JoVia Armstrong, Percussionist/Producer

From Detroit, MI hails percussionist JoVia Ljiljana Armstrong. JoVia began studying percussion as a high school freshman. By her senior year, she was section leader in the symphony orchestra, the symphony band, the concert band, the percussion ensemble and the jazz orchestra. Throughout the week and weekend, she was a percussionist in the Detroit Symphony Civic Orchestra, the Wayne State University Honors Band, and the Charles Post Military Band. She enrolled at Michigan State University as a percussionist performance major where she continued to perform and study orchestral percussion (including 4- mallet marimba/vibraphone).

In her sophomore year she began to study African Cuban percussion and drum set with performer and educator Francisco Mora-Catlett. Outside of MSU's school of music, JoVia began to study and perform with various on-campus ensembles of different genres. These genres included African drumming & dance, Latin Jazz, and also Korean drumming. Performing the styles of Gospel, R&B, Jazz, African, and African Cuban has provided her with versatility not found in every musician.

JoVia played Cajon (box drum) for the “Tour of the Americas 2004”. The group performed original and traditional songs of Chile, Peru, Bolivia, Venezuela, and Argentina. During a show at the Latin American Music Festival in Milwaukee, she was invited to accompany Joe VasConsellos, currently the top billing artist in Chile, on congas.

After earning a B.A. in Music Business at Columbia College Chicago, she quickly relocated back to Motown in 2002. Since her move back to Motown, she has performed with various artists such as British recording artist Omar Lye- Fook (better known as OMAR- www.omarmusic.net), (excluding musicians from the “Tour of the Americas 2004”), Chilean artist Joe VasConcellos, Philadelphia native RES, Alison Crockett, Angela Johnson, Maysa, Rahsaan Patterson, Eric Robeson, Gordon Chambers, Conya Doss, Yolanda Johnson, Jazzhead (the early group w/ John Arnold on guitar and Jeremy Ellis on keys) flautist Nicole Mitchell, saxophonist David Boykin, trumpeters Corey Wilkes, Maurice Brown, David Young, bluesmen Billy Branch and Ron Prince, Althea Rene, Brian O'Neal, Lola Morales, Blackman & Arnold, Level Rizon, Cello, Nadir, Ed Stone, Painted Pictures, Wendell Harrison, Pamela Wise, BSTC, Mathias, Inohs Sivad, and Heather Moran. She performed with various artists opening shows for such acts as Kindred the Family Soul, Thomas Mapfumo, Gerald Albright and The Bad Plus. She has had the pleasure of sharing the stage with Amp Fiddler, Trey Anastacio and Michael Franti & Spearhead.

Besides performing and recording, JoVia is currently writing songs for Detroit based jazz group Musique Noire & other artists under her label Drunkin' Fingers Music Group.