Kat lives and breathes in a world drenched in darkness. Illuminated by rain. Filled with wonder. The Pacific Northwest is her canvas, where her weekly running provides a rich tapestry of insights into her own fantastic, semi-fictional explorations. As she runs, the moon, stars, and all her life’s experiences inspire the music she creates. Kat has always believed “limits are for mere mortals”—a family that she refuses to be a part of. This intensity bleeds within each note of her songs. From instrumentals to lyrical, you will feel her world.
Growing up in the wilderness of Fairbanks, Alaska, Kat’s first love of music started on a small Casio keyboard, playing in the house her father built. She was raised on a steady diet of the musical greats: Cat Stevens, James Taylor, Kenny Loggins, and more, and her heroes of solo piano and film compositions: George Winston, David Lanz, John Williams, James Horner, and Hans Zimmer.
At age 8, Kat was learning complex classical pieces by ear and performing recitals and winning trophies. When she turned 9, her family moved to Vancouver, Washington and she found a challenging teacher who finally taught her to read music. At age 11, she started playing the flute and performing in the band and school talent shows. But music isn’t just another subject she learned, it is her passion. It is as necessary as breathing.
Alaska made her tough. A broken heart made her strong. Music became her sanctuary, her outlet for expression while she navigated loss, heartache, depression, and mental illness in a loved one that turned her life upside down.
But some of the best art comes from pain. Kat embraces the pain that inspires her music and makes something beautiful from it. Her music comes straight from the heart—it is relatable and brings comfort, like a friend who understands. Her music is often dark, somber, and haunting with an emotional edge.
Kat started to compose when she was 18 and has evolved from a solo piano artist to a singer-songwriter. Katsember is now her “band” name, though she is still a solo artist. The name is a combination of her own and her song Ember, symbolizing her passion for music, something that will burn forever and never die. She has released a total of 11 albums and has written over 70 songs. Her indie-folk style has been compared to Joni Mitchell, Stevie Nicks, Alanis Morissette, Natalie Merchant and Jewel.
Despite severe stage fright and mostly recording and releasing virtually via YouTube she has started to perform live, her first performance was in 2016 at the Buffalo Gap in Portland, Oregon. It is her ultimate dream to become the driving force behind the emotional scenes in TV and film.
Kat’s first CD, “Explorations,” was released in 2002 and includes the song “My Dreams” that has reached nearly 2 million views on YouTube. Her second release, “Boundless,” in 2004 includes the song “Season’s Journey” that was placed in the TV show, “Dance Moms.” Her most recent Singer-Songwriter releases “Sands of Time” and “Dare” were released in June of 2020 and include 2 songs that received the honors of Semi-Finalist and Runner-Up for the 2016 Song of the Year Competition.
In addition to composing, singing, producing and running, Kat is also an author with two published novels, “The Light of the Blue Pearl” and “The Black Ruby.” Visit the Katsember Soundtracks link to find out more.
Notable Mentions:
– 2016 Song of the Year Runner-Up — “I’m Standing Here”
– 2016 Song of the Year Semi-Finalist — “You’re My Love, My Lullaby”
– 2011 Semi-Finalist International Songwriting Competition — “The Stars”
– 2007 International Music Awards Special Mention — “Season’s Journey”
– Lifetime Television — “Dance Moms” Seasons 2 Episode 1 — “Season’s Journey”
