Stella Prince
In the eyes of many, folk music is the exclusive province of elderly performers who’ve spent decades absorbing and passing on forgotten songs from past eras and artists — or else younger artists eager to follow their pattern precisely. Nashville singer-songwriter Stella Prince obliterates those notions. At 19, she has the poise and polish of a crafty veteran, since she’s been writing and playing songs for many years. Prince, originally from New York, has come a long way in a very short time since relocating to Nashville, becoming one of Music City’s most ardent champions of folk and acoustic sounds.
For the past two years she’s hosted the monthly Stella Prince and Friends showcase at The Underdog on Gallatin Pike. It’s one of a steadily growing number of all-women showcases in Nashville, and was created with the support of Change the Conversation, an organization focused on gender equality in music founded by industry vets Leslie Fram, Tracy Gershon and Beverly Keel. Interest in Prince’s music and showcase has already grown to the point that she has taken it on the road to such sites as Nashville songwriter mecca The Bluebird Cafe and venerable New York City folk club The Bitter End, as well as venues in Boston and London.
This week, Prince will make more news. She’ll be the youngest host and performer featured in a showcase at long-running Nashville songwriters’ festival Tin Pan South. Wednesday, she’ll perform with fellow standout songsmiths Denitia, Erin Enderlin and Jasmine Harris at Cross-Eyed Critters Watering Hole inside Graduate Nashville.
“I love all genres of music,” Prince tells the Scene. “But I grew up in Woodstock, New York. I saw every folk singer live when I was growing up — Pete Seeger; Levon Helm; Peter, Paul and Mary. It was an incredible environment to grow up in. I’ve known every Joni Mitchell song by heart since I was 6. So I think my music combines elements of folk music and pop music, the two genres that have inspired me the most, and merges into ‘Gen Z Folk,’ which I like to call my sound.”
Prince specifically cites the influence on her voice of such legends as Karen Carpenter, Patsy Cline and Judy Garland. For lyrics, Joni Mitchell is a major inspiration, while Shania Twain’s gift for melody is a current fascination. Prince says she watched Shania Twain: Not Just a Girl, the Netflix documentary about the country megastar, some 20 times.
Prince’s most recent single “Dear Future Me,” released in October, was co-produced by Grammy winner, author and steel-guitar ace Steve Fishell, who has raved about the maturity and power of Prince’s voice, as well as the intensity and quality of her writing and music. And with good reason: The catchy “Dear Future Me” is a nuanced look at the unease of young adulthood — something she’s living through right now — with insightful perspective that typically comes only with hindsight. She filmed a video for another single, November 2022’s “Closing Doors,” at The Basement; it also got airplay on CMT. In August, Prince won the Folk Alliance International’s First Timers Scholarship; around the same time, her single “Two Faced” went to No. 2 on the North American College and Community Radio Folk Chart, a notable feat for a track not tied to a longer release.
The daughter of a painter and writer, Prince rejects the notion that it’s difficult to interest her generation in folk music. She points to the rising popularity of folk among the Gen Z audience, including Taylor Swift’s top-selling 2020 LPs Folklore and Evermore, which lean into folk influences. Meanwhile, musicians who draw even more heavily on folk traditions are gaining ground as well.
“Artists like Noah Kahan and Phoebe Bridgers have exploded. Times are changing, and the folk train has already left the station. It’s such an exciting time.”
