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The Jades
Lemme tell you, Chicago truly has GREAT local music, especially in the indie/rock/singer-songwriter genres. I’ve written about some bands in the past including Twin Peaks, The Lucky Dutch and Maggie Speaks, but this band I am VERY excited to interview and introduce.
Their bio stating “Two badass girls playin some folky tunes in the Midwest,” could not be more spot on! Their harmonies are calming, guitar playing is toe-tapping, their energy is electric, and they both happen to have (almost) the same name. Katie Krenning and Kathleen Lieffers make up the bluesy folk group known as The Jades.
Their debut single “Remedy” dropped a little over a year ago. I could go on about the love and support I have for this group, but let’s just jump right into getting to know the more.
Audiation Magazine presents… The Jades!
How did you two meet and when did you become The Jades?
We were both going to school at the University of Illinois at Chicago and studying Communication. On the first day of the fall semester of 2014, we sat next to each other in an introduction course. The professor insisted we participate in an “ice breaker” activity in which we turn to the person on our left and our right to introduce ourselves and share an interesting fact. Both of us had no one on the other side, just each other. So we began the introductions only to find we shared the SAME interesting fact: we both write music.
We became The Jades after about a year of friendship. We started showing each other music that we had been working on. After collaborating on one song, Remedy, we knew this was something we wanted to continue to pursue. We played our first show which was a Battle of the Bands; there we took home second place! It was much to our surprise, but sparked a flame that is The Jades.
Why did you name your group The Jades?
For being so creative musically, we were not confident in finding a name that suited our style and unique sound. So, we took our ideas to a twitter poll. Out of the few suggested names, the people decided The Jades was the best fit. All two of them. Plus, we are kind of jaded. Runners up included The Jagged Notes and The Taco Bellas.
Who are your musical inspirations?
Together we draw inspiration from local Chicago bands. We regularly play with different acts all over the city and leave events feeling moved. However, we both draw inspiration from larger groups as well such as Whitney, Tegan and Sara, and The War on Drugs. Katie grew up loving indie rock tunes that featured intense guitar licks and harmonizing melodies. While Kathleen