About Me!

Ella Blankinship is a New York-based singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, actor, and producer, originally hailing from Colorado. Growing up in the Mountain West, Ella was heavily inspired by artists such as John Denver and Gregory Alan Isakov, as well as her background in musical theatre from a young age. She began writing songs at the age of five, starting voice and piano lessons a few years later, and hasn’t looked back since. With her training in classical voice and Musical Theatre styles, Ella has proven herself time and again as a versatile performer across genres. Her work in youth ensembles, including choir, orchestra, opera, and theatre productions over the years, has solidified her love for the arts as a whole. With a BFA in Acting from Marymount Manhattan College and an MA in Songwriting and Production from Berklee NYC, Ella is a multi-hyphenate artist with a passion for the craft, intentionally rejecting the superficial aspects that often accompany it. 

Folk and bluegrass music served as a soundtrack to her young years, alongside Disney Princess CDs and the sounds of the outdoors. Ella’s deeply confessional yet conversational lyrics, accompanied by acoustic guitars and other bluegrass instruments, create a melancholy folk atmosphere. She has coined the term “Rocky Mountain Melanfolk” to describe this genre of melancholy folk/singer-songwriter music with bluegrass elements and the use of live instruments. 

The use of live instrumentation is crucial to her sound and how the imperfections within it showcase her humanity. Her music is characterized by lush vocal layers and the use of in-the-box and analog processing, inspired by a 1970s folk sound. Inspired by sharing her formative experiences through her music, she hopes her listeners will feel less alone in emotions that can feel overwhelming at times. Ella finds it important to say the hard stuff out loud, and sometimes even in excruciating detail, as life tends to find a way of being messy and imperfect.

Her passion for nature and the outdoors continues to be a driving force in her work today. Nature, as well as the complexity and fragility of our planet, serves as a great source of inspiration and motivation to Ella within her music. Advocating for the environment and exploring ways to protect it is a passion she shares through her work and lifestyle. 

Ella’s multifaceted background in performing has led her to be a part of projects at venues in New York City and throughout the US, including The Today Show, Green Room 42, 54 Below, The Chain Theatre, New York Live Arts, New York Theatre Workshop, Wonderville, 25h Studio, and Interlochen Center for the Arts, among others.

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Photos by Caballero Pictures, Laura McBride, Jeff Watts, Julia White, and Maddie Barkocy