The Spiritual Americana record traces the quiet courage of rebuilding a life from the inside out
Charlottesville, VA (November 7, 2025) — Americana artist and trauma-informed story work coach Lora Kelley releases her new full-length album, "Where I Am Now," a deeply honest exploration of healing, loss and the work of reclaiming one’s life.
Spanning five years of songwriting, the record blends Kelley’s warm, clear vocals with understated folk arrangements and spiritual undertones, echoing the melodic sensibilities of Natalie Merchant, Sandra McCracken and Nanci Griffith.
"Where I Am Now" began unknowingly in 2019, when Kelley wrote the song “Dust,” without realizing it would become the foundation of a larger body of work. The album began to take shape in 2023 when she shared a new song with longtime collaborator Jeremy Casella, who recognized the emerging arc. What followed is Kelley’s most expansive, vulnerable project yet: a collection tracing the choice to heal, the grief that choice demands, and the life that slowly unfurls on the other side.
“This record... is really my ‘book’ about navigating the complexities of what it means to heal and hold onto yourself, to cultivate a new and flourishing life while you do it,” Kelley shared. “I've worked with hundreds of people who decided to heal and then move through the uncertainty and hope of finding life on the other side. This album is for people who are on that path... I see you and I made it through. It was hard. But it was worth it.”
Album art for "Where I Am Now." Photo by Amy Cherry.
The album opens with “The Man Behind the Curtain,” a piercing reckoning with illusion, awakening, and self-reclamation. From there, Kelley moves into “If I Were Walking Down the Street With You,” a tender imagining of connection across estrangement; “Maybe,” a haunting portrait of leaving an unhealthy family system; and “Dust,” the song that first signaled the emotional center of the project.
Midway through the record, spiritual grounding takes shape in “Wisdom,” a song rooted in Proverbs 3, “Will You Hold My Arms Up,” a plea for presence in exhaustion and doubt, and “Gather Us Together,” a communal prayer for belonging, rest and repair.
The title track, “Where I Am Now,” marks a turning point—a steady-footed declaration of survival as Kelley names the quiet triumph of simply standing in a new place. The final two songs, “If You Let Me” and “I Remember You,” carry the emotional weight of relational repair with an honest look at the lingering grief of complicated love
Photos by Amy Cherry
Throughout the album, Kelley writes with the clarity and emotional depth that have come to define her work. She doesn't flatten the nuance of trauma and recovery; instead, she illuminates the heartbreak of losing the life one had before choosing to heal—a subject rarely named in music or spiritual culture. “Why would you feel sad to lose something that was so hurtful and ache-inducing? Only someone who has chosen to leave a relationship like that knows the complexity,” Kelley says. “It's taken some courage and vulnerability to write from my own heartache, and I hope that it helps people who feel alone in that experience to feel seen.”
For Kelley, the album is both a personal milestone and a communal offering. “All healing asks you to touch the depths of your own heartache and loss,” she said. “You have what it takes. Just keep going. There are people waiting to welcome you as your body settles into safety, security, love, and wellbeing. I am one of them.”
Production Credits:
Jeremy Casella (Producer), Matt Stanfield (piano), Josh Hunt (drums), Jacob Lowery (bass), Nate Duggar (guitar) and Mike Payne (guitar), with Evan Redwine (Engineer)
About Lora Kelley
Rooted in the themes of resilience and gentle honesty, Lora's work is deeply informed by her background in narrative-based trauma care, including her studies with the Allender Center. Her music stands as a testament to the beauty of brokenness, offering not platitudes, but presence — a hand to hold in the dark. Raised amid the liminality of faith and living today on a conserved farm in Virginia with her partner, children, and a lively menagerie of pets, Lora crafts songs that feel lived-in, earthy, and unflinchingly honest. Her new album, "Where I Am Now," continues to explore the emotional terrains where suffering and hope coexist — a body of work poised to resonate with those yearning for deeper connection and sacred honesty.