Joy Crookes Biography: Joy Elizabeth Akther Crookes born 9 October 1998 is a British singer-songwriter known for weaving themes of relationships, independence, culture, South London upbringing, and identity into her music. Since 2017, she has released three extended plays and earned a nomination for the Rising Star Award at the 2020 Brit Awards. Her debut studio album Skin, released in October 2021, received widespread critical acclaim and charted in the UK’s top five.
Joy Crookes Biography
Joy Crookes is a British singer-songwriter who first gained attention with her debut EP in 2017. Since then, she has gone on to release two additional EPs and her debut album Skin in 2021, which earned a spot in the UK Top 5. With 1.8 million monthly listeners on Spotify, Crookes has built an impressive fan base.
Joy Crookes Biography 2025 Details
| Birth name | Joy Elizabeth Akther Crookes |
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| Born | 9 October 1998 Lambeth, London, England |
| Origin | South London, England |
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| Occupation | Singer-songwriter |
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| Years active | 2015–present |
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| Category | Singers Bio |
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About Joy Crookes
Joy Elizabeth Akther Crookes is a British singer-songwriter. She incorporates details about relationships, self-reliance, her culture, her South London roots, and her identity in her music. Crookes has released three extended plays since 2017 and was nominated for the Rising Star Award at the 2020 Brit Awards.
Joy Crookes Achievements
Her success has not gone unnoticed—she was nominated for the BRITs Rising Star Award in 2020 alongside artists like Celeste and Beabadoobee. More recently, she received nominations for both ‘Best New Artist’ and ‘Best Pop/R&B Act’. Although she didn’t take home the awards, losing to major stars Dua Lipa and Little Simz, the recognition itself speaks volumes about her rising profile. A career highlight for Joy was being invited to perform at Glastonbury in 2019
Joy Crookes Wiki
- Born: 9 October 1998 (age 26 years), Lambeth, London, United Kingdom
- Genre: R&B/Soul
- Record label: Sony Music Entertainment UK
- Nationality: English
- Height: 1.68 m
Early Life
Born in Lambeth, South London, Crookes is the daughter of a Bangladeshi mother from Dhaka and an Irish father from Dublin. She grew up in the Elephant and Castle area and attended a Catholic state primary school for eight years. For secondary school, she went to the private Portland Place School in central London.
Her passion for music sparked after participating in a jazz and blues workshop, and by age 13, she was uploading covers—ranging from Laura Marling to reggae—on YouTube. Crookes is self-taught on guitar, piano, and bass, and began writing her own songs as a teenager. At 14, she moved with her mother to Ladbroke Grove. In April 2013, at just 15, she uploaded a cover of Ray Charles’s “Hit the Road Jack” to YouTube, which garnered over 600,000 views and caught the attention of her now-manager within months.
Personal Life and Musical Influences
Joy Crookes has a tattoo of her Irish grandfather’s name, Frankie Crookes, which she got inked on her arm before his passing in 2018. When it comes to her musical influences, Crookes draws inspiration from a wide range of artists including Black Uhuru, Marvin Gaye, The Pogues, Sinéad O’Connor, Kendrick Lamar, Gregory Isaacs, and Kate Nash. In an interview with the BBC, she reflected on her early exposure to music during car rides with her father on the way to Irish dancing lessons. “My dad wanted to give me a real education,” she shared. “From Nick Cave to King Tubby to all this Pakistani music. He’d say, ‘This is from your ends of the world, you should hear this.
Career
At just 17 years old, Joy Crookes released her debut single, “New Manhattan,” in February 2016, followed by “Sinatra” in August 2016 and “Bad Feeling” in June 2017. “New Manhattan” is a love song inspired by a district in Brussels. Early in her career, M Magazine praised her saying, “She may still be in school, but what she lacks in experience she makes up for with musical versatility.” The music video for “Sinatra” was described by Line of Best Fit as a blend of old and new, wrapping listeners in nostalgia while offering something refreshingly original.
Crookes dropped her debut EP, Influence, through Speakerbox and Insanity Records. The five-track EP, which runs under 20 minutes, includes “Sinatra,” “Bad Feeling,” “New Manhattan,” “Mother May I Sleep With Danger?” and “Power.” Later that year, in December, Crookes performed “Mother May I Sleep With Danger?” on the popular global music platform COLORS, accompanied by guitarist Charles J Monneraud. The video quickly gained traction and surpassed eight million views by November 2019. Reflecting on the song, Crookes told the BBC she had written it alone on New Year’s Day in 2017.
Joy Crookes’ Net Worth 2025
According to PopularBio, Joy Crookes had an estimated net worth between $1 million and $4 million in 2025. This marks a significant rise from her early days, when she was uploading cover songs to YouTube in hopes of capturing the attention of new listeners. With her powerful lyrics and growing fan base, it’s likely that both her popularity and wealth will continue to rise. She’s definitely an artist to keep an eye on.
FAQs
What was Joy Crookes’ debut single?
Joy Crookes released her debut single, “New Manhattan,” in February 2016 when she was just 17 years old. The song, inspired by a district in Brussels, marked the beginning of her recording career.
What songs are featured on Joy Crookes’ Influence EP?
Her 2017 debut EP, Influence, includes five tracks: “Sinatra,” “Bad Feeling,” “New Manhattan,” “Mother May I Sleep With Danger?” and “Power.” The EP received critical acclaim for its blend of classic and contemporary sounds.
How did Joy Crookes gain attention with her COLORS performance?
Joy Crookes gained significant recognition after performing “Mother May I Sleep With Danger?” on COLORS in December 2017. The performance became a viral success, amassing over 8 million views on YouTube.
What inspired Joy Crookes to write “Mother May I Sleep With Danger?”?
Crookes wrote the song solo on New Year’s Day in 2017. She has described performing the song on tour as a way of getting to know it intimately, which helped her deliver a confident COLORS session later that year.
How did critics describe the style of Joy Crookes’ early music videos?
Critics noted that her video for “Sinatra” blended vintage and modern aesthetics. It was praised for creating a nostalgic atmosphere while still sounding fresh and original.
How did Joy Crookes describe her connection to her music?
Crookes explained that touring her songs allowed her to form a deeper relationship with them. She likened it to “staying over at its house, meeting its mum,” which helped her build confidence in performing them live.