Em & The Fates

Led by dynamic front woman Emily Kron, Em & The Fates is a Brooklyn-based septet whose rich three part harmonies and soul/funk arrangements hark back to an old school soundscape, glittering with nostalgia, yet anchored in lyrics that evoke contemporary themes. Their music is audacious, calling on the past in style and falling into the present in content, often subverting expectations of the two nestled side by side. The Fates have a live, big band, organic sound, with brushstrokes of Amy Winehouse and The Supremes and are often compared to fellow contemporaries, such as Lake Street Dive and Sister Sparrow. Certain tunes breathe a little more pop, others a bit more rock, but the connective tissue is that they're inspired by a sound that’s come before. 

Performance, and not just musicality, is a huge part of this band’s identity. Emily, an actor, director and creative entrepreneur in her own right, grew up among the blaring horns and vibrant soundscape of New York City, dowsing herself in theater, film and cabaret from an early age, filling her ears with the voices of Ella Fitzgerald and The Shirelles, Tammi Terrell and Carole King. She was inspired by the bold, unwavering voices of these women. 

Em’s deep-seated proclivity for the female “throwback” sound led her to create her own cabaret-jazz show entitled Emily Kron: Canvas, in which Em and her creative producer, Claire Graves, curated songs from all different genres to rearrange and re-sculpt, all with an eye towards the vintage. The covers were laden in rich three part harmonies evocative of 60s golden age pop, with arrangements reminiscent of those heard in Post-Modern Jukebox. Canvas played several shows at renown New York venues including 54 Below, BB King, The Metropolitan Room and more. This is where Em and Claire met their bassist, drummer, and pianist and it’s that setting where Em performed her first few original songs. She quickly realized that this particular style of music in which she was arranging was also the style in which she wanted to write. The creative juices started flowing and have been flowing ever since.

In June 2015, Em & The Fates had their first official show at a small east village venue called The Sidewalk Cafe, where they premiered Em’s first batch of original tunes, many of which now appear on their self titled EP: Em & The Fates. Em, and her two backup singers, Casey and Catherine, sang together in college and fell in love with the beauty and nuance of three part harmony, which plays a fundamental role in each Fates tune. Em, Casey, Catherine and creative producer Claire are women united by a strong identification with feminism, gender/race equality and other socio-political ideologies that have driven Em’s writing immensely. Songs like Prey, Beautiful Life, Later Lady, Her Story, Not Your Woman, Snake and many more are songs grounded in that soulful soundscape, with lyrics and storytelling geared consciously towards empowerment and unity. 

Since that very first show, Em & The Fates has played Drom, The Bitter End, Rockwood Musical Hall (their largest stage on three separate occasions) The Delancey and many more classic New York venues. They appeal to people spanning the demographic spectrum in age, sexuality and background, truly focused on uniting listeners, rather than speaking to a certain group. 

They are so incredibly thrilled to share their first studio EP with the world, which they had the honor and pleasure of recording at The Relic Room in Chelsea. Em also directed her first music video for their song Prey, which will be available in tandem with the EP! For Em, It is an absolute dream come true to be able to play her own music in the city in which she was raised, enacting radical love through sound and through words.