The North Shore Music Association is hosting two exceptionally talented women on Saturday, March 2 at the Arrowhead Center for the Arts. Appearing on the ACA stage will be Cook County’s own Barbara Jean (above) who will be sharing songs from her debut record The Great Escape. Tennessee native Chastity Brown (inset) brings a powerful mix of gospel, roots and soul, jazz, blues and country to the stage.
Join the North Shore Music Association March 2 for a shared bill of two exceptionally talented Minnesota musicians. Calling the North Shore home until recently, Barbara Jean has developed her craft through constant live performance and has recently struck out on her own to take her debut record, The Great Escape to fans all across the Midwest. Classically trained on the viola at the U of M, and self-taught at the banjo, her voice and songs transcend tradition with a mix of Americana, Appalachia, and an insightful vulnerability in lyric and delivery.
After winning the songwriting competition in 2011 at Big Top Chautauqua and making honorable mention in the 2012 Telluride Troubadour Contest, Barbara Jean earned a slot on the prestigious Mountain Stage radio show and has shared bills with such notable acts as Trampled By Turtles, The Pines, Low, Jonathan Edwards, Meg Hutchinson and more. Performing solo, as a duo, or in larger ensembles, she brings a grace and comfort to the stage, at once disarming and captivating, gaining her a burgeoning audience and high praise from her peers.
Throw all the genres and hyphenates together you want to describe her—gospel, roots and soul, jazz, blues and country— they are all right, and also not enough to describe Chastity Brown. She channels songs that are borne deep in the American bone, the hunger, desperation and confidence that runs through our times. Coming from Tennessee to Minnesota, she now tours the country and has recently released her fourth full-length record, Back-Road Highways.
Pushing her natural talent to stunning effect, Back-Road Highways was recorded at the venerable Helsinki South studios in Nashville with the support of her new label, C & D Music Network, giving Chastity a return to southern warmth and a roster of heavyweight studio musicians with credits such as Mavis Staples, Garth Brooks and BeBe & CeCe Winans to lay down tracks.
Tickets for the 7:30 p.m. concert at the ACA are $10 adults, $5 ages 18 and under. Tickets are available in advance at www.tix.com, or night of performance at the door. General seating. Lobby opens at 6:30 pm.
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