South Austin Song Circles: Beth Chrisman, Erica Michelle Longoria, Rose Flower, Kathryn Legendre
You can hear the high-lonesome of her birth-state Kentucky in the voice and fiddling of Beth Chrisman, but the warmth comes straight from the festive and tight-knit music community of Fairbanks, Alaska where she grew up.
She’s come a long way since showing up in Austin, Texas in 2006. While a member of retro country trio the Carper Family, Chrisman performed on Mountain Stage and A Prairie Home Companion, US & international festivals, and was recognized for her songwriting by the Independent Music Awards (“Cold, Dark & Lonely" Best Americana Song, "Foolish Ramblin' Man" Best Country Song, IMA).
Both at home and on the road, she has joined a variety of artists on stage and in the studio - honky-tonking with Bobby Bare and Bill Kirchen, swinging with Big Sandy & the Fly Rite Boys, jamming with Shinyribs and the Heartless Bastards. With her bands the Carper Family and High Plains Jamboree, Chrisman performed standout showcases at Folk Alliance International, SXSW, IBMA (International Bluegrass Music Association), and as a featured songwriter with Project ATX6 brought old-time country influence to festivals & clubs in Toronto and Angers, France
Best known around Texas for her fiddle and harmony work with Brennen Leigh, James Hand, and the Carper Family, Chrisman is now fronting her own honkytonk band - Missy Beth and the Morning Afters, as well as Lost Patterns, an acoustic duo with songwriter Silas Lowe.
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Kathryn Legendre, a native Texan, has become a fixture of the Austin music scene, playing her own brand of original honky tonk. Folks will tell you that she's never been one to follow trends – that encompasses Legendre's whole outlook on songwriting and, well, life.
Along the way, she’s built a catalog consisting of her 2013 debut album Old Soul, 2016 EP Don't Give A Damn, 2019 EP Making It Up, 2020 singles, “One Long Sad Song” & “Waiting In Line,” and 2023 single, “Cigarettes.”
As a result, Legendre has earned 2020 & 2023 Honky Tonk Female Ameripolitan nominations, as well as a 2021 Austin Music Awards Best Country Artist nomination.
Most recently, she’s been featured on 2023 festival lineups, including Two Step Inn, Stagecoach, and ACL Music Festival. In 2024 she collaborated with Ray Benson of Asleep at the Wheel on her single, “The Day I Smoked A J With Ray.”
