Ray Charles - is on a Hard Rock Cafe Tour with three bandmates this month in an effort to get her bearings as a performer before she embarks on a recording session for her debut album.
The brown-haired beauty, who is scheduled to perform a free concert at Toronto's Hard Rock Cafe on Wednesday, says she's been singing since she was one, and playing classical piano since she was 10.
But last summer when she announced that she was taking an "open leave" from New York University's musical theatre program to launch a stage career, her parents were "concerned."
"I think it surprised them," she confessed in an interview just an hour after arriving in the city.
"They did not think I was going to pursue this whole thing so quickly and with such vigour and it's gone so well that they don't even mention school to me anymore, which is funny."
The New York City-based pop vocalist also finds it funny considering her parents also left school to pursue their careers.
"He didn't even graduate high school," she said of her father, who has since received five or six honorary degrees, including a doctorate of fine arts from Syracuse University earlier this month.
"And my mom didn't graduate college and I always throw that back at them too. I'm always like, 'You can't say anything!"'
The younger Joel, who grew up mostly in New York's tony Hamptons, hasn't shopped her demos to any record labels yet and she doesn't have a manager so she's calling her Rock and Roll Hall of Famer dad "all the time on the road" for advice.
Don't count on seeing him at any of her shows, though - they've both agreed "it would be a bad idea."
"If he came to all the shows ... it would immediately direct all the attention onto him," said Joel.
"He's been to a couple - you know, he's kind of snuck in and kept a low profile - and he's going to come to a few more later on. But he could never just start coming to them on a regular basis."
On the Net:
www.myspace.com/alexarayjoel
posted by Matt at 9:42 AM
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A chip off Billy Joel block
... of her superstar parents, musician Billy Joel and supermodel Christie Brinkley, and a popular Web page (myspace.com/alexarayjoel), Alexa Ray Joel has embarked ...
Sure, she's the Piano Man's daughter, but Alexa Ray Joel is trying to do it her way
ENTERTAINMENT REPORTER
She doesn't have a recording contract or a finished demo, but with the financial backing of her superstar parents, musician Billy Joel and supermodel Christie Brinkley, and a popular Web page (myspace.com/alexarayjoel), Alexa Ray Joel has embarked on a singing career.
With a complement of original songs, classified as pop/rock/soul, and a decent set of pipes, the 20-year-old performs in
She spoke to the Star by phone from an
QHow's life on the road?
AIt's great. I'm lucky enough to have a nice bus. We have a TV and lots of space and a big bed in the back.... It's like a slumber party, but a long one.
QWhy are you doing this mini tour?
ATo prove to myself and others that I can play gigs. I don't really understand how so many people just do like one or two gigs, or gigs for like a month, and then get a record deal and then start right away with the promotion for it. I'd rather get as much experience as I can, because I'm my father's daughter — I kind of have to prove myself more.
QAre you concerned about people not taking you seriously?
AIt's their choice. They can always write me off as Billy Joel's privileged daughter, but if they don't give the music a chance, then it's not a very good argument. So far I've been getting a really positive reaction.... The fact that I do write my own songs and that I've been staying in little motels and just playing local venues for months now gives people no reason to think I'm just some sugar-coated pop thing.
QAre your parents funding your current endeavours?
AYes. My dad always says, `Well, it's less expensive than paying for you to go to college.'
QWhen did you decide to pursue a singing career?
AJust last summer. I was getting a little restless at NYU (
QWhat were you studying at NYU?
AMusical theatre. Songwriting was always in the back of my head and I'd always wanted to pursue it, but I was scared and almost just putting it off. I guess musical theatre was almost a diversion.
QWas your father a big influence?
AI suppose so. Just watching my dad at the piano all the time, figuring out songs, gave me a peek into the whole process and the industry. We'd sing together and he'd play the piano. He was encouraging when I was learning the piano, but my mom was the one that really sat me down and made me practise.
QWhat does he think about you following his path?
AHe's very realistic about it and more cynical, which I think is a good thing. He says, "There's going to be a ton of people telling you to do all sorts of different things and throwing their opinions in your face. You really have to trust your opinion first, because your first instinct is a good one." And I'm learning this as I go, realizing how he's so right ...
Q What are your songs about?
ASome of it is classic teenage angst stuff and frustrations and insecurities, and some are just simple reflections on my life. In one, I'm angry about some guy; another is about how much in love I am; and another one ("The Revolution Song") is about wanting to start a revolution and being tired of the routines of society and school.
QWhat's up with the use of the f-word in "Revolution"? Is your first album going to come with a parental advisory sticker?
AI really don't know. I realize that song has big potential as a single, because it's catchy and so many people like it. I have started to limit myself. We played a show a couple days ago in
QAs a model's daughter, you must have given some thought to your image. What kind of look are you going for? Sophisticated? Collegiate? Eye candy?
AI just want to be as true to my style ... as possible. I have a very eclectic style and I love exotic jewellery. I'm very much not a girly girl. I can't see myself being on the covers of magazines in glitzy shiny dresses. I'm all for showing off your body and being a woman. But there's a difference (if you're) exploiting it.
QAre you prepared for the rigours of living in the public eye?
AOnce you get big enough, there's always going to be some bad press. My dad said he was flattered when there were rumours going around that he was gay, because that really meant he'd made it, because it was such an absurd thing to spread about him.
QWhat does he say about your songs?
AMy dad always gives me feedback on my stuff and I always value his opinion. But ... if he tries to get specific, I don't let him. Because then he'd be writing my songs for me and I don't want that.
QAny chance of a Billy Joel duet on your debut album?
AThere's no way I'd collaborate with him before I'm established. That would be ... as much as I'm influenced by him and would love to collaborate with him, right now I'm trying to separate myself and do my work.
posted by Matt at 11:16 AM
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Singer steps out of her father's shadow
... But she needs some support," says Lachaina, who alone, at this place and time, comprises Alexa Ray Joel's crowd support. But it's growing. ...
Though she's the daughter of a superstar, Alexa Ray Joel is forging her own path
"I grew up listening to Billy. I've never heard her. But she needs some support," says Lachaina, who alone, at this place and time, comprises Alexa Ray Joel's crowd support. But it's growing. The guy charging $5 to park didn't know Billy Joel had a daughter - now he's curious about her, too.
This could be how some music careers still are built - from the ground up in a near-empty parking lot on a Monday night.
"Alexa Ray Joel (Billy Joel's Daughter)" reads the identifying poster on the theater door. No question it's the right theater, given the mural on the building of an old black
As for Monday, the concert will probably not rival the show in
Through her well-traveled space on MySpace and 60 shows (and the inevitable head cold) since January, Joel is in play. Of course, the pedigree has not hurt. Her name should be familiar to boomers; her dad named his boat after her and wrote a popular lullaby (and children's book) for his then 8-year-old daughter when his marriage to her mother, Christie Brinkley, was ending. Goodnight, my angel. Time to close your eyes. And save these questions for another day ...
Goodnight, my angel
Now it's time to dream
And dream how wonderful your life will be ...
Her life has become this: gigging, meeting and greeting fans, blogging, falling in love with her bass player, falling in love again with her father's music and crediting her mother for making her stick to piano lessons. "She was the rock," Joel says. "My dad is a genius and super supportive, but he's also a dreamer."
Showtime is 60 minutes away at the Lincoln Theatre in
And, no offense, but get your own Billy Joel tickets.
•
At 20, Alexa Ray Joel is an old musical soul. Her eclectic set of influences includes Chopin, Carole King, Al Green, Neil Young, Fiona Apple, Leonard Cohen, Billie Holiday, the Beatles and Ray Charles for whom she was middle-named. She also has been "insanely influenced" by her father, who has been an insanely popular singer with a recently released box set that dozens of careers could fit in. Given the line-up of musical influences, what is Alexa Ray Joel's style? Soul, classical, rock, rhythm and blues, pop?
"It could be considered pop," she says on her humming tour bus. "I don't think it's a bad word, but 'pop' has become a taboo word when it shouldn't be. My dad writes pop songs. They just happen to be really good songs with good lyrics.
"More than anything, my singing is very soulful."
She does have that soulful Norah Jones-thing going on. At another angle, she resembles (here goes) a touch of Katie Holmes, too. No, it's more like this: She has her father's - "yeah, I know. I hear that in every city now." Sorry, but she does have her father's eyes - but not his figure. Her mother, after all, was a supermodel.
In April 2005, Rolling Stone gathered children of famous rock stars for one of its classic covers. Among others, there was Otis Redding III, Nona Gaye, Harper Simon, Ben Taylor, Sean Lennon and Alexa Joel, then a freshman at
His daughter left NYU last year to pursue, surprise, a music career. She hooked up with a band and they hunkered down in five-hour rehearsal jags to practice her original songs of teenage angst and rebellion against authority and school. When Joel conjures a melody in her head, she sings it into her answering machine for preservation.
With her parents, friends and even her piano teacher in attendance, Joel made her
The hype almost happened too fast. I wasn't ready for all that attention yet," she says. So, she told her agent she needed to hit the road and play colleges and small clubs. "I knew people wouldn't respect me if I started playing in these big showcase venues. I needed to play for people who don't know me, people who aren't critics, regular people who want to hear music."
Sixty tour stops later, she is in
"I really want to be perfect, perfect, perfect. You know, being my father's daughter, he's such a perfectionist, and I have seen how it pays off. He's a bit of a control freak, and I'm also learning that's kind of a good thing," she says. "He always says your music is your baby, and you have to treat it as such."
In conversation, Joel seems like a serious soul ("You are asking serious questions!") but she claims she can get silly and relax sometimes. She asks if we know her dad's song "I Go to Extremes." We do. "I'm just like him because I really do go to extremes." She starts to sing, I don't know why I go to extremes. ... And OK, this is a cool tour bus moment: Billy's daughter singing one of his songs. It's no "New York State of Mind," but we'll take it.
The bass player, Jimmy Riot, comes onboard to announce dinner plans. He's 34 and judging by his T-shirt, tats and rings, one might assume the man didn't listen to a lot of Billy Joel or Carole King in his formative listening years. A tad heavier music for this dude. But then, a funny thing happened on the way to age 34: The musician meets and falls for the talented daughter of a pop icon.
"I knew his hits," Riot says. But now he's really listening to Billy Joel's music. "He uses these amazing baroque chord progressions." Our observation exactly. "He also writes great bridges." So true.
•
But Jimmy Riot is more impressed with the band's lead singer, whose chords and bridges aren't too shabby either.
By
"People ask me, 'Does your dad help you write songs?'" Joel tells the crowd. "No, I write my own music. I just wanted to clear that up."
She is sweet, shy and business-like as she soldiers through her 50-minute set. Often looking at the bass player (who often looks back), she introduces each song with "this next song is about ... ." because, to be fair, no one knows her music. "Far Away" was written when she was 16 and going through a "rough little patch." When she was fed up with school and bosses, she wrote "The Revolution Song," a funky, soulful tune that has her bouncing a bit behind her Yamaha keyboard.
As a nod to her classical piano training and perhaps to her father's intro on "
For an encore, Joel "a little nervously" plays another love song before exiting the stage. But she doesn't flee
Mike Lachaina from
"We were wondering if she would come out, and she did. She was gracious," says Robert Baldwin, a local singer-songwriter.
"She's not a diva," says
"She's not a copy of anyone," says Jamie Purnell, another local musician. "She has great chord progressions." We know, we know, but here's the real kicker:
No one asked her for Billy Joel tickets.
posted by Matt at 10:19 AM
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Carving her own space in dad's world
Newsday -
Alexa Ray Joel is only 20 but she is on a national tour of Hard Rock Cafes as a headliner, singing her own songs at a piano with backup from a guitarist ...
Alexa Ray Joel is only 20 but she is on a national tour of Hard Rock Cafes as a headliner, singing her own songs at a piano with backup from a guitarist-vocalist, a bassist- vocalist and a drummer.
"It's really great," she says, speaking by phone from - she has to check - yes,
She'll be a "special guest" opening for another pianist-songwriter, three-time Grammy winner Bruce Hornsby, when she appears at
Dad, of course, is Billy Joel, and his house is on
She also expects that her father will attend the Aug. 25 performance, along with her new stepmom, Katie, and a bunch of local friends. Her mother, Christie Brinkley, plans to visit her during her tour, she says. She grew up mostly living with her mother, until about age 10 on
Now she has an apartment on
"I love music. Those are my roots," Joel says. Her father is a big influence, she says, but right now "I want to be considered in my own right." Though her classical songwriting is similar, she says, her music is "more soulful, with a rhythm-and-blues edge." Some listeners describe her, she says, as "Norah Jones-y but more pop-y and rock-y." Her father, she adds, was "always encouraging. He was never a stage father." (Read more and hear her at www.myspace .com/alexarayjoel.)
Joel's concert is part of a Friends of the Arts season that includes (as it did last year) several scions of musical families. On July 29, Arlo Guthrie, son of Woody, appears with his children in the "Guthrie Family Legacy Tour." Ben Taylor, son of James Taylor and Carly Simon, performs June 23.
The series starts June 10 with Dr. John, Mavis Staples and The Neville Brothers in "
Friends of the Arts Long Island Summer Festival, www.FOTAPresents.org, 516-922-0061 or Ticketmaster, 631-888-9000. Lawn seating generally $30-$35, pavilion $35-$125, $5 more day of performance, children under 12 free on lawn; benefits for members.
posted by Matt at 10:00 AM
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