Bailey Katsu has had a transformative year personally and professionally.

Last fall, The Mass Media spoke with the Boston-based singer-songwriter about her on-campus performance at SAEC’s fall concert. Since then, she has expanded her work into New York City with the queer cover band The Femmes and earned recognition from TIDAL’s 2026 Spotlight Series. Most recently, Katsu headlined her first full solo performance at The Middle East in Cambridge July 17.

But the most significant milestones for her came offstage. Within the past year, Katsu and the other lead vocalist of The Femmes, Ellie Brigida, became engaged and married. The pair have had a hand in helping the band grow into one of Boston’s prominent queer live acts.

“It’s been a big year,” Katsu said.

The Femmes have continued expanding beyond Boston, and recently performed at the New York Pride Parade, an experience Katsu describes as particularly meaningful. Katsu recalled a moment where she met a young attendee from Michigan at the event who had recently come out and was at their very first Pride celebration.

“It was cool to be a part of that,” Katsu said. “It was a really special day.”

As The Femmes continue to grow, Katsu steadily builds her own solo career. She described her first solo live show under her own name as equal parts exciting and intimidating.

Earlier this year, she released her second single, “Something New,” which was selected for the 2026 TIDAL Spotlight Series almost immediately after she uploaded the track. Artists submit their songs directly for consideration and receive a $1,000 reward upon winning.

“The next day they Cash Apped me the money,” she said. “It was great validation.”

Recognition is nice, but the prize money she received was particularly beneficial — for independent artists like Katsu, professionally producing a recorded single is expensive, and she will soon be releasing her third.

“When I released my first single, I was thinking, ‘I wrote a song. I’m going to put it out and see what happens,'” she said. “Now I’m thinking much more intentionally about pursuing both my solo project and The Femmes in a major way.”

For Katsu, these milestones have reinforced her confidence in sharing deeply personal music — her authenticity is central to her artistry. With every release, she reflects on a different part of her journey as a queer woman in her twenties discovering her identity. “Something New” captures a realization following a first date that fundamentally changed how she understood herself, and her debut single “Bittersweet Bitch” explores jealousy and her experience learning about the unique social dynamics of queer dating.

“My musical journey is very similar to me realizing different things and entering a new community,” Katsu said.

Katsu is an independent artist to her core, taking on many of the responsibilities by herself, from booking under her own name to organizing the lineup and promoting the event. She carefully curated her own setlist, featuring original songs as well as covers that have helped shape her artistry. It’s not just a concert, but a representation of her stepping into a life as a solo artist, introducing her music to entirely new audiences.

The nearly 200-person capacity venue forced her to step out of certain confinements and think beyond friends and family. “It’s definitely a big stretch for me,” she said.

Her third single, which she said she was especially excited to perform for a newer and broader audience, was also released the day of the concert.

“It’s my favorite song that I’ve written yet,” Katsu said.

Katsu has an additional single in current production and hopes to compile her recent releases into an EP for release later this year. As Boston’s queer music community continues to grow, she plans to continue collaborating with more musicians as well as expanding her performance schedule.

Boston continues to be the ideal city to build her future as an artist. She and Brigida considered relocating to Nashville but quickly realized, after an uncomfortable experience, that they were already right where they belonged. “We looked at each other and realized this wasn’t our space,” Katsu said. For her, Boston offers a supportive community that has helped shape both her personal life and her artistic career.

Her new music, national recognition and biggest solo performance to date shows that Bailey Katsu’s breakout year is just the beginning.