- Bryon Harris
Kate Magdalena - Interview
The W.A M. Awards celebrate the year’s most outstanding independent artists from around the world in multiple genres and categories. "Best Song" and "Best Album" nominations were based on Artistry, Musicianship, Originality, Professionalism, Diversity, and Excellence. W.A.M. stands for "We Are the Music Makers.' Kate Magdalena's album "The Water Is Wide" was the 2020 W.A.M. Award Winner for Best Album in the Country music category. Off the album, "Shores of Avalon" is a must listen.
What got you into music?
I got myself into music at the age of 6. I went to hear “The Sound of Music” on Broadway and that was it! Life was never the same. My heart has always juiced song. My voice has to sing!
What is your favorite part about being an artist? Is it songwriting, performing, recording, something else?) Tell us why.
I love every part of it from the first magical wisp of a song breathed across my mind and heart, to the magic of performing before a live audience, and the thrill of recording with my producer.
Can you tell us what being in the recording studio is like for you?
Ecstasy. No joke. It’s my favorite place on the planet. One thing I do want to say is how deeply physical singing really is. I sing with my whole body, right down to my toes! Every single muscle in the body mind heart is at work while I am recording, but is it work? Or is it just pure wonder?
As a songwriter or musician, are there any obstacles you have had to overcome or obstacles that you are facing right now in your career?'
Ahh yes! My greatest obstacle is always myself. I easily lose faith, and when I do, I just can’t bring myself to make music, and generally don’t sync myself with the inner composer at those times. I’ve been there off and on during 2020. Truth to tell though, I have had quite a few song starts, but little enthusiasm right now with songwriting in a world gone off kilter.
Who do you admire most in the music scene today and why?
I admire the possibility for anyone to put their music out there. If I had had that opening early on, I could have had a lifetime making music. As it was, I never could conceive how to break the door down! I was not “lucky” as far as being in the right place at the right time prior to the internet; but with the internet, I could finally break down that barrier. It is BWH Music that has helped me to get my music heard! I’m so grateful for that.
To date, what do you think your best song is? Can you describe the song for us?
My best song is either “Streets of Any Town” or “The Waking.” Streets is my outcry at the horror of seeing people forced to live on the streets. It poses the picture for the listener, and then quietly asks, “is this okay with us”? “The Waking” is the fantastic poem by Theodore Roethke set to music. It’s the accompaniment for a lifetime. It says “I learn by going where I have to go.” Life is what happens when we are making other plans. To awaken to that is what its all about.
Are you working on any new material right now or what's in the works for the upcoming year?
A Christmas EP with 6 carols, and next year will be completing, God wiling, my fourth album! Canyonlands......Much love to everyone at WNIR and so grateful for your continued support!!!
Tell us where fans can access your music?
My website.
About Kate Magdalena
Kate Magdalena is an independent singer-songwriter out of New York City and the San Francisco Bay Area, whose songs have been aired on country radio nationally. Most at home in folk-pop and adult contemporary, she calls her genre ‘Timely Americana’, as she is inspired to write for the particular times in which we live. Kate was selected by BWH Music (Boston) as one of 2020 Women to Watch: Best Female Independent Artists, and her recent album “The Water Is Wide” was just awarded Best Album in the Adult Contemporary genre in the 2020 W.A.M. Awards. The album, released in August 2020, contains 9 songs of water and land, including the iconic covers “Downtown” and “I Know A Heartache When I See One,” as well as several original songs crafted from well-loved poems like “The Waking,” (nominated for Best Song, Social Justice 2020 W.A.M.) “Sea Fever,” and “Cloths of Heaven.” On this album is also Magdalena’s song “Backstory” about some of what we are witnessing now; the song was nominated for a W.A.M. Award in the social justice category.
In November of 2019, Magdalena released her second album of songs, with Grammy nominated producer Billy Smiley (Johnny Cash, WhiteHeart, Clay Aiken) titled A Larger Dance with singles – “Be the Lark“, “New Earth“, “Battle Hymn“, “Streets of Any Town“. The full album includes songs by Joan Armatrading, Leonard Cohen, Sinead O’Connor, and Crosby, Stills & Nash. The title track A Larger Dance was chosen by BWH Music as one of the best songs of 2019.
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