Cork-based 'Chicago Diva' sings songs of faith and doubt in new show

KNOWN affectionately as the ‘Chicago Diva’, Cork-based African American singer Karen Underwood will bring musician John O’Brien’s genre-defying concert series at the Everyman to its grand finale on April 28.

Karen will be singing songs of ‘faith and doubt’, including spiritual songs, gospel songs, a Joni Mitchell number and a self-penned song, accompanied by the Ora Quartet and backed by drummer, Davie Ryan.

The concert series, titled ‘Music Of...’ by John O’Brien, started in February with mezzo-soprano Niamh O’Sullivan, followed by West End sensation Molly Lynch in March.

In her concert, the final of this series, Karen will explore religious belief and the doubt that can accompany it, as well as her faith in people, even if relationships break down.

Karen says: “There is always the question, ‘Who am I?’ Am I good enough?’ We all have these battles in our lives from day-to-day. Hopefully, I have more faith than doubt. 

Relationships shift and change and we change with them.

On religious faith, Karen says: “If we think that God looks after the smallest mustard seed, making it to the ground and becoming a plant, then certainly he is going to look after me.”

But again, doubt can rear its head. Karen, who has three siblings, was brought up in a restrictive branch of Christianity that didn’t celebrate Christmas because of uncertainty about Jesus’ date of birth.

“What is my faith today? It’s not the big, scary pitchfork. That’s the beauty of me developing a God of my own understanding. It’s in nature, it’s in the water. It’s me being able to jump into the Irish Sea, something I thought I’d never do. I had a fear of it but at the same time, I know it’s exhilarating.”

But there has been tragedy in Karen’s life which caused her to lose her faith for a while. In 2012, her adopted son, Erbie, aged 18, died by suicide.

I question what kind of a cruel God would allow that to happen. It was the first time I knew I had a right to be angry with God. I had a God row.

To help her deal with the grief, Karen went to counselling.

“It’s vital to us all. I feel sorry for people who are not healing and don’t go to counselling. I can’t say we all need therapy or counselling, but if you have any sort of trauma, you need it. Otherwise, it exhibits itself in addiction or depression. It’s like eternal loneliness. Who wants to be cursed with that?

“Therapy gave me the right to know that, in relationships, there’s push and pull and that includes the relationship with God. It gave me permission to leave the fear of the church from the past and to say that I have a loving energy around me. I think sometimes people are the arms of God.”

Karen, who moved to Cork in 1997 with her now ex-husband, says that, when Erbie died, people rallied around her, supporting her and helping her to develop work that is cathartic.

That’s the direction my new work is going in. I couldn’t have done it two years ago.

Growing up in Chicago, Karen was involved in music at secondary school and would be called on for family weddings and funerals to sing.

“It was in Cork that I became a professional musician. My first professional paid gig was in the Cork Opera House’s green room, maybe around 2004. There’s no real money in it but I got my education in music from working with musicians, understanding the principles of personality, collaborating with people and having trust in a band. I learned notes and theory too.”

Karen says she has carved out a niche for herself in Cork “with a lot of scaffolding and support”.

She differentiates between what is private and “what is necessary to share. If it helps someone, I’ll share. If I think it’s not going to help, then I won’t.”

What Karen will say about American politics and the prospect of another term of Donald Trump as President, is that “we can’t have a fascist who’s a misogynist and possibly a racist running the country, or any country, but especially America.”

Depressingly, Karen wonders “how much longer it will be before someone commits a racist attack against me because of the colour of my skin. I never felt that before”.

She asks: “Would you want to be a foreigner in Ireland right now? There has been a shift in attitude – Ireland for the Irish. At the same time, if all the multinational companies leave, what is going to happen to Ireland? What kind of Ireland do we want?”

When people are not listened to, they radicalise, says Karen.

“We ask why they are being like that. But it’s because we shout them down. We’re not listening.”

She says that hostility towards non-native Irish people is a result of alienating the ‘Ireland for the Irish’ constituency.

“The homeless situation here has nothing to do with foreigners. It’s because we have a housing market that has blown up into all sorts of proportions. Why would foreign companies send people here?”

Despite her misgivings about her adopted country, Karen is happy to stay here.

“I love Ireland. My son is buried here. My daughter lives here. My friends are here. I have a friendship network that is like a family. And I’m looking forward to developing my music.”

Tickets for the upcoming Everyman show are available on https://everymancork.com/events/music-of/