Screaming Out The Blues: A Life of Kelli Baker
There is a line from renegade author Charles Bukowski that Kelli Baker said that she likes to live by.
“If it doesn’t come bursting out of you in spite of everything, don’t do it.”
For the budding blues artist, the Bukowski reference serves as her reminder to be true to herself and her chosen art, to be stanch, committed and certain.
“It’s an instruction for me to be authentically me,” said Baker. “For years, I was so scared to be putting myself out there, especially in writing songs. What would my mother and grandparents think? What would my daughter think? But authenticity is about putting myself out there and connecting with people, connecting with something internal, something that’s primal. And unless it comes screaming out of you, like Bukowski said, don’t do it!”
Baker, a native of Arizona, is now testing her mettle in the Greenwich Village area of New York City, singing and performing the blues through full immersion.
“New York City has access to great music and musicians, and there is the great energy, of course,” said Baker. “The Bitter End is our main hangout. We play their about once a month. My guitar player does Terra Blues a lot, next door on Bleecker Street.”
Baker sang gospel in church choir as a young girl, and later attended a Christian high school, where she better developed the fundamentals of singing. She said that she was heavily influenced by Bonnie Raitt, particularly Nick of Time, released in 1989, and B.B. King, one of her father’s favorites, especially gems such as “The Thrill Is Gone.” Her father was also a big fan of the Rolling Stones, especially their most heavily blues infused material, which respectfully leaned on some of the linear greats of the genre.
Indeed, the Stones introduced several new generations of people like Baker and her father to blues artists and songs that they otherwise might not have ever known had existed. Additional influences came from an aunt who would play and dance to the soundtrack of the musical comedy “The Commitments” in the family’s living room.
Kelli joined a couple bands after graduating high school and briefly was part of a folk duo. For many years, however, the extent of Kelli’s musical engagement wasn’t much more than playing the guitar in the living room, and after her dad passed away, she shelved the idea of music entirely. At her first open mic attempt in Tempe, Arizona, she did so poorly and was so nervous that she swore that she would never perform in front of people again. Discouraged, she shifted her attention to working hard in the restaurant and nightclub industries, with an emphasis on the managing and marketing aspects of such businesses.
“I took a long time off from music and I thought that I’d expired,” said Baker. “I swore it off for 10 years. But in 2018, a friend’s dad, convinced me to go to another open mic. I was terrible, but I did it. I had the guts to do it again. The host said, you are good, and you should keep going.”
Subsequently, Baker discovered a place on Oyster Bay, Long Island called The Homestead, where throngs of musicians would congregate, throw out ideas, and jam for the thrill and fun of it. At these jams, just about everybody there would dish out the blues.
“I used to have a big rock n’ roll voice and I fronted a hard rock band,” said Baker. “At the jams, I started incorporating all of that into the blues. I started taking the jams seriously and something kicked in.”
Since then, Baker said that she has crossed the point of no return, so to speak. In a genre loaded with immense talent and ample glitz and a host of efficient and dependable acts, Baker said that she is grateful to be able to put her gifts on display one song and one event at a time.
“There is no other option for me,” said Baker. “My purpose is locked in. I feel like I have these gifts for a reason and, after I arranged all of them, like in a puzzle, they worked. ”
Baker’s live performances run on peak adrenaline and she is hoping to earn a reputation as a performer who leaves the audience frenziedly clamoring for more blues.
“I’m surrounding myself with people that are better than me,” said Baker. “Confidence is a big factor – and I’m gaining that. There are some people I look up to as models as performers. Bonnie Raitt is still at the top of her game. Beth Hart, there is something raw about her that I enjoy. I look up to so many other people who aren’t well known, but who are so very hard-working, and so very talented.”
Perhaps Baker’s most precious asset is her vocals, fed up and battle tested enough to be considered believable, though supple enough to provoke, touch, and sizzle the senses.
“I’m learning how to better use my voice in a strong way,” said Baker. “I’m also learning to be cautious about maintaining and protecting it. I’m living on a prayer, and taking care of it as well as I can.”
Find more information here on Kelli’s website: https://www.kellibaker.com
For future story ideas and profiles, Brian D’Ambrosio may be reached at dambrosiobrian@hotmail.com and check out his interviews here: https://americanahighways.org/author/briandambrosio/
So impressed , what a great interview!!!
Congratulations & I am so happy you came to Salvatore’s that evening !