A rising star in the country music scene will perform tonight at Pruis Hall.
Katie Armiger, who has three professional albums and five years of music industry experience under her belt, will make Ball State the next scheduled stop on her "Get Smart" tour. She is gearing up for the release of her fourth studio album, presently untitled, which she will release in January. Armiger single off the new album, "Better in a Black Dress," highlights the singer's "flirty" side.
"I just wanted a fun, flirty song that could be a female anthem," Armiger said. "If you listen to a classic Tammy Wynette or Loretta Lynn song - they have such a strong female perspective. I feel like today, you don't hear that very often. I myself have released sad songs and happy songs and all the in-betweens, but I thought it was time to release a song that was a little feistier."
She has opened for such big names as Darius Rucker - formerly of Hootie and the Blowfish - Luke Bryan, Kellie Pickler and Little Big Town.
"I definitely want to convey confidence in my music," Armiger said. "I'm a female singer-songwriter, so a lot of my songs are from my point of view, from a girl's perspective. I want to portray confidence but also the vulnerability of being able to open yourself up to the good things, the bad things and everything in the middle."
Her third studio album, 2010's "Confessions of a Nice Girl," marked her first break onto the U.S. Billboard's Top Country Albums chart by peaking at 58. Three songs off the album debuted on Billboard's Hot Country chart, including her top song, "Best Song Ever," which reached the 42 spot on the chart. "Better in a Black Dress" has climbed to the 45 position. Armiger has come a long way from where she was just five years earlier.
"The main thing that jump-started my career was a contest I did in Houston when I was 14," Armiger, who is now 21, said. "It was put on by a radio station there, and the winning prize was a two-song demo. I went national because I won the contest."
Country Weekly magazine recently named her country music's No. 1 hottest bachelorette, and for the second year in a row, she has topped the list that includes huge names like Kimberly Perry of The Band Perry, Lauren Alaina and Taylor Swift. In late 2011, Country Weekly also placed Armiger on its "Country Music's Most Beautiful Women" list, where she was second to Carrie Underwood. Armiger said she likes to keep her focus concentrated on the music, though.
"I love the pureness that is in country music," Armiger said. "They're all life experiences, and you can always hear the emotion the people are singing, whether it's a happy song or a really sad song. I'm excited to bring [my music] to Ball State."
Armiger will perform at 7:30 p.m. in Pruis Hall tonight. For students, tickets are $5 in advance and $10 at the door.
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