A relatively new voice on the Philadelphia scene, Grace Gardner is a Texas-born, New Orleans-schooled multi-intrumentalist, singer-songwriter, and producer. They arrived in the 215 in summer of 2023 and hit the ground running, connecting with locals like Julia Pratt and Lena Fine, writing and recording the songs that would become their 2024 EPs Recovery Mile and After Knowing, and establishing a firm home base for their burgeoning touring career.
Gardner’s music is heartfelt and honest, full of warm humor and observational detail. With bright indie-folk arrangements and strong pop sensibilities, they craft snapshots of life as an empathetic and hopeful twentysomething in a burning world, a dynamic that makes the moments of heartrending loss and bold triumph hit all the harder. They look to artists like Madison Cunningham and Andy Shauf for inspiration, and when submitting their song “Firing Sideways” to WXPN last year, Gardner said “I’m excited to hone more in on that intersection between folk, indie, and the weird melting pot of genre that comes with self-production.”
Truly they nail it, and “Firing Sideways” opens Gardner’s Key Studio Sessions performance, their first video session backed by their touring bandmates: guitarist Lonnie Davis (a longtime collaborator), bassist Bella Amada, and drummer Dustin Reinink. The set showcases three songs from After Knowing, which is getting a deluxe reissue later this year, including the simmering “Something You’re Proud Of (Crime Television)” and the explosive closer “At Your Best.”
Watch Grace Gardner’s Key Session above, check out photos from the studio below, and for more music, explore their Bandcamp Page. They just wrapped up a North American tour with Eliza and the Delusionals, they will support Catie Turner on the road in the fall, and they’re on the lineup for Philly Music Fest 2025; tickets and information can be found at PhillyMusicFest.com.