I recently got a chance to hang out at one of my favorite haunts - the Broad St. Diner in south Philly - with my friend Taylor Kelly. Taylor caught the music bug as a young school kid in upstate New York and moved to Philadelphia from Boston after college in 2016. By the time she was in her early 20's, she was already a seasoned touring musician, playing trumpet in a big band (an actual 18-pc big band!) and getting a degree from Berklee College of Music. Taylor occupies a space in the music scene that I am honestly not as familiar with as I’d like to be but she is now my gateway drug into the world of modern Philly soul, jazz, and R&B.
My first exposure to Taylor was the Iris Music Showcase. Inspired by Black Lily, the weekly early aughts jam session that highlighted early performances by neo-soul artists like Jill Scott and Erykah Badu, Iris is an incredible monthly music event Taylor created to celebrate femme voices of the past, present, and future. Having attended several of these shows myself, I have only seen Taylor actually perform at one of them, as she selflessly puts a laser focus on the artists while drawing minimal attention to herself.
She is a true embodiment of community building in Philadelphia and she happens to also be a badass artist and songwriter in her own right. But the magic in Taylor Kelly lies in her voice - a smooth, soulful, and powerful instrument, equally capable of quiet introspection, hip hop attitude, and even hard rock fury. Her latest single is a trippy remix of “Take Me” a track originally released on her 2024 EP "The Spins." This new version features a rap verse from Richmond, Virginia artist Tennishu.
In our conversation, Taylor and I chat about her early musical life, her love of the band Butcher Brown (the hip hop / soul project fronted by the aforementioned Tennishu) and the importance of being intentional with your decisions in music and in life. It's a really fun episode and I hope you enjoy it as much as I do!
Check out the Iris Music Showcase on IG @irismusicshowcase
and Taylor's official website https://taylorkellymusic.com
~ JKF ❤️