Singing to the Crowd

Girls of Joseph strive to offer audiences courage

Following performances on Ellen, The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, CBS This Morning and a sold-out arena tour — opening for James Bay — Portland, Ore., sisters Natalie, Meegan and Allison, better known as Joseph, will add George’s Majestic Lounge in Fayetteville to their list Thursday.
Following performances on Ellen, The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, CBS This Morning and a sold-out arena tour — opening for James Bay — Portland, Ore., sisters Natalie, Meegan and Allison, better known as Joseph, will add George’s Majestic Lounge in Fayetteville to their list Thursday.

In writing this album, we kind of were thinking, what do people need, what do they need to hear and what can we give to them."

Allison Closner reflects on the goals she and her two sisters had when putting together their latest album. Allison, twin sister Meegan and oldest sister Natalie make up the group Joseph -- the trio igniting the folk and pop scene since the release of their album, "I'm Alone, No You're Not" last summer.

FAQ

Joseph

with Kelsey Kopecky

WHEN — 8:30 p.m. Thursday

WHERE — George’s Majestic Lounge, Fayetteville

COST — $18

INFORMATION — georgesmajesticloun…, thebandjoseph.com

"We kind of got stuck after a little bit because we didn't know what people need to hear," Allison goes on. "It wasn't until we did some self-reflecting that we even felt like we had anything to offer because it was true to us."

That self-reflection is potent in their songwriting -- the twins admitting there are several songs they're singing to themselves when they perform. The anthemic single from the album, "White Flag," is an exercise in courage and believing in yourself, just as much as some of the slower, more ethereal numbers.

"Sometimes, I'm looking at the crowd, and I'm thinking, 'Someone out here needs this, and I'm singing to whoever you are. I don't know who you are, but I'm singing this to you,'" Meegan says. She says she and her two sisters work hard to keep the concept of giving at the forefront of their art. "Instead of asking [people] to give something to us -- because they're constantly being asked of and they're constantly asking of each other -- we try to keep the idea in front of us that we're here to give to people. It's really powerful to say, 'Hey, you're not alone.'"

-- JOCELYN MURPHY

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NAN What's Up on 02/17/2017

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