23 hours Ago
Having just released her debut EP and with a string of live dates across the country - including one tomorrow night at Manchester’s Night and Day - you could forgive Bria Keely for being a little stressed. “Oh, I’m pretty stressed about it all”, she laughed, adding with considerable understatement, “there’s a lot been going on.” Bria - who records and tours under the name Better Joy - has been widely tipped by music industry experts and pundits alike as one of the up-and-coming artists to watch in 2025.
Her songs have a unique character to them reflecting influences which evoke everything from The Cure to The Strokes, from classic rock to 80s Goth rock. The sweetness of the vocals contrasting with the darkness often to be found in the lyrics. Better Joy (Picture: Sonic PR) “Ask anyone in my family and they’ll tell you I’m a big old contradiction,” said Bria.
“I can be bubbly but I can also be an emotional wreck. My music has got a bit of a darkness to it and I can go very deep which feels very me but there’s often a lightness to the sound; that’s where the contradiction represents me. I tell you, I’m an absolute rollercoaster.
” Having only begun songwriting and performing six years ago, Brian has come a long way in a short space of time, something she realised when she took delivery of her debut EP, Heading Into Blue. “I just felt a massive sense of pride at that point,” she said. “Being an artist comes with a lot of doubts so when you can have something in your hands that’s yours; that’s something you have believed in, it’s hard to describe but having that tangible thing is not like anything I’ve experienced before.
” But you can tell that Bria is not one to sit back and relax now that the debut EP is available. “I do put a lot of pressure on myself to be the best I can be,” she said. “I know where I am now is great but I want to just be better and keep improving.
That comes with a lot of extra work, but I love doing it; I love it when you see the results.” Helping Bria achieve her goals is her sister who is also a manager which to some people might seem to be a brave thing to do. “Me doing all this on my own - now that would have been a brave thing to do,” she said, “and possibly foolish.
She’s so critical in the best way. She gives me the kind of criticism I need to push me further. We have a really good thing going on.
“I know that everything she says is coming from a loving place and I think that’s why I improve. “No, I don’t feel brave, I feel extremely lucky to have someone who I know fights my corner.” Better Joy is already creating waves - the Manchester date had to be moved from its original venue as it sold out within two weeks.
“I was quite happy to think ‘that’s great’ and leave it at that but my team said we should think big and moved it to Night and Day and now that has sold out. Thank goodness no-one listened to me!” With an EP under her belt, a debut album would be the usual next step. “Actually the plan is to put another EP out before that,” she said.
“I wrote an album’s worth of songs for the EP but realised that I don’t really have an audience yet. I didn’t want to release an album to nobody and it just gets lost. “So the plan is to create a sister EP to Heading Into Blue, play more live dates, create a body of work and build an audience.
” Bria also believes that she’s currently in a rich vein of form writing wise. “Everything feels really right,” she said. “I feel like I’m starting to back myself; I’m absorbing music I didn’t think I would like two years ago and I can see it influencing the way I’m writing.
“I’ve found what I love, I feel more myself than I ever have so I know what I will produce will deserve to be on my debut album. That album is going to be me to a T.” A wide range of influences can be detected in Better Joy’s music but the end result is unique.
Better Joy (Picture: Sonic PR) “When I started to write I needed to figure out who I wanted to be as an artist,” said Bria. “The singer-songwriter thing didn’t feel quite right. I needed to push my boundaries and suddenly found all this music, all these bands.
“Initially because I came to them late I felt a bit of a fraud but I’ve realised you can listen to whatever you want whenever you want. My tastes are constantly evolving and I’m excited about where that’s going to lead me.” Better Joy plays Night and Day in Manchester tomorrow night (April 4).
The debut EP, Heading Into Blue is out now. Details from https://linktr.ee/betterjoy.
