Live Review + Gallery | Joy Crookes @ Islington Assembly Hall

Joy Crookes

Islington Assembly Hall, London

18th February 2025

Photography by Izzy Reeve (@izzymayv)

Izzy Reeve

I’m a London-based music photographer and occasional writer and I love documenting gigs and people enjoying them. Having just moved back to London from Scotland, where I first started shooting concerts, I’m looking forward to exploring what the scene down south has to offer with CLUNK! From new acts to festivals, I love what clunk champions and I can’t wait to get started.

Joy Crookes is back, taking to the stage for War Child’s BRITs Week 2025 and marking the start of a new era.

Tickets sold out in less than a minute, with fans flocking to Islington Assembly Hall to see Crookes debut new music and raise vital money for War Child’s work in protecting, educating and standing up for the rights of children living through war.

It was a special evening that saw the first live performances of new releases ‘Pass The Salt’ and ‘Mathematics’, along with the debut of unreleased tracks. Three years after the release of her first album, ‘Skin’, Joy continues to explore her relationships with politics and the people around her in her new music.

Delving into lyrics on unrealistic beauty standards and maintaining mental stability in the current political climate along with heartwarming love songs, Joy‘s new direction was varied but still rooted in her signature soulful sound.

Despite Crookes having “bubble guts” before performing live for the first time in years, the importance of the music and contributing to the efforts of War Child was not lost on the crowd, who sang and cheered for her long-awaited return.

Check out the gallery below: