NEWS
Tuesday, March 10th, 2009
Katy is the new lead singer of Jackson Jill!
In addition to now performing with Julie Crosson on Keyboards and with John Mancuso as Katy & Vega, Katy is now the lead singer of Jackson Jill!
Jackson Jill is a band that plays classic rock and mainstream music. For more information, check out www.jacksonjill.net.
Check the schedule page for upcoming performances with Jackson Jill!
Wednesday, December 10th, 2008
Katy has joined forces with another local musician!
In addition to now performing with Julie Crosson on Keyboards, Katy will also be doing some performing with local guitar player John Mancuso. They will be performing under the name “Katy & Vega.” They already have some performances booked, so make sure you check the schedule page!
For more information on Katy & Vega, you can go to www.katyandvega.com or www.myspace.com/katyandvega.
Thursday, October 23rd, 2008
Katy is back in action with an old partner! Julie Crosson has rejoined her on keyboards and background vocals!
During the summer of 1999 while a rising senior at Oakton High School, Katy Benko appeared poised to burst onto the National Music scene. She signed with Glen Campbell Management and the William Morris Agency. Marty Gamblin, who ran Glen Campbell's Nashville offices, was the man who started the careers of Alan Jackson and Bryan White. Marty was prepared to negotiate a major label deal for Katy and set her career on fire. But Katy made an extremely rare decision for someone in her position. She said "no." She told all the executives she wanted to finish high school and experience college.
Katy had already formed a band which included her best friend and fellow music prodigy, Julie Crosson. With the help of Gamblin and William Morris, Katy and Julie, along with the rest of the band, performed high level shows across the region on weekends and into the following summer. Locally they performed at Nissan Pavilion, the Patriot Center, the Birchmere, and most of the large fairs in Virginia. Katy was also featured on all of the major television networks.
After high school, Julie headed off to James Madison University where she earned a degree in piano performance. After completing her degree, she decided to pursue a master's in music theory from The University of North Carolina at Greensboro. She remained on staff at the university teaching music theory after she finished the master's program and began playing keyboards and singing around town with some of Greensboro's finest musicians.
When Julie left, Katy attended George Mason University and continued performing live all over the region. In 2002, however, as she was in the process of releasing her first album (Float), Katy was involved in an auto accident. Not only did she experience severe muscular damage to her neck, but she also sustained damage to her left inner-ear. She was told by her doctors that the damage could be potentially career-ending. Though Float was receiving great reviews and secondary radio play across the US and Europe, Katy was forced to stop distribution of her album and greatly restrict her number of performances. She kept her injuries private and began the slow process of healing and learning how to sing through her impairments.
During that period, Katy ran a successful vocal training business, working with and developing special young talent. By mid-2006, Katy felt she had overcome most of the effects of her injuries, but performing continued to take second stage. In August of that year, Katy married her longtime sweetheart, Ryan. Just three months after they were married, Ryan (a lieutenant in the Virginia Army National Guard) was activated and sent to Fort Dix for training before being shipped out to Iraq. During his time away, Katy wrote a song called "A Soldier's Wife." That song got her an invitation to sing at The White House as a special guest of President Bush and also an invitation to sing at a rally for Presidential Candidate John McCain.
In September of 2008, Julie moved back to Northern Virginia where she and Katy have reconnected on a musical level and hope to begin performing together across the region once more. Their musical talents as individuals can stand rightfully on their own, but together they have a unique sound and a chemistry that enthralls and entertains audiences. In addition to performing original material, they also perform a wide range of covers that includes top-40 and country hits from the 60's to today as well as a variety of standards. This diversity of repertoire enables them to cater to many types of venues; from the local bar to an upscale country club.
Friday, September 21st, 2007
Katy performed at The Citadel in Charleston, South Carolina on Monday, September 17th to a standing-room-only crowd of 1,000 people! It was the last stop on John McCain's "No Surrender" Tour. Right after the rally, Katy rode to the airport with the entire McCain family and some staff where they boarded the McCain's private jet and headed home to Dulles. (To see a photo of Katy with the Senator McCain, click here.)
Bright and early Tuesday morning (September 18th), Katy was off to The White House with her Mom, Dad, Mother-in-law, and Father-in-law to be a special guest at a function The President was having that morning. She sang the National Anthem for The President, First Lady, Vice President Cheney, and a crowd of 1,000 people. The President then opened his speech talking about Katy and her husband, Ryan.
To see The White House performance, go to this link and click the video icon on the right: http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2007/09/20070918.html
For more details on both events, check out Katy's latest journal entry!
For pictures, click here!
Friday, September 14th, 2007
Katy will be singing at a rally hosted by Presidential Candidate Senator John McCain on Monday, September 17th in Charleston, South Carolina. The rally will be held at the Citadel Military Academy in the Alumni Hall. The rally is open to the general public and begins at 6:00pm.
Katy will then be flying back with Senator McCain on the evening of the 17th so she can be a personal guest at The White House on Tuesday morning, September 18th. Katy will be singing The National Anthem before a large event on The White House grounds in addition to being a personal guest.