Singer-songwriter, LGBT Advocate Jennifer Knapp: March 6

Buffalo State’s Kappa Omega Social Work Honor Society and Social Work Student Organization are hosting Grammy-nominated singer-songwriter Jennifer Knapp in a free concert, Friday, March 6, at 7:30 p.m. in the Campbell Student Union Social Hall. The concert, part of Buffalo State’s celebration of Year of the Innovator, Mental Health Awareness Month, Social Work Appreciation Month, and Women’s History Month, is open to the public.

Knapp began performing as a Christian singer in the late '90s and garnered many accolades, including two Dove awards. After coming out in 2010 and experiencing a backlash—along with an unexpected amount of public support—Knapp gravitated toward mainstream music. She also lived for a time in Australia, where she is a dual citizen.

She continues to write music from her home in Nashville, Tennessee, and has emerged as a lesbian-gay-bisexual-transgender (LGBT) advocate. Knapp recently launched the organization Inside Out Faith, which seeks to tackle the issues of LGBT inclusion and affirmations in religious environments by engaging and educating communities of faith.

Her Buffalo State performance will primarily focus on songs from her new album Set Me Free (Righteous Babe Records), and will include a dialogue with the audience about her journey that she said transcends sexual orientation.

“As a musician, one thing that has always interested me is writing songs that everyone can relate to, based on the shared human experience,” said Knapp in a recent phone interview. “There is not one perfect life.”      

After the concert, Knapp will sign copies of her CDs and her memoir Facing the Music: Discovering Real Life, Real Love and Real Faith (Howard Books/Simon & Schuster).

The event is funded by Buffalo State’s Grant Allocation Committee and co-sponsored by the School of the Professions, the Social Work, Psychology, Sociology, and Music departments, along with the Counseling Center, the Women and Gender Studies Program, and Active Minds.

“Jennifer Knapp is an innovative singer with appeal to college students, and we thought her concert would be a good campus event,” said Kim Zittel, associate professor of social work and faculty adviser to Kappa Omega. “She speaks about going through a struggle and emerging whole, which should be helpful for our students to hear.”

Additionally, community agencies, such as the Family Justice Center, West Side Community Services, Compass House, and the Pride Center of Western New York, will be on hand disseminating information. Baked goods will be for sale with proceeds benefiting the Western New York Anti-Violence Campaign’s Runaway/Homeless LGBT Youth Shelter Development Project.

For more information, call (716) 878-4767.