Kara Jackson Announces Debut Album 'Why Does the Earth Give Us People to Love?'

The Poet Laureate, singer-songwriter, Chicago-based Kara Jackson is thrilled to share details for her upcoming debut album Why Does the Earth Give Us People to Love? out April 14th via September. They enlisted close friends and fellow artists Nnamdi, Kaina and Sen Morimoto to help on the album's production.

The album announcement comes alongside the release of their new single "pawnshop." With a Western-inspired guitar lick and echoing background vocals from Kara, the song paints a picture of a lover taking them for granted only to be left painted as the foolish one by Kara. It's a sharp and clever proclamation of knowing one's worth. In addition to "pawnshop," the album will feature Kara's previously released brilliant, blunt, and beautiful first song, "no fun/party," and double-single, "dickhead blues" and "brain."

About "pawnshop" the singer said it is "about uncovering how worth is subjective.

It's taking 'one man's trash is another man's treasure' and reveling in that sentiment, taking pride in the fact that even if people can't understand your value, only you know how priceless you are."

Why Does the Earth Give Us People to Love, solidifies a signature style for Kara: asking open ended questions; the meandering process of trying to answer them leaves us pause for thought. Specifically, Kara's debut album is a sonic invitation to process our grief. The title is a question the author is always answering.

How do we give ourselves permission to yearn for the people we miss? How do we find the courage to let go of what begs to be released? How do we have the audacity to love in spite of everything invented to deter us from it?

Kara wrote and recorded the original demos in her childhood bedroom during the early days of the pandemic, drafting lyrics in bed and singing into a mic propped up on her dresser. From there she brought in Nnamdi, Kaina and Sen Morimoto to re-record the demos and help shape the production. It feels fitting that this collection of songs about love and relationships were created with a tight-knit group of musician friends in a time of such uncertainty and loss.

As a songwriter, Kara fuses her poetic sensibilities with the rich musical heritage of her family's Southern roots. Her voice is a river of molasses tumbling over gently plucked guitar. Sparse acoustic moments and soaring string sections create space for Kara to use the full architecture of her voice, with clear high notes and devastating low tones.

The album's tracks are not beholden to traditional song structure. Instead, language leads the way. The thick lyricism is intentional, as Kara says, "There's so many words on this project, it's important for me that people know I can write things, maybe in ways they aren't used to seeing."

Wielding her voice like a honey-coated blade, Kara Jackson crafts a blend of emotional folk music and poetic alt-country. With the radical honesty of Nina Simone, the intricate lyricism of Fiona Apple and Joanna Newsom, and the straightforward, no-frills delivery of artists like Kimya Dawson, Kara's writing blurs the line between poetry and song, demanding an attentive ear and a repeat listen.

Raised by country folk and Black feminist poets like Gwendolyn Brooks and Lucille Clifton, Kara's songs have the softness and warmth of a southern drawl, while still being sharp enough to cut deep. Born and raised in Oak Park, IL, a community 10 miles west of Chicago, Kara studied music and writing from a very young age. A Black Queer polymath, she took piano lessons from the age of 5 and later taught herself to play guitar.

She honed her poetry skills in high school, eventually becoming the National Youth Poet Laureate in 2019. That same year, Kara self-released her debut EP, A Song for Every Chamber of the Heart, a tender offering of acoustic meditations on love and desire. Since then she has toured the country in support of artists such as Julia Jacklin, Neko Case, and Kaina.

Watch the new music video here:

Photo credit: Lawrence Agyei

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