Sarah Kinsley is a 24-year-old American singer-songwriter from California with Chinese-American descent who is best known for her song, “The King,” which became a mass hit on TikTok in 2021. Kinsley has had a love for music and its production for her whole life. When she moved to Connecticut, Kinsley performed the violin in her youth orchestra, growing her expertise in the instrument, while also learning classical piano. When she was in middle school, Kinsley began listening to pop music and fell in love. She then learned how to play the cello and how to play guitar.
When the time came to go to college, she attended Columbia University in New York to study music theory. After collaborating with an older male classmate, she found that very few women were producing music and took that as a challenge. At Columbia, she produced her own music, ditching classical for alt-pop, releasing her first single “Wine Stained Lips” in 2019.
In 2020, while still at school, she released her first extended play (EP), which was self-written and produced, titled “The Fall.” It included six songs and described how she navigated her personal relationships.
Musical influences can inspire who an artist becomes. For Kinsley, it started with classical influences like Frédéric Chopin, Claude Debussy and Maurice Ravel and grew to include pop artists like ABBA, HAIM, Carol King and Lorde. Now, Kinsley hopes to inspire other women to become songwriters and producers to show female empowerment on a bigger scale.
After her first EP in 2019, Kinsley’s first album, “Escaper,” was released four years later on Sept. 6, 2024. The album deals with Kinsley’s experiences with loss, grief and love. The title comes from her view on escapism and utilizing it to cope. In an interview with Women in Pop, she said, “Escapism was truly one of the only ways that I understood how to cope with grief and loss because in these other worlds, the people I’ve lost still exist.” This theme is seen throughout the album, especially in the titular song where she talks about dreaming of another reality where things are different.
Kinsley finally got to headline her first tour, “The Escaper Tour,” and is continuing it with 11 stops this year. The closest she will be to New York is at White Eagle Hall in Jersey City, New Jersey, on April 21. Something unique that she did to commemorate each stop on tour last year was creating a scrapbook. This was brought to 32 cities, allowing fans to leave notes, drawings and letters.
Reviews of her concerts are on the good side as people commend her stage presence and vocals.
“What I admire most about Kinsley is her boldness to allow music to consume her, transforming her into a conduit for melody and musicality,” said music journalist Michael Ybarra.
While there is a negative connotation for finding an artist on TikTok, it can also lead to talent like Kinsley. Don’t be afraid to reach into the depths of social media for new music. You might just find your new favorite artist.
