With a singular and wide-ranging voice, South London’s Joy Crookes spun cinematic ballads throughout the 2010s and 2020s, making her full-length debut with 2021 album Skin. Influence EP Born in Lambeth, South London, Joy Elizabeth Akther Crookes spent her early years in Elephant and Castle before moving to West London at 14. A self-taught pianist and guitarist, Crookes published covers online throughout her teenage years, catching the ear of her future manager with a version of “Hit the Road Jack” that she recorded at 15. Her first original material was soon to follow: in 2016, aged just 17, Crookes debuted with “New Manhattan” and “Sinatra,” two dramatic tracks that demonstrated her wide vocal range. Both were included on her debut EP, Influence, which arrived the following year. After finding online success with a live rendition of “Mother May I Sleep with Danger?” for online platform COLORS, Crookes issued two further EPs in 2019, January’s Reminiscence and June’s Perception. Both projects continued to expand on the vocalist’s fusion of pop, soul, R&B, and singer/songwriter styles, and proved popular at her June appearance at Glastonbury Festival and subsequent headlining European tour. A string of further singles carried the vocalist through to 2021, where she began the roll-out for her debut album with single “Feet Don’t Fail Me Now.” The full album, titled Skin, arrived that October: a 13-track piece co-produced by Blue May, the project saw Crookes employ her strong vocals for a variety of soul-jazz ballads.