Advance Tix – https://midwestix.securemytix.com/event/rene-austin-w-molly-brandt
May 26th Saturday @ 9pm Reneé Austin is back at Lefty’s. Last time she brought her miracle story with her, this time she’s got a new album and a miracle. Songbirds & Angels contains 13 all-original songs penned by Reneé and filled with her Soul/R&B/Gospel style and Motown-inspired harmonies.
Maybe you saw her on Morgan Freeman’s Blues Diva’s on PBS? Or, you may have caught her singing live for a season opener for the WWE SmackDown with 6 million viewers? Six-time Min- nesota Music Award Winner and WC Handy Best New Artist Nominee, Reneé Austin, calls her new music a mix of Soul/ Gospel/R&B with a hint of Texas. The Texas Hill Country raised multi-instrumentalist and singer-songwriter rose to national at- tention in 2003 with her first international release, “Sweet Talk” which included the spine-tingling duet “Pretend We Never Met” with 3-time Grammy Winner, fellow Texan and friend Delbert McClinton.
Austin released 3 CD’s between 1997-2005: “Dancin’ With Mr. Blue”, “Sweet Talk” and “Right About Love”, opening for re- spected artists such as Los Lobos, Delbert McClinton, Blues Traveler, Big Head Todd & The Monsters, Keb Mo and Robert Cray. Sadly, just two short weeks after the release of “Right About Love”, Reneé’s singing career was halted just as her star was rising. Tragedy struck when during a surgical procedure, Austin’s left vocal nerve became paralyzed. Unable to sing or speak above a whisper, Austin began a new life without music.
But, after years of struggle and heartache, Austin experienced a series of true miracles and her voice has returned. Her new CD, “Songbirds & Angels”, hit the streets April, 2018 with a sold-out Album Release show at the world renown Dakota Jazz Club. She also just signed a worldwide digital distribution deal with The Orchard, a division of Sony Music. Reneé was Executive Producer for Songbirds & Angels and wrote all 13 tracks work- ing with Producer/ Guitarist David Grissom (Mellencamp, Dix- ie Chicks, Storyville, Allman Brothers, Joe Ely) for 4 songs recorded in Austin, Texas. Austin worked with Producers Dou- glas A. Smith (P Funk, Nikka Costa, Vann Hunt) and Christo- pher Furst (Studio 65 Owner, Engineer, Mixing, Mastering) for the other 9 songs recorded in Minneapolis. MN. Austin’s voice has been compared to Anita Baker, Tina Turner,
Regina Belle, even a female Michael McDonald. Watch the video of Reneé’s inspirational story at reneeaustin.org
Molly Brandt Band – Molly Brandt lives and works in Des Moines as a jazz and R&B musician, piano educator, and arts advocate. A recent graduate of Drake University’s Music Businessprogram, Molly has found passion and fulfillment through community engagement with the arts and a deep love for the city of Des Moines.
Since graduating, Molly has primarily worked with the Des Moines Music Coalition as the Advocacy Coordinator, with a goal of changing city ordinances to better serve music venues, musicians, and the overall city. Additionally, she has engaged in research with Drake University to help implement goals of Bravo’s Regional Cultural Assessment and gauge challenges and needs for a robust creative economy in Des Moines. She currently teaches piano for all ages and levels. Molly serves on the Board of Directors for Civic Music Association and volunteers time with the 80/35 music festival. Then she sees as much live music as possible and explores the city she loves.
Advance Tix – $10 https://midwestix.securemytix.com/event/rene-austin-w-molly-brandt
Day Of Show – $15
9pm Doors
21+