Culture
Crossing Boundaries Extra: Shannon Stephens
By: Mark Hellenberg
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Shannon Stephens, a singer/songwriter from Seattle, recently visited WOUB with her accompanist, Andrew Rudd.
The pair were touring in support of Stephens’ third album, Pull It Together, released on Sufjan Steven’s label, Asthmatic Kitty.
Stephens worked in the band Marzuki with the future indie-star during her mid-1990s college days in Michigan.
That band broke up in 1999, and she began to perform as a solo artist, recording and releasing her debut that same year.
That self-titled first effort reached few people. For the next decade, she put her music career on hold, married, started a family and became a gardener.
Stephens re-emerged with 2009’s The Breadwinner, which received critical plaudits from The New York Times and captured the interest of Bonnie “Prince” Billy, who covered her song “I’ll Be Glad” on his album Lie Down in the Light.
With her most recent release, Stephens has put together a project that is confident in its production and self-assured in its songwriting.
For more information about Shannon Stephens, visit http://asthmatickitty.com/shannon-stephens.