KATIE OATES
Katie Oates knows how to sing. She’s been singing for as long as she can remember. But finding her own voice, that’s another story.
The daughter of a preacher, she belted hymns from her crib as a toddler to wake up her parents. But her childhood peers soon taught her it wasn’t “cool” to sing loudly or express her emotions freely, so for many years she sang only when alone. “I think it’s a common adolescent experience, unfortunately,” Katie laments. “We let people/society/institutions bully us out of being who we really are in all of our strangeness. We give up what makes us unique, so we can fit in.” Even after she began singing in public again in high school and for many years afterward, Katie sang what someone else told her to sing. “Don’t get me wrong. I had many great experiences in the choirs, musical theatre and singing groups that I auditioned for and joined. I sang arias with orchestras, solos with gospel choirs, and leads in musical theatre. Those were enjoyable, valuable experiences, but if I am being completely honest, I have to admit I played it safe. Having someone else’s permission to sing helped me deal with my self-doubt. But constantly seeking approval and permission from others slowly suffocated me over time. I grew increasingly frustrated and unhappy and didn’t know why.” In the past decade Katie has claimed her own voice. In 2012 she recorded and produced a cd of classical and folk songs (Going Over Home). And in 2016 and 2017 Katie released cds of her own original music: a 5-song EP, Something True, and, most recently, a fully produced cd of 12 original songs, Play Me. These are songs excavated from Katie’s own heart: composed and sung fully by her. “I am finally speaking in my own voice—with all the rewards and risks that can involve.” Drawing inspiration from a wide variety of genres and eras, Katie’s songs resonate with the yearning for connection: the magic of childhood, celebrating old friends and life itself. Her songs invite us to discover our best selves and create deeper, more humane relationships with others. In Katie’s 5th album (Edge of a Hurricane, 2024), she plumbed the depths of human emotion in her songwriting. She confesses: “Some songs are quite different from what people expect to hear from me—or any folk singer. I travel through anger, humor, despair, hope, sass, sincerity and everything in between. Even the most hopeful ballads on the album all emerge from a hard-fought battle with despair. Because in the end I think it’s as simple as a choice we each have to make between darkness and light. Hate seems so powerful, but all hate can do is destroy; only love can create something new. So I choose love. I hope you will, too. And maybe our small little acts will make a difference.” CONCERT OPENER: JACK KENNEDY
Opening the evening’s concert will be folk club member Jack Kennedy, a personality-rich songwriter/storyteller who shares a great deal with Mark Twain—the wily and witty intellect, the colloquial humor, the deft character sketches, not to mention the supremely impressive mustache. Jack’s lyrics will keep you on your toes, and his melodies will have you tapping them. |