Stella!
is a three-piece, all-women, American roots band from southeast Michigan
and has been referred to as a singer-songwriter super group with three-part vocal harmonies and three
songwriter voices. Stella! was first conceived of by singer-songwriter Jo Serrapere after a conversation with
American music critic, Bruce Springsteen biographer, and Creem Magazine co-founder Dave Marsh.
Jo was inspired to put together a new group to showcase country-roots songwriting. With the release
of their debut album, “Sorry, Stella,” the girls were invited to join Michigan-based music collective
Earthwork Music (earthworkmusic.com).
Eclectic writer Jo Serrapere credits songwriter Tom Waits,
early blues, jazz, and old-time country as her strongest
influences. She was the founding member of the old-time
string band, Uncle Earl. Jo has had two appearances on
National Public Radio’s “A Prairie Home Companion”
and three albums with her band, Jo Serrapere and the
Willie Dunns, including her recent release, “Love Going
South.” “Love Going South” held the #1 position for two
months on the Freeform American Roots Chart in fall of
2009 and was listed in their top 10 albums of 2009.
Jo’s new album, “Dollar Store Nation” will be released
in early 2015.
Jo asked songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Jen Sygit to join Stella! as another songwriting voice in the
group. Jen’s voice adds deep blues tones to Stella! She plays acoustic and electric guitar, banjo, Dobro
and Ukelele. Jen has three solo albums to her credit, including her new release, “So Long Pollyanna.”
Her previous album, “Leaving Marshall Street” was nominated for a 2007 Detroit Music Award
and charted at #9 on the Free Form American Roots Chart. Jen also performs solo and with the
Americana band Lincoln County Process.
In the Fall of 2010 Stella! accquired singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Laura Ann Bates.
University trained in vocal performance, piano and flute, Laura has now taken up the upright bass.
By pursuing opera in the classroom by day, bluegrass and folk in the bars at night, hymns and choral
pieces on Sunday morning, she has developed a very diverse musical pallet. In 2007 Laura released
a CD with songwriter Brandon Foote called “Jubilee.” She and Jo also perform with the Lansing
Vaudeville troupe “The Lil’ Darlins.”
Discography
In April 2009 Jo and Jen traveled to New York City under the sponsorship of Marsh, and recorded
their album in two days. “Sorry, Stella” was produced by Detroiter Adam Druckman and by Larry
Eagle, percussionist for the Bruce Springsteen’s Seeger Sessions and the Andy Statman Trio. Fiddler
Tamineh Gueramy, bassist Katie Grace and pedal steel player and guitarist Skip Krevens joined the
session. Skip has performed and recorded for Broadway productions and for songwriters such as
Laura Cantrell. “Sorry, Stella,” was released in late 2012.
www.TheStellaGirls.com
Performances
Festivals
Michigan Womyn’s Music Festival (Hart, MI)
Flint Folk Festival (Flint, MI)
Earthwork Harvest Gathering (Lake City, MI)
Dunegrass Music Festival (Empire, MI)
Woodtick Music Festival (Hermansville, MI)
Kalamazoo Fretboard Festival (Kalamazoo, MI)
Spirit of the Woods (Brethren, MI)
Farmfest (Johannesburg, MI)
Ann Arbor Summer Festival (Ann Arborn, MI)
Cowpie Music Festival (Grand Rapids, MI)
Arts, Beats and Eats (Royal Oak, MI)
Great Bear Music Festival (Bloomingdale, MI)
Thumbfest (Lexington, MI)
WIMA fest (Traverse City, MI)
Ypsilanti Crossroads Festival (Ypsilanti, MI)
Nor-East’r (Mio, MI)
Porcupine Mountains Music Festival (Ontonogan, MI)
Concert Series
Ten Pound Fiddle (Lansing, MI)
Elgin Community College Arts Center (Elgin, IL)
Roots on the River (Manistee, MI)
Old Town Concerts in the Courtyard (Lansing, MI)
Summer Black Box Series (Tecumseh, MI)
South Lyon Concerts in the Park (South Lyon, MI)
Paint Creek Tin Whistle Concert (Rochester Hills, MI)
Black Cat Concert Series (Charlevoix, MI)
The Pump House Concerts (Lansing, MI)
East Lansing Summer Concert Series
Concerts @ Karen’s Place (Leonard, MI)
Comfy Couch Concert Series (Wixom, MI)
Live Radio
Dave Marsh’s “Kick Out the Jams”
Sirius Radio Program (NYC)
WLNZ Radio Road Show (Charlotte, MI)
Venues
Club Passim (Cambridge, MA)
Rockwood Music Hall (New York, NY)
The Ark (Ann Arbor, MI)
Hambone’s Pub (Pittsburgh, PA)
Bell’s Brewery (Kalamazoo, MI)
The Trinity House Theatre (Livonia, MI)
Salt of the Earth (Fennville, MI)
Gopherwood (Cadillac, MI)
Ore Dock Brewing Company (Marquette, MI)
Orpheum Theater (Hancock, MI)
InsideOut Gallery (Traverse City, MI)
The Avenue Cafe (Lansing, MI)
Howmet Playhouse (Whitehall, MI)
New Holland Brewery (Holland, MI)
Crazy Wisdom Tea Room (Ann Arbor, MI)
Short’s Brewery (Bellaire, MI)
Woodruff’s (Ypsilanti, MI)
Good Night Gracie’s (Ann Arbor, MI)
Zingerman’s Roadhouse (Ann Arbor, MI)
Johnny’s Speakeasy (Ann Arbor, MI)
Moriarty’s Pub (Lansing, MI)
Northern Natural Cider House (Traverse City, MI)
Holly Mills (Holly, MI)
Press
“ They are a near-religious experience. “ Over the last six months that I have been listening to Stella!’s
“
Booking & Promotion
debut album ‘Sorry,Stella’, it has gone from being a nice folk
album to being the near perfect American Roots record. Great
original songs (plus one Tom Waits cover), beautiful threepart harmonies, and a wide variety of interesting musical
settings. ‘Sorry,Stella’ ended up as number four on my list of
favorite albums of 2012, as reported to the ‘3rd Coast Music’
FAR Chart.
~Tom Jackson, WLUW Chicago, Host of “New Orleans
Music Hour” and “Somebody Else’s Troubles”
“
Hearing them perform in an
intimate setting is like going to an
Appalachian mountain church and
hollering hallelujah with a Bible in
one hand and a bottle of hooch in
the other. They’re that sinfully good.
~Karen Koski, syndicated music
writer (Billboard), house concert
host
Contact Jo Serrapere at Detroit Radio Co.
[email protected] 313.336.3343 313.316.1900 (mobile)
www.TheStellaGirls.com