Ten years ago, Katherine Katherine Liner left her job working for a major music publisher in LA to follow her dream of becoming a top session vocalist and songwriter.
By virtue of hard work and talent, (her voice is incredible by the way) she’s very much in demand . We asked her ten questions:
1. Where do you hail from?
Sweet home, Chicago
2. How did you get your first break in session recording?
One of my 1st jobs in LA was cocktail waitressing at the blues club, Harvelle’s, where I got to meet lots of incredible, seasoned musicians. I chose to work the nights that had the best music – not the popular dance nights. I didn’t make as much money as I could’ve on the weekends, but studied the players and developed relationships with them- some of whom played on my 1st demo. One musician, James Gadson, (a brilliant drummer/vocalist who performed with Herbie Hancock, Quincy Jones, Bill Withers and so many others) asked me to record with a production company he was working with at the time. That session developed into consistent work with that company that also exposed me to more clients.
3. Who is your biggest influence and why?:
Both my mother and grandmother. I’m so fortunate to come from a musically rich family. My mom’s a classical singer and vocal coach and a constant source of information for me. My grandmother was a concert pianist who performed all over the world, was a double Juilliard scholar (piano & voice) and also performed on a radio show on WQXR in New York. She had very high standards and really intimidated me but I was completely fascinated by her. To this day, I still marvel at all of her accomplishments!
4. If you could not be in entertainment what career would you choose?
I’d like to be an interior designer or work with animals. I recently saw a video of a woman that works with sea otters at The Atlanta Aquarium and immediately thought that would be my dream job!
5. Who or What inspires you?
This is a hard question to answer. Inspiration comes from the weirdest places for me. It could be something literal like a relationship or a unique circumstance but it can also come in a dream. There have been times when I have woken up with a fully formed melody/idea in my head. I honestly don’t think a lot about the source too much. It might be a fear of getting too cerebral and ruining the natural, creative flow so I’ve learned to just embrace it when it comes.
6. What is the best career advice you have received so far?
There are a few that I stand by…
1. Treat every project as if it’s the most important job you’ll ever have.
2. No one else can do what you do, so how will you make it your own?
3. Be extra kind to support staff. They’re usually the ones doing the majority of the work and know what’s really going on.
7 If you could work with anyone alive or dead, who would it be?
Alive-Peter Gabriel.
Dead-George Gershwin
8 If five years ago you knew then what you know now, what advice would you give yourself ?
Don’t spend so much time worrying about what other people MIGHT think of you. Don’t be afraid to send multiple follow-ups, ask for what you want and speak up when your gut instincts aren’t feeling something. Your gut is always right.
9 Do you have any new projects you want to talk about?
I’m in the middle of several exciting projects right now. One big one, unfortunately, I still have to keep close to the vest. I hope I can share that with the public soon! Also, I’m working on a unique project for Warner Chappell recording some of their iconic songs. It’s been a lot of fun and I get to flex both my artist and producer muscles in many different genres- which is pretty dreamy!
10. Where / how can our readers listen to your music? Is there a Youtube Channel, Facebook page, Instagram and Twitter handle?
http://soundcloud.com/liner-notes- music
http://www.facebook.com/katherineliner
https://www.imdb.com/name/nm4672815/
http://harmonicentertainment.com/clients/katherine-liner/
http://youtube.com/user/LinerNotesMusic
https://www.instagram.com/katherineliner/
https://twitter.com/katherineliner
