Charlene Kaye

Charlene Kaye (born September 12, 1986) is an American singer-songwriter, comedian and actor, most widely known for her solo work under the name KAYE, for her one-woman comedy show Tiger Daughter: Or, How I Brought My Immigrant Mother Ultimate Shame, and as a former lead vocalist for San Fermin.

Charlene Kaye
Charlene Kaye by Savannah Lauren
Background information
Also known as	KAYE
Born	(1986-09-12) September 12, 1986 (age 39) Honolulu, Hawaii, United States
Genres	Pop rock indie rock glam rock electronic
Occupations	Singer-songwriter musician actor comedian
Instruments	Vocals piano guitar keyboards keytar
Years active	2008–present
Labels	Votiv Music
Formerly of	San Fermin
Website	kayeofficial.com

Career

Early solo career

In 2011, Kaye released the song "Dress and Tie", a duet with Darren Criss.

She released her second full-length album Animal Love in 2012. It reached #15 on the iTunes pop charts in the week of release and received praise from PopMatters^[1] and support from Glamour.^[2] VH1 called it "at once classic and contemporary, a mix of glam rock and classical music in just the right measures"^[3] and The New Yorker described it as "a richly orchestrated pop album".^[4]

In March 2011 and 2013, Kaye played at the SXSW Music Festival in Austin, Texas.^[5]

Miracle Musical: Hawaii: Part II

Kaye was involved in the Miracle Musical album Hawaii: Part II, the side project of Tally Hall member Joe Hawley, which released on December 12, 2012.^[6]

Kaye wrote and provided vocals for the eighth song in the album Hawaii: Part II. Kaye's likeness was also used in the Labyrinth music video released on December 14, 2014.

San Fermin

In April 2014, Kaye joined the collective San Fermin replacing the former vocalist Rae Cassidy. She toured behind the band's previously released record San Fermin and later, as a full member, recorded the band's following two records, Jackrabbit (2015) and Belong (2017). In April 2019, the band announced that, after five years, Kaye was leaving to pursue her solo career.^{[citation needed]}

Her final performance was on April 26, 2019, at San Fermin's special concert to promote their new live record Live At The Fillmore (2019) and their documentary film No Promises.^[7]

Charlene Kaye at the 2024 Edinburgh Festival Fringe in Edinburgh, Scotland.

KAYE

While touring with San Fermin on their Jackrabbit tour, Kaye began a new solo project under the name KAYE. Her first release was a pair of promotional singles, "Honey" and "UUU", in July 2016. She released a five-track EP on September 29, 2016, titled Honey. This was followed by three non-album singles, "Parakeeter" (November 2016), "Cheshire Kitten" (July 2017) and "Bamboo" (September 2017).^[8] In April 2019, Kaye was focusing on writing and recording music as KAYE full-time.

Tiger Daughter

In 2023, Kaye premiered a one-woman show called Tiger Daughter: Or, How I Brought My Immigrant Mother Ultimate Shame at Ars Nova in New York City. The show received initial acclaim, with Joysauce saying it "successfully flips the familiar Tiger Mother trope on its head" and The Michigan Daily calling it "a relatable, raw portrayal of mother-daughter relationships." She will perform the show at this year's Edinburgh Fringe Festival.

Personal life

Kaye was born in Honolulu, Hawaii. She grew up outside Phoenix, Arizona, also living for a time in Singapore, Hong Kong and Michigan during childhood. She began playing music at an early age, taking lessons in violin, piano, guitar, ukulele, saxophone and clarinet.^[9]

Kaye attended the University of Michigan as an English major, where she met Team Starkid with which she went on their S.P.A.C.E. Tour, where she was able to promote her music for the first time, and then kept performing throughout the years.^[10][11]

Kaye lives in New York City.^[12]

Discography

As Charlene Kaye

Albums

• Things I Will Need in the Past (2008)
• Animal Love (2012)
• Hawaii: Part II (2012)

EPs and Remix Compilations

• Charlene Kaye & The Brilliant Eyes EP (2012)
• Animal Love // Remixes (2013)

Singles

• "Skin and Bones (ft. Darren Criss)" (2008)
• "Dress and Tie (ft. Darren Criss)" (2011)
• "Animal Love I" (2012)
• "Hummingbird Heart" (2012)
• "Forever Is a Long Time" (2012)
• "Animal Love II" (2013)
• "Woman Up (Dave Scalia Remix) [ft. Kalae Nouveau]" (2013)

As KAYE

Albums

• Conscious Control (2020)

EPs

• HONEY EP (2016)
• Neon God EP (2022)

Singles

• "Honey" (2016)
• "UUU" (2016)
• "Parakeeter" (2016)
• "Cheshire Kitten" (2017)
• "Bamboo" (2017)

With San Fermin

Albums

• Jackrabbit (2015)
• Belong (2017)
• Live At The Fillmore (2019)

Singles

• "Jackrabbit" (2015)
• "No Devil" (2015)
• "Shiver" with Sam Amidon (2016)
• "Open" (2017)
• "No Promises" (2017)
• "Bride" (2017)
• "Belong" (2017)
• "Asleep on the Train" (2017)