Bio
Shirley Kennedy is the President of SJK Public Relations, LLC, where she works as a publicist and manages blues/rock power trio Aaron Williams and the Hoodoo (Madison, WI). She is also a founding member of Opus Entertainment Agency, which provides bookings to various artists. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science with an emphasis on Creative Writing from Agnes Scott College and an MBA in Public Administration from the University of Phoenix.
Shirley became involved in the entertainment industry by writing articles about American Idol for The National Ledger, where she was touted as the south’s premier writer on the show. Shortly thereafter, Shirley began interviewing blues artists, which articles were published by Jazz Quad. Shirley was honored by inclusion in the liner notes of “Elliott Yamin”(Hickory Records), the largest selling independent CD in SoundScan history with the highest debut in the Billboard Top 100. She has since been included in the liner notes of the re-release of “Contradictory”by Lucas Cates (PopBomb Records), “These Parts Unknown” by Mike Droho (Ruff Roads Records), “All The Pieces” by the Lucas Cates Band (LucasCatesMusicBMI), “And The World Makes Sense Again,” by Mike Droho and the Compass Rose (Worthwhile Records), and “Broken Glass,” by Ordain (Syphon Records).
Shirley is a member of the National Association of Recording Arts and Sciences, the Atlanta Blues Society, and the Blues Foundation. She has served as a panelist at The Cutting Edge Music Business Conference (2008/2009) and the Atlantis Music Conference (2008). Shirley will be returning to Cutting Edge this year as the press panel moderator. She will be making her first appearance at the Dewey Beach Music Conference as part of the “Your Online Presence, Marketing Tools & Social Networks” panel.