Today we’d like to introduce you to Kat Riggins.
Hi Kat, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I was born and raised in Miami to a paramedic/firefighter and a full-time housewife who moonlit as a grocery store clerk, a postal worker, a pre-k teacher and whatever else tickled her fancy. Not that we were anywhere near wealthy, but she never actually HAD to work. My father would work a lot of doubles to make sure of that. It’s just that my mom’s interests were many and she wasn’t one to sit still for too long. Honestly, it just dawned on me that my inquisitiveness most likely comes from her! I’m also realizing now just how little it seems they had in common. My dad is an adventurous cook, while my mother pretty much stuck to what she knew and did well. My mom was always the life of the party, while my father has always been more on the quiet side. However, the things that they connected over were clear… their love for each other, their love for us (their children) and their love of music! I grew up listening to the variety of music in my parents’ collection. They played everything from R&B and Gospel to Funk, Soul, Rock-n-Roll and Hip-Hop. It stands to reason that my own music is peppered with hints of all of those things, but make no mistake. I AM A BLUES WOMAN!
I fell in love with the genre by listening to the gorgeous grittiness of voices like Koko Taylor, Denise LaSalle, Etta James, Betty Wright, Janis Joplin and Tina Turner and I was inspired by the strong messages of artists like Mavis Staples, Tracy Chapman, Sam Cooke, Marvin Gaye and Nina Simone. Through them and others like them, I learned the beauty in authenticity. It’s important to have a voice of your own, but it’s even more important to use it! My father helped me to see that my voice, in all of it’s weirdness, is beautifully special. My mom taught me by example to tell it like it is. It took some time for me to believe in my voice the way that my father does and it took even longer for me to develop the kind of courage that my mom had. Fast forward to today and I have penned four original albums, each intentionally more candid than the last. With my most recent release (Cry Out), the general feeling is one of strength in unity and courage in the face of adversity. It’s about breaking silences in order to inspire hope, peace and self-confidence for those lacking it, humility for those who could use it and positive change for ALL of us.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Betty Wright said that “anything worth having at all is worth working for and waiting for”. God knows that I’ve done a lot of working and waiting! For a long time I was in my own way, though. I tended bar full time and pounded the pavement for gigs in whatever free time I had. The problem was that while I couldn’t let go of my bartending job because it fed me, the only gigs that I was booking as a part-time amateur singer barely paid enough to fill the gas tank. I was stuck! That is, until I stopped being disobedient to my calling. When I stopped being hard-headed and began to put the music first, everything else started to fall into place. I was able to spend more time honing my craft and eventually, the gigs started to pay better. Now that my focus is clear, I have built a full-time career sharing my love for this music to packed houses all over the world!
One thing I’ve learned is that obstacles are inevitable no matter how successful one becomes. It was a struggle to be taken seriously as a bandleader, much less a musician, because other than my voice I don’t play an instrument. I was often (and sometimes still am) undervalued and underestimated. As an African- American gay woman in music, I’ve faced racism, sexism and even bigotry. Unfortunately, these things aren’t uncommon in any industry. The real challenge is actually speaking out against them. Staying silent is compliance. I try to see these things as opportunities to honor my responsibility as an artist! Paul Robeson said, “Artists are the gatekeepers of truth”. It took a long time for me to gain the audacity to write the way that I do and to perform my songs as honestly as I can. That fact is evident in the progression of my music, but finally accepting that challenge makes what I do feel more fulfilling!
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
I am an international Blues singer in a time when the genre is one of the most misunderstood in music! In many cases, it’s thought to be depressing and outdated. Those of us who love the Blues know better. We know that the Blues is a healer. The original intent of this music was to lift people up and help them to forget their troubles for a while. It isn’t about dwelling in the pain or wallowing in the “whoa is me”. It’s meant to let you know that you are not alone and that there is joy on the other side of sorrow. We who love the Blues understand that it’s an endangered species in a musical world that it helped to create. Did you know that BET (Black Entertainment Television) doesn’t have an awards category for Blues? This is why I am proud to travel the world hell-bent on doing my part to keep the Blues alive and thriving through my #BluesRevivalMovement. It’s underrepresented even within the culture responsible for its existence! As a matter of fact, the Blues seeded pretty much every style of American music. Still it’s only appreciated by we, the not-so-quiet few. The Blues should be as widely recognized and honored as its offspring! That’s the main reason why it is my mission to do what I can to introduce the masses to the significance and the raw sincerity behind every note of this exquisite art form.
Where do you see things going in the next 5-10 years?
Like most, the music industry took a huge hit as a result of COVID19. Gigging and touring came to a screeching halt, causing musicians to rely mainly on the internet as a means of sharing music and earning some semblance of an income. While the situation seems to be improving slowly but surely, I have a feeling that social media will continue to be an integral part of the survival of the industry as a whole. My hope, however, is that people develop a new appreciation for LIVE music after this forced hiatus, especially when it comes to the Blues. When gathering is again safe, I pray that more of us take full advantage of the extraordinary talent in our own backyards by supporting local musicians and frequenting the establishments that book them!
Before the pandemic, I used to say, “Support LIVE music, because if you don’t, you might have to eventually settle for YouTube alone and it ain’t the same thing”. Well, now we can attest to that! While I am forever grateful to YouTube, Facebook Live, Instagram and the like for providing a safe avenue for us to keep doing what we do as artists and for making a way for us to enjoy “live” music from the safety of our homes, there is nothing like physically being in the room. The energy you get from the vibration of the instruments and the buzz of the crowd is unmatched! So, while I understand that the internet and social media will most definitely play a huge role in how we share and enjoy music in the future, my constant prayer is that the LIVE experience is something that audiences will always seek and find.
Contact Info:
- Email: kat@katriggins.com
- Website: www.KatRiggins.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/katriggins/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KatRigginsMusic
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/KatRiggins
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UClnpazAq3kOUw6C556mWwVw
- SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/search?q=kat%20riggins
Image Credits
Walter VanHeuckelom Sebastian Santiago Jim Hartzell K. Staps Franky Bruneel Mark Shoen Gail Hopkins Roland Weichser Musicfhoto
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