Kim Baker: Playing Music. Doing Some Good. - April 19, 2011
Kim Baker: Playing Music. Doing Some Good.
By Paul Freeman For The Daily News
For Montara singer-songwriter Kim Baker, her career in music can be measured by how well it serves her community. Fulfillment comes from using her art to help fund worthy organizations. Baker plays Redwood City's Club Fox on Friday, sharing the bill with another very gifted Peninsula performer, Ruth Gerson. The concert is to benefit The St. Francis Center in Redwood City.
"I guess I take after my mom," Baker said. "She's always been involved in something. When I was growing up, she was a volunteer in hospital emergency rooms. When I was in college, she got involved in a Southern California church and, through the church, has done a lot of counseling. This church is globally involved in charitable work." Baker and her mother Carolyn are in the process of setting up their own charitable foundation, Angels of Hope. Baker's plans crystallized when she met Bill Somerville of Philanthropic Ventures Foundation. He's the author of "Grassroots Philanthropy." She appreciated his hands-on approach. "His foundation kind of became a model for me," she said. Somerville took her into the community, visiting several of the places his company helps to fund on the Peninsula. The first was the St. Francis Center. "I was just blown away by this amazing place," Baker said.
"It's this beautiful space that they built from the ground up. There's a classroom on the top. Downstairs they put bags of food together for people in the community. There's a clothing room where people can, once a month, get a bag of clothing. They have 24 units of low-income housing. "It's the most efficiently run thing I've ever seen. Sister Christina (Heltsley), who runs it, is incredible. And there are all of these dedicated volunteers." What Baker saw in the classroom especially impressed her. "The teacher's in the middle of teaching these cute little kids and she suddenly said, 'Oh, look, Bill is here!' They saw him and all knew who he was and shouted, 'Uncle Bill! Uncle Bill!' And they got up and came running towards them with their big smiles. It was a moment I'll never forget. The look on their faces was so much love for this person who had made this center for them. I'm like, 'Man, I've got to do this.'"
In addition to writing and performing music, Baker operates her own label, Earthwater Records. Now she's establishing a charitable foundation. How does she juggle all of these pursuits? "It's really hard, but it's good. I have to be really organized with my time. I have my little Macbook and my iPhone and I just carve out things very carefully. I'll say, these days, during these hours, I'll rehearse. On these days, I'll promote the concert. And so on. I've developed a system now where everything is really structured. I know there's only one of me, but, hopefully, eventually there will be more people involved," she said, laughing.
Her role as community activist feeds Baker's creative side. "The more I think about things outside of myself, the more inspired I am in general, as a human being, and that's reflected in my music. And my music has headed more and more in that direction, instead of being just all about me. "I've written a lot of songs over the years, and when I was putting together the set list for this Club Fox show, I found that I was picking the ones that speak to me about these types of things, like caring about things that are hopeful, inspirational, uplifting, whatever you want to call it. I find myself more pulled towards those songs. And as I'm writing my newer songs, I feel like I'm going more in that direction, as opposed to just relationships and things like that."
Growing up in Southern California, Baker admired artists who reflected social and political awareness. "The biggest influence, when I first got into music, was The Indigo Girls. I saw one of their videos and their approach was unique, different from any other video I had seen. I went to the library and looked them up and there was all this stuff about how interested they were in the world and the community and peace and activism. And it just got me. It really spoke to me. I was maybe 15."
She earned a music degree at Oakland's Mills College. She interned at Polygram, learning the nuts and bolts of the industry, prior to founding her own label. As a performer, she has built a loyal fan base.
Baker is well into the process of recording an album, a follow-up to her outstanding collection of folk-rock songs, "Field of Plenty." The new one will be more piano-oriented, rather than guitar-driven. She says the music will have a softer quality to it. She hopes to have it in release in time for summer and fall regional tours.
"Being able to use music to have a positive impact on the community, for me, that's an incredible source of joy."
Who: Kim Baker Band
Where: Club Fox, 2209 Broadway,
Redwood City
When: 7:30 p.m. Friday
Tickets: $16-$18; www.foxrwc.com; 650-369-7770
Artist website: www.kimbaker.com
By Paul Freeman For The Daily News
For Montara singer-songwriter Kim Baker, her career in music can be measured by how well it serves her community. Fulfillment comes from using her art to help fund worthy organizations. Baker plays Redwood City's Club Fox on Friday, sharing the bill with another very gifted Peninsula performer, Ruth Gerson. The concert is to benefit The St. Francis Center in Redwood City.
"I guess I take after my mom," Baker said. "She's always been involved in something. When I was growing up, she was a volunteer in hospital emergency rooms. When I was in college, she got involved in a Southern California church and, through the church, has done a lot of counseling. This church is globally involved in charitable work." Baker and her mother Carolyn are in the process of setting up their own charitable foundation, Angels of Hope. Baker's plans crystallized when she met Bill Somerville of Philanthropic Ventures Foundation. He's the author of "Grassroots Philanthropy." She appreciated his hands-on approach. "His foundation kind of became a model for me," she said. Somerville took her into the community, visiting several of the places his company helps to fund on the Peninsula. The first was the St. Francis Center. "I was just blown away by this amazing place," Baker said.
"It's this beautiful space that they built from the ground up. There's a classroom on the top. Downstairs they put bags of food together for people in the community. There's a clothing room where people can, once a month, get a bag of clothing. They have 24 units of low-income housing. "It's the most efficiently run thing I've ever seen. Sister Christina (Heltsley), who runs it, is incredible. And there are all of these dedicated volunteers." What Baker saw in the classroom especially impressed her. "The teacher's in the middle of teaching these cute little kids and she suddenly said, 'Oh, look, Bill is here!' They saw him and all knew who he was and shouted, 'Uncle Bill! Uncle Bill!' And they got up and came running towards them with their big smiles. It was a moment I'll never forget. The look on their faces was so much love for this person who had made this center for them. I'm like, 'Man, I've got to do this.'"
In addition to writing and performing music, Baker operates her own label, Earthwater Records. Now she's establishing a charitable foundation. How does she juggle all of these pursuits? "It's really hard, but it's good. I have to be really organized with my time. I have my little Macbook and my iPhone and I just carve out things very carefully. I'll say, these days, during these hours, I'll rehearse. On these days, I'll promote the concert. And so on. I've developed a system now where everything is really structured. I know there's only one of me, but, hopefully, eventually there will be more people involved," she said, laughing.
Her role as community activist feeds Baker's creative side. "The more I think about things outside of myself, the more inspired I am in general, as a human being, and that's reflected in my music. And my music has headed more and more in that direction, instead of being just all about me. "I've written a lot of songs over the years, and when I was putting together the set list for this Club Fox show, I found that I was picking the ones that speak to me about these types of things, like caring about things that are hopeful, inspirational, uplifting, whatever you want to call it. I find myself more pulled towards those songs. And as I'm writing my newer songs, I feel like I'm going more in that direction, as opposed to just relationships and things like that."
Growing up in Southern California, Baker admired artists who reflected social and political awareness. "The biggest influence, when I first got into music, was The Indigo Girls. I saw one of their videos and their approach was unique, different from any other video I had seen. I went to the library and looked them up and there was all this stuff about how interested they were in the world and the community and peace and activism. And it just got me. It really spoke to me. I was maybe 15."
She earned a music degree at Oakland's Mills College. She interned at Polygram, learning the nuts and bolts of the industry, prior to founding her own label. As a performer, she has built a loyal fan base.
Baker is well into the process of recording an album, a follow-up to her outstanding collection of folk-rock songs, "Field of Plenty." The new one will be more piano-oriented, rather than guitar-driven. She says the music will have a softer quality to it. She hopes to have it in release in time for summer and fall regional tours.
"Being able to use music to have a positive impact on the community, for me, that's an incredible source of joy."
Who: Kim Baker Band
Where: Club Fox, 2209 Broadway,
Redwood City
When: 7:30 p.m. Friday
Tickets: $16-$18; www.foxrwc.com; 650-369-7770
Artist website: www.kimbaker.com