Joy Zimmerman cultivates joy and community with a clear, rich voice. A folk singer/songwriter at home on guitar and violin, Joy brings audiences lyrical songs and stories, as well as occasional fiddle tunes. Her latest album, Where the Light Lives, debuted at #6 on the Folk Alliance International (FAI) Folk Chart. Dani Goodband of Lakeside Music says this album “should be in every folk music lover’s collection.”

Joy’s passion for music began with violin lessons before kindergarten. Many miles of classical music later, she picked up a guitar, found her voice of honey, and discovered a talent for songwriting. Joy is now a Music to Life Juried Artist, a Kansas Touring Roster Artist, and a Listening Room Network member. She has been awarded an American Songwriter Lyric Contest Honorable Mention, ten Walnut Valley Music Festival NewSong Showcase wins, a Folk Alliance Region Midwest DJ Showcase, and Heartland Song Network Artist of the Month.

Whether solo or with other artists, Joy's music is "vivid and alive, tender and poignant, and altogether a gift for the listener" (Caryn Mirriam-Goldberg, Kansas Poet Laureate Emeritus). She has recorded nine albums of original music, including a live performance. The Canvas Before Us reached #8 on the FAI Folk Chart Top Albums in August 2021. Joy’s current single, “Be the Reason,” is “an anthem of hope for people in need, and for a planet in need of loving care.” (Lilli Kuzma, host of Folk Festival, WDCB Public Radio).  

A former social worker, Joy serves on the board of directors of the Folk Alliance Region Midwest. She received an Artist as Activist grant from the Mid-America Arts Alliance to curate a portrait exhibit based on her song, "Women Who Walked on Water” at the InterUrban ArtHouse. While on the Transformative Language Arts Network board of directors, she co-chaired the annual Power of Words conference. Joy is an ArtistINC alumnus and a former Artist of Note with the Humanities Community Outreach Series.

During the pandemic, Joy posted over 100 “What’s Up Wednesdays” featuring original songs from different locations in her house (i.e. “Warranty” from her garage, “Why Be Normal” in her shower, and “Life as Laundromat” on her dryer). She is currently sending out weekly “Amplifying Hope: Monday Missives for Challenging Times.”

Joy’s music has been featured on WDCB Public Radio’s Folk Festival, (Re)Learning Leadership Podcast, Hootenanny Cafe Radio Show, KKFI Local Showcase, Tasty Brew Music Radio Show and Podcast, Wednesday MidDay Medley, Kansas NASW Advocacy Day, Together Women Rise International Women's Day Celebration, and Northern Spirit Radio's Song of the Soul.

Prior venues include Green Guitar Folk House; Lakeside Music Concert Series; InterUrban ArtHouse (KS), On the Tracks Songwriter Showcase; Trinity House (MI), Knuckleheads; Labyrinth Concert Series; Intercontinental Hotel (MO), Open Range Concerts; Ginkgo Coffeehouse; The Warming House (MN), Louisville Arts Center (CO), Stone Room Concerts (DC), Stories & Songs Series (OR), and Taos Inn (NM).

"Cultivate Joy" and “Amplify Hope” adorn Joy’s merchandise.

“​Joy has a wonderfully unique way of connecting to her audience that I have seen no other performer do...she engages every audience and wraps everyone in a velvet blanket of beautiful music.” ~Peggy Kelly, Open Range Concert Series

"Joy is a multi-instrumentalist (fiddle, guitar and more) with a beautiful voice. Add all that to her insightful writing and you have a show any host would line up to present to their audience. Book Joy Zimmerman for one of the best evenings you can offer your audience."  ~Dani Goodband, Lakeside Music