Chicago's Kara Jackson uses keen insight and a strong sense of imagery to write artful, elegant acoustic songs that transcend folk music. Best known as a poet -- she served as the U.S. National Youth Poet Laureate -- Jackson concurrently forged a career as a singer/songwriter with a 2019 EP, followed in 2023 by her debut album, Why Does the Earth Give Us People to Love?

Raised in the Chicago suburb of Oak Park, Jackson graduated from the Oak Park River Forest High School's heralded poetry program and was named National Youth Poet Laureate in 2019. That same year she published her chapbook, Bloodstone Cowboy, and also made her musical debut with the A Song for Every Chamber of the Heart EP. With her idiosyncratic guitar style and low, husky voice, Jackson's songs blended vulnerability, dark wit, poignant storytelling, and a gorgeous command of language.

For her full-length debut, she collaborated with fellow Chicagoans Sen Morimoto, Nnamdï, and Kaina, who acted as co-producers. Released in 2023, Why Does the Earth Give Us People to Love? is a beautifully constructed album of inventive melodies, poignant observations, and sparse, but effective arrangements. ~ Timothy Monger