Before the current exhibition of her work at the Milstein Center, Professor Kadambari Baxi mounted “Trigger Planting” at the Frieze New York art fair
Singer-songwriter Gracie Abrams, the rising star and opening act for Taylor Swift’s juggernaut Eras Tour, might not have graduated from Barnard, but the year she spent at the College is a credential that she speaks of often to the national press. Her trajectory changed, however, when she decided to take a break after her freshman year in 2019 to pursue music. Abrams went on to collaborate with Aaron Dessner, the in-demand music producer and member of the indie band the National, on her debut album, Good Riddance, released in February 2023.
Abrams was nominated this year for a Grammy in the Best New Artist category. Though she didn’t go home with the award, she posted on Instagram that she “screamed” her support for the “epically talented” Victoria Monet’s win. Another post showed her cheek to cheek with legendary singer-songwriter Joni Mitchell.
Abrams credits her attendance at Barnard, as well as an all-girls high school, with instilling the confidence often found lacking in women seated next to men in the classroom. “I felt zero fear or hesitation to raise my hand every single time I had a thought about anything,” she told Vanity Fair. It was, perhaps, the jump-start she needed to overcome her well-documented stage fright, particularly when performing in the highest-grossing concert tour of all time.
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