Getting to Know Kate Crowder
July 1st, 2009 by Jane Schneider
Two Way Radio lead singer Kate Crowder wears many hats: musician, mom, teacher, wife, MTV starlet. Surprised? Not if you watched MTV’s $5 Cover, a fictional/reality series based on the lives of Memphis musicians. Director Craig Brewer liked the indie pop sound of her band, Two Way Radio, which she leads with her husband, Corey Crowder, and was intrigued by her life as a musician and young mother (Kate is 28, with children Oliver, 5, and Polly, 3), enough so that he wrote her into the story line.
We caught up with Kate this summer, as she was taking a break from her teaching duties, to talk about motherhood and MTV.
MP: How did you get into music?
Crowder: I’ve always sung in choirs and performed musical theater, since I was 8 or 9. I considered studying musical theater in college but changed my mind and got a degree at the University of Memphis in elementary education instead. (She moved to Memphis with her parents at age 18 from Olathe, Kansas.) I loved to sing, but I also wanted to learn how to play the piano, so at 22, I checked out a book from the library and taught myself how to play. It works, but you wouldn’t want to hire me for a wedding or anything — I’m not, like, this amazing pianist.
MP: You came to motherhood early (son Oliver was born when Kate was 22), at a time when many young adults are just finding themselves. What was that like?
Crowder: Some moms are suspicious of me when they discover I’m in a rock band; I’ve even been mistaken as the kids’ au pair at times. But once they realize I’m not a teenager, we’re okay. A lot of my musician friends don’t have children and they worry that when they do settle down, they’ll have to give up everything. I think you can have both. It enriches me as a parent to have my children and my music.
MP: Many parents in the arts struggle to find time to create once children arrive. How do you strike that balance?
Crowder: With kids, I don’t have the luxury of saying, “I’ve got a great idea for a song, kids; go away so I can write.” I have to make the creative work in time blocks, so I’ve learned how to make it happen when it needs to happen. I sometimes write at school. I might write a song that has to do with math or science but then change the lyrics later.
Also, our kids go to bed at 8 o’clock. And since we have a studio in the basement, Corey and I go down there to write songs together. That’s our bonding time. Having a routine for the children has also helped my professional life. I think I’m more disciplined now. I began writing songs while I was pregnant with Oliver, so I like to say my music career really started with the birth of my son.
MP: A lot of musicians work a day job they’d just as soon quit. But your job as a fourth-grade teacher at Farmington Elementary isn’t that.
Crowder: No, it may be the perfect job for me. In addition to teaching, I head up the drama department, which the school has embraced. When I was working on $5 Cover, I made use of my Hollywood connections by having Craig Brewer speak to my class, and the make-up and hair people work with my kids for our annual play. It was fun seeing two worlds collide.
MP: How has time on MTV affected your career?
Crowder: We’ve been on the road more this year, landing better gigs. We did South by Southwest, a music festival in Austin, Texas, which was amazing. I was giving out autographs! That’s very weird. The business side of the band has also been more prominent: We got a lawyer, started a bank account for the band. Generally, it’s gotten more serious than just practicing once a week and playing at the Hi-Tone. However, I would say we’re more appreciated by people in other cities than we are here. But I feel like I’ve been getting my 15 minutes of fame and I’m trying to enjoy it while it lasts.