Fresh off her 2018 GRAMMY win for Best Children’s Album (“Feel What U Feel”), Lisa Loeb invites audiences to join her for “An Evening with Lisa Loeb” Feb. 2 at 8 p.m. in Yardley Hall at the Carlsen Center at Johnson County Community College. Tickets are available at www.jccc.edu/CarlsenCenter or by phone at 913-469-4445.
Loeb will take audiences on a journey through her signature folk/pop songs from the past two decades. Known as a trailblazing, independent artist, Loeb was the first pop artist to have a number one single without a recording contract. She followed the platinum hit song “Stay (I Missed You)” in 1994 from the film “Reality Bites” with several more hit singles and six albums, two of which were certified gold.
Emily Behrmann, Carlsen Center General Manager, said Loeb joins a season that includes a group of strong female performers from Emmylou Harris and Aida Cuevas to Marilyn Maye and Chita Rivera.
“Throughout the 2018/19 season, we’re emphasizing the unique voice women bring to the performing arts,” Behrmann said. “Because of her talent as a singer/songwriter and as an entrepreneur, Lisa Loeb is a perfect choice for us this year.”
Loeb will perform many of her 1990s hit singles, including “Do You Sleep,” “I Do,” “Stay (I Missed You”) as well as songs from her newest album. “Lullaby Girl” features soulful arrangements of classics such as Dionne Warwick’s “What the World Needs Now Is Love,” the Five Stairsteps’ “O-o-h Child” and Fleetwood Mac’s “Don’t Stop,” as well as two original songs, including the title track.
On performing live, Loeb said, “I love playing songs from my entire catalogue and telling stories. Every show is different from the last — the audience, the venue, even the preshow snacks. You never know what’s going to happen.”
Kansas City audiences will have two opportunities to see Loeb Feb. 2. At 2 p.m., she will lead preschoolers and their parents in “Feel What U Feel — A Kids Sing-Along with Lisa Loeb.” This 35-minute concert in the Polsky Theatre will highlight Loeb’s music written for children and parents from the GRAMMY-award winning album “Feel What U Feel” and her “Catch the Moon” and “Camp Lisa” albums.
Behrmann said events presented at the Carlsen Center this season reach a broad range of audiences in the community, noting, “Lisa Loeb’s appearances at the Carlsen Center makes it possible to reach several groups — children, parents and adults who have enjoyed her music from the 1990s and early 2000s — all with one talented artist!”
Loeb is well-known to parents and their little ones for her five children’s albums and two illustrated children’s books with music. In January 2018, her family-friendly album, “Feel What U Feel,” won the GRAMMY for Best Children’s Album, along with The Parents Choice Award.
She recently collaborated to develop and write the children’s musical “Camp Kappawanna,” which debuted at New York City’s Atlantic Theater Company. Loeb provides voice talent for the animated series “Creative Galaxy” and composes original songs for the Emmy-nominated “If You Give a Mouse a Cookie” series, also on a soundtrack album released in June 2018 exclusively with Amazon.
Inspired by her love of attending summer camp while she was growing up, Loeb started The Camp Lisa Foundation, which sends underserved youth to summer camp. In 2015, The American Camp Association of New England named Loeb as their Camp Champions Honoree with a gala celebration at Fenway Park.
Loeb also is the creator of Lisa Loeb Eyewear, which calls on her iconic cat-eyed glasses for inspiration. Her designs give women and children fun ways to affordably accessorize and create their own iconic look. The ever-growing collection is available at Costco and optical shops across the country.
Loeb’s recent film and television appearances include “AP Bio,” “John Oliver’s Last Week Tonight,” “About a Boy,” “Hot Tub Time Machine 2,” “King of The Nerds” and Sprout Channel’s “Sunny Side Up Show” (now “Sprout House” on Universal Kids). She also has done voice work for ads for Alfa Romeo, Foster Farms Chicken and Chili’s.
Originally from Dallas, Loeb resides in Los Angeles with her husband, Roey, two children, Lyla and Emet, and her cat, Sweetie McGee.
Individual tickets for “An Evening with Lisa Loeb” at 8 p.m. are $38 or $28. Tickets for “Feel What U Feel — A Kids Sing-Along with Lisa Loeb” at 2 p.m. are $20, $10 for youth under 18. Tickets can be purchased at www.jccc.edu/CarlsenCenter or by phone at 913-469-4445.
–Susan Tolleson, Writer, Johnson County Community College
Photo of Lisa Loeb by Juan Patino
