You would expect that gospel legend Elder Goldwire McLendon would be overjoyed at having a granddaughter who'd inherited his musical genes. But in an interview with The New York Times, Samara Joy revealed that he doesn't approve of her pivot into jazz.

And Goldwire, who alongside his late wife Ruth McLendon formed the Philadelphia gospel outfit, The Savettes, was particularly disappointed when Joy won the 2019 Sarah Vaughan International Jazz Vocal Competition. The SUNY Purchase College graduate explained, "... He thought singing belonged in the church, that it should serve as worship to God. I don't think he would ever come into a jazz club, because of his beliefs, which I respect and understand."

Admirably, Joy hasn't let her grandfather's disapproval cloud their relationship, adding, "I know that he still loves me, regardless of how he feels about the career decisions I'm making." Further evidence of this came in 2022 when Goldwire joined the two-time Grammy Award winner, and several other family members, on stage and in the recording studio for a rendition of the Christmas carol, "O Holy Night."

ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7r7XCpKCsr5mbwW%2BvzqZmamlpaoN4g46smKaZopZ6q7vYZmhtZaSdtq%2Bz0marqGWbo7y4ecCbpq6sXam1pnnGq5impalixKq6zZ6paA%3D%3D