Katie Linendoll was already well-known for being an expert in the tech world when she started releasing music. Appearing on shows like The Rachael Ray Show and The Today Show, among others to talk about technology, along with on segments The Weather Channel, ESPN and more, the Emmy-nominated TV personality could have just stayed in the tech world, where she was thriving. But Linendoll also found she had the desire to do something more creative, especially with music.
“My dad’s a drummer, so I’ve grown up very musically inclined, but I’ve always been a huge nerd,” Linendoll tells Everything Nash with a laugh. “I’m very proud of that. I was into the technology space well before it was cool. And I started coding when I was about 12 or 13 years old. Then I went on to get my networking certifications, my IT degree, and truly create a career in technology.”
Linendoll began appearing on TV shows on major networks sharing her vast knowledge, covering everything from cyberspace to consumer tech, although her primary focus is accessible consumer gadgets. It was a space she could have happily stayed in, if not for the COVID-19 pandemic, which brought her life as she knew it to a sudden halt.
“We were traveling over 300 days in the year doing tech stories,” Linendoll recalls. “And when things shut down, I had this extra time, and honestly it was one of the worst times, like many people in my life, jobs getting canceled, trying to figure it out. I’m like, ‘How do I take this worst time in my business and make it positive?'”
Enter music. The Pennsylvania native realized that the worst of times could turn into one of the best times of her life, by pouring her heart into her music, while much of her job in the tech space was on pause.
“I’ve trained vocally for 20 years,” Linendoll says. “I’ve dabbled in piano, guitar and music theory. It’s been a true passion of mine. It doesn’t matter how old you are — put the freaking blinders on and just go for it. I didn’t care what anybody thought of me. I didn’t care if I put this out there and it bombed. I’m like, ‘I’m just gonna go for it.'”
Linendoll began releasing music, including her latest song, “Your Hands,” which celebrates her strong patriotism, as well as her strong faith.
“‘Your Hands’ is a story,” Linendoll explains. “I like to say it’s a hundred percent pure Americana. I am a girl that is so patriotic, all about faith, family, and the flag. This song for me is a song for the guys. It’s a song to look at our men with grace and grit that have been serving our country, that have been praising His name on high, and just really sing this song about them. and how much we love them. And it was such a cool song to put together and watch the journey of it. … Coming from a very proud, Americana military family, it was extra special to watch how it evolved and everybody behind it, and everybody’s appreciation for it.”
The “Your Hands” video was also important to Linendoll, which involved fans’ stories as well as Linendoll’s.
“I asked for fans to submit their favorite veteran, their favorite first responder, or active military member,” Linendoll reveals. “And we got all these photos and videos of all these amazing veterans. But what we quickly noticed was there were so many from decades ago, so it was so cool to see somebody’s grandparents, somebody’s father and them in uniform, but it was like this throwback in time.”
Linendoll worked hard to make sure the “Your Hands” video honored not only the song, but the many fan submissions as well.
“It was cool to not just be about me,” says the singer. “That’s the last thing I want anything to be about, but to have everybody be a part of this music video, especially our amazing heroes.”
Linendoll is now back in the tech world, once again sharing her knowledge with others, but she is also staying in music, a passion she now realizes needs to also become a priority.
“This is a long game for me,’ Linendoll maintains. “This is so exciting. Right now we’re putting out single after single, I hope the next move down the line will be an EP, because we have the material for it. But every song for me, I’ve really just taken joy in, and taken a moment with. I think that’s been really cool. I’ve almost treated each song like its own brand. With ‘Your Hands,’ out right now, it’s this Americana veterans song, which I hope we can do many more of. It’s had its own identity and I like to do every song with its own identity. It’s been really fun.”
Proceeds from “Your Hands” will go to the Robert Irvine Foundation, to donate a high-tech iBot wheelchair to a veteran in need. Find “Your Hands” and all of Linendoll’s music at KatieLinendoll.com.
