All About Jude

The Short Story

Oklahoma native Jude Kinnear sings with a degree of honesty that comes from life experience. Her powerful and expressive performance of a unique collection of cover and original songs reveals a soul baring sincerity and a quirky sense of humor. Jude charms her audience with her sultry drawl, and draws them to her voice when she croons a ballad with an earthy elegance, or belts out a rock song with a soulful clarity.

The Long Story (Abridged Version)

Growing up in a small town in northeastern Oklahoma, Jude took an active part in church choir, community theatre, school concerts and school plays. She begged her folks for a piano, a guitar and a set of drums. She got the piano and later the guitar. She used the music books one of her cousins had given her to learn chords on the guitar and the piano. Jude also studied music theory and composition in school, along with creative writing and drama. Jude was not a classically trained child prodigy, or a result of "musical breeding", she was just a girl who had an ear for music and loved to sing.

Time passed, and then life landed Jude in Milwaukee Wisconsin. Determined to be in the arts no matter what or where, Jude began actively sowing her creative oats. She became involved with several local theatre groups and gained a reputation for being reliable on stage, and a dedicated worker behind the scenes.

She had performed for a season with The Milwaukee Players when director Dale Gutzmann cast her in the choice role of the evil, lusty Dark Witch in the play Dark of the Moon, because she had "grown beautifully as an actress". In Gene Guenther’s production of Jesus Christ Superstar, Jude rocked the stage as Simon the Zealot and was rewarded with standing ovations for her show stopping number in first act.  She earned critical acclaim for her dramatic performance as the compassionate mother of a gay man in love with his sister's husband in Tom Zuehlke's production of When Someone Knocks, and received an Encore Award for her over the top comedic performance of Marjorie in the Musical Murder Mysteries of 1940. 

Jude also performed voiceovers for a local radio show (The Elvis Hour), and voiced several commercials on 91.7 WMSE radio in Milwaukee. But with music always calling, Jude started going to opportunity nights to play guitar and sing. While hosting an open stage in Waukesha, she met artist/musician Tom Janezic. A year later, Tom brought Jude into his folk rock band (The Janes) to play snare, hi-hat and other percussion. (She finally got the drums.)

When the band parted ways, Tom and Jude formed Fred and Ethel, an acoustic rock duo. They gained notoriety because their energetic acoustic rock made them sound more like a band than a harmonically inclined folk duo. Jude contributes skin-tight harmony, lead vocals, rhythm guitar, mandolin and that famous tambourine to FRED and ETHEL, and has "toured" throughout the Midwest performing at coffeehouses, cafes, churches, pubs, bars, taverns, sidewalk sales, marketplaces, restaurants, biker parties, yuppie parties, hippie parties, fun parties, not so fun parties, weddings, campfires, political rallies, peace rallies, benefit concerts, house concerts, record stores, book stores, on the radio and television, under trees, tents and umbrellas, on tables, boats and even stages - including Shank Hall in Milwaukee, the Milwaukee Zoo Ala Carte, Summerfest and Wisconsin State Fair.

Expanding her musical palette even further, Jude sings and plays guitar and mandolin with Whitebird, the house band for the Spiritual Living Center of Greater Milwaukee, and is the current Music Director for Jane Claypool's Wise Women Conference held annually in California. Jude also performs with The Silvertones, ZiGZaG, and Wendy and the Lost Boys.

Jude likes classical music, flowers, the sun, the moon, the mountains, the rain, old black and white movies, greasy burger joints, things that are pink, '56 Chevy Nomads and Jaguar XJs.

Jude abhors violence against innocent creatures and detests rudeness, greedy people, arrogant musicians, fast food, televisions in public places, sound checks and the song Bobby McGee.

Contact Information: 

Bookings: bookings@judekinnear.com

Phone: 414.383.2690

Mail: PO BOX 340764 Milwaukee WI 53234-0764

Email: jude@judekinnear.com

Website: www.judekinnear.com