Presented by Duke Arts Presents
Kaia Kater is part of a new wave of folk musicians expanding the story of the banjo, with a sound Rolling Stone describes as “plaintive and mesmerizing.” In 2023, she won a Canadian Screen Award for Best Original Song for the series The Porter, and her NPR Tiny Desk performance introduced her to a global audience.
Born in Montreal to Grenadian parents, her music blends roots traditions with thoughtful songwriting that explores identity, migration, and memory.
Her songs feel grounded in tradition while reaching toward something new, stretching folk forms into rich and unexpected spaces.
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American Tobacco Campus
Free and open to all
Montreal-born Grenadian-Canadian Kaia Kater’s jazz-fueled voice and deft songcraft have garnered acclaim from NPR’s Tiny Desk, The Guardian, Rolling Stone and No Depression. Through her artful banjo playing and lush songwriting, Kaia draws on influences rooted in Quebec, the Caribbean, and Appalachia, all of which reflect the diversity of her background; her ties to the Canadian folk music scene; her college years spent soaking up Appalachian music in West Virginia, her father’s experience growing up in Grenada, and her recent work in film composition.
Kaia Kater’s new JUNO Award-winning album, Strange Medicine (Free Dirt Records/ acrönym in Canada) was created during a period of deep self-reflection and reinvention. Taking the helm as co-producer, alongside Joe Grass (Elisapie, Barr Brothers), the album finds Kater expanding her creative scope with cinematic arrangements, and working with guest artists such as Taj Mahal, Allison Russell and Aoife O’Donovan. The album celebrates the power of women and oppressed people throughout history, while also sharing meditations on her own life.
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Kaia released her first EP Old Soul (2013) when she was just out of high school. Since then, she’s gone on to release several albums, Sorrow Bound (2015), Nine Pin (2016) and Grenades (2018) and Strange Medicine (May 2024). For the JUNO-nominated and Polaris Music Prize long-listed Grenades, Kaia leaned into a wide array of sounds and styles in order to convey a broad range of emotions and topics, most notably her Caribbean ancestry and her father’s experience as a refugee in Canada.
In 2020, Kaia took part in the Slaight Music Residency at the Canadian Film Center, leading her to write original music for The Porter (BET+ 2022), for which she garnered a Canadian Screen Award. She also wrote and performed music for the new film, My Dead Friend Zoe (March 2024).
Duke Arts returns to American Tobacco Campus in September with a new season curated by Grammy-nominated singer-songwriter Tift Merritt. This year’s series honors the women whose artistry and audacity have shaped generations of musicians. Merritt has invited participating artists to reflect on the women who influenced their own creative lives and showed them how to carve space for their own work in music.
Now in its sixth year, Duke Arts at American Tobacco has become a signature September tradition in downtown Durham. This ongoing partnership between Duke Arts and American Tobacco Campus brings world-class artists to the heart of the city through free public performances open to all audiences.
These outdoor concerts are free, appropriate for all ages, and open to the general public. No registration is needed. Come early, bring a chair or blanket, and enjoy food and drinks from any of the 15 bars and restaurants on campus. Alcoholic beverages are allowed ONLY if they have been purchased from an establishment participating in The Bullpen Social District; all other alcoholic beverages are strictly prohibited. The stage is located under the Lucky Strike water tower, and the closest parking is at the South Parking Deck at ATC.
Concerts are weather permitting, with notice of cancellation announced at dukearts.org and via Duke Arts social media accounts on the day of the event.
For more information about American Tobacco Campus, visit https://americantobacco.co/your-visit/
Where are the concerts held? The stage is located under the Lucky Strike water tower at American Tobacco Campus, 300 Blackwell Street
Durham, NC 27701.
Is the series free? Yes! All concerts are free, appropriate for all ages, and open to the general public. No registration required!
Where should I park? The closest parking is at the South Parking Deck at ATC.
What should I bring? Bring a blanket or lawn chair, and come early to secure your spot!
Will there be food available? Enjoy food and drinks from any of the 15 bars and restaurants on campus.
Is alcohol allowed? Alcoholic beverages are allowed ONLY if they have been purchased from an establishment participating in The Bullpen Social District; all other alcoholic beverages are strictly prohibited.
Two-time Grammy Award–winning songwriter Patty Griffin is one of the most beloved voices in American folk and Americana. For more than two decades, she has written songs that capture the small moments and big emotions that shape everyday life.
Drawing on folk and Americana traditions, Cherokee artist Ken Pomeroy creates quietly powerful songs whose poetic lyrics have appeared in “Reservation Dogs” and the “Twisters” soundtrack.
Madison Cunningham moves between indie folk, rock, and art-pop, known for layered arrangements and fearless songwriting—an approach that earned her a Grammy Award for Best Folk Album.
This event is part of the
We the People: A Duke & Durham Initiative