Katie Lott, singer-songwriter

There’s something truly beautiful about the music that comes from Birmingham, AL’s Katie Lott. It isn’t just the softness of her voice, or her piercing lyrics. It’s the way she transcends boundaries in a completely organic, passionate way. The second you switch on one of Lott’s tracks, you feel yourself transported into her world. One filled with love, lust, heartbreak, and hope. It’s the inner workings of everything you’d expect from a 23-year-old, and although this is a story old as time, Lott’s rendition will leave you breathless.

        From a young age, Lott found herself captivated by all things creative. Not only did she take up piano and violin by the time she was nine, but by middle school she had begun teaching herself guitar. However, instruments weren’t the only things she dabbled in. Crafts, origami, purses out of candy wrappers, even a stint making shoes out of newspaper were the boundless things that occupied this middle-schooler’s mind. When making paper shoes ceased to challenge her, she took to organizing musicals, plays, and even films. Among her unfinished works, was a musical about cheese that took place entirely inside a refrigerator. Spoiler alert: cheddar was the star of this play!

        Before long, it became clear that Lott was destined for a career in the arts, and she set off to Birmingham-Southern College to pursue a Bachelor of Music in Composition, graduating in just three years. While her college days found her focusing on writing for orchestra, piano, and string quartet, it wasn’t long after she graduated that she found herself gravitating more towards pop. Looking back on those years, she notes that while her high school years were filled with learning chord progressions and catchy melodies, her post-college years were filled with fine tuning her lyrics. The result? A better understanding of music theory, a new found respect for lyricism, and a slew of awards including being named the winner of the Tennessee Valley Music Festival Young Composers Forum Competition, where she was one of five composers selected. She studied with composer Robert Bradshaw, and the orchestra rehearsed and eventually performed her piece “Daylight” as part of their program.

        With a future that includes plans for her first studio release—an intense undertaking which will take Lott’s singer-songwriter roots and make waves with an electronic/R&B influence—as well as plans for a cross-country tour, it’s not a stretch to call Lott fearless.  

        “I'm really excited to start producing my own music in the next year, and experimenting with a more pop/electronic feel.” she says. “Many of the songs on my Floodlights album are pop and R&B influenced and I originally envisioned them in that kind of setting. So that's going to be my next project - studying music production and re-inventing these songs in a pop context.”

        In June 2015, Katie independently released her first EP, which consists of three originals and three cover songs. Since its release, the EP has been featured on numerous radio stations and blogs. In September 2015, Katie signed with Velvet Records in Birmingham, AL. Her first release under Velvet Records was a cover of Tori Kelly's song, "Beautiful Things." In January 2016, Katie released a full-length album, Floodlights Live, which is available exclusively through her website. The album features live performances of 12 original songs. Following the album release, Katie went on a 5-state two-week long tour which included 13 shows in 11 cities. In addition to writing and performing, Katie is also a songwriting & vocal coach and founder of http://modernsongstress.com .