I saw Joy Ike jam for the second time, live. It was amazing and I am looking forward to the third. I met her in an organization called African Christian Fellowship. They were teenagers at the time. She and her sister, Peace, were inseparable and hilarious. We met every once in awhile over the years. I hope we get sit and talk with either one during the upcoming ACF Young Adult Conference. Every time, I did sit down with them, which wasn't for long, I was struck by their upbeat, vivacious spirit and their amazing musical talent. Both could make any operational piano sound like a full blown band. Whether Christian or non-Christian songs, singing or playing back-up for someone else they enjoyed a good piano.
I arrived at the bar, DC9, fresh from an ACF meeting, still in church clothes. While I waited for the show to start, I learned that it would be a group of nine singer/songwriters. Each singer would do two songs and call the next up. She was number five. The other artist were great but it was a long wait for one I came to see. When it was her turn she almost bounced onto the stage. She gave a spare explanation of her first song. She set up her pedal, took of one shoe, and made an entire day worth it. During "City Lights," she wove a story of highlighted with her words and shadowed by the scarcity of her descriptions. I could hear the heart of whoever lived under those lights; I heard my own questions created by the shadows of within the story. Joy Ike, "She Flowed." She breathed deep, sang hard, and made sure you could feel every note she gave.
The point of this blog is to look into a sometimes light world around me and to point to those things, actions and people that honor God. I mention her because I believe that she honors God. Her faith is evident. From times I have spoken with her to the diction of her songs, I know she's a believer. She honors God for boldly going to places and amongst people where God is not. For some of the other nine, God was not present. Some questioned if He was there at all. Some declared Him a crutch, a figment of imagination. Some mournfully sang of lost relationships and celebrated the weddings of loved ones. I know that all of her songs don't scream Jesus for the chorus line, but I hope (and I'll pray) that those around her will meet the Christ within her.
From her performances on the streets of Philadelphia and the theaters of Harlem, to the clubs on Sunday and Saturday night, Joy Ike plays, sings, and performs to the glory of the one who made her. To His fame, like the many saved that history might never name, she's been Joy amongst the despairing, light to the searching, and salt to those tasting for change.
