I Will Not Be Afraid

At 24 years old, singer/songwriter Caroline Rose is an acoustic guitar–toting wanderer who sings what she feels and who relishes her freedom every day of her unorthodox life. I Will Not be Afraid is her official debut album (she doesn’t count an earlier self-release). It includes both the electric country-rockabilly of “Blood on Your Bootheels," inspired by the Trayvon Martin case, and the acoustic folk of “Red Bikini Waltz” on a freewheelin’ collection that Rose wrote, arranged, and coproduced with multi-instrumentalist Jer Coons, with Pat Melvin on bass. Despite earning a degree in architecture on a full scholarship, Rose forsook it all for her van and the chance to become a traveling musician, bringing her small band around to say her truth. Songs such as “America Religious,” “Shepherd,” and the title track demonstrate her lyrical wit and her heartfelt wisdom and compassion alongside the joys of playing in a small band. Raised in the Northeast, Rose still exudes the Southern charm of her family’s roots and of her favorite music.