Kipyn Martin is an emerging Americana singer/songwriter whose roots sink into the banks of the Shenandoah River. According to folk legend John Gorka, Kipyn is "a beauty of a singer." She currently plays festival stages in Virginia and Maryland and delights audiences at vineyards, coffeehouses, and house concerts throughout the Mid-Atlantic region.

2015 is off to a promising start for Kipyn. In January the Washington DC premiere of Joan & Joni: A Tribute to the Music of Joan Baez and Joni Mitchell, a collaboration with recovering opera singer Allison Shapira, sold out in advance. Additional Joan & Joni shows will be performed in Virginia and Maryland during the first half of 2015. This year Kipyn was also honored by being named a semi-finalist in the inaugural Bernard/Ebb Songwriting Awards. (For more information on Joan & Joni, please visit www.joanandjoni.com.) In March Kipyn was honored by the Washington Area Music Association with their WAMMIE award for New Artist of the Year.

- See more at: http://kipynmartin.com/bio/#sthash.YZ8K0tIN.dpuf

Kipyn returns to Monkey House for the third time (she opened for Grace Pettis, and her performance was so powerful, we had to invite her for a solo gig).  Now she graces our home with her friend and colleague, Allison Shapira.  They will be featuring songs off of their new album, Joan & Joni

Joan & Joni is a tribute to Joan Baez and Joni Mitchell. In a musical journey from the 60s to today, Allison and Kipyn demonstrate the effect Joan and Joni have had on their own musical development as modern musicians. Kipyn Martin is an award-winning Americana singer/songwriter whose roots sink into the banks of the Shenandoah River. Allison Shapira is a recovering opera singer who recently found her authentic voice as a folksinger and songwriter.

Listen to them sing "8 Years."

Kipyn and Allison met during the Northeast Regional Folk Alliance (NERFA) conference in November 2013. Both classically trained singers and up-and-coming musicians in the DC-area folk scene, they soon realized their musical influences were similarly shaped by the folk revival music of the '60s. Soon, Joan & Joni was born.

Allison and Kipyn's power comes from their authenticity as performers; they touch people not just through their music but also through their passion and drive to inspire and connect with their audience. They perform a collection of timeless songs by Joan Baez and Joni Mitchell and reveal a few hidden gems from Joan and Joni's respective albums.

By weaving Joan Baez & Joni Mitchell's themes together with their own individual messages, Allison and Kipyn place an important part of American history in a modern context.

Listen to Kipyn play her newly released song, "Dance Across the Sky."