Kyshona and Joy Clark Bring a Welcome Respite

It really doesn’t get more uplifting or joyous than a Thursday night show that features two masterful Southern women singer-songwriters playing together. Nashville’s Kyshona and New Orleans’ Joy Clark brought glorious harmonies with their bands, fantastic guitar playing and powerfully poignant words to a rapt 3rd and Lindsley audience on Aug. 28. Both artists combine elements of gospel, blues, roots, rock, R&B and folk music in their compositions and are at home on folk or Americana music circuits.

Kyshona treated the audience to several selections from 2024’s first-rate album Legacy, an album inspired by a deep dive into her family history and genealogy. She brought the songs to life with the help of singers Jannelle Means and Craig Robinson on the harmonies and backup vocals (and occasional solos!), and drummer and producer Megan Coleman anchoring the flow of music. Songs like “The Echo,” “Carolina” and “Whispers in the Walls” explore generational trauma and place — the effects of houses and families haunted by love, grief and joy. “Heaven Is a Beautiful Place” was written by Kyshona’s grandfather and highlights the unbroken chain of music in successive generations.

Kyshona began her career as a music therapist, and this background still arises when she asks the audience to participate by naming out loud things they carry that have been handed down by family, such as shame, expectations, abandonment and regret. Singer-songwriters know the innate power of words and naming situations, emotions and desires. Kyshona is no exception, and that’s part of what makes her an exquisite writer. Legacy is about reckoning and acknowledgement — she worked with genealogists at the National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington, D.C., to learn more about her family history and enslaved ancestors — but with the aim of making space for healing and growth. 

Kyshona’s powerful and rich voice can soulfully evoke both sorrow and relief in equal measures, creating a beautiful tapestry of wholeness in song. After taking the crowd on the journey she’d laid out for them, she provided a “palate cleanser” of having Clark join her onstage for a gorgeous cover of “See-Line Woman” in the style of Nina Simone to end her set. 

All of that would have been worth the price of entry alone, but then Clark took the stage with bassist Tiffany Morris and Megan Coleman returning to do a double shift on percussion with her. Both Coleman and Clark are alums of Allison Russell’s Rainbow Coalition band. In a town overflowing with guitar music of all stripes, it can be easy to forget the power of a masterfully played acoustic guitar, which Clark reminded us with her picking style. Clark’s 2024 debut album Tell It to the Wind, released on Ani DiFranco’s Righteous Babe Records, established her place in the Americana space as a queer Black woman and has been exuberantly reviewed and recommended by Americana Highways and other publications. Clark played several songs from the album, beginning with the opener “One Step in the Right Direction.” Clearly enjoying herself, she called on her smooth vocals to take us through “Shine,” “Tell It to the Wind” and the sweet love song “Watching You Sleep.” Comparisons with Tracy Chapman may be inevitable, and the music inhabits a similar space while not sounding at all the same.

In a brief break from the flow of album songs, Clark covered legend Allen Toussaint’s “Southern Nights,” a song popularized by Glen Campbell. A high point of her set was a gorgeously meandering version of the song “Shimmering,” including a crowd sing-along and a shredding acoustic guitar solo. Clark is an emotive performer, inspiring joy in the audience as she explores her own in playing her music. Whether through the empowerment of her breakup song “All Behind” — in which she sings, “I’m taking my lamp, I’m takin’ my bike / I’m taking my plant, gonna raise it right” — or finding the courage to stop hiding and live authentically in the song “Guest,” Clark encourages the listeners with her beautiful voice and soulful delivery. At the end of Clark’s set, Kyshona joined in on backup vocals on standout blues song “Lesson,” prompting a standing ovation. 

Kyshona and Clark reminded music-saturated Nashville about the beauty and joy in simple, authentic sounds delivered with heart, and restored hope in the power of music. It was a respite for an audience worn out by this hot and turbulent summer. Both of these artists are worth seeing anytime, and have official showcases during AmericanaFest 2025. Making room in your schedule to see them qualifies as both self- and community care, as well as a refreshing deep breath and cleansing of the musical palate.

Features

Kyshona Explores Her Rich — and Nearly Lost — Family History on ‘Legacy’

• Brittney McKenna