Fayette County singer in running for country music awards
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A country singer from Fayette County is hoping to up her industry profile through awards from two music industry organizations.
Katrina Lynn Whetsel of White, who performs as Katrina Lynn, is nominated for honors from the Atlanta-based International Singer Songwriters Association and Fair Play Country Music, an online magazine and promotional organization based in The Netherlands.
Whetsel is vying for the ISSA award for Female Vocalist of The Year, and for eight Fair Play Country Music Awards, including Entertainer of the Year and Amazing Voice in both Country Rock and Modern Country categories.
The ISSA awards will stream online on Saturday, while the Fair Play awards are slated for November.
Whetsel, 29, says she started singing around age 5, when she received the gift of a Fisher Price karaoke machine. She grew up watching country music awards shows with her mother.
She also was encouraged by her grandparents, both of whom have musical talent.
Her first public appearance was at an open mic event when she was 14.
“It was in the old Brownsville elementary school that’s now a community center,” she says. “People were singing gospel and old-time country music.”
“My grandpap (Bill Whetsel of Mt. Pleasant) organized the Mount Tabor Homecoming,” she says. The event is a fundraiser for Mount Tabor Cemetery in Springfield Township, Fayette County. “He said, ‘You want a shot at singing, I’ll give you a shot.’”
Career goals
After that came gigs at other area fundraisers, outdoor concerts and clubs. She’s also headlined the annual Kecksburg UFO Festival. From starting with a guitar and karaoke tracks, she’s gone on to assemble a five-piece band, playing both original songs and covers.
Whetsel’s short-term career goal is to open for bigger-name country acts. In the long term, she wants to get signed to a record label and entertain military troops on a USO tour, in honor of family members who have served.
Whetsel names Reba McEntire as her favorite country performer, along with Miranda Lambert and Luke Bryan.
“Definitely Reba is my number one. She’s my mom’s favorite and mine as well,” she says. “In my opinion, she’s the queen of country music, because she changes with the times while still staying true to her country roots.”
Unfortunately, the pandemic scotched Whetsel’s plans to attend the Fair Play awards in The Netherlands.
“But I’m going next year,” she says. “I’ve already got my hotel booked.”
A panel of judges determines the ISSA winners, who have demonstrated “an impressive fan base, in order to make it to this prestigious list of fellow contenders,” the organization says.
According to its website, Fair Play is devoted to promoting independent country artists worldwide and to helping them safely navigate the business aspects of performing.