By Megan Wadding, March 2018 Issue.
In celebration of her Grammy Award-winning debut album’s 25th anniversary, k.d. lang kicked off her Ingénue Redux Tour Feb. 8 in Seattle.
The tour serves as a follow-up to her most-recent release: a remastered anniversary edition of Ingénue via Nonesuch Records. The two-disc album also features eight previously unreleased live performances from lang’s 1993 “MTV Unplugged” episode, recorded in New York City’s famed Ed Sullivan Theater.
As part of her 19-city North American tour, Lang will take the stage at the Chandler Center for the Arts March 8 for a performance that will include the songs from Ingénue, including her hit, “Constant Craving” as well as hits from her 2004 album Hymns of the 49th Parallel.
Echo Magazine caught up with lang to find out what it’s been like to perform the album after 25 years and what her Arizona fans can expect from here show. Here’s what she had to say …
Echo:How have your musical inspirations have changed throughout the past 25 years? Who are some of your current favorite singers/musicians?
lang: Not much has changed in the past 25 years. I’m just a little bit older. My relationship to music is still the same … I’m kind of getting back to the jazz a little bit, so I wouldn’t necessarily say I have any favorites. But there are always a lot of great musicians to listen to. I’m really big into the Courtney Barnett/Kirk Vile combo.
Echo:How do you feel your fan-base has changed over the years? Do you get a lot of lifelong fans at your shows?
lang: Yeah, I’ve had a nice relationship [with] loyal fans, people who lived with … and have a relationship with Ingénue, and there’s a few now-youngsters too. That’s nice too.
Echo:You came out just after Ingénue was released. What are some of the biggest lessons you’ve learned as a part of the musical landscape and also part of the LGBTQ community simultaniously?
lang: Things have changed a lot. I can’t really speak [to] how things have changed [in] terms of the community because it is changing so fast and I only have one perspective … 25 years ago, I was kind of out there on the bow of the ship … one of the few people out there opening up the doors. I mean, certainly, always historically [there were] a lot of people out there doing it. I am just a part of it. But at that time in pop music, there was a lot of pressure, a lot of inquiries. Obviously, I talked about it and I am still talking about it right at this moment, so it’s been at the forefront of my career. It was almost all-encompassing. It’s interesting for me to try to navigate peoples’ attention back to my music while also honoring my position as an LGBTQ spokesperson. I am certainly proud of the changes made, but there is still a ways to go. It’s been a wonderful experience for me. I have nothing but pride and appreciation.
Echo:What is something that you would tell your younger self?
lang: I probably wouldn’t say anything. I think, in life, that doesn’t do you much good. I think you really just have to follow your heart and really honor who you are. I just think you have to be really in touch with yourself and you have to know whether it’s time for you to come out or time for you say something, or be an activist … [or] not be an activist. Really, I just think you have to be passionate and follow your heart.
Echo:What’s it like performing your hits from Ingénue 25 years later? What can long-time fans expect from your performances on your tour?
lang: We are playing the album Ingénue in its entirety, in sequence, right off the top of the show. It is quite a musical show. I’m very proud of that and I’m proud of how the songs hold out. I love performing this record. It’s very musical for me as a vocalist to get into it … for the most part all of my experiences with the tour so far, [have] been that the audience has a good relationship with the record. So they’re familiar and they have their own relationship with it and it brings up memories. It’s very nice. It’s musical and fun and deep at the same time for me.
Echo:Are you doing anything personally to celebrate this 25th year milestone, besides this tour?
lang: [Laughs] No! You mean like drinking champagne every night? No.
Echo:Do you ever stay after to meet with the fans or sign autographs at all?
lang: I think there are some VIP packages, which I’ve never done before and we’re doing that this year. But it’s usually is pretty fast-paced. The tour, in particular, is pretty fast-paced …
Echo:What are you up to in between gigs? Any other projects you’re working on?
lang: No, I have not been working on anything. I’ve been living my life. I’ve been really milking my time with my mom, who is 94, so I’m spending a lot of time with her … a lot of family time and personal time.
Echo:I know you must’ve been to Arizona before on previous tours...any specific memories or anything in particular you’re looking forward to doing or seeing while you’re here?
lang: I always love playing in Arizona. I love the [Phoenix] area, I love the weather, of course, but the audience is always great and I’ve had really good shows there. I have great memories of Phoenix.
For more on k.d. lang, connect with her on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram using @kdlang or visit kdlang.com.
k.d. lang's Ingénue Redux - 25th Anniversary Tour
7:30 p.m. March 8
Chandler Center for the Arts
250 N. Arizona Ave., Chandler
