Ohio State alumna Kaki Tzagournis will perform at Rumba Café Tuesday at 7 p.m. for her Mini Midwest Tour. Credit: Courtesy of Kaki Tzagournis
From recording songs in the Mershon Auditorium studio to building her brand in Nashville and Los Angeles, indie-pop artist Kaki Tzagournis will soon return to Columbus for her fifth performance at Rumba Café.?
After graduating from Ohio State in 2018 with a degree in marketing, Tzagournis moved to Nashville where she learned the ins and outs of songwriting. Now based out of Los Angeles, Tzagournis said she collaborates with her producer and guitarist, Timothy Brown, whom she enjoys both building and performing songs with. For her Mini Midwest Tour, Tzagournis will perform at Rumba Café Tuesday at 7 p.m.
“To see people in a room connecting with your music and letting you know that they identify with it — that is the reason to make music,” Tzagournis said. “I obviously love these songs and connect with them a lot, but then if other people feel the same way, that is the reason to want to release the music and not just keep all these songs on a hard drive.”
From a young age, Tzagournis said she was drawn to any activity allowing her to sing. Between musical theater, singing lessons and playing the guitar, her life has always orbited around music.?
“I’ve been playing music since I was a kid,” Tzagournis said. “I got my first guitar when I was in fourth grade from both of my grandfathers. I, of course, was obsessed with Taylor Swift, and I was like, ‘I want to get a guitar like her and play her songs,’ so that got me my first guitar.”
After college, Tzagournis moved to Nashville to hone her craft and collaborate with a variety of producers and songwriters, which she said helped develop her songwriting ability.
While in Nashville, Tzagournis participated in “Writer’s Rounds.”
“The classic format of a round has four songwriters on stage,” the Writer’s Round website states. “One performs a song, followed by the next writer, and the next, and so on. Each songwriter can join in with the others, add harmonies, contribute a guitar riff, or just listen.”
These were instrumental for Tzagournis, as she gained experience playing in front of an audience and became familiar with different kinds of music.
“That was such an amazing experience, because you would hear so many new songs that people were writing,” Tzagournis said. “It was a really good space to share new songs.”
Tzagournis has built a fanbase that truly connects with her from-the-soul lyrics. One of her most dedicated fans, Lauren Hackenberg, started an Instagram fan account where she regularly promotes Tzagournis’ new music and upcoming events.?
Hackenberg, who graduated from Ohio State in 2021 with a degree in public health, said she originally started the account to support Tzagournis, as she believes every legitimate artist should have a fan account. In addition, she said she finds her lyrics to be very relatable.
“She talks a lot about what it’s like to be an artist who’s working to hone her craft, but then also a lot about what it is like to be a girl from the Midwest,” Hackenberg said. “I really connect with her lyrics.”
?Hackenberg helps to promote Tzagournis by not only reposting material from her account, but creating graphics of her own.
“Whenever she has new music coming out — or in this case, she’s coming up on a tour pretty soon — the account will just repost,” Hackenberg said. “Sometimes, I’ll make my own posts and graphics, just to kind of draw up support for whatever she’s doing.”
Going into the upcoming Columbus show, Tzagournis said she feels extremely confident and excited.
“I’ve played here a lot and just being from here, it makes me feel like ‘OK, this is gonna be the one,’” Tzagournis said.?
Tickets are $15 and can be purchased on Rumba Café’s website.?
