Between musicians and concertgoers alike, anyone who's been active in the Orlando music scene in the past decade-plus knows Katie Burkess. Whether it's been through her work in the Legendary JC's, Liberation 44, Eugene Snowden's combos, the Absinthe Trio, Kevin Maines Band or Leisure Chief, she's a key figure on every stage she stands on. But because she's so often seen and heard, it might surprise some that Burkess hadn't actually released any solo material until this year. While the wait was long, debut single "Stone Cold Love" is a tight bottling of the powerhouse soul that's made her famous around here. Fortunately, more solo recordings are in the works.
Best of Orlando 2023: Local Music
2nd: Jeremy Birdsall, jeremybirdsall.com
3rd: Thomas Milovac, thomasmilovacmusic.com
2nd: Hard Rock Live, hardrock.com/live/locations/orlando
3rd: The Plaza Live, plazaliveorlando.org
1st: Montgomery Drive, montgomerydrive.com
2nd: Jessica Pawli, facebook.com/jessicapawli
3rd: 407 Booking, instagram.com/407booking
1st: Sanford Porchfest, sanfordporchfest.org
2nd: Electric Daisy Carnival, orlando.electricdaisycarnival.com
3rd: WJRR Earthday Birthday, wjrr.iheart.com/featured/earthday-birthday
1st: Smartpunk Records, smartpunk.com
2nd: Swamp Cabbage Records, swampcabbagerecords.storenvy.com
3rd: Popnihil, facebook.com/popnihilpress
1st: Red Lion Recording Studio, redlionrecordingstudio.com
2nd: Studio 1509, studio1509music.com
3rd: Phat Planet Studios, phatplanetstudios.com
1st: Austin's Coffee, austinscoffee.com
2nd: The Alley, facebook.com/thealleylive
3rd: Renaissance Theatre Co., rentheatre.com
1st: Orlando Sings Solaria Singers, orlandosings.org/choirs
2nd: Violectric, violectric.net
3rd: Anthology String Quartet, anthologyquartet.com
1st: Angel of Boom, instagram.com/itsoffcialangel
2nd: DJ Edil Hernandez, djedilhernandez.com
3rd: DJ Richie Rich, facebook.com/iamdjrichierich