Eight months ago on May 23, 2023, Tallahassee lost one of its most beloved musical favorites, the forever-young Kathryn Belle Long.
The lithesome singer-songwriter who produced high notes that were like clear bells and lyrics that were filled with a gentleness that seemed profound died after a short battle with astrocytoma, a brain cancer that took the 42-year-old musician far too soon.
Tallahassee has, in the last few years, seen others of its musical treasures depart the scene: Darryl Steele in 2019, Scott Campbell in 2017, Mike Snelling, who played with Kathryn Long in Belle and the Band, in 2020. They each gave much to their community in words and musical memories.
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And Kathryn Belle Long’s songs and in particular, her lyrical portraits of Tallahassee, will endure as well. Her theme song for the WFSU program, “Local Roots,” was a regional Emmy winner. And her musical love-letter, “Tallahassee,” is still on innumerable play-lists.