This talented 18-year-old—the 2006 winner of the Gospel Music Assn.'s Music in the Rockies songwriting competition—fulfills that early promise with a debut disc that showcases her expressive vocals and insightful songwriting.
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Joy Lippard [Joy Lippard]| Posted February 24, 2009 [MAIN REVIEW]
Joy Lippard is a promising new 18 year old artist making her debut on Koch Records. She is a 2006 GMA Music in the Rockies songwriting competition winner. She has a pure and strong voice that immediately reminded me of mainstream singers Jewel and Liz Phair. She also plays piano and guitar and wrote or co-wrote all 10 songs on her solid self-titled album. “My faith is my life, so I can’t help but write about that”, Joy says of her songs. There are several great themes that are faced by teenage girls specifically that the album addresses in a mature and faith-based way. For example, the opening song “Hey There Stranger” is a nice melodic song about getting to know the heart of a person in a dating relationship and reminded me of “Wait For Me” by Rebecca St. James.
Some other songs about relationships are “I Will Write You Letters”, “Too Much To Ask For” and “She’s A Diamond”, the latter song being based on Proverbs 31 and about the noble character of a woman. That song and many others resembled the pop style debut album by Francesca Battistelli last year, which is a good thing.
Another song “Hole In My Pocket”, co-written with Scott Dente of Out of the Grey, is a great reminder of how to avoid the lures of pop-culture’s emphasis on money and success. Probably the most memorable moments on the album for me are the songs about being made in God’s image and not seeking society’s approval but knowing that God created and loves us all as we are. That critical message comes through loud and clear in the songs “Stronger” and “She’s A Diamond”, two of the most personal songs on the album. It’s a life-lesson Joy hopes will resonate with teens in similar situations. “My encouragement to girls struggling with self-image is to know that you don’t have to be perfect; God made you the way you are for a reason. You are beautiful, you have something to say and you are worth it”. That message is so important and I’m so glad Joy addresses it with her songs in a similar way to Stephanie Smith’s song “Beauty”, Bethany Dillon’s song “Beautiful” and Francesca Battistelli’s song “Beautiful, Beautiful”.
CLOSING THOUGHTS
I have 3 young daughters and this is a nice upbeat pop album with positive biblical messages which is a great alternative to High School Musical, Miley Cyrus and other Radio Disney fixtures. Joy brings her walk with Jesus into her songwriting and this is the best album of this genre I’ve heard since Bethany Dillon’s debut album, which puts her in great company in my opinion.
Rating: 8.7 out of 10 (87%, B+)
Review written by: Kevin Davis | Review can also be found here.
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