Kate Rhudy is an American

folk-pop Folk-pop is a musical style that may be 1) contemporary folk songs with large, sweeping pop arrangements, or 2) pop songs with intimate, acoustic-based folk arrangements. Recording production values created a unblemished style that appealed to ...

and

country A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. It may be a sovereign state or make up one part of a larger state. For example, the country of Japan is an independent, sovereign state, while the ...

singer-songwriter, musician, and recording artist. Trained as a classical violinist, she played in multiple local bands in

Boone, North Carolina Boone is a town in and the county seat of Watauga County, North Carolina, United States. Located in the Blue Ridge Mountains of western North Carolina, Boone is the home of Appalachian State University and the headquarters for the disaster a ...

as a fiddler before moving to

Nashville Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the seat of Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the most populous city in the state, 21st most-populous city in the U.S., and the ...

to further pursue a career in music. She later moved to back to her hometown,

Raleigh Raleigh (; ) is the capital city of the state of North Carolina and the seat of Wake County in the United States. It is the second-most populous city in North Carolina, after Charlotte. Raleigh is the tenth-most populous city in the Southeas ...

, and began performing as a solo artist. In 2017, she released her debut album, ''Rock N' Roll Ain't For Me''. In 2022, she released her second album, ”Dream Rooms” which she debuted at the Raleigh Rose Garden selling out her show.

Early life and education

Rhudy is from

Raleigh, North Carolina Raleigh (; ) is the capital city of the state of North Carolina and the List of North Carolina county seats, seat of Wake County, North Carolina, Wake County in the United States. It is the List of municipalities in North Carolina, second-most ...

. She attended

Raleigh Charter High School Raleigh Charter High School is a free, independent public school chartered by the North Carolina State Board of Education. It was founded in 1998 by parents of eighth graders at Magellan Charter School. From its inception through the 2010–2011 ...

, where she ran cross country, was on the swim team, and was one of three captains on the soccer team. She later attended

Appalachian State University Appalachian State University (; Appalachian, App State, App, or ASU) is a public university in Boone, North Carolina. It was founded as a teachers college in 1899 by brothers B. B. and D. D. Dougherty and the latter's wife, Lillie Shull Dough ...

for three years, but left school in 2016 to pursue a career in music. As a child, Rhudy trained in classical violin, in the

Suzuki method The Suzuki method is a music curriculum and teaching philosophy dating from the mid-20th century, created by Japanese violinist and pedagogue Shinichi Suzuki (1898–1998). The method aims to create an environment for learning music which para ...

, and grew up around acoustic music, often attending fiddler's conventions in Southwestern Virginia with her older sister. She started playing the fiddle when she was five and the

mandolin A mandolin ( it, mandolino ; literally "small mandola") is a stringed musical instrument in the lute family and is generally plucked with a pick. It most commonly has four courses of doubled strings tuned in unison, thus giving a total of 8 ...

when she was nine. Rhudy was raised

Baptist Baptists form a major branch of Protestantism distinguished by baptizing professing Christian believers only (believer's baptism), and doing so by complete immersion. Baptist churches also generally subscribe to the doctrines of soul compete ...

, and attended

Pullen Memorial Baptist Church Pullen Memorial Baptist Church is a Baptist church known for its progressive theology located in Raleigh, North Carolina, US, right beside North Carolina State University.

, which was kicked out of the

Southern Baptist Convention The Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) is a Christian denomination based in the United States. It is the world's largest Baptist denomination, and the largest Protestant and second-largest Christian denomination in the United States. The wor ...

for supporting

LGBTQ ' is an initialism that stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender. In use since the 1990s, the initialism, as well as some of its common variants, functions as an umbrella term for sexuality and gender identity. The LGBT term is a ...

rights.

Career

Rhudy played fiddle and sang harmonies as a member of the band Andy Ferrell and Oncoming Train. She sang two solos for the band, covers of '' Jolene'' by

Dolly Parton Dolly Rebecca Parton (born January 19, 1946) is an American singer-songwriter, actress, philanthropist, and businesswoman, known primarily for her work in country music. After achieving success as a songwriter for others, Parton made her album d ...

and '' You Ain't Woman Enough'' by

Loretta Lynn Loretta Lynn (; April 14, 1932 – October 4, 2022) was an American country music singer and songwriter. In a career spanning six decades, Lynn released multiple gold albums. She had numerous hits such as " You Ain't Woman Enough (To Take My M ...

. Rhudy's song ''The Only Pretty Thing in Texas'' is about her time in the band. Rhudy worked with Andrew Marlin of

Mandolin Orange Watchhouse (formerly Mandolin Orange) is an Americana/ folk duo based in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. The group was formed in 2009 in Chapel Hill, North Carolina and consists of songwriter Andrew Marlin (vocals, mandolin, guitar, banjo) and Emily ...

to produce her debut album, ''Rock N' Roll Ain't For Me'', in 2017. The album was inspired by Rhudy's personal

feminist Feminism is a range of socio-political movements and ideologies that aim to define and establish the political, economic, personal, and social equality of the sexes. Feminism incorporates the position that society prioritizes the male po ...

beliefs, times playing in bands, experiences as an undergraduate student, politics, and sexism towards women in the music industry. She produced the album at Rubber Room Studio in

Chapel Hill, North Carolina Chapel Hill is a town in Orange, Durham and Chatham counties in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Its population was 61,960 in the 2020 census, making Chapel Hill the 17th-largest municipality in the state. Chapel Hill, Durham, and the state ca ...

. In 2018, Rhudy performed at the Shakori Hills Grassroots Festival and contributed vocal tracks to the Bombadil album '' Beautiful Country''. In December 2019, Rhudy released the single ''Dance It Away'', the first piece of music produced since her album in 2017. The single was produced by Jack Hallenbeck in Los Angeles and Raleigh. In January 2020, Rhudy joined Mandolin Orange on their tour. She had previously performed as an opening act for the duo in 2017. Rhudy has also performed with

Mipso Mipso is a North Carolina quartet formed in Chapel Hill and known for combining a traditional string band format with close harmony and a variety of modern influences. The band is made up of Wood Robinson (Bass, Vocals), Jacob Sharp (Mandolin, Vo ...

. In April 2022, Rhudy self-released her sophomore album, ''Dream Rooms''. Rhudy has cited

The Dixie Chicks The Chicks (previously known as Dixie Chicks) are an American country music band from Dallas, Texas. Since 1995, the band has consisted of Natalie Maines (lead vocals, guitar) and sisters Martie Maguire (vocals, fiddle, mandolin, guitar) and E ...

Nickel Creek Nickel Creek (formerly known as the Nickel Creek Band) is an American bluegrass band consisting of Chris Thile (mandolin), and siblings Sara Watkins (fiddle) and Sean Watkins (guitar). Formed in 1989 in Southern California, they released six alb ...

, and

Alison Krauss Alison Maria Krauss (born July 23, 1971) is an American bluegrass-country singer and musician. She entered the music industry at an early age, competing in local contests by the age of 8 and recording for the first time at 14. She signed with ...

, as well as

Appalachian music Appalachian music is the music of the region of Appalachia in the Eastern United States. Traditional Appalachian music is derived from various influences, including the ballads, hymns and fiddle music of the British Isles (particularly Scotland) ...

, as influences on her music.

Discography

Albums

* ''Rock 'N Roll Ain't For Me'' (2017) * ''Dream Rooms'' (2022)

Singles

* ''Dance It Away'' (2020)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rhudy, Kate Living people 21st-century American women singers American alternative country singers American country fiddlers American women country singers American women pop singers American women singer-songwriters American country singer-songwriters American folk guitarists American folk-pop singers Americana musicians Appalachian State University alumni Folk musicians from North Carolina Folk violinists Musicians from Raleigh, North Carolina Singer-songwriters from North Carolina Year of birth missing (living people) 21st-century American singers