Acclaimed Hudson Valley singer-songwriter Judy Kass is set to perform songs from her newest album, 2025’s New Skin, at venues across New York in October and November.
Kass will make appearances at People’s Voice Cafe in New York City on October 17, BeanRunner Cafe in Peekskill on October 18 with Steve Chizmadia and Cafe Veritas in Rochester on November 7.
New Skin, co-produced by celebrated folk musicians Mark Dann and Pat Wictor, features collaborations with Sloan Wainwright, Glen Roethel, Dang Berggren, Jon Shain and Kellie Lin Knott. The album debuted at No. 4 on the Folk Alliance International Top Albums Chart. Her earlier albums, Better Things (2014) and Beyond Ash and Steel (2016) were also successes on the Folk DJ charts.
“Look at Us Marching Now,” featured on New Skin, was noticed by singer-songwriter Christine Lavin, who created a music video of the song highlighting The Women’s March in three cities. Kass’ work has also earned recognition from the Great American Song Contest, Philadelphia Songwriters Project, Mid-Atlantic Song Contest and South Florida Folk Festival, and she was selected as an official showcase artist at the 2025 Northeast Regional Folk Alliance Conference.
Kass has been writing music about resilience, community and life for years. Born into a family of musicians in Hudson Valley, Kass began writing on both keyboard and guitar from an early age. She was inspired by a diverse lineup of musicians, from Laura Nyro, Janis Ian, Joni Mitchell and Neil Young to Miles Davis, Sarah Vaughn, Keith Jarrett and Rachmaninoff, which reflects her diverse styles and genres.
After spending her teenage years and early twenties making music, she was drawn away from regular performances by graduate studies and other life opportunities. After the loss of nearly 300 colleagues in the 9/11 terror attacks, Kass turned to music on her healing journey, prompting a shift back to acoustic performance. Songs on Better Things and Beyond the Ash and Steel were inspired by stories that she gathered from this experience.
In 2008, driven by a passion for music education, Kass founded MusicWorks, a community program that provides students from low income families with the opportunity to receive private lessons and mentoring funded by grants and donations from the communities of Tarrytown and Sleepy Hollow.
New Skin follows Kass’ signature blend of folk, jazz and blues fused with deeply personal storytelling, focusing on staying resilient in the harder times of life. From songs like “Thank the Stone” taking a humorous tone in life’s setbacks to “Hopeful Hearts” and “You Are The Song” bringing listeners into tender moments of reassurance.
Learn more about Kass’ upcoming shows at People’s Voice Cafe, BeanRunner Cafe and Cafe Veritas.
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