Kat Lee Rivers

Kat Lee Rivers makes Americana-folk music that explores the art of getting back to oneself. For Kat and countless others, this involves getting off of your screen, making things with your hands, getting in nature, embracing the simple things, and finding magic in the mundane. Her music feels like arriving home after a long trip; getting cozy by the campfire; a long-awaited catch up with an old friend; a wandering walk in the woods.

Her upcoming album, Red Tailed Hawk, produced by 5x Grammy-winning guitarist Bob Lanzetti (Snarky Puppy), will be out Spring 2027, and features a stellar band including special guests like bluegrass heavyweight Michael Daves.

Rivers’ songs celebrate the quiet power of slowing down and finding steady comfort in the rhythms of nature and home. Whether she’s leaning into the "Quiet Queen" energy (her ballad for introverts), or exploring grief and the beyond with “Red Tailed Hawk,” the title track of her upcoming sophomore record, Kat’s award-winning voice offers a warm place to land and reset. And she will remind you that "you're not broken," if you need to hear it.

From her formative years steeped in jazz and Brazilian music, earning a finalist spot in the prestigious Sarah Vaughan International Jazz Competition, as well as multiple student DownBeat awards; to her exploration of Americana, folk and the vibrant rhythms of Brazil, her sound is a testament to her adventurous and nurturing spirit, and her unique sound.

Kat's debut album, Anything but Ordinary, marked a departure from her pure jazz roots, showcasing her original songwriting and a captivating blend of Americana, folk, Brazilian warmth, and sophisticated jazz undertones. Her latest release, American Heartbreak (acoustic version), produced by Bob Lanzetti, is "a hopeful anthem for a divided time. A unifying call for something good and true."

Drawing from her experiences living and performing in Spain, Texas, Los Angeles, and Brooklyn, New York, Rivers' music is a reflection of her travels, the friends she met along the way, and the yearning to find her place in it all. While her main focus is her original music, she often continues to honor her love of Brazilian music, singing in Portuguese.

She has performed at esteemed venues like the Cornelia Street Cafe and Rockwood Music Hall in New York City (both beloved spaces, now sadly closed), The Hotel Cafe in Los Angeles, as well as locally in the Hudson Valley, especially The Chapel Restoration in Cold Spring, and at regional music festivals. Notably, she also had the honor of performing with the Dallas Symphony Orchestra, backing up Ben Folds, and has performed in a lineup with Willie Nelson in her home state of Texas. Her time touring Europe as a vocalist with Árid, a trio from Barcelona, Spain, included an unforgettable performance on the rooftop of Gaudi's La Pedrera. These experiences have guided Kat to solidify her ability to bridge musical worlds, blending her folk, Brazilian and jazz roots into her unique Americana sound with effortless grace.

Kat lives on a mountain in the Hudson Valley region of New York with her lumberjack-musician husband, two young kids, a very good dog, and five chickens.