Newport Live Presents Dori Freeman. "Women's Voices" Series

18 Valley Street,Jamestown RI 02835

05 November, 2022

Description

Dori Freeman is about as “bonafide” as an Appalachian artist can be: she was raised among a family of musicians in the mountains of Southwest Virginia. Ten Thousand Roses, the fourth studio album from singer-songwriter Dori Freeman, showcases an artist who has cemented an inimitable signature sound while simultaneously establishing her as capable of a wide variety of styles. Yet here she shows how multifaceted she is as an artist and how eclectic she is as a person, defying and expanding notions of what it means to be someone from the region, a young woman in the music industry, and as an Americana artist. Her soaring alto and singular style are on fine display throughout this collection of nine originals and one cover. She wrote the songs during the pandemic, when, like millions of others, she stayed home and spent more time outside. “I really observed and appreciated nature during that time,” she says. Natural elements such as storm-clouds, wildflowers, and spiders show up as motifs throughout the record, which examines everything from being deeply in love with someone to realizing that you don’t need another person to complete you. Dori Freeman's breakthrough in 2016 demonstrates why it's not a bad idea to reach out to your favorite artists. Dori Freeman was born and raised in the Appalachian community of Galax, Virginia. Dori's father, Scott Freeman, and her grandfather, Willard Gayheart, were veteran bluegrass musicians who played regularly and ran their own venue, Front Porch Gallery and Frame Shop. Dori picked up the guitar when she was 15 years old, and within a few years she was sharing the stage with the family band. Along with Rufus Wainwright and Peggy Lee, Freeman has often cited singer and songwriter Teddy Thompson as one of her favorite artists, and in 2014 she sent him a message via Facebook along with a video of her performing her songs. To her surprise, Thompson replied three days later, saying he was impressed with the emotional honesty and strength of her songs and delivery, and wanted to produce an album for her. After bankrolling the project through a crowdfunding campaign, Thompson took Freeman into a studio in New York City, and three days later recording was completed. Including guest appearances from Aiofe O'Donovan of Crooked Still, Kacy & Clayton, and Teddy's father, Richard Thompson, Dori Freeman was released by Free Dirt Records in February 2016, and it soon earned a handful of rave reviews, with The New York Times declaring it one of the best albums of the year. By the end of 2016, one of the songs from the album, "You Say," had become a hit, racking up over two million plays on streaming services. "By infusing the traditions of bluegrass and old-time with a modern pop bent, Freeman embraces the past while expanding the trajectory of Americana." NPR