Krystle Warren is an American singer-songwriter from Kansas City who also records as Krystle Warren & The Faculty. Her work draws on a wide range of American styles, including country, folk, soul and jazz, and she is also associated with acoustic soul and soft rock.

Early life and musical background

Warren grows up in a musical household, where she hears everything from her grandmother’s eight-track tapes to family lullabies at home. She also spends a short and much disliked period singing in church choir. She starts singing at the age of four, but becomes seriously interested in performing and learning music after watching an ABC television special about The Beatles at 13.

She learns her first chords by ear from Rubber Soul and Revolver. Her listening then widens to include grunge, with artists such as Smashing Pumpkins and Soundgarden, as well as British rock acts including The Kinks, The Who and The Faces. She also develops a strong interest in jazz, especially Betty Carter, Nina Simone, Kurt Elling and Mel Tormé.

Kansas City and early performance years

As a teenager, Warren begins developing her songwriting in Kansas City’s countercultural scene, where she meets painters, street poets, singers and other avant-garde artists who encourage her work. By the time she is around 20, she is performing in jazz venues as well as in the singer-songwriter scene, and she shares stages with jazz musicians who help shape her musical education.

Recording career

Warren tours in the United States with artists including Martha Wainwright, Zap Mama, Rodrigo y Gabriela and Erykah Badu. She also opens for Keziah Jones on a French tour in 2008.

Her debut album under the name Krystle Warren & The Faculty is Circles, released in 2009. It is recorded with producer Russell Elevado at Electric Lady Studios in New York City. She later releases her debut solo album, Three The Hard Way, in 2018.