Artist Profile: Kara Klein
Kara Klein was born on Christmas Eve in 1985. She has three brothers and three
sisters, and resides with her parents in Mandeville, Louisiana, a suburb of New
Orleans.
Last fall, Kara graduated from high school with high honors and currently is
attending college majoring in philosophy and political science at the Catholic
University of America in Washington, D.C.
Kara began writing songs when she was eight, and that interest was directed to
Christian music when she won a contest to write and perform the theme song for a
local Christian Youth Festival at age 13.
A prolific songwriter, Kara has written over 100 original Christian hymns, 10 of
which are featured on her new album A Touch of Your Grace, released August 20,
2004. “My deepest desire is for my music to help others encounter the love of
Christ,” said Kara. As such, she is currently working on a second album entitled
Songs of Love, which she plans to release in the summer of 2005.
Kara’s musical career unofficially began at age 8, when she appeared in the
stage production of Babes in Toyland at a local community theater. Subsequently,
Kara held leading roles in St. Paul’s High School musical productions of
Godspell, Oklahoma!, South Pacific, Guys and Dolls and The Music Man. She also
performed in the chorus of Saint Scholastic Academy’s production of Jekyll &
Hyde, and additionally served as understudy for the lead role of Emma. “I have
loved singing in front of an audience since I could talk,” Kara claims, “and my
family made me sing at every family function growing up.”
Kara’s singing experience also includes her role as a featured soloist for five
years in the St. Paul’s High School production of The Passion Play, as well as
her participation in the All State Honors Choir. In 2002, Kara won First Place
as Soprano I in the Louisiana state-wide competition. During her senior year at
Saint Scholastic Academy, she co-wrote the school’s Alma Mater for their
Centennial Celebration, then won a national contest entitled “If I Were
President” after submitting a music video featuring a song that she co-wrote and
sang. As contest winner, in addition to the $1,000 prize, she will meet the
President of the United States in Washington, D.C. in the spring of 2005.
Kara also served on the worship team for several local youth groups and served
as the lead singer for Our Lady of the Lake Catholic Church music ministry. She
has frequently appeared as a guest soloist at the Magnificat Women’s Breakfast
throughout various cities in Louisiana.
In addition to her musical interests, Kara is an ardent defender of the pro-life
cause. She recently wrote an anti-abortion song entitled Child of Light, which
she plans to release as a single in a strategic alliance with the Susan B.
Anthony List (SBA), a national pro-life political action committee headquartered
in Washington D.C. “The message of my song is that abortion hurts women and
children, and that abortion happens because our society fails women and children
when they are in a crisis.” the singer said. Because Kara believes so strongly
in ending abortion, she is donating one dollar from every CD she sells to the
SBA List.
Kara’s interest in the pro-life movement was spurred on by her attendance as an
advocate of abstinence at the 2001 United Nations Summit on the Rights of the
Child in New York City. At the Summit, Kara met with U.N. delegates to present
abstinence as a viable way for teenagers to remain pregnancy and disease free.
“Some people at the Summit were suggesting that contraception and abortion are
the only paths through which teens can remain free of disease and pregnancy,”
shared Kara. “I wanted to respectfully demonstrate that teenagers are capable of
much more than that, and that we, as civilized humans, are capable of offering
the world a better solution than contraception and abortion.”
An outspoken proponent of abstinence, Kara co-founded the Hearts of Purity club
at her high school, and served on the State Board for the Louisiana Governor’s
Program on Abstinence (GPA). In 2003, she was chosen to participate in the GPA’s
National Leadership Conference in Washington, D.C., then worked as a
contributing editor for a book about chastity entitled “If You Really Love
Me--100 Questions on Dating, Relationships and Sexual Purity” published by
renowned chastity speaker Jason Evert. In the same year, Kara was selected to
serve as Master of Ceremonies for the GPA’s Louisiana State Convention held in
Kenner, Louisiana, where she entertained over 4,000 teens and introduced Miss
America as the key note speaker.