When it comes to vulnerability, the vibrance only continues, as the latest singles from the upcoming EP ‘At Dusk’ have shown, combining addictive, warming guitar hooks and passionately raw lyricism to create a musical gem of heart and catharsis in equal measure, that is delivered with powerful gusto with every turn, including on stage.,
In anticipation of her upcoming powerhouse of an EP, we sat down with Better Joy during an exciting tour circuit with Somebody’s Child to chat all things to blame for her new music, her downtime must-watches and listens between shows, her love for Montpellier, and Olivia Dean.
Talk to us about your band/artist name - who or what’s to blame for its inception?
It came from someone I was working with at the time, who suggested this name. I view it more as a stage name; a band name, a stage name, so kind of the concept of calling myself something else, I found it quite odd. When I first heard it, though, I quite liked that one, so I just ran with it for a bit and saw how it made me feel, and then it just stuck. Even now, I feel like I’m embodying it more; it’s been a process, but still I love it, and it feels like it's becoming more and more obvious why that's the name.
Who would you say is to blame for your music career?
Who are the biggest musical inspirations for the sound you’ve curated?
Phoebe Bridgers at the start. She was someone I looked up to in terms of lyrics. I was definitely absorbing a lot of her, the way that she uses metaphors. At the start of my writing, I couldn't even write a metaphor. I was so confused, and so I had to really listen to others. I wouldn't just do it on a sonic level, I would kind of split them in two, I'd study lyrics, and then I'd figure out what sounds I want.
I've loved Olivia Dean from the very start, and I love the way that she's quite conversational, and I think I brought that into this EP especially. My music's not like Olivia Dean's, but I've been very inspired by her lyric writing and the way that she approaches that.
At that point in my life that was the best that I could have done, the most honest, but it's funny because now the stuff that I'm writing, the stuff I'm listening to and what I'm producing is so much more honest but I thought I was doing as honest as I could then and now I've just kind of tapped into it even more. I'll constantly be changing, I'll constantly be discovering artists that I like and want to be inspired by. I feel quite inspired by change, I want to make sure I'm always changing and growing because we all are, after all.
What is one city you've not played yet on tour that you would love to play, and why?
I've toured all the main cities in the UK, so Europe, oh! France, let's do Montpellier or somewhere else. I love Montpellier…I've been to Montpellier before, my friend studied there, oh, I've got it, Barcelona, I want to do Barcelona. Oh yeah, I went there during my year abroad, and I lived there for a bit, and I would love to perform there.
What keeps you grounded most as an artist in an, at times, overwhelming digital age?
I ground myself…literally grounding, I do a lot of meditation, I’ve got the gym, I've got my sister - you know, when you just don't want to hear the truth, and she just does it anyway. She's such an important part of my team, and I think even though it's hard sometimes, it's about having someone who's not a yes man and is just completely honest and on your side - that's grounding. I feel that’s what you need, someone just to actually tell you the truth, and my sister doesn't hide away from that. She’s involved a lot in this project; she's pretty hands-on, and for someone who's never done this and never been in the industry, it's amazing what she's doing. It's all for love!
What is your favourite lyric from any song you've written, and what does it mean to you?
I really love verse four of ‘Plugged In’ where it says “welcome home to a place nobody knows/ fear I've known/crawling out on down the road camping out at another house” and I love that lyric because I was so afraid before I fell in love, I was terrified of love and when I fell in love it just felt as though all that vanished. I never really understood it before, and yeah, I just relate to that so much. I love the way that it kind of just flowed out of me, and that's always when the best lyrics come, when it's just not hard, and I thought, "Well, that sounds pretty cool, so I'm gonna keep it". It's my favourite song. I've written more now that I love, but I think that's just because they're new.
What's to blame for your driving to the venue/next city playlist?
It really varies. I’m one of those people who can listen to the same song over and over and over again, like ‘Teal’ by Wunderhorse - I just can't get enough of it. I love its storytelling; I listen to that a lot. On this tour, I've also been re-watching Stranger Things - I've been sleeping, watching Stranger Things, and journaling. I'm on season three, which isn't my- it's my least favourite, but I've watched season four like four times. The more that I watch, the more I'm inspired. I do love when I watch new films, but to really relax myself, and when I'm consciously having to relax myself, I like to re-listen to things and re-watch things..
I actually do love The Diary of a CEO as well. I like some of the guests that he gets on it - I watched one about this monk that he had on, and it was really cool. His story was amazing, so I love little things like that.
What's to blame for your evolution as an artist from playing venues like Parish in Huddersfield to supporting Amy Macdonald at Sheffield City Hall and Bastille at AO Arena?
It's a big team effort, and me just putting in the time that I need to and I want to.
What do you hope listeners draw from your upcoming EP ‘At Dusk’? (out 31st October 2025)
A slice of me, A slice of my inner monologue. Some of the songs kind of touch on darker moments and darker kinds of things that happen to you, and I think hopefully they (listeners) find a little bit of solace in those songs if they've been through stuff that's similar.
What makes the Better Joy fan community so special?
It's a bit of fun, it's playing on the contrast that my music has, it's introspective, but it's fun, and that's quite human; it's the human experience. I've just got lovely fans and I'm excited to grow with them, they seem to have a good time at the shows, and I think that's my main goal; have fun myself and hopefully that just projects out to them and they have fun listening.
‘At Dusk’ is out 31st of October 2025, and if you’re looking to catch some of the tracks played live, tickets are still available for Amy Macdonald’s tour this November, and Bastille’s AO arena show, where Better Joy will be supporting.
Jessica Draper-Mann
Image: Jessy Keely