NISSWA — Jaspar Lepak will perform at 7:30 p.m. Friday, March 24, in a Grassroots Concert at the Live Well Nightclub and Coffee Bar in the Journey Church, next to the school in Nisswa.
This will be the 350th concert in the series that began in 1988.
Admission is $10 for adults and $5 children under 12 with listening attention when accompanied by an adult. At each concert nonperishable food or cash donations are welcome and will go to a local food shelf.
A child of the Sonoran Desert, Lepak is a songwriter with a gift for melody and poetry.
Her music is deeply influenced by the many places she has called home (Tucson, Durban in South Africa, Seattle and currently Minneapolis).
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Although Lepak studied classical piano through college, it was not until she graduated that she took up the guitar and started writing songs. An English major with a master's degree in creative writing, she was always interested in stories, and the guitar gave her a new avenue for telling hers.
She recorded five albums in five years before moving to South Africa in 2009 with her husband, Kale. Her music found an enthusiastic audience, and in 2011, she recorded “Forgiving Wind,” which Rolling Stone South Africa hailed as an album full of beauty and original charm.
Lepak returned to the States in 2012, settling in Seattle where she released “Wide World” in 2014 and “Close to Me” in 2017, just a few months after her daughter was born. In 2021, she released her ninth album, “Desert Ghosts,” which reached No. 15 on the FAI Folk Chart with the single “Ever Gonna Fly” coming in at No. 9.
She is working on a new album that focuses on feminist themes, including songs about choice, pregnancy, parenthood and caregiving.
Lepak cares deeply about her local community, and as a parent, she makes sure to include shows where kids and listeners of all ages are welcome. She also leads regular music programs for assisted living and memory care, including private lessons.
More information about Lepak is available at www.jasparlepak.com
The rest of the spring concert schedule is:
- April 14: Kelley Smith (www.kelleysmithmusic.com).
- April 28: Luke LeBlanc (www.lukeleblanc.com).
Masks are recommended but not required. N-95 masks are available, as are sweet treats and coffee.
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For updates on Grassroots Concerts, visit www.grassrootsconcerts.org or call 218-838-4266. Doors open at 6:30 p.m., where seating is first-come, first-served.
Grassroots is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization under Internal Revenue Code.
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