Katie Ruth Sachs is a musician, connection artist, community organizer,
facilitator, writer and healer.
The only child of two social workers, Katie was introduced to the importance of ethics and being of service to others at a young age. It is through the values of; healing/personal growth, the creation of beauty and community building that every manifestation of her work on this planet stems from. Katie began writing songs at the ripe young age of 13, and would spend hours and hours in her room listening to old records, developing a deep understanding and appreciation for music. Her passion for health and wellness was sparked at age 16, after the passing of her father from a two-year battle with colon cancer. (She later payed tribute to her late father, Jerry Sachs - social work professor and poet, in her album The Giantness of Little Things) Katie studied creative writing in college at The University of Wisconsin - Madison, with an African Studies minor after spending a semester abroad in Kenya. It was through this powerful cultural immersion experience that she learned to understand the importance of community and compassion for others on a much deeper level. Katie was also active with Madison's large homeless population, and was the events coordinator and contributing editor for StreetPulse homeless cooperative newspaper. Creatively, Katie continued to write songs, and was a singer with The Black Music Ensemble, a course lead by the legendary Jazz bass player Richard Davis. She was awarded the 2008 University Bookstore Academic Excellence Award, a $1,000 grant for her Senior theses in creative writing.
After college, Katie returned to her hometown of Greenfield, MA, where she served as an AmeriCorps Member for two years at The Brick House Community Resource Center. She worked primarily with "high-risk/out of school" youth and ran various programs in their teen center, including weekly writing workshops, drop-in hours, open mic's and support in The Brick House recording studio. She collaborated on and was co-editor of a youth Zine publication "Copyright Infringement," which received local media attention. Katie also provided informal counseling and support to participants dealing with issues such as homelessness, drug-addiction, family trauma and emotional challenges.
After the end of her second term, Katie and some friends founded a mindfulness-based intentional community called "The Greenfield Dharma House." Though somewhat short lived, Katie learned and practiced a variety of communication tools, including Council Practice, NVC (Non-Violent Communication) and Motivational Interviewing. The house also temporarily ran The Stone Soup Cafe, a local "pay-what- you-can" community meal, where Katie was the live music coordinator. In 2011, Katie was hired as a case manager at Community Action Youth Programs, where she continued to work with the teen and young adult population of Franklin County, this time around supporting youth with their educational and occupational goals. Musically, Katie began to perform locally more often, and in 2012, released her first studio EP Places Not on Maps. She was also a founding member of the Woman's Songwriter Collective, a group of female singer-songwriters who came together to empower the creativity of other women and support each other both creatively, personally and professionally. She wrote and received hundreds of dollars of Mass Cultural Council grant funding to offer short-term creative writing and songwriting workshops at a variety of non-profit organizations across Franklin County and The North Quabbin.
After about four years of living and working in Western Massachusetts, Katie was pulled to Austin, TX through her attendance and connections she made at The Kerrville Folk Festival. At the end of 2013, she quit her job, broke up with her long-term boyfriend, got a phonograph tattoo, moved into her car, and embarked on her first cross-country tour down to ATX. For about two years, Katie went full force into her music career. She released her first full-length album "The Giantness of Little Things" funded by a successful Kickstarter campaign in 2015, that included collaborations with some of Austin's top musicians, including: Brannen Temple (drummer for The Dixie Chicks, Chaka Khan, and others), Andrew Pressman (Ben Kweller), Wilson Marks and others. She also continued her work as a community organizer by living in a variety of arts-based communities, and hosting weekly song circles, backyard concert events and more. She also put out her official music video for the song Underwear Model featuring a tongue-and-cheek feminist comment on how women are often portrayed as sexual objects in the mainstream music industry and also offering a "body positive" message for humans of all shapes, ages, colors and sizes. In 2018, she released her third studio album "A Matter of Time." Reviews are still coming in, but many are claiming it to be her best, most cohesive work yet. Click here to listen and purchase!
After two years of pursuing a full-time indie music career, Katie needed to take a break. It was during this time of healing and restoration that Katie decided to enroll at "A New Beginning School of Massage" and explore a career in bodywork. She absolutely adored it, and became a Licensed Massage Therapist in the state of Texas in December of 2016 and in the state of North Carolina in 2018. She also spent a lot of time re-thinking what "success" in the music business actually means, and began counseling fellow musicians in re-claiming and re-defining the goals of their creative pursuits to also include personal health and wellness. Katie began working full-time as a massage therapist at Austin Deep, Austin's premier Deep Tissue Therapy Center in early 2017, and was groomed in their unique style of myofascial sports massage, hydrotherapy and accucupping techniques. She also completed the Authentic Relating Games Facilitator Training - an event which helps bring strangers together through fun, connective games and communication skills.
Katie now lives and works in Asheville, NC with her cat and massage helper Ramona.
After college, Katie returned to her hometown of Greenfield, MA, where she served as an AmeriCorps Member for two years at The Brick House Community Resource Center. She worked primarily with "high-risk/out of school" youth and ran various programs in their teen center, including weekly writing workshops, drop-in hours, open mic's and support in The Brick House recording studio. She collaborated on and was co-editor of a youth Zine publication "Copyright Infringement," which received local media attention. Katie also provided informal counseling and support to participants dealing with issues such as homelessness, drug-addiction, family trauma and emotional challenges.
After the end of her second term, Katie and some friends founded a mindfulness-based intentional community called "The Greenfield Dharma House." Though somewhat short lived, Katie learned and practiced a variety of communication tools, including Council Practice, NVC (Non-Violent Communication) and Motivational Interviewing. The house also temporarily ran The Stone Soup Cafe, a local "pay-what- you-can" community meal, where Katie was the live music coordinator. In 2011, Katie was hired as a case manager at Community Action Youth Programs, where she continued to work with the teen and young adult population of Franklin County, this time around supporting youth with their educational and occupational goals. Musically, Katie began to perform locally more often, and in 2012, released her first studio EP Places Not on Maps. She was also a founding member of the Woman's Songwriter Collective, a group of female singer-songwriters who came together to empower the creativity of other women and support each other both creatively, personally and professionally. She wrote and received hundreds of dollars of Mass Cultural Council grant funding to offer short-term creative writing and songwriting workshops at a variety of non-profit organizations across Franklin County and The North Quabbin.
After about four years of living and working in Western Massachusetts, Katie was pulled to Austin, TX through her attendance and connections she made at The Kerrville Folk Festival. At the end of 2013, she quit her job, broke up with her long-term boyfriend, got a phonograph tattoo, moved into her car, and embarked on her first cross-country tour down to ATX. For about two years, Katie went full force into her music career. She released her first full-length album "The Giantness of Little Things" funded by a successful Kickstarter campaign in 2015, that included collaborations with some of Austin's top musicians, including: Brannen Temple (drummer for The Dixie Chicks, Chaka Khan, and others), Andrew Pressman (Ben Kweller), Wilson Marks and others. She also continued her work as a community organizer by living in a variety of arts-based communities, and hosting weekly song circles, backyard concert events and more. She also put out her official music video for the song Underwear Model featuring a tongue-and-cheek feminist comment on how women are often portrayed as sexual objects in the mainstream music industry and also offering a "body positive" message for humans of all shapes, ages, colors and sizes. In 2018, she released her third studio album "A Matter of Time." Reviews are still coming in, but many are claiming it to be her best, most cohesive work yet. Click here to listen and purchase!
After two years of pursuing a full-time indie music career, Katie needed to take a break. It was during this time of healing and restoration that Katie decided to enroll at "A New Beginning School of Massage" and explore a career in bodywork. She absolutely adored it, and became a Licensed Massage Therapist in the state of Texas in December of 2016 and in the state of North Carolina in 2018. She also spent a lot of time re-thinking what "success" in the music business actually means, and began counseling fellow musicians in re-claiming and re-defining the goals of their creative pursuits to also include personal health and wellness. Katie began working full-time as a massage therapist at Austin Deep, Austin's premier Deep Tissue Therapy Center in early 2017, and was groomed in their unique style of myofascial sports massage, hydrotherapy and accucupping techniques. She also completed the Authentic Relating Games Facilitator Training - an event which helps bring strangers together through fun, connective games and communication skills.
Katie now lives and works in Asheville, NC with her cat and massage helper Ramona.