Meet Brigid Kaelin | Musician, Writer, Illustrator

We had the good fortune of connecting with Brigid Kaelin and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Brigid, why did you decide to pursue a creative path?
The shortest answer is: I couldn’t *not* be an artist. I tried hard — too hard — to not be a musician. People told me as a child that being an artist was not a good career choice, and that, while I “could do anything I wanted” it would be a better idea to be a lawyer or a doctor and play music on the side. I tried that. I moved to NYC at 17, went to NYU, and somehow avoided majoring in music or theater. I was pre-law, and I truly thought that a career in music was a pipe dream. Looking back, I wish I’d had the confidence to just do it.
I jumped into a music career during a mental health breakdown: my mom was given about 6 months to live. I quit my television producer job in NYC, moved back to Kentucky to be with my parents, and I started playing music at a local dive bar, purely on a dare. After a few weeks I realized I was making more singing in a pub than I had been in network news in New York. And I was so much happier. My mom ended up living 16 more years, and she got to see me play huge stages with legendary musicians. Not once did she tell me I should have chosen a different career.
It’s not been an easy career path, and I work harder than you could imagine. To young folks, I tell them if you can do anything else and be happy, then do that. But if you have to play music, just go ahead and do it. There is nothing more rewarding than doing the thing you love.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I became a professional musician & singer-songwriter at such a strange time in the music business. It was a time when independent artists could actually create albums and put them out into the world, but streaming had not yet taken over. This meant my first album I actually paid off and earned a living from selling CDs. How strange is that to think about now? It seems that for every release I’ve done, I’ve had to completely re-learn the music business and approach it with a new business model. It was definitely not easy, especially as a solo artist. I’ve learned that no one cares about your art like you do. You have to create your own deadlines and do art for art’s sake. It’s much easier for my artist friends who are independently wealthy or who have angel investors, but when you’re also trying to pay bills, it’s wildly difficult. You have to be creative in other ways, not just musically, but in business.
I have been proud – probably I’ve actually placed too much pride in this, actually – that I self-funded my whole career. I took out personal loans, took that risk on, and made my money back without the help of investors or labels. Looking back, though, I wish I had actively sought out patrons instead. My story is probably one of fierce independence, and I’m not sure that’s the best plan for a young singer-songwriter. It’s good to have a team, and it’s good to have someone else invested in your art.
At the same time, my independence has allowed me to create whatever art I want, and that is rewarding. When live gigs dried up during pandemic, I turned to visual art. I sometimes get annoyed that I’ve sold more illustrations than I have music, but I’m also so grateful I get to share art with others, whatever the genre.
Someone asked me long ago to think about what “success” looks like to me. My answer was and still is this: to travel the world and sing original music for a room full of people who want to hear it. I don’t care how big that room is, but I want to be the old-school traveling troubadour. Most of the time I get to do just that. I have been going for micro-audiences rather than Grammys and it’s been wildly rewarding. I’m about to go on a 3-week tour in the United Kingdom, playing folk clubs and house concerts. That feels like success to me.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
I love showing people around Louisville. It’s one of those underrated cities that I think most of the country forgets about, but it’s actually a hoppin’ town, loaded with culture and fun. For a week long trip, I’d make sure we started with a walk around the older neighborhoods. Old Louisville has a huge collection of Victorian Architecture, a wonderful Shakespeare in the Park program, and it’s close to the University of Louisville. We’d also go to downtown Louisville and do the classic tourist stuff: the Louisville Slugger Museum and a bourbon distillery tour, a steamboat cruise on the Belle of Louisville. Louisville has some amazing parks in the middle of the city, so we’d head to Cherokee Park and explore. In the evenings I’d find where my friends are playing bluegrass and go enjoy that low-key jam session. After a few days of exploring neighborhoods, we’d get in the car and drive into horse and bourbon country. I love Shaker Village, a boat-ride on the Green River, a visit to any one of the many bourbon distilleries, the Lexington Horse Park. We’d probably finish up back in Louisville and spend a day at the race track, just relaxing in one of the dining rooms there, watching the horses, eating, drinking, being merry. Louisville has so many great restaurants I wouldn’t know where to begin. The Fat Lamb is my favorite for fine dining though, so I’d probably start there.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
My favorite bartender at the bar where my dad worked: Alan Downie. He booked me at his bar for a gig one night in 2001 after I’d just moved home from NYC and was wandering. That gig showed me that I could do what I loved and get paid.

Website: https://www.brigidkaelin.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/brigidkaelin/

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brigid-kaelin-3a5693b/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/BrigidKaelin

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/brigidkaelin/

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/user/brigidkaelin

Other: TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@brigidkaelin

Image Credits
Alien Twilight Photography