From Band Kid to Indie-Folk Icon: The Sarah Gross Story
If you haven’t heard of Sarah Gross, you’ve been missing out. The multi-talented indie-folk singer is a Long Island native, hailing from the magical land of Brookhaven. But how did this absolute icon graduate from being a band kid at William Floyd High School to sharing stages with notable acts like Zach Bryan? Well buckle up, settle in, and let me tell you a story.
This Is Only the Beginning…
From a young age, singing was in Sarah’s blood. Music was practically seeping from her family’s pores. Her mother had gone to school for music therapy, so a guitar was always within arm’s reach, but it’s her older brother, Ronnie Gross, who has really influenced her musical career. She would watch him craft songs that verged on the edge of comedy, admiring his innate ability to be simultaneously silly, funny, and talented. She was inspired and felt the burning motivation that any person with siblings can relate to: “If you do it, I have to do it. That’s just how siblings work.”
Then middle school hit, and the dots truly began to connect. Ronnie went off to college and the guitar was just lying around, lonesome and patiently waiting, practically begging to be played. And as her brother started his new journey, so did Sarah.
Sarah calls the beginning stages “the most precious, sacred time of being an artist.”It’s all about that initial spark, when you realize you can create something and have an undying hunger to learn everything there is about it. Every ounce of free time you have, you dedicate to it. It’s about learning and trying things out. And so Sarah did just that: She pushed her boundaries more and more every day until it was time to go off to college, where she would start her metamorphosis into a serious artist before she even knew it.
You Don’t Have to Go to Music School to Be a Musician
Sarah Gross engineering in the studio at Syracuse University.
When Sarah went away to Syracuse University to study sound recording and music technology, she had no clue what domino effect was about to be triggered. It was at Syracuse where she had her first true taste of the hodgepodge that is the music industry. There, local music communities flew under the radar and were built on the backs of students.
Any day of the week, you could find yourself in a room full of people from different walks of life and focuses in the entertainment industry, all coming together to put on some of the most organized and kickass shows Sarah has seen to date. But the true magic lies in the fact that the people putting these events together were all kids, just doing the damn thing. If you needed to know when an event was happening or what venues you had around you, all you had to do was check out the thoroughly detailed Google sheets that circulated through the community like a bible.
Her time at Syracuse was invaluable, not just for the education she learned in the classroom, but more for the experience she gained outside of it. When she first went away to college, she had zero thoughts about coming out of it as a musician. Then she realized, people care about original music. Sarah developed a lot of trust and respect for the community surrounding her and learned not only what it meant to be an artist, but what a community could look like — and that it was sustainable.
In the end, her biggest takeaway from the house-show scene was that you “don’t have to go to music school to be a musician. You just need to find community.” And so the search for this community began.
Country Road, Take Me Home…to Long Island
When Sarah returned home from college, she had already released her sophomore album “The Killjoy”, which stands as a prime example of her internal growth as a person and artist.
The album follows her journey of letting go of her younger self and making way for new beginnings. Her ability to seamlessly blend folk, indie, and alternative genres can only be described as masterful. She handpicks different elements of each to enhance her storytelling and add depth to the reflection of her journey — taking you with her for the joyride.
With her new outlook on what it means to be a musician and some new songs under her belt, Sarah was ready to take the local Long Island music scene by storm. And by storm she took it. She took to writing every day and sought out opportunities to share her art with her community. Soon enough, Sarah Gross was popping up on bills all over the Island, from out east in the Hamptons to deep in the heart of NYC.
Whatever she was doing, it was working, and people were taking notice.
From the Parking Lot to the Main Stage
Now, let’s fast forward to the near-present day.
In March of 2024, Sarah accepted an invite from her friends to attend what she believed would be a regular, run-of-the-mill tailgate outside the UBS arena before Zach Bryan’s show. But, as she shares, whether what happened next was because of what she’d been building or the newfound confidence that came with it, she was ready.
Sarah quickly heard someone playing guitar and was, like any musician, drawn to listen like a moth to a flame. As she settled in and scanned the lot, she noticed Zach Bryan’s father, Dewayne, hanging out with an East Moriches Fire Department shirt on and a guitar in hand. With her curiosity piqued and confidence high, she had no second thoughts about striking up a conversation: “Where'd you get that shirt? Like, aren’t you from Oklahoma? Why are you wearing an East Moriches shirt?”
As the conversation flowed, she shared that she often plays music at the nearby Moriches Field Brewing Company. Dewayne prompted her to get up on the stage and play a song — which turned into two songs, and two songs turned into an hour-long jam. After she finished her impromptu set, Dewayne invited Sarah and her parents back the next day to play the tailgate again and attend the next show.
She arrived at the tailgate the next day, performed, and headed in to attend the concert with her parents. Little did she know, Dewayne had been sending his son videos of Sarah’s playing for the past two days straight, and the Zach Bryan wanted her to join him on stage for a song. According to Sarah, Zach was down to earth, easy to talk to, and reassuring every step of the way. They played “I Remember Everything” (which features Kacey Musgraves on the studio recording) and that was it — the internet found out about Sarah Gross.
Sarah Gross with Zach Bryan’s dad, Dewayne Bryan, at the UBS Tailgate.
Sarah backstage with Zach Bryan.
The following weeks were nothing she could have prepared for. Sarah received an overwhelming amount of online attention after playing with Zach and had to remind herself to come back down to earth. This meant designating time to tend to social media while also creating firm boundaries to avoid being swept away into it. So, by the time Jimmy Fallon came around, she was already learning to adjust.
The experience was a whirlwind for the singer. All of a sudden, she was tasked to write a song in one hour for The Battle of The Instant Songwriters and perform it on the Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon. But if anyone was up for this challenge, it was Sarah.
She notes, “It was such a fun and positive experience…I’ve never seen so many cameras before, so I was a bit intimidated coming in, but the crew there made me feel right at home.” And in just a few hours, Sarah wrote, performed, and debuted her song “Anything But Politics” on the same stage that has hosted the likes of Lainey Wilson, The Lumineers, Carrie Underwood, and so many more!
What Comes Next?
So what comes next, you might ask? Sarah is unsure what will happen over the next year but wants to take the momentum she has now and just keep going for it. Seeing if it's possible to take it to the next step.
In regards to her music, she affirms that this next stage will be exploratory, featuring collaborations with all different types of musicians and potentially mixing in a booking agent or label down the line. She looks forward to more opportunities to perform with more notable acts, tour, and travel as far as her music will take her. Expanding her community wherever she goes, but never forgetting the people she has met along the way and the mark they have left on her heart and soul.
You can catch Sarah Gross & The Killjoys next on Saturday, September 28th at the Bay Street Theater, opening up for Teddy Thompson at the Sag Harbor American Music Festival. The next day, you can hop across the bay to Peconic Bay Vineyards for another full-band experience on Sunday, September 29th from 5 to 9 PM.
Make sure to follow and subscribe to Sarah Gross Music everywhere so you can stay up to date with her journey. I don’t know what comes next, but I know it’s bound to be extraordinary.
Sarah Gross and her band playing at Spotlight at The Paramount in Huntington, NY.
Written by: Brianna Coccia - September 2024
Edited by: Travis Ryan