Katie Reider
Encyclopedia
Kathryn Ann "Katie" Reider (23 May 1978 - 14 July 2008) was an American singer-songwriter
from Cincinnati, Ohio
. Reider described her own music as "Folk
/pop
/rock
fused together into some sort of 'genre-less' category." Reider released four albums, won five Cincinnati music awards and had her songs featured on television programming by ABC
, Lifetime
, and on the WB
's Dawson's Creek
before health problems emerged in 2006 that ultimately led to her death two years later. Shortly after her death, the New York Times stated that Reider was "a singer-songwriter with a huge following back home and a growing national fan base, who seemed on the cusp of much larger success when her life was destroyed by a rare tumor that ate into her jaw and face, stole her voice, left her blind in one eye and finally killed her [in July 2008] at the age of 30."
on 23 May 1978 to Gaile and Rob Reider and grew up as one of six children in nearby Montgomery
. Reider grew up surrounded by music. Rob Reider was a singer and band leader on the syndicated entertainment program The Bob Braun Show during the 1970s and early '80s. Reider's parents gave her her first guitar
when she was in fifth grade
. It was a red Gibson Epiphone
. Reider's parents were supportive of her interest in music. Reider would later recall, "I started out singing in front of my family in front of the fireplace. I would take out a poker from next to the fireplace and use it as a microphone."
. She started singing in local coffeehouse
s and later at the Crossroads Community Church in Oakley
. Janet Pressley
saw Reider perform at the Blue Jordan Coffeehouse in Cincinnati's Northside
in 1993. Pressley recalled, "She had the pipes back then."
In the summer of 1995, just before her senior year of high school, Reider met Karen Boone and Dan Stroeh while in a Christian theater group. Over the course of several years Reider and Boone became lovers and partners. Stroeh presided over a backyard wedding and Boone took Reider's last name. They remained a couple until Reider's death. Karen gave birth to two children, whom they parented together.
Reider lived in Columbus, Ohio
throughout the late 1990s and early 2000s while majoring in family studies at the Ohio State University
, but she did not frequently perform there. She primarily returned to Cincinnati to perform gigs during her early career.
Reider joined the artist cooperative
label co-founded by Janet Pressley, Blue Jordan Records
, and released her first album, Wonder, in late 1998. According to Reider, the title contained a double meaning: "I wonder about a lot of things, and then I wonder about it all and how wonderful it is." The album was described in the Cincinnati Post as "an incredibly mature project - both musically and lyrically - for someone so young. Her songs mainly deal with the aches of lost and found love, but in a way that is far more seasoned than the angst-filled, angry lyrics of such artists as Alanis Morissette
."
Locally, the album was a major success, and Reider won more awards than any other performer at the 1999 Cincinnati Area Pop Music Awards (known in Cincinnati as "Cammy Awards"). She gained recognition as Best Folk/Bluegrass Vocalist, Best New Artist, and Songwriter of the Year.
show, Dawson's Creek
. "What You Don't Know" was played for three minutes on the show. Reider said she experienced being "outside of herself" for a moment: "I had some friends over and we watched it. I'm telling the truth when I say I never watched Dawson's Creek before that. It was surreal and overwhelming how cool it was." She told the Cincinnati Post that traffic on her website increased by 1,200 hits the next day.
In December 2000, Reider released the live album, No Retakes. The album featured the same musicians that appeared on her first studio album, Dave Eberhardt (electric guitar), Greg Hansen (bass), Josh Seurkamp (drums) and Reider's brother Robbie on guitar. Reider's father, Rob, helped engineer the project and suggested the title. The tracks feature a mix of new songs and songs that appeared on Wonder. The recordings were from performances at the York Street Cafe and the Aronoff Center
. According to the Cincinnati Post: "Throughout the set we hear how Ms. Reider's voice is growing more powerful and sensual as her band soars on her deliciously subtle hooks and melodies."
Reider released her second studio album in December 2001, I Am Ready. Just a couple weeks later, the Cincinnati Post named it one of the top ten local albums of the year, calling it "more musically diverse, showing mature song crafting and confident, gutty vocals way beyond her 23 years."
Reider was again nominated for best folk/bluegrass vocalist at the Cammy Awards in 2002 and 2003. At the time, she regularly played gigs at the York Street Cafe in Newport, Kentucky
, the Barrel House in Cincinnati and at Club 202 in Columbus.
Reider's music continued to gain exposure from television programs. On Dec. 8, 2002, her recording of "Silent Night
" from No Retakes aired on an episode of the Lifetime
series Strong Medicine
. Less than a month later, the WB launched a Web site that allowed fans of Dawson's Creek to order a custom compilation CD containing their favorite songs from the show. The promotion featured the 80 most requested songs from the approximately 700 songs that were featured in the series during its six-year run. Both of Reider's songs were included. Reider's music also entered into rotation on Sirius Satellite Radio
Channel No. 30 (The Coffee House
).
Reider died on July 14, 2008 from a cerebral hemorrhage.
In addition to her music, Reider was known for her activism. Reider spoke out about gay rights issues and was a performer at gay pride celebrations.
Singer-songwriter
Singer-songwriters are musicians who write, compose and sing their own musical material including lyrics and melodies. As opposed to contemporary popular music singers who write their own songs, the term singer-songwriter describes a distinct form of artistry, closely associated with the...
from Cincinnati, Ohio
Cincinnati, Ohio
Cincinnati is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio. Cincinnati is the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located to north of the Ohio River at the Ohio-Kentucky border, near Indiana. The population within city limits is 296,943 according to the 2010 census, making it Ohio's...
. Reider described her own music as "Folk
Folk music
Folk music is an English term encompassing both traditional folk music and contemporary folk music. The term originated in the 19th century. Traditional folk music has been defined in several ways: as music transmitted by mouth, as music of the lower classes, and as music with unknown composers....
/pop
Pop music
Pop music is usually understood to be commercially recorded music, often oriented toward a youth market, usually consisting of relatively short, simple songs utilizing technological innovations to produce new variations on existing themes.- Definitions :David Hatch and Stephen Millward define pop...
/rock
Rock music
Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
fused together into some sort of 'genre-less' category." Reider released four albums, won five Cincinnati music awards and had her songs featured on television programming by ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
, Lifetime
Lifetime Television
Lifetime Television, often referred to as Lifetime TV, or most commonly, Lifetime, is an American cable television specialty channel devoted to movies, sitcoms and dramas, all of which are either geared toward women or feature women in lead roles. The cable network is owned by A&E Television Networks...
, and on the WB
The WB Television Network
The WB Television Network is a former television network in the United States that was launched on January 11, 1995 as a joint venture between Warner Bros. and Tribune Broadcasting. On January 24, 2006, CBS Corporation and Warner Bros...
's Dawson's Creek
Dawson's Creek
Dawson's Creek is an American teen drama television series which debuted on January 20, 1998, on The WB Television Network and was produced by Sony Pictures Television. The show is set in the fictional seaside town of Capeside, Massachusetts, and in Boston, Massachusetts, during the later seasons...
before health problems emerged in 2006 that ultimately led to her death two years later. Shortly after her death, the New York Times stated that Reider was "a singer-songwriter with a huge following back home and a growing national fan base, who seemed on the cusp of much larger success when her life was destroyed by a rare tumor that ate into her jaw and face, stole her voice, left her blind in one eye and finally killed her [in July 2008] at the age of 30."
Early life
Reider was born in Cincinnati, OhioCincinnati, Ohio
Cincinnati is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio. Cincinnati is the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located to north of the Ohio River at the Ohio-Kentucky border, near Indiana. The population within city limits is 296,943 according to the 2010 census, making it Ohio's...
on 23 May 1978 to Gaile and Rob Reider and grew up as one of six children in nearby Montgomery
Montgomery, Ohio
Montgomery is a city in Hamilton County, Ohio, United States settled in 1796. The town was a coach stop on the Cincinnati-Zanesville Road, later known as the Montgomery Pike with an Inn, two taverns, a grist mill and a carding mill to process its agricultural products...
. Reider grew up surrounded by music. Rob Reider was a singer and band leader on the syndicated entertainment program The Bob Braun Show during the 1970s and early '80s. Reider's parents gave her her first guitar
Guitar
The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
when she was in fifth grade
Fifth grade
Fifth grade is a year of education in the United States and many other nations. The fifth grade is the fifth school year after kindergarten. Students are usually 10 – 11 years old, and are preteens...
. It was a red Gibson Epiphone
Epiphone
The Epiphone Company is a musical instrument manufacturer founded in 1873 by Anastasios Stathopoulos. Epiphone was bought by Chicago Musical Instrument Company, which also owned Gibson Guitar Corporation, in 1957. Epiphone was Gibson's main rival in the archtop market...
. Reider's parents were supportive of her interest in music. Reider would later recall, "I started out singing in front of my family in front of the fireplace. I would take out a poker from next to the fireplace and use it as a microphone."
1990s
Reider began performing her own songs publicly in the early 1990s while still a high school student at Cincinnati Hills Christian AcademyCincinnati Hills Christian Academy
Cincinnati Hills Christian Academy is a private Christian university-preparatory school, located in two separate locations throughout the Cincinnati, Ohio area...
. She started singing in local coffeehouse
Coffeehouse
A coffeehouse or coffee shop is an establishment which primarily serves prepared coffee or other hot beverages. It shares some of the characteristics of a bar, and some of the characteristics of a restaurant, but it is different from a cafeteria. As the name suggests, coffeehouses focus on...
s and later at the Crossroads Community Church in Oakley
Oakley, Ohio
Oakley is a middle-class neighborhood in Cincinnati, Ohio that borders Pleasant Ridge, Madisonville, and Hyde Park. Oakley's business district, called Oakley Square, lies along Madison Road. Oakley is a primary thoroughfare and a major crosstown artery in Cincinnati.In addition to Oakley Square,...
. Janet Pressley
Janet Pressley
Janet Pressley is an American singer-songwriter from Cincinnati, Ohio, who founded the Blue Jordan Coffeehouse which later became Blue Jordan Records. She has released two full length records on the label; Late Last Night and A Deeper State Of Blue. She also released a special EP entitled Songs To...
saw Reider perform at the Blue Jordan Coffeehouse in Cincinnati's Northside
Northside, Cincinnati
Northside is a neighborhood in Cincinnati, Ohio. It was originally known as Cumminsville, but changed names to "Northside" several decades ago after I-74 divided the neighborhood into Northside and South Cumminsville...
in 1993. Pressley recalled, "She had the pipes back then."
In the summer of 1995, just before her senior year of high school, Reider met Karen Boone and Dan Stroeh while in a Christian theater group. Over the course of several years Reider and Boone became lovers and partners. Stroeh presided over a backyard wedding and Boone took Reider's last name. They remained a couple until Reider's death. Karen gave birth to two children, whom they parented together.
Reider lived in Columbus, Ohio
Columbus, Ohio
Columbus is the capital of and the largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio. The broader metropolitan area encompasses several counties and is the third largest in Ohio behind those of Cleveland and Cincinnati. Columbus is the third largest city in the American Midwest, and the fifteenth largest city...
throughout the late 1990s and early 2000s while majoring in family studies at the Ohio State University
Ohio State University
The Ohio State University, commonly referred to as Ohio State, is a public research university located in Columbus, Ohio. It was originally founded in 1870 as a land-grant university and is currently the third largest university campus in the United States...
, but she did not frequently perform there. She primarily returned to Cincinnati to perform gigs during her early career.
Reider joined the artist cooperative
Cooperative
A cooperative is a business organization owned and operated by a group of individuals for their mutual benefit...
label co-founded by Janet Pressley, Blue Jordan Records
Blue Jordan Records
Blue Jordan Records is an independent record label in the Northside neighborhood of Cincinnati, Ohio. It was spawned by the Blue Jordan Coffeehouse, which closed in 1996, the same year that Janet Pressley founded the label...
, and released her first album, Wonder, in late 1998. According to Reider, the title contained a double meaning: "I wonder about a lot of things, and then I wonder about it all and how wonderful it is." The album was described in the Cincinnati Post as "an incredibly mature project - both musically and lyrically - for someone so young. Her songs mainly deal with the aches of lost and found love, but in a way that is far more seasoned than the angst-filled, angry lyrics of such artists as Alanis Morissette
Alanis Morissette
Alanis Nadine Morissette is a Canadian-American singer-songwriter, guitarist, record producer, and actress. She has won 16 Juno Awards and seven Grammy Awards, was nominated for two Golden Globe Awards and also shortlisted for an Academy Award nomination...
."
Locally, the album was a major success, and Reider won more awards than any other performer at the 1999 Cincinnati Area Pop Music Awards (known in Cincinnati as "Cammy Awards"). She gained recognition as Best Folk/Bluegrass Vocalist, Best New Artist, and Songwriter of the Year.
2000s
In October 2000, two songs from Reider's debut album, "What You Don't Know" and "Piece of Soul," were featured on episodes of the WBThe WB Television Network
The WB Television Network is a former television network in the United States that was launched on January 11, 1995 as a joint venture between Warner Bros. and Tribune Broadcasting. On January 24, 2006, CBS Corporation and Warner Bros...
show, Dawson's Creek
Dawson's Creek
Dawson's Creek is an American teen drama television series which debuted on January 20, 1998, on The WB Television Network and was produced by Sony Pictures Television. The show is set in the fictional seaside town of Capeside, Massachusetts, and in Boston, Massachusetts, during the later seasons...
. "What You Don't Know" was played for three minutes on the show. Reider said she experienced being "outside of herself" for a moment: "I had some friends over and we watched it. I'm telling the truth when I say I never watched Dawson's Creek before that. It was surreal and overwhelming how cool it was." She told the Cincinnati Post that traffic on her website increased by 1,200 hits the next day.
In December 2000, Reider released the live album, No Retakes. The album featured the same musicians that appeared on her first studio album, Dave Eberhardt (electric guitar), Greg Hansen (bass), Josh Seurkamp (drums) and Reider's brother Robbie on guitar. Reider's father, Rob, helped engineer the project and suggested the title. The tracks feature a mix of new songs and songs that appeared on Wonder. The recordings were from performances at the York Street Cafe and the Aronoff Center
Aronoff Center
The Aronoff Center is a large performing arts center in downtown Cincinnati, Ohio. Events that can typically be found at the Aronoff Center include: plays, ballet, popular music concerts, stand-up comedy shows, and musicals...
. According to the Cincinnati Post: "Throughout the set we hear how Ms. Reider's voice is growing more powerful and sensual as her band soars on her deliciously subtle hooks and melodies."
Reider released her second studio album in December 2001, I Am Ready. Just a couple weeks later, the Cincinnati Post named it one of the top ten local albums of the year, calling it "more musically diverse, showing mature song crafting and confident, gutty vocals way beyond her 23 years."
Reider was again nominated for best folk/bluegrass vocalist at the Cammy Awards in 2002 and 2003. At the time, she regularly played gigs at the York Street Cafe in Newport, Kentucky
Newport, Kentucky
Newport is a city in Campbell County, Kentucky, United States, at the confluence of the Ohio and Licking rivers. The population was 15,273 at the 2010 census. Historically, it was one of four county seats of Campbell County. Newport is part of the Greater Cincinnati, Ohio Metro Area which...
, the Barrel House in Cincinnati and at Club 202 in Columbus.
Reider's music continued to gain exposure from television programs. On Dec. 8, 2002, her recording of "Silent Night
Silent Night
"Silent Night" is a popular Christmas carol. The original lyrics of the song "Stille Nacht" were written in Oberndorf bei Salzburg, Austria, by the priest Father Joseph Mohr and the melody was composed by the Austrian headmaster Franz Xaver Gruber...
" from No Retakes aired on an episode of the Lifetime
Lifetime Television
Lifetime Television, often referred to as Lifetime TV, or most commonly, Lifetime, is an American cable television specialty channel devoted to movies, sitcoms and dramas, all of which are either geared toward women or feature women in lead roles. The cable network is owned by A&E Television Networks...
series Strong Medicine
Strong Medicine
Strong Medicine is a medical drama with a focus on feminist politics, health issues and class conflict. The television series aired on the Lifetime network from 2000 to 2006. It is distributed by Sony Pictures Home Entertainment. The series was created and produced in part by comedienne and...
. Less than a month later, the WB launched a Web site that allowed fans of Dawson's Creek to order a custom compilation CD containing their favorite songs from the show. The promotion featured the 80 most requested songs from the approximately 700 songs that were featured in the series during its six-year run. Both of Reider's songs were included. Reider's music also entered into rotation on Sirius Satellite Radio
Sirius Satellite Radio
Sirius Satellite Radio is a satellite radio service operating in North America, owned by Sirius XM Radio.Headquartered in New York City, with smaller studios in Los Angeles and Memphis, Sirius was officially launched on July 1, 2002 and currently provides 69 streams of music and 65 streams of...
Channel No. 30 (The Coffee House
The Coffee House
The Coffee House is a Singer-songwriter and Acoustic rock radio station on Sirius Satellite Radio channel 31 , XM Satellite Radio 31 and on Dish Network channel 6030. Until February 9, 2010, it was heard on DirecTV channel 829...
).
Reider died on July 14, 2008 from a cerebral hemorrhage.
In addition to her music, Reider was known for her activism. Reider spoke out about gay rights issues and was a performer at gay pride celebrations.
Awards
- Cincinnati Area Pop Music Awards (Cammy Awards)
- 1999 - Best folk/bluegrass vocalist
- 1999 - Songwriter of the year
- 1999 - Best new artist
- 2000 - Best folk/bluegrass vocalist
- 2000 - Best solo act
- Reider was also nominated in 1999 for a Cincinnati Entertainment Award in the new artist of the year/critical achievement category, an award that went to the band, All Weather Girl. Reider was again nominated for best folk/bluegrass vocalist at the Cammy awards in 2002 and 2003.
Albums
- Wonder (1998, Blue JordanBlue Jordan RecordsBlue Jordan Records is an independent record label in the Northside neighborhood of Cincinnati, Ohio. It was spawned by the Blue Jordan Coffeehouse, which closed in 1996, the same year that Janet Pressley founded the label...
) - No Retakes (2001, Blue Jordan)
- I Am Ready (2002, Blue Jordan)
- Simplicity (2004, KRM)
External links
- Katie Reider Band, official web site
- Katie Reider Band at MySpaceMySpaceMyspace is a social networking service owned by Specific Media LLC and pop star Justin Timberlake. Myspace launched in August 2003 and is headquartered in Beverly Hills, California. In August 2011, Myspace had 33.1 million unique U.S. visitors....
- 500,000 hits in 365 days, a benefit site for Reider
- Official website for Blue Jordan Records, Katie Reider's recording label