You know Emily Kinney, right?
Oh…ok. Well you watch “The Walking Dead”, right?
Of course you do.
Remember Beth Greene and how heartbroken you were when they blew her head off in the mid-season finale? Yeah, I get it – I’m still kinda recovering myself. Well, that’s Emily Kinney, she is the actress who played Beth on the A.M.C. ratings juggernaut; and now that “The Walking Dead” is in her rearview mirror she’s redirecting her attention on her first love…music. And her music is what’s bringing her to Zanzabar this week.
Kinney, who is 29 and still easily pulled off the role of post-apocalyptic teenager Beth Greene, was a musician long before landing her coveted role on the hit cable series (she was brought from the second season through the fifth). Before that, she was working on Broadway in New York, doing cutting edge work in musicals like “Spring Awakening” and “August: Osage County.” All the while she had dreams of being a singer/songwriter, self-releasing two E.P.’s “Blue Toothbrush” and “Expired Love.”
Since her role on the show came to a conclusion – Kinney has had time to work on her first full length debut album, entitled “This Is War.” It’s due to be released at some point this summer, a collection of deeply personal songs that tell her story, songs about confidence and insecurity, love and heartbreak; and everything that comes along with trying to find your place in a world that expects you to already know who you’re going to be. Her voice is sweet and whimsical, with lyrics that express a certain naïve gravitas.
Kinney and her band will be performing Thursday May 14th at Zanzabar. The show is 21 and over, and begins at 9:00 PM, tickets are still available for $15. Dylan Gardner will be opening the show.
(Promo shot by H. Bennett)