Ken Pomeroy
In the final moments of the penultimate episode of the Emmy-nominated FX series Reservation Dogs, a haunting song plays as Elora (Devery Jacobs) drives away from her estranged father Rick (Ethan Hawke), whom she’s recently reconnected with. Fans of the series — a brilliant coming-of-age dramedy that follows four Indigenous teens growing up in rural Oklahoma — scoured Reddit pages, social media and even Shazam, attempting to find the name of the stirring track with gentle acoustic fingerpicking underpinning a bitter lyric about growing up. Finally, the artist herself posted to the Reservation Dogs subreddit, solving the mystery and thanking new listeners for supporting a song that she hadn’t released yet.
“Siyo, y’all!” Tulsa, Okla.-based singer-songwriter Ken Pomeroy wrote. “I am the artist who wrote and performed ‘Cicadas’ at the end of the episode!”
That was fall 2023. Fast-forward a little less than two years to spring 2025, and Pomeroy released her stellar LP Cruel Joke via revered indie label Rounder. In fall 2025, Reservation Dogs creator Sterlin Harjo’s noir comedy The Lowdown also premiered on FX; it prominently features Pomeroy’s music, and she even appears in the show alongside Hawke, Jeanne Tripplehorn and Kyle MacLachlan.
Pomeroy credits Reservation Dogs for “kicking things off” for her music career. But the 23-year-old singer-songwriter has been cutting her teeth in the Oklahoma music scene for nearly half her life, getting her start performing at her dad Skippy’s motorcycle shop turned concert venue.
Raised in Moore, Okla., Pomeroy is Cherokee. Her great-grandmother, aka “mamaw,” gave her the name ᎤᏍᏗ ᏀᏯ ᏓᎶᏂᎨ ᎤᏍᏗᎦ, which means “Little Wolf With the Yellow Hair.” Ever since she heard John Denver’s “Leaving on a Jet Plane” at 6 years old, Pomeroy has been transfixed by the power music has over our emotions.
“Deep emotion for me, a lot of the time, was feeling kind of sad,” Pomeroy tells the Scene. “So I think by default I was really drawn to sad songs. But any songs that really made me feel something, I was super drawn to.”
On Cruel Joke, Pomeroy explores grief, family upheaval and childhood trauma through gorgeously melancholic tunes such as “Days Getting Darker,” the aforementioned “Cicadas,” “Innocent Eyes” and “Pareidolia,” which Pomeroy says is an homage to a song of the same name by Big Thief’s Buck Meek. The album was released right as the Oklahoma country music scene was having a moment, with fellow Sooner State artists such as Turnpike Troubadours, Kaitlin Butts and Wyatt Flores making waves — something Pomeroy is proud to be a part of.
“There’s so much to how Oklahoma has been a part of who I am and what I do now,” Pomeroy says. “It’s almost like every part of what I am and who I am.”
The Scene caught up with Pomeroy — who’ll make her Ryman debut in February when she opens for Shane Smith and the Saints — to discuss her breakthrough year, sharing the stage with Wanda Jackson, jamming with Tim Blake Nelson and more. Our conversation has been edited for length and clarity.
Oklahoma has such a rich history of songwriters and storytellers. How has the state’s music scene influenced you?
I think Oklahoma in general has influenced me as an artist, not only just [the music] scene. But I’m really thankful for all of the people who I grew up around that accepted me as a peer, even though I was obviously much younger than them and much newer to music than them. Kyle Reid, Carter Sampson, John Moreland, John Calvin Abney — all of those people that were basically the Oklahoma scene and cultivated that vibe — were always so welcoming of me and so supportive. That could have definitely gone the other way. So I’m really thankful for how they treated me and how I was just so welcomed in. Kyle Reid helped me with my first and second record when I was … like 13 or 14. I don’t even think it’s on streaming services anymore.[Laughs]
Speaking of Oklahoma music icons, you once opened for Wanda Jackson.
I had been singing a little bit at the Oklahoma Opry and she was coming through, and I got asked to sing backup vocals with her. Then I got asked to open for her. I mean, it was just so cool. She got to tell me all these crazy stories and tell me about her love with Elvis. That was one of the first moments where I was like, “Oh my gosh, there are so many levels to this.”
She really liked my outfit, which was a Nudie Suit-inspired two-piece set that my stepmom made for me for this show. She said that her stylist would’ve loved it as well. [Jackson is] very small, and she’s very spunky too. When I walked offstage after opening for her, she smacked my butt. I think that she meant to maybe pat me on the back, but I still don’t know to this day. It was really funny.
Your music has been featured on both Reservation Dogs and The Lowdown. How did your connection with Sterlin Harjo come about?
That partnership came about pretty organically. We were mutuals on Instagram, and that kind of started the Reservation Dogs conversation. I remember him messaging me and asking if I had any new music coming. I sent him some songs and then he ended up using two of the three songs that I sent in the Reservation Dogs episode, which honestly kicked things off for us. It’s been great ever since. We did live sessions with him. And we also are just friends. I’m really thankful for that friendship, because it’s awesome to be around other creative people that get it.
We [both] also live in Tulsa. Today he even called me and he said: “Can I drive by your house? I have a gift for you.” And he got me a raccoon-tail hat. So if you see me wearing this hat nonstop, that’s why.
Ken Pomeroy
You also have an onscreen role in The Lowdown. What was that experience like?
It was truly one of the most interesting things that I got to be a part of. I got to work with legends, and I’m so thankful that I even was considered a part of that. I think my favorite memory of working on that was just how chill everything was. … It was very family-oriented in a strange way.
I got to work with Kyle MacLachlan, Jeanne Tripplehorn, Ethan Hawke, Keith David, Tim Blake Nelson. It was insane. The first day I was there, I had to take photos with Tim Blake Nelson to put around the house [on set] for shooting the show, since he [plays] my dad. He found out that I was a musician and I just played songs for him in his trailer. He plays mandolin, so we played some songs together. It was really cool. It lightened the mood a lot.
Ethan Hawke is also a huge music lover. Did you talk about music with him on set?
Definitely. He played my guitar. Him and Sterlin would sing songs 24/7 on set.
You’ve said your great-grandma is a huge influence on you. What’s something you’ve learned from her?
Oh yes — my mamaw. She’s still kicking. She might be living forever at this point. She has always made it clear — which I kind of wrote a little bit about in “Coyote” — [that] life is short, but also there’s going to be enough time for you to become the person you want to become.
You’ve spoken about how important storytelling is in Native cultures. Do you feel that that influenced your interest in songwriting?
I think that it kind of happened by default. I don’t think that it’s a coincidence that I’m doing what I’m doing.
Ken Pomeroy
Animals appear in your songs quite a bit — “Wrango” and “Coyote” to name a couple. What draws you to that imagery?
I never really meant to put so many animals in my songs. … I think the way that I look at things, it’s easier to look at things with animals in place of some people and feelings.
What made you want to title the album Cruel Joke?
It’s funny because I actually got some pushback on the title. I felt really strongly about it, just because making this record was a little bit tumultuous, but also I’ve kind of lived tumultuously. I think that’s just the best word that I could [use to] describe things. I wouldn’t change a thing. I think that everything that I’ve experienced has made me who I am right now, and allowed me to do what I’m doing.
But also I think it’s fair for me to acknowledge some of the hard things that I’ve had to go through. Specifically with this record, some of the songs are 10-plus years old, and some of the songs are a year old. It’s just a collection of songs from the majority part of my life that was a little bit of a cruel joke.
Do you have a favorite song on the album?
I’d say “Dogs Die” or “Rodeo Clown.” It’s always hard for me to take a step back and look at my songwriting and not barf, just because you’re your own critic. But those two I can separate myself from a little bit.
With “Dogs Die” I feel like I really got my point across, even though it’s a really short song. … It’s about finding out about new family members that you didn’t know existed and finding out about really intense family lore that came up way later in my life that I just had no idea about. I feel like that’s been happening a lot with people with DNA tests. Everyone’s discovering more about people in their lives.
Looking back on the past year, what are you most proud of?
I’m proud of how I’ve taken it all in — or maybe the lack of me taking it all in, because I feel very much the same. You know what I mean? There’s so many changes and so many new things that I have to deal with and such. But I’m sitting on my couch right now with my dog Wrango, on the phone with you.
Cruel Joke was featured on several year-end lists. How does it make you feel to see the album getting such a positive response?
I’m really grateful for all the kind words that people are saying. I’ve gotten really, really sweet messages about people having a tough year and the album helping them get through it, which is literally the whole point of me doing this in the first place.
What has surprised you the most about the past year, career-wise or otherwise?
I think what surprised me most is maybe how hard it all is. I knew it was going to be hard, but I think interpersonally, there are a lot of things that you have to think about. Music and the music business is so personal with everything, and it’s really interesting to grapple with the fact that your emotions are being sold. But it’s also like, I want that to happen because I want to share what I’m doing. There are also hard decisions about even just what the record looks like or what the next year looks like or what the plans are — it’s almost very strange for me sometimes.
What do you hope people take from your music?
I hope that they just take a feeling away from it. I just want to make people feel. I always say that, but I really do. I think so much music nowadays is just mass-produced — which can be cool too. But music is such a sacred and beautiful thing that all of us have enjoyed for hundreds and hundreds of years, and we can all heal from it. That’s really, really important to me.
What can fans expect from you next?
I’m trying to write as much as I can. This is kind of the first time in my life where I’ve had to write for an album. I’ve had so many songs throughout my life, and I got to pick and choose from them, and pick what I thought were the best fits for Cruel Joke. But now it’s like I’m starting from a blank slate. It’s interesting. There’s a lot of pressure, but also I’m trying to let go of the insecurities that I’m just making up in my head and just let it all happen.
Talking ‘Cruel Joke’ with Ken Pomeroy, speaking with the founders of the Country Latin Association and more
