“I really don’t care what people say. It’s amazing that feminism continues to exist at all, considering how much counter-feminism is out there. So, I’m glad if people can listen to some music and maybe fix some prejudices of their own, just by thinking.” -- Nellie McKay in an interview with the San Diego Union Tribune
I first heard Nellie McKay's "Mother of Pearl" featured on a Canadian reproductive rights podcast. Her lyrics got my attention and I had to know more about her.
Here's a woman singing about feminism of all things.
And, she gets it. Totally!
Have a listen, then come back for more about Nellie:
If there's anything McKay's fans and critics agree on it's that her style is "hard to categorize."
Starpulse.com likens her to Randy Newman ("Short People") crediting her with a "penchant for lyrics that are cynical and sarcastic as well as dark-humored."
Further, "McKay's lyrics can be every bit as cutting, edgy and biting as Alanis Morissette or Pink .. her work is distinctive and impressively unorthodox."
McKay told UncensoredInterview.com that it's "silly to name your (musical) influences," but lists Third World, Ry Cooder and Pearl Baily as some of her favorites.
McKay's debut album "Get Away from Me" was released in 2004.
In 2006, She starred in the Broadway production of the "Threepenny Opera" with Cyndi Lauper, Alan Cumming and Ana Gasteyer. Later that same year, she released her second album "Pretty Little Head" under her own record label, Hungry Mouse.
She released her fifth album "Home Sweet Mobil Home" in 2010.
A native of London, the 29-year-old McKay has spent much of her life in the United States. She has plenty to say about topics such as vegetarianism and wearing of fur. She also has advice for President Obama admonishing him not to water down his message of change.
McKay's newest original stage project titled "I Want to Live" is a musical based on a 1958 Susan Hayward movie about death row inmate Barbara Graham.
The New Yorker calls it, "Part B movie, part seedy cabaret act, part existential meditation and all musical exploration."
Her current tour will bring her to the Hoover Auditorium in Lakeside Ohio August 12 where she will perform the music of Doris Day.
Road trip anyone?
Related Links:
Listen to clips from Nellie McKay's Uncensored Interview.
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