Kristen Barry

Kristen Barry was born in Seattle, Washington, in January 1970. Her first instrument was a piano given to her at age 5 for Christmas, which started her interest in creating music.^[1][2] She began her career as a member of the band First Thought, joining as their keyboard player in 1985. After 3 years she left the band and started touring solo with her own material, now focusing on the guitar, at age 18.^[3] She became a regular at venues such as The Crocodile, RKCNDY, Vogue, and the Central Saloon (known then as the Central Tavern).

In 1991 Jeff Ament of Pearl Jam gave her demo tape to Epic Records, who flew her to LA under an artist development contract,^[4] though this was not fruitful and she returned to Seattle. Her second opportunity wouldn't come about until June 1994, with a record deal from Virgin Records, and she relocated to LA in 1995 to record her first (and only) album. "The Beginning. The Middle. The End" was released in 1996^[5] featuring Matt Chamberlain on drums and Chris Ballew on bass, and she embarked on a tour throughout 1996 and 1997 in support of it.

Kristen began writing for her next album while touring, and one song - "Ordinary Life" - was released on the Cruel Intentions (soundtrack). Shortly afterward, she was dropped by her label, and moved to New York. She briefly joined the band Star Ghost Dog as their touring keyboardist in 2001,^[6] also performing some solo shows between, before finally leaving the industry completely to go back to school for psychology.^[7]