Kate Lawton finds stories in music.

“It usually starts with a word that feels good on the tongue,” says Kate of her songwriting process. “The word gets married to a riff or a melody line. Then I’ll build a story around that marriage.”

The title song on her CD Psycho Girl (available on www.CDbaby.com ) sprung from the line ‘flipping through a magazine’ and grew into an anthem of lost love and wounded pride.  Take her CD on a road trip and you’ll be humming Kate Lawton songs for weeks. 

A little Mary Chapin Carpenter—a little Norah Jones, this hometown girl (Douglas Freeman, ’90) describes her sound as “Americana.”  Her forthcoming CD, A Little Bit Looser, showcases a richer, more grown-up sound. “This one’s less angst-y, more storied.” When she’s not recording, writing screenplays (a sideline), working at Land America (the day job), or plotting her novel, you’ll catch Kate playing with The Wildberries, her newly-formed acoustic group.