Triumphs and tribulations come in many forms, and for Americana pop singer-songwriter Kara Cole, this form was overcoming the genetically inherent battle of drug and alcohol addiction, to which she’s been sober now nearly seven years.
Like so many do, Cole has transformed her journey to sobriety into art and the power of song. The latest example of that being her upcoming single, “Burn,” which hit streaming platforms today, June 28th, 2024, and premiered on Music Mecca. She also recently performed the track live on television for Fox 59 on Indy Now in her home city of Indianapolis. [Watch here]
“Burn” is the lead single off of her upcoming EP, Firefly, which is set to release August 30th, 2024. Cole wrote all four songs in a whirlwind of emotion, unleashing a wave of vulnerability and raw energy that resonates with anyone who’s experienced a toxic partner, yet they struggle to cut the cord. Intertwining themes of heartbreak, addiction, and pulling through surround the single and EP. Offering strong, haunting undertones within her vocals and affliction in her delivery, this new collection of songs makes listeners believe in her pain.
“I started to write ‘Burn’ when I was in and out of this relationship that I was in for the last year,” Cole states. “She was a partier and drank, and sometimes weekends looked like getting her after she went out, and I’m in recovery from drugs and alcohol, so it was taxing. I could smell it, and one night that line just came to me: ‘You burn me like the whiskey I can’t have.’ She just kept coming in and out of my life, and not even necessarily leaving. And I never really had written about the drinking problem. So here lately, I’ve been trying to put it into more songs.”
What’s also inherent in Cole is her ceaseless passion and love for writing songs, which was the remedy she needed to power through the difficult times in her life. Expressing her deep vulnerabilities with a profound musical ability to match, she hopes to be a beacon to anybody and everybody who may be struggling with something.
Following “Burn” will be Cole’s second single, “I’m a Mess,” which is set to be released July 26th, 2024.
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ABOUT KARA COLE:
The Indianapolis-based artist grew up with a grandpa who would have country music and bluegrass hootenannies on the weekends, and an uncle who was a master guitarist, instilling in her at a young age her love and admiration of music. And not just that, but she is also a distant cousin of the late great Ralph Stanley, as her grandpa’s surname on her mom’s side was Stanley.
As Cole came of age, she would start writing her own songs around age 15 when she got an acoustic Ibanez guitar for Christmas. Around 20 or 21 she began hitting open mics and developing her chops, which didn’t come easy. “I was scared to death,” she says. “And I feel the exact same way today taking the stage as I did that first time. My legs shake, hands shake, I am petrified. It’s a feeling that never goes away, but at the same time, it’s so wonderful.”
Prior to her solo efforts, she was part of the indie folk duo Keller and Cole, which became household names in the Indy circuit for nearly a decade – and they formed just when she needed it most. She first went sober in 2012, and simultaneously took a hiatus from music, as she didn’t think she could be in that world and remain sober. Desperately missing what she loved most, Keller had come into her life in 2013, and the duo got off and running. The two released their second EP after Covid had hit, and in turn caused momentum to be lost. Coupled with Cole’s grandma getting sick, she began writing songs that just didn’t fit in with the duo. It was then that she began to pursue a solo career, put out a few songs, and the ball just kept rolling from there, and still is to this day.
Cole put out her debut self-titled album in September 2023, which was recorded in Nashville with numerous notable session players, creating a flawless collection of six original songs. This included her lead single and ode to her grandma, “Mary Francis,” which had an accompanying music video that CMT acquired and aired for weeks in early 2023.
Cole is as much of a stalwart of the Indy live music scene as anybody, racking up show after show, not just sharing her incredible music, but polishing her already well-established chops. She’s performed in support of acts such as Ben Harper, The Oak Ridge Boys, I’m With Her, Arlo McKinley and numerous others. She’s played at Indianapolis’s biggest music festival ALL IN, having followed Portugal The Man, and continues to be one of the city’s hardest working live performers.
“Music is my love language,” Cole says. “It’s what cross-pollinates everybody’s world. You can have all these different beliefs, different colors, different sex, different orientations, but music can bridge that gap.”
Clawing her way out of addiction and maintaining her journey through recovery, Cole gives credit to the music for saving her life. It gives her a place to land and bleed out her feelings that she long ran from, and she hopes to share her journey with listeners far and wide.
For more on Kara Cole:
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