Kristin Lems is the proud founder of the National Women’s Music Festival and has received awards for this work. She is a celebrated folk singer, songwriter, educator, and playwright whose work uplifts, educates, and empowers audiences through music and storytelling.
Kristin has won numerous national and state writing awards, including a prestigious Hopwood Award from the University of Michigan. A full-length musical revue of her original songs, Catch It on the Run, ran at the Station Theatre in Urbana, Illinois. She was composer/lyricist for a children’s musical by Karima Ibsen, Voyage of the Radiant Shield, and provided and created original music for a radio play, Happy Family (Schreiber, 2019). She has written songs for National Geographic and the Illinois Farm Bureau, and her song “The Heritage of Farming” was part of a coveted Cindy Award. Kristin’s original songs are featured in video and audio productions, including The Best of Broadside (Smithsonian/Folkways), a Grammy finalist, and The Social Power of Music (Smithsonian/ Folkways 2019). Her songs have been covered by Anne Feeney, Margaret Roadknight, the Tucson Women’s Chorus, the Los Angeles Women’s Community Choir, the Fest City Singers, and many others.
Based in Chicago, Kristin has built a loyal, enthusiastic, all-ages following over the course of her storied musical career.