Country artist Kalisa Ewing will perform at the DeKalb County Fair Tuesday night at the Lion’s Club Pavilion following the Little Miss and Mister pageant.
“Look in the mirror find a new reflection, those chains won’t hold you down unless you let them. Life can surprise you when you least expect it, that’s what’s so beautiful about redemption.”
With her sweet country voice and hauntingly beautiful lyrics, singer/songwriter Kalisa Ewing is no stranger to life’s surprises. Her songs are bold, fresh and honest; stories that may never have been told if not for a divine intervention of sorts.
“My mom and I got into a car accident the summer before my Sophomore year of high school and I blacked out. I remember during that time, visions of my guitar in my hands, playing my guitar and being on stage, all flashed before my eyes. That was enough to make me think a little bit harder about writing songs and what playing music meant to me.”
Kalisa grew up in the country just outside Nashville where, at age 11, she picked up a guitar and penned her first song. She credits her insatiable passion for music to her grandfather, who died of heart problems just after she was born. Kalisa’s grandfather, Owen McCarty, was a blind musician who moved to Nashville to fulfill his dreams as an artist in Music City.
Like her grandfather, Kalisa continued to search for a home in music. She took guitar lessons and began writing poetry to sharpen her songwriting skills.
“I’ve always felt a little bit like an outcast,” said Kalisa. “It seems like so many people I meet either grew up singing in church or playing music with their families. I never did any of that. Hearing stories of my grandpa, I think he was the closest person in my blood that I can say dreamed the same dream. I know it must have been passed down to me by him.”
Fast-forward through years of odd-end jobs and dead-end promises, Kalisa met industry veteran, Todd Wilkes, who recognized her unparalleled talent and opted to publish her independently. Under the helm of Wilkes and Kent Earls (Universal Music), Kalisa became the first co-venture of Wilkes’ company, KingSpirit Music, and signed a publishing deal with Universal Music Publishing Group.
“One of my songs, ‘Redemption,’ is about everything that I’ve had to learn the hard way through the years. That’s the kind of real stories that I hope connect with people. I like to write about love, screwing things up, being a screw up, finding redemption and then living to tell about it. I write about what I’ve learned.”
If there’s one thing Kalisa knows about life’s little surprises it’s that it will bring you to where you need to be when you least expect it. It will bring you home. And that’s exactly what her music is all about.
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