Katie Pruitt

Katherine Nicole Pruitt, born on March 4, 1994, in Atlanta, Georgia, developed an early interest in music, beginning with musical theatre and learning guitar with her mother in middle school. She further honed her craft by performing at open mic nights in Athens, Georgia, while attending community college. Her dedication led her to Belmont University in Nashville, Tennessee, where she received the first annual Nashville Songwriting Scholarship from the BMI Foundation. This early academic and performance-based foundation established her path in the music industry.

Pruitt’s career progressed with notable achievements. In 2017, she was awarded the Buddy Holly Prize from the Songwriters Hall of Fame and signed with Round Hill Records. Her music began gaining wider recognition with the release of her EP, “OurVinyl Live Session EP,” in March 2018. That same year, she was identified by Rolling Stone as one of 10 new country artists to watch and by NPR as one of the 20 artists to watch, with NPR highlighting her ‘soaring, nuanced and expressive voice’ and ‘devastating honesty’ in her writing. These early endorsements underscored her potential as a significant voice in contemporary music.

Her debut album, “Expectations,” released on February 21, 2020, through Rounder Records, solidified her position. The album earned her a nomination for Emerging Act of the Year at the 2020 Americana Music Honors & Awards. In 2021, she won the Pop Awards for Emerging Artist of the Year. Pruitt continued to expand her presence, performing at the Newport Folk Festival in July 2021 and recording an episode of The Caverns Sessions (formerly Bluegrass Underground) in March 2022, which aired on PBS in October 2022. Her second album, “Mantras,” was released in 2024, continuing her exploration of complex themes, frequently drawing upon her experiences of growing up in the American South and navigating personal identity.