Bella Ruse

About the Artist

Bella Ruse is a jazz and folk ensemble from Minneapolis, Minnesota established by singer Kay Gillette and guitarist Joseph Barker in 2008. In coming together they aimed to combine Kay’s classical sensibilities, Joseph’s folk roots and their mutual love of jazz into the sound that has become Bella Ruse. Their repertoire includes classic jazz, showtune standards and original folk and pop songs. Kay’s girlish mezzo-soprano has both the maturity to perform these standards with confidence and the simplicity to bridge the gap between jazz and folk. Kay trained as a classical singer at Hope College in Michigan, but was encouraged to pursue jazz when she met Joseph, a fellow Hope student and local musician. She first joined his band as a keyboard player, but they soon realized their collaboration deserved a title all it’s own. They are now recording their debut album and booking a summer tour across the US.