Katie Jo Oberthaler

Kansas-born country artist Katie Jo brings a Midwestern sensibility to melodies that dance in defeat of life’s plainest realities. Her debut album, Pawn Shop Queen, cut rights to the dark heart of country music: infidelity, religion, depression. The 9-song collection offers up succinct yet racous, sweet yet road-weary tales of a woman who’s had her heart broken more than once but still stands strong. A torchbearer for stars like Patty Loveless, Loretta Lynn, and Tammy Wynette, Katie Jo shakes up expectations of what a female country artist can and should sing about.