Kate grew up immersed in music. Nurtured by a musical family, excellent public schools, and mentors in their community, Kate's love of music began early. They explored a variety of instruments as a child and drew early inspiration from the vibrant live music scene of Western Massachusetts. Kate discovered their passion for jazz at a Sonny Rollins concert in 1997 and found their voice on saxophone less than a year later.

​Kate earned a Bachelor of Arts at Pomona College, majoring in American Studies and minoring in Music. They explored music not just as a performer, but also as a historian and anthropologist. Pomona awarded Kate funding to research jazz and R&B in post-World War II Los Angeles, a project that provided the foundation for their thesis on the Pan Afrikan People’s Arkestra. Throughout college, Kate continued studying music theory, piano, voice, and participated in a number of musical ensembles, including the college's choir and the jazz ensemble. They studied improvisation with trumpeter/cornetist Bobby Bradford at Pomona and with saxophonist Adam Kolker in their hometown of Amherst, MA.

In 2012, Kate moved to Maine and became an integral part of the Greater Portland music scene, playing hundreds of shows a year as a founding member of local bands Downeast Soul Coalition, The Hello Josephines, and Bess Jacques & The Strays and as a freelancer with dozens of other projects. After seven wonderful years in Maine, Kate's musical journey continues in their new hometown of New Orleans, where they are a graduate student at the University of New Orleans' Jazz Studies Master of Music Program.