KATHA HARRIS - WHEN THE LIGHTS GO DOWN (BalconyTV)

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KATHA HARRIS - WHEN THE LIGHTS GO DOWN

PRESENTED BY LAUREN PETREE

Native Texas singer/songwriter Katha Harris packs the punch of a heavyweight with her powerful yet smooth vocals that create a sublime blend of alternative country, blues, and folksy Americana. Don't let her petite stature and typically calm demeanor fool you. Her Texas roots and trademark firey red curls along with her "as-big-as-Texas-is" vocals are a recipe for passion and defiant determination to be a musical trailblazer with her unique lyrics and sound. Katha's songs such as "We Did" exhibit a talent that breaks the mold of "typical" and embraces the unexpected.

Katha has discovered through her own songwriting just who she is as an artist. "When I first arrived in Nashville in my grandmother's hand-me-down Buick, I thought I was country and I thought I wanted to write the kind of country music being played on radio. However, the more I write, the more I find my true self in the music that I create." Katha understands the importance of being true to herself in her art and realizes that it's okay that she doesn't fit into the mainstream country music genre, nor does she want to. "The more I'm left to my own devices," she declares confidently, "the more layers of me you're going to get." Katha's fortitude not to give into the pressures to follow trends gives way to a concoction of alternative country, blues and Americana that her listeners find fresh and innovative.

"Being from Denton, TX, I've always had a love for Texas country. Just like one of the lyrics from a Miranda Lambert song states, I'm Texas as hell!" Katha says with a mischievous grin as a red curl falls over her beautiful freckled face. "I also seek out and learn from those artists who have established themselves as uniquely 'set apart' such as Patty Griffin and Hayes Carll. Studying such talented artists has helped me develop and hone my own style." Katha's unique style, along with her compelling vocal performances at some of Nashville's top music venues such as the legendary Blue Bird Café, leave her audiences wanting more.

Katha's first memory of performing in front of an audience was when she had to sing a verse of the ever-popular "Hokey Pokey" in a grade-school production. "I can distinctly remember what I was wearing, what the backdrop looked like, and how absolutely terrified I was!" Looking back, Katha also remembers a 4th grade school project that taught her about Martin Luther King, Jr.'s inspirational "I Have a Dream" speech. "We had to paint a T-shirt with a picture of our own personal dream on it. I knew even at that young age I was going to be a singer." Laughing hysterically, she says, "I also knew that day after my T-shirt dried that I was never going to be a visual artist!" It was at that young age that Katha began taking piano lessons and then eventually learned guitar. She also started developing songwriting skills by delving into poetry during her high school years.

"When it comes to my songwriting," Katha declares, "I've learned to never compare myself to anyone else. Everybody has a different style, and I put my time and effort into always developing and improving myself and my craft." According to close friend and country music journalist Tiffany McDonald, Katha exudes a seductive innocence that can only be found south of the Mason Dixon line. Her smooth southern vocals and her mature, incomparable lyrics found in songs like "Have a Heart" and "Take Me Home" have all the elements necessary to put Katha's "one-size-DOESN'T-fit-all" music on the map!

http://www.kathaharris.com

CREDITS / SPONSORS

BalconyTV Austin is produced by Capital Media Corp. Audio and video production - Joe Lynch. Sound Engineers - Nick Smith & Brittany Malm.

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