Jennifer Knapp

All Music Guide:

Alternative CCM folk-rocker Jennifer Knapp debuted in 1994 with a self-released cassette that sold over 2,000 copies in its first year. Her first full-length CD, Wishing Well, appeared two years later; its success brought Knapp to the attention of the Gotee Records label, which issued her LP Kansas, produced by Audio Adrenaline frontman Mark Stuart, in 1998. The Grammy-nominated Lay It Down arrived in early 2000, followed by the biographical storybook of The Way I Am in 2001. Knapp put her public career on hiatus for the remainder of the decade, before reappearing in 2010 with the more secular Letting Go.

Wikipedia:

Jennifer Lynn Knapp (born April 12, 1974 in Chanute, Kansas) is an American-Australian folk rock, and formerly contemporary Christian musician. She is best known for her first single "Undo Me" from her debut album Kansas (1998), and the song "A Little More" from her Grammy Award-nominated album Lay It Down (2000). The Way I Am (2001), was also nominated for a Grammy. In total, the three albums have sold approximately 1 million copies. After taking a 7-year hiatus, Knapp announced in September 2009 that she was returning to music. On May 11, 2010 she released her newest album Letting Go with the single "Dive In". The album debuted at No. 73 on the Billboard Hot 200 chart.

Early life [edit]

Knapp was born in Chanute, Kansas on April 12, 1974, and was brought up irreligiously along with her twin sister Lori. Knapp's parents were divorced when she was three and she spent an unhappy childhood with her remarried and abusive father until leaving home at 18.

As a classically-trained musician Knapp played trumpet in high school, and attended Pittsburg State University on a music scholarship. It was there that she converted to Christianity and eventually incorporated spiritual themes into her music.

From there, Knapp began performing throughout the Midwest selling her two custom recordings at shows. Her second indie album, Wishing Well, attracted the attention of Nashville label Gotee Records, who signed her the following year.

Musical career [edit]

Kansas, her critically acclaimed debut release, was received widely and eventually sold over 500,000 copies, becoming Gold-certified by the RIAA. She began touring America, singing primarily in churches, but has also appeared at festivals such as the 1999 Lilith Fair, and at large venues including during her 2000 tour in which she opened for Christian music headliner Third Day. She won Dove Awards in 1999 for New Artist of the Year and Rock Song of the Year for her song Undo Me. Lay It Down, her 2000 release, garnered a Grammy Award nomination in 2001.

In addition to her own releases, she has collaborated with a number of artists on various studio projects and releases including lending an early studio version of the song A Little More from Lay It Down on Sparrow Records' 1999 compilation album Listen Louder.

Hiatus [edit]

In an interview from the January/February 2004 issue of Relevant Magazine, Knapp stated that she was taking a break from music for a while, leaving the future of her career in God's hands. She had released two albums, Lay It Down and The Way I Am, in 2000 and 2001 respectively, which Knapp said caused a stressful touring schedule. She said she'd already made the decision to take a break in mid-2001, but her schedule did not allow her to stop performing until September 2002, which was her last concert. "It was definitely time for a break," she said. "I was touring Lay It Down while recording The Way I Am, then went directly into touring that record. It got to where I was just doing shows to support the record, rather than having a record support the heart of the people I was supposed to be serving." Knapp gave no indication of when new material would surface. "Truly, no plans and no promises of when," she said. "At this time, there's really not enough material and I don't want to force anything just for the sake of getting a record finished."

On January 24, 2006, Gotee Records issued the album Jennifer Knapp Live with tracks from her three studio albums recorded live in concert. On February 26, 2008, Gotee Records re-issued a 10th anniversary edition of Kansas with re-mastered and additional tracks, including "Jesus Loves Me (Wishing Well version)" and other tracks from her 2006 live album.

Return to music [edit]

On August 28, 2009, Patrol Magazine reported that Knapp's management confirmed she is "starting to write and record again." On September 18, Knapp issued a personal letter to fans on her website in which she discussed her hiatus and her plans to return to music. Knapp returned from her hiatus on September 24 with a concert at the Hotel Cafe in Los Angeles, California.

On February 4, 2010, Knapp announced via her official Twitter account that her new album Letting Go would be released on May 11. She also announced spring 2010 tour dates with Derek Webb and summer appearances on the revived Lilith Fair tour.

Personal life [edit]

Following the end of her 2002 tour, Knapp moved to Australia and has since taken up Australian citizenship. In several interviews published in April 2010, Knapp announced that she is a lesbian, and has been in a same-sex relationship since 2002. She has said that her decision to leave the Christian music industry was not due solely to her coming out but to a number of factors including stress and burnout. Despite her sexual orientation, Knapp says that she not only still holds to her Christian faith, but feels that by being honest about her sexuality that her faith is actually enhanced. However, she has said that Letting Go "isn't a Christian record" and that it would not be marketed towards Christian radio.