Schedule
Saturday, September 14, 2024 at 12:00 - 12:50 pm (Main Stage)
It was a leap of faith. Danielle Ponder was working for the public defender’s office in Rochester, New York – a job she loved – when the pull of music became too strong to ignore. The legal world’s loss was the music world’s gain. Her incredible voice soars through the soul-R&B-blues-rock-trip-hop songs on her captivating 2022 release, Some of Us Are Brave. Her influences range from gospel to alt-rock, but after hearing Big Mama Thornton and Koko Taylor, she knew she wanted to sing like they did. And though her influences are evident, she realized she didn’t have to pick just one. “My sound is just an intersection of all the sounds I grew up with. I love the heavy beats of East coast ‘90s hip-hop. I love the moodiness of the blues, and the guitar sounds of alternative rock. My influences range from Portishead to Aretha Franklin. And I think somewhere I realized that I didn’t have to choose a sound.” We’re just glad she chose music.