Alexa Ray Joel

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Alexa Ray Joel (born January 1, 1986) is an American singer and pianist. She is the daughter of popular pianist, singer, and songwriter Billy Joel by his second wife, model Christie Brinkley. She has credited her middle name to musician Ray Charles.

Alexa Ray Joel began writing songs at a very early age. Growing up in a musical household, her gift for singing and songwriting was always encouraged by her parents. Her deep love of music stems from as early as the tender age of two, when her father would sing and play nursery rhymes for her on the piano. Like her father, she pursued classical piano training for quite a few years before developing a knack for songwriting. She would soon find that her skills in classical piano provided a solid foundation for her songwriting.

At seventeen, she attended the Berklee College of Music's Five Week Music-Fest, where she honed her skills as a performer. She attended New York University's (NYU) Musical Theatre Program her freshman year, but by the summer started to pursue a career as a singer/songwriter.

By that fall, Alexa performed her first show at Maxwell's in Hoboken, New Jersey, followed by other gigs in the New York City area. She has most recently been performing at colleges and venues around the Northeast United States, and finished up a nationwide Hard Rock Cafe Tour in May 2006.

Alexa was scheduled to release her debut EP Sketches 29 August 2006 on her own label.

The ballad "Lullabye (Goodnight, My Angel)," found on her father Billy Joel's album River of Dreams, was inspired by Alexa,^{[citation needed]} and the song "The Downeaster Alexa," on Billy Joel's Storm Front album, shares her name.