Interview with Daughter & Son

Audiofuzz:  How long have you two known each other?

Jody/Kate – We met back in 2008 when our respective managers booked us on a series of NYC area shows together and began touring as solo artists side by side.

A.  Why the name?  I love it, but does it have any significance?

Jody:  It does.  We never met before those shows in 2008 – the first one was to be at Caffe Vivaldi in the village and the second was at Canal Room in TriBeCa.  A couple of days before the 1st show, Kate’s father passed away suddenly.  My manager called me to ask if I could do both sets at Caffe Vivaldi by myself, and I said of course I would.  The day of the show, a man who was like a 2nd father to me, passed away as well.  Kate and I finally met the following week at sound-check for the Canal Room show, knowing that we’d both just gotten back from funerals for some of the most important people in our lives.  We just hugged and said, “We’re friends forever now, right?”  So the name “Daughter & Son” seemed like an appropriate one, given the circumstances.

A.  What is your background?

Kate: Jody grew up on dairy a farm in Manchester, Tennessee and I grew up in a blue collar family in Milwaukee Wisconsin. Cows were about the only thing we had in common with our upbringing, but even in very different worlds, we led very parallel lives.    

A.  Did you ever have any other desires than to play music?

Jody:  I enjoy working in the comedy world as well, but I write music there too!! I co-wrote the parody 50 Shades! The Musical which has been running for a while now, and my new musical will have it’s first production early next year.  Kate has performed on Broadway at Lincoln Center in the play War Horse, and is also a professional voice teacher/vocal coach in NYC, and soon to be LA.

A.  Who are some of your influences?

Jody:  I love jazz and 70s singer/songwriters, but I’m also obsessed with a few modern bands.  I also love classic country and I think I’m getting Kate to like it too!!  My first real interest in singing came from some friends of my parents who sang bluegrass.  They taught me so much about harmonizing and blending with other singers.  I definitely owe a lot to Tom & Connie Brantley for those early singing lessons!!   

Kate: I grew up as a classical musician for years, so my heart is always there, but I also love jazz, my biggest influence being the amazing Sarah Vaughn. Discovering Bobby McFerrin changed my life and taught me I could use my voice as an instrument. Joni Mitchell and Ani DiFranco were a huge influence in learning the importance of lyrics and storytelling, and Jeff Buckley was a massive discovery in showing how to put it all together perfectly. What I listen too right now is all over the map – Jamie Cullum, Gregory Alan Isakov, John Moreland, Muse, Stevie Wonder, Amos Lee, and of course my longstanding favorite, Aqualung.

Jody: I agree with Kate on John Moreland – we played a show with him in DC and he really is one of the very best songwriters out there today.  

A.  What do you like better, performing life or working in the studio?

Jody: I prefer the studio since there’s much less anxiety involved and you can really get creative..

Kate: I love the studio for the creative aspect, but I prefer performing live. I find that’s where I learn the most about myself as an artist. There’s so much to juggle logistically and mentally, so it’s an amazing feeling if you can actually break through all of that and just be one with the song and the audience.

A.  Any plans on touring around the country?

Jody/Kate: We just got back from the Midwest and have been doing some shows in the northeast.  We are also planning on spending some time in Nashville this fall, and hope to revisit the Midwest again. Visiting Europe is also high on our list if we can find a way to make that happen.

A. Anything else you want your fans to know about you? 

Kate: The most exciting thing about Daughter & Son right now is that we are constantly growing and expanding our music and our sound. Jody and I have begun co-writing and already have another EP’s worth of new songs that have an even more defined and expanded voice, which include new instrumentation, like the Banjo (my new love). Our goal is to jump back into the studio very soon to record them and hopefully release another EP early 2015. In the meantime, we’ll be making more videos, doing online concerts, and finding as many ways to reach new people as possible. If anyone reading this article enjoys us, please take a minute to share our music with a friend. At this point, every new person who discovers helps us get that much closer to our dream of becoming the band we believe we can be.