Russia Revisited

Live concert in Sochi this year...poor video quality, so I created a montage.

I began to perform in Russia in 2009. It was an amazing time of creativity and discovery that I returned each year. Then the economy tanked. Bam! Just like that, my Russian tours ended. In my world view, change is a good thing, a part of the natural order, a constant part of life. I missed my yearly visits, adopted family, and close friends. Some had left the earth since my last trip...RIP Vitaly. I missed the openness of the Russian creative scene and the inspiration which seemed to hang in the air waiting to be grabbed. After a 4 year hiatus, I'm back! Many things are different, much is the same.  It is always wonderful to be here, being surprised by all that is possible. Spasibo. Спасибо

Celebration of Choice...

Spontaneous Combustion at Jardin Cosmique in Switerland 2018

It's my10th anniversary as a nomadic artist...yay! I never imagined how a life-long desire would actually manifest. Reflecting back, it was a wish which lead to a decision and then one single step.

I was living on the beach in Belmont Shores, LA County. The local music scene had been friendly enough, but I wanted something more. I had a yearning to sing worldwide without a clue how to do it. My music journey had begun long before LA, but I still hadn't recorded an album. No record label was looking for me, I believed. Nonetheless, I wanted to share something musically, so I jumped into the deep end, as usual. I bought a ticket to Manchester, England, gave away most of my possesions, took time to visit my family on the East Coast, and began the adventure of a lifetime.

A cheerful farewell from Mama Patty, LA 2007

So many angels, seen and, unseen, arrived to aid me. There aren't enough words to show my gratitude. Thank you seems insufficient, though I've said it a million times. Kevin L, JTC, & Mama Patty were so generous with their time, energy, and resources. Ten years later, I'm still awed by their demonstration of love. Thank you, my angels! Then there are former collaborators and musical partners who encouraged me to keep singing, who told me I had a special gift. Two of whom are now gone: Ronnie Pierce, my clarinetist in Seattle, and Tom Tonyan, my LA pianist. God only knows where I would be without those first boosts.

Tom T. & me at Sir Winston's circa 2005

It isn't easy to step into the light and say, "Yes, I can do this!" In fact doubt, fear, and self-judgement are big destroyers of many creators. It's determination that keeps me on the path. In truth, I'm afraid most of the time. Then I ask myself, "What's the worst thing that could happen?" Some how the potential of falling isn't as bad as a future full of regret, so I keep stepping. I look back over the last 10 years with a heart full of gratitude that I didn't give up.

There are so many more episodes of this adventure. However, I won't go down memory lane just yet. It's celebration time...appreciation time. A childhood friend, Meighan G, encouraged me to blog again. She is interested in what's happening on the road. Perhaps you are too?


Here's to more years of creativity & global travel...

Love, Light, & Laughter,

Katt

Something Wonderful...

Wow...how the time flies! I've been busily creating globally and this year brought a special invitation from TEDx Lausanne to perform a little piece of Black Magic. So I put together a 5 minute piece to introduce my play, Black Magic: Songs Unchained, & to spread the word that racism is taught.

The Songs...

Another Fest Come and Gone Again...

                                           Rolling no more...

 Sometimes I think my body may be deteriorating like my poor bag. My short-term travel case, the one I used for short trips here and there, finally stopped rolling whereas I have begun again. I had to put the brakes on a bit last year to deal with a serious health issue. Now freshly neutered & fitted with new luggage, I'm back on the trail. I bade a tearful goodbye to Lisbon where I lived most of last year and headed to Montreux Jazz for the 4th time since I was first there in the Summer '08.

                              Tristan gearing up for a Lakeside session

This year was special for our musical family. Mark & I presented five new songs each on our CD Best Friends, Tristan O'Meara had a new CD too Southern Breezes, Red showed up in Red form, and we shared our spot with many other wonderful musician friends including Trippin', Mick Mennogucci, Micha Sportelli, Baum, Auralie, and Nino. We rocked Montreux once again. I had never imagined doing any of these things when I left the States nearly 5 years ago. What an amazing adventure!

My music is sounding a little bit country. I have no idea how this is happening. Just feel the songs in this way now. There's a ton of joy and healing for me in writing. Many friends have encouraged me along the way. Grateful? Hell yea! Now what to do with it? I'm singing full-time, writing, healing myself and others thru music. All fantastic. Time to record in a different way. It's not easy to do when I'm moving around so much, but I'm ever forging ahead.

As I reflect on life I'm filled with awe. So much has happened since I decided to wander. People close to me have passed on others have just dropped off the radar and still family given and chosen are filling my world with love. I've enjoyed the recent visits from close friends. I've learned to cherish each moment. It's difficult to put a value on what I've gained since the beginning of this voyage, but I know I wouldn't change a thing. I'm happy to be living and to be alive. More opportunities in the air... As my friend Tristan says in his song, Sunsets Over the Ocean, "just look for grace, don't over try... cause I believe it's flowing as we're growing". Here's to new growth and continued grace...

Enjoy life.
See you around the planet...

                                Me and Myra In Sintra, Portugal

Dramatic Pause... Angels Present

"the dreams that you dare to dream really do come true..."

It's difficult to live on the road long term. Well into the third year of wandering the globe to sing and experience life, I realized my health had taken a back seat to everything else. Most of us don't think about preventative care; we see the doctor when we have a problem. Factor in language & cultural differences, cost,  plus lack of insurance and we seek medical attention even less. Such was my case. I was traveling with a tumor that was supposed to shrink--or so I was informed. Actually, truth be told... the advice was it could go either way and I chose to believe it would shrink rather than grow to the enormous size it eventually did. Often my faith-based upbringing makes me more optimistic than practical. (That's my story and I'm clinging to it.) Late Spring last year, it became clear I had a serious issue: I looked 4 months pregnant. Yikes! So it was time to take on overhead, get some keys, settle down for a moment, and figure out if I was dying. I'm not being dramatic. Things got pretty scary, but I'm still here. Meanwhile... one of my dearest friends on the planet, Leah, actually was dying... from cancer.

Leah Siegel had been like a sister to me since we were kids. In fact we'd tell people we were sisters. We had even concocted elaborate tales to explain why one of us was white and the other black. As adults we'd often laugh about those stories. She was one of the few who knew I was leaving the States indefinitely. Leah smiled and said, "If you get stuck, call me." I was in a cyber cafe in Zurich when I got the email she had stage 4 breast cancer. It was August 2008. She had just delivered a healthy baby boy, Oliver, when doctors discovered she was ill. It was overwhelming news...so bittersweet. Trying to keep the tears out of my voice, I phoned Leah.  True to form, she was spirited, uplifted and optimistic. When I suggested returning to be with her she protested. She was gonna live vicariously through my wanderings and fight the odds BIG TIME. Leah did just that... She fought, wrote about it and endured with more courage, integrity, and humor than anyone I know, but finally the cancer won. Leah died last Summer. I mourned her passing on a deserted beach in Portugal. It's a special beach with super high iodine levels in the water. The ocean was so calm I floated weightlessly remembering my dear friend...feeling her angel present all around me.

Me and my angel, Leah... Dallas 2007...sisters in spirit.

As I approach my 4th year on the road, I'm reflective. So much has happened. There have been really fantastic times and some scary ones too. Sometimes I ponder how have I made it thus far? My life is a wonder! Each day I'm certain that patient, generous angels keep me afloat. More is to be done on this journey I've chosen. In the difficult moments I remember the courage and strength of my angels so I can look up again with gratitude for another day to continue my story. So much love is all around keeping me buoyantly moving along singing my songs.


Here's to finding your joy, your passion, the thing that makes you happy to be alive...dare to dream & have your dreams come true!
See you around the planet...
Love, Joy, & Loads of Laughter!

Russia Revealed & the Road thus Far...

Late posting has become a standard with me it seems. I have been living this whirlwind of a life for 3 years now and at times I can't keep up with me. Perhaps my zest for writing faded a bit after Russia. The reason? My guess is I realized I was on a circuit. Not that I'm complaining about it, just seemed as if I was always returning to certain places because that's where the work was. More on this in a moment. First let me recall Russia.

my name in Cyrillic...

I finally got my Russian visa in time to make the one month trip beginning November 10th. My friends JC, Enrika, & Orianna let me hide out at the vineyard while my passport was being processed in Washington, DC. Yup. I had to send my passport by courier to the States or no visa. At one point I thought it would be impossible to obtain. At last ticket and beautiful visa plus all other relevant documents in hand, I boarded the plane to Krasnodar, RU.

Long story shortened...my buddy Nick joined forces with the Rostov Jazz School to present me in various concerts. Rostov is the home of jazz in Russia-talk about synchronicity. It was pretty amazing to sing with the students and professionals there. I taught a master class and had 2 television interviews where apparently I was labeled "America's Top Jazz Singer". Fancy that! One of my favorite musical moments had nothing to do with jazz. My last week in Krasnodar, where I was based, I worked with a young club DJ on 5 of his beats. In 4 days we gathered the sounds, I wrote the lyrics and melodies, and we performed them live in a club the night before I flew away. WOW! Pretty incredible. The consensus is I should return for a longer stay. We'll see...

the fabulous DJ original music night...

This year when I hit Barcelona in January it dawned on me I had been here this same time last year. Even though I like the city more than the first time, I still don't see it as my EU home. I went to see Nicole in Madrid too. My annual visit this year landed me in a small black-box theatre show with Nicole dancing beautiful flamenco and me singing a Capella respectively. She has really settled in Madrid. It made me wonder why I can't or won't pick a settling place?

The big mosque in Casablanca

Marrakech

Just to get me off the merry go round and keep my dream of singing all over the world on track, after Madrid I changed course and trekked across the waters to Morocco.. People voiced concerns about me going alone, but this is a one woman adventure. I loved it there in the Third World again for it had been several years since I had been in the Motherland. I felt quite at home day or night. I walked the streets to clubs and hotels where I might be able to work. I also reconnected with a musical buddy from Paris '07. We swapped stories about living solely from music. Strangely enough I thought it may be a place to set camp for awhile, but that would have to come later 'cause I had booked work in Lisbon. So I hung out for about a month, made some connections, and worked a little. Will keep you posted on the return.

Now I am in Lisboa. This year biz has been slower. The city lost its oldest jazz club to a fire last year. Plus the economy is crazy for everyone. Nonetheless, I had a wonderful time again, connecting with old friends, making new ones, working on new projects, speaking of future visits. I even got to sing with Kirk Lightsey. All good.

Kirk Lightsey

My gypsy year has become 3 years and I feel as if it's the beginning. I jumped out of the circuit twice with big trips to Russia and Morocco and a few smaller ones around Spain. Now that my Portugal time is winding down I'm considering where to go next. For now I will explore other European cities, but I've got Israel and Asia on the brain.

Thanks for putting up with my sporadic blogging. Keep pursuing your own dreams. Life is amazing!

Peace, Love, & Laughter...