Just three days after the release of her debut record When It All Goes Down, Sarah King received the news that she has thyroid cancer. After being told she’d need multiple surgeries beginning in July, she decided to schedule the first following the Grand Point North Festival so she could give her fans a proper “temporary farewell,” with her only full band show of the year.
Her first LP, When It All Goes Down, was released on March 29, 2024, to praise from everyone from American Songwriter to Brooklyn Vegan, The Bluegrass Situation, Glide Magazine, and many more.
Before her hiatus from performing Sarah King, who is based in Vermont, will appear at a handful of festivals, including the Wildflower Festival in Richardson, TX, on May 18 – 19. These will be her first performances since receiving the news.
“While I’m heartbroken not to have the year I’d hoped with this album, the songs will still be there for me when my voice and my body are healthy enough to take to the stage again,” says King, pointing out that while any cancer diagnosis is extremely frightening, having surgery so close to her vocal nerves causes additional anxiety.
King creates thought-provoking, versatile Americana music – touching on real-life emotions and situations, while drawing on classic folk-blues themes, balancing songs about the devil and booze with hard-won moments of reflection and acceptance.
The title track of When It All Goes Down was inspired by doctors not listening to women, seeming like she wrote the song to her future self, somehow knowing that she’d need to “stand up to the devil.”
The album is a testament to King’s strength, reflecting on when she lost her mother, first husband, and dog. Songs like the slow-burning “Stronger Than You’ll Ever Know” find her deftly navigating the hidden spaces between darkness and the light.
“My stories are folk stories,” says Sarah King. “Of the people, for the people, by the people (I’m a person). These are songs for folks who’ve lived through some sh*t and want some music that doesn’t shy away from that.”
For more information and to listen to When It All Goes Down, visit here.
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