Meet Jemima Joél | The Woman Who Sings and Paints | Singer & Visual Artist

We had the good fortune of connecting with Jemima Joél and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Jemima, is there something that you feel is most responsible for your success?
The most important factor behind my career, my success, and my brand is my faith in God. I believe that God has a plan and destiny for my life and God will not let me leave the earth until that destiny is fulfilled. Faith is to believe in things that are unseen. So even when I get weary or maybe when someone around me doesn’t understand my everlasting perseverance to bring Jemima Joél, The Woman Who Sings and Paints, to fruition, I don’t give up. God has given me these two special gifts and a way of combining them which makes me a unique performer. My brand is about creating the visual and aural experience of music and art. My brand is also about bringing black beauty, emotion, and black everyday life and issues to the arts.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
The aspect of my artistry that sets me apart from others is that I am simultaneously a singer and a visual artist. I created the brand, The Woman Who Sings and Paints, to keep my gifts intertwined. I sing while I paint and paint while I sing. I don’t know of any other artist who completes this act as I do. It is a commitment to bring the visual and aural experience of art and music to the people. I am proud of the act and my perseverance to get the act in front of as many people as possible.

But I also have a deep love for both of the crafts and I give a lot of time to each side. I write music, I practice singing, and I study singers and genres I want to be a part of. I also study music production and would like to learn more about making music and the business of music. I study art, art techniques, and teach myself to become better. I watch and study artists whom I admire from afar.

I got where I have professionally by becoming consistent and more serious about my creative career. I go out to many different events and I show people videos of what I can do and I ask for opportunities to do them, so I can continue to expand my network as well as get more exposure. It’s not easy, especially as a woman, sometimes people don’t take me seriously or might doubt my abilities. But if I keep showing up, I can show the world my abilities and also show myself what I can do. Right now, I am working on my EP called Algiers Queen, which is a 7 to 8 song music project that will be available on all streaming platforms to introduce my audience more to my music style. There will also be a painted piece for every song to tell the story and or be a symbolization of the song. This EP is about a young woman who is finding herself and living with the coexistence of love, sensuality, insecurities, and faith. It will be coming out this Summer. I am hoping, praying, and planning for it every day. I am so excited.

I’ve learned to keep my inner peace and focus on myself so that I can blossom. I want everyone in the world to know how much I love and am committed to the crafts of music and art. I want everyone to know how gifted I am, how hardworking and ambitious I am, how intelligent, how loving, how caring, how kind I am, but also how very imperfect I am.
Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
I would take them first to Algiers, which is part of New Orleans I am from. I would like to drive them around through Old Algiers and let them see the scenery like some of the old cultural houses and the green grass.

I would take them to the spots where I hear local music like The Kickback and Abstract Nola. I would show them where all the black earthy creatives like myself lie in Nola. I would take them to Studio Be, a black-owned art studio.

I would take them to eat at Plant Bass Deli, a local vegan restaurant that has good vegan burgers. I would take them to get a snowball at Sno-la.

I would take them on a walk through the French Quarters so they can see the central part of New Orleans.
Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
There are so many people that have nurtured me throughout my journey to being confident in myself. I’d like to shout out to my family because they always support me even when they don’t understand me. They give me space to create art. My room at home is nearly spotted with paint all over the ground from my brush strokes and no one bothers me about it. They call their friends to help me if I need something. And my sister has been helping out a lot lately at my gigs. She helps me to carry my mic, speakers, art, and easels. My family gives me honest feedback. I’d like to thank my brother, my friends, other creatives, producers, teachers, hairdressers, church members, organizational members, and job managers who have given me space, opportunities, and encouragement to share my gifts. I would love to name the names of all those people, but I can’t help to feel I am leaving out so many names when I begin naming people. So, I place those who have helped me along my journey in these categories and hope anyone I know who is reading this who has helped me along my way, finds themselves there. I thank you.

Website: thewomanwhosingsandpaints.com

Instagram: @thewomanwhosingsandpaints

Linkedin: Jemima Brady

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCG5MZuJhH-9wg625fMvXrKw

Image Credits
Trenity J. Thomas, Sic Fella Aaron Parquet, Dexstr8dope, Bre Mahe, Kaliah Rogers, Venture Troops, Khayla Alexis