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Kari Meredyth Kimmel is an American singer, songwriter, composer, and producer. She is best known for the theme track "It's Not Just Make Believe" for Ella Enchanted,[1] the theme track "Black" for the Walking Dead trailer, her "Cruel Summer" cover for Cobra Kai,[2] and the theme track "Where You Belong" for The Fosters.[3] Her music ranges across the genres of pop, rock and folk.[4]
Kari Kimmel | |
|---|---|
 Kimmel in 2013 | |
| Born | Boca Raton, Florida, U.S. |
| Occupations |
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| Years active | 2004–present |
| Musical career | |
| Genres | |
| Instrument(s) |
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| Website | karikimmel |
Early life and education edit
Kimmel was born and raised in Boca Raton, Florida.[5] Shortly after graduating high school, she relocated to Los Angeles to pursue a career in music.[6]
She has cited Carole King as her biggest musical inspiration. She has also said that she draws inspiration from Bonnie Raitt, Elton John, and Sheryl Crow.[5][3][7][8]
Career edit
Kimmel's career began when she was chosen to sing the theme song "It's Not Just Make Believe" for the 2004 Disney live-action film Ella Enchanted.[9] She also appeared in the music video, which featured on Radio Disney. Kimmel then connected with Randy Spendlove, the president of motion picture music at Miramax at the time, with whom she went on to collaborate on over 20 film projects.[6]
Kimmel has written, arranged, produced, and performed music which has been licensed in over 650 studio films, network television series, trailers, video games, and commercials.[10] Notable productions include the films Blockers, World War Z, Southpaw, and The Duff, the television shows America's Funniest Home Videos, The Office, New Girl, Pretty Little Liars, The Lying Game and Grimm, in addition to the Walking Dead trailer.[11][12] Her music has also been used in advertisements for Google and Nissan, and the popular video game The Sims.[6][13] Her track "Let's Light It Up" was used by WWE wrestler AJ Lee as her entrance theme.[14][15]
Kimmel has composed 25 theme songs for multiple television series, including "Where You Belong" for family drama series The Fosters, "Riding Free" for the Dreamworks series Spirit Riding Free, "Warriors" for the Dreamworks series She-Ra and the Princesses of Power, and the theme song for Disney Junior's Eureka!. She has also performed tracks in the films Pitch Perfect, Pitch Perfect 2, Dreamgirls, Danny Collins, Descendants, Descendants 2, Teen Beach Movie, Teen Beach Movie 2, and Footloose.[16] Her music video for the track "Low" was used to promote the television series Private Practice and her music video for the track "Trouble" aired on Oxygen and KNBC.[17] She has performed live on The Adam Corolla Show, The Danny Bonaduce Show, The Conway & Whitman Show, KNBC, and Fox Sports West and Prime Ticket and at multiple venues in Los Angeles, including Los Angeles Dodgers games, Los Angeles Lakers games, and the AIDS Walk benefit, hosted by Prince Edward and the Greek Theatre in 2010; she closed the show.[18]
Kimmel has also written songs which have been recorded by notable artists including the Backstreet Boys, Kesha, Joe Jonas, Demi Lovato and Gloria Gaynor. She has also sung background vocals for Ringo Starr,[19] Bruce Springsteen, Alicia Keys, John Legend, Stevie Wonder, John Mayer, Willie Nelson, and Pharrell.[11][10][7]
Kimmel has released five solo albums, titled A Life in the Day, Out of Focus, From the Vault, Go, and Black. Her sixth solo album Gold & Glitter was released on May 25, 2018.[11] The title track was featured in the 2018 comedy film Blockers.[20]
In 2015, Kimmel launched her own licensing company Glow Music Group, and now represents over 750 bands in addition to her own music.[6] In 2017, she led a writer's retreat for VocalizeU and ASCAP in Ojai, California.[21] Her cousin is Jon Carin.
Discography edit
Albums edit
| Year | Title | Label | Other Artist(s) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | A Life in the Day | Independent | ||
| 2010 | Out of Focus | Independent | ||
| 2011 | From the Vault | Independent | ||
| Go | Independent | |||
| 2015 | Black | Independent | ||
| 2016 | Poppyfields | Independent | ||
| 2018 | Gold & Glitter | Independent | Title track "Gold & Glitter" featured in the 2018 film Blockers |
EPs edit
| Year | Title | Label | Other Artist(s) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | Pink Balloon | Tzviah | ||
| 2011 | Own It | Hype Music | ||
| 2012 | Christmastime | Independent | ||
| 2013 | Fix You Up | Independent | ||
| 2017 | Covers, Vol. 1 | Independent |
Singles edit
| Year | Title | Label | Other Artist(s) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | "Let It Go/Taking a Ride" | |||
| "Low" | Tzviah | |||
| "Dance With Joy" | Sara Lee/Amber (Heavenly) | Matt Meils | ||
| 2011 | "Pennies for Adam" | |||
| "STFU" | ||||
| "Black" | Independent | The Walking Dead trailer track | ||
| "Let's Light It Up" | WWE Music Group | WWE wrestler AJ Lee's entrance track | ||
| 2012 | "Fire" | International Family Entertainment | ||
| "Payphone" | ||||
| "These Boots Are Made for Walkin'" | Independent | |||
| "Fourteen Minutes" | ||||
| "BNE (Best Night Ever)" | ||||
| "Fix You Up" | ||||
| "Perfect Day" | ||||
| "Christmastime" | ||||
| 2013 | "Where You Belong" | ABC family | The Fosters' theme song | |
| "While You Were Up High" | ||||
| "Fingerprints" | ||||
| "Shooting Star" | Independent | |||
| "Summertime" | Rykim Records | |||
| 2014 | "Best Day" | Independent | ||
| 2015 | "Everything is Feelin' Right" | Independent | ||
| "Everybody Has to Fall" | Independent | |||
| "Best Thing" | Independent | |||
| "Happy Family" | Independent | |||
| 2017 | "I See Trouble" | Freeform | ||
| "Run Run Run" | Independent | |||
| "Don't Feel Like Christmas Without You" | Independent | |||
| 2018 | "Voices" | |||
| "Call Me" |
Soundtracks edit
| Year | Production | Title | Role | Other Artist(s) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | Ella Enchanted | "It's Not Just Make Believe" | Performer | ||
| Shall We Dance | "Taking a Ride" | Writer, performer | |||
| Chestnut: Hero of Central Park | "Wonderful Day" | Writer, performer | |||
| 2006 | The Cutting Edge: Going for the Gold | "Taking a Ride" | Writer, performer | Video | |
| 2007 | Girl, Positive | "Fly" | Writer, performer | TV movie | |
| Victoria Beckham: Coming to America | "Taking a Ride" | Writer, performer | TV movie | ||
| Custody | "Taking a Ride" | Writer, performer | TV movie | ||
| The Deadly Pledge | "Can't Be Everything" | Arranger, performer, producer, writer | TV movie | ||
| Holiday in Handcuffs | "Taking a Ride" | Writer, performer | TV movie | ||
| 2008 | Tinker Bell | "Fly With Me" | Performer | Video | |
| 2009 | Princess Protection Program | "Is It Just Me" | Performer | TV movie | |
| Bitter/Sweet | "Low" | Writer, performer | |||
| 2010 | Reviving Ophelia | "Remember" | Writer, performer | TV movie | |
| "Save Me" | Writer, performer | ||||
| Knucklehead | "Taking a Ride" | Writer, performer | |||
| Space Dogs | "Watching Over You" | Writer, performer | |||
| "I Got You" | Writer, performer | ||||
| 2011 | Carnal Innocence | "Remember" | Writer, performer | TV movie | |
| 12 Dates of Christmas | "Christmastime" | Writer, performer | TV movie | ||
| The Chaperone | "Go" | Writer, performer | |||
| "Let It Go" | Writer, performer | ||||
| The Family Tree | "STFU" | Writer, performer | |||
| 2012 | The Pregnancy Project | "Finally Free" | Writer | TV movie | |
| "Don't Give Up" | Writer | ||||
| Radio Rebel | "Brand New Day" | Writer, performer | TV movie | ||
| Pitch Perfect | Female Voice No. 5 | ||||
| 2013 | Our Wild Hearts | "Who I Am" | Performer | TV movie | |
| World War Z | "Go" | Writer, performer | |||
| Girl on a Bicycle | "It Just Takes a Moment" | Performer | |||
| "Play With Me" | Performer | ||||
| 2014 | A Tiger's Tail | "Great Big World" | Writer, performer | ||
| "Best Day" | Writer, performer | ||||
| "Watching Over You" | Writer, performer | ||||
| Composer (additional music) | |||||
| Ouija | "Go" | Writer, performer | Short Film | ||
| 2015 | Project Almanac | "Extraverdant" | Writer, performer | ||
| Backstreet Boys: Show 'Em What You're Made Of | "Incomplete" | Lyrics, Music | |||
| The DUFF | "Nothing Left to Lose" | Writer, performer | |||
| Danny Collins | Danny's Background Singer | ||||
| Southpaw | "Perfect Day" | Writer, performer | |||
| 2016 | Face 2 Face | "Always Got Me" | Performer | ||
| "Best Day" | Performer | ||||
| "Brand New Day" | Performer | ||||
| "Go" | Performer | ||||
| "Imagine" | Performer | ||||
| "On Your Side" | Performer | ||||
| "Such a Good Time" | Performer | ||||
| 2017 | Veeram | "We Will Rise" | Performer | ||
| 2018 | Blockers | "Gold & Glitter" | Writer, performer | ||
| American Paradise | Composer, Composer (theme music) |
Songwriting edit
| Year | Title | Label | Other Artist(s) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | No Less | Reunion Records | Joy Williams | |
| "Moonlight" | Avex Trax | MAX | ||
| 2002 | "Stronger" | Gloria Gaynor | ||
| 2004 | "I Could" | Curb Records | Kimberley Locke | |
| 2005 | "Incomplete" | Jive | Backstreet Boys | |
| "Taking a Ride" | Frontiers Records | Robin Beck | ||
| 2010 | "My Song For You" | Walt Disney | Demi Lovato, Joe Jonas | |
| 2011 | "Velvet Sky" | Nine North Records | Jessica Ridley | |
| 2012 | "My Song For You" | Walt Disney | Bridgit Mendler, Shane Harper | |
| 2017 | "Riding Free" | Back Lot Music | Maisy Stella | |
| "Paper Airplane" | Kesha | Unreleased |
Awards and nominations edit
In 2017 Kimmel was honored, along with over a hundred other individuals, when she was awarded an ASCAP Screen Music Award for composing The Fosters' theme song "Where You Belong".[28]
References edit
- ^ "Kari Kimmel – New Songs, Playlists & Latest News – BBC Music". BBC. Retrieved July 24, 2018.
- ^ Romano, Evan (September 10, 2020). "Here's Every Badass '80s Jam From 'Cobra Kai' Seasons 1 and 2". Men's Health.
- ^ a b "Entre Nous: Kari Kimmel – BARB". barbmagazine.com. Retrieved July 24, 2018.
- ^ BWW News Desk. "Kari Kimmel to Perform at L.A.'s Hotel Cafe 8/6". BroadwayWorld.com. Retrieved July 25, 2018.
- ^ a b "Singer-Songwriter, Kari Kimmel, Talks Walking Dead, The Fosters, Singing with Al Pacino and A Whole Lot More! | All Access Music". music.allaccess.com. July 15, 2014. Retrieved July 24, 2018.
- ^ a b c d e "Spotlight: How Singer-Songwriter Kari Kimmel Landed Hundreds of TV & Film Syncs on Her Own Terms". Billboard. Retrieved July 24, 2018.
- ^ a b "Kari Kimmel – How being diverse turned into over 500 licensed placements – iSing Magazine". iSing Magazine. January 23, 2017. Retrieved July 24, 2018.
- ^ "Belonging With Kari Kimmel – Young Entertainment". youngentertainmentmag.com. September 20, 2014. Retrieved July 24, 2018.
- ^ Hentges, Sarah (September 10, 2014). Pictures of Girlhood: Modern Female Adolescence on Film. McFarland. ISBN 9781476608587.
- ^ a b "THURSDAY TRACK PICK – Kari Kimmel's "High" (EXCLUSIVE)". KeyboardMag. Retrieved July 24, 2018.
- ^ a b c BWW News Desk. "ASCAP Award Winner Kari Kimmel Releases New Album 'Gold & Glitter' Today". Retrieved July 24, 2018.
- ^ BWW News Desk. "Kari Kimmel Releases New Album". Retrieved July 25, 2018.
- ^ "Songwriter Kari Kimmel ends her year in the 'Black'". AXS. Retrieved July 24, 2018.
- ^ thewweajlee (September 1, 2013), WWE: AJ Lee – "Let's Light It Up" (feat. Kari Kimmel), retrieved July 25, 2018
- ^ Listen Free to WWE & Kari Kimmel – Let's Light It up (AJ Lee) Radio | iHeartRadio, retrieved July 25, 2018
- ^ "Kari Kimmel". karikimmel.com. Retrieved July 24, 2018.
- ^ eMinor. "Kari Kimmel | Pop from Boca Raton, FL". ReverbNation. Retrieved July 24, 2018.
- ^ "California AIDS Walk Circle of Life Concert | LA Music Blog". lamusicblog.com. Retrieved July 24, 2018.
- ^ "Ringo Starr Announces His 20th Studio Album "What's My Name" To Be Released in October". Music Mayhem Magazine. September 13, 2019.
- ^ "BLACKBOOK PREMIERE: Stunning New Kari Kimmel Single 'Gold & Glitter' – BlackBook". BlackBook. April 6, 2018. Retrieved July 24, 2018.
- ^ "Events Calendar". ascap.com. Retrieved July 24, 2018.
- ^ "Kari Kimmel Radio: Listen to Free Music & Get The Latest Info | iHeartRadio". iHeartRadio. Retrieved July 24, 2018.
- ^ "Kari Kimmel". SoundCloud. Retrieved July 25, 2018.
- ^ "Kari Kimmel – DuVinage Music". duvinagepublishing.com. Retrieved July 25, 2018.
- ^ "Joy Williams (2) – Joy Williams". discogs. Retrieved July 24, 2018.
- ^ "Kimberley Locke – One Love". discogs. Retrieved July 24, 2018.
- ^ "Kari Kimmel – A Life in the Day". ascap.com. Retrieved July 25, 2018.
- ^ "2017 Screen Music Awards". ascap.com. Retrieved July 24, 2018.
External links edit
