Voice

A native of Albany, Kelly is a live performance and studio session singer, vocal coach, songwriter, producer and actor (former AEA member).  She holds a Bachelor of Science in Music Education and Music Industry from the College of St. Rose, where she later taught as Senior Teaching Artist in the MI Program until the school’s closure in 2024. As a recording session singer, Kelly was known for over twenty years in the commercial industry as the “Jingle Queen,” recording radio & TV commercials for clients including Good Will, GE, Times Union, NYRA, NYS Tourism IYNY, and regional News stations WNYT, WRGB, WTEN and WXXA. Kelly’s versatility of styles is unparalleled. In her 30+ year career, she’s worked in multiple disciplines, highly sought after as a classical soloist, Jazz vocalist, Broadway belter and Rock/Pop/Country singer. As a session singer and producer, Kelly has worked with artists from the Capital Region and abroad including Enya, Irish tenor Robert White (Juilliard), Ben Okafor (Nigeria/UK), Kalliopi Vetta (Greece), Joel Chadabe, Happy Rhodes, Marty Wendell and film composer, Peter Schwartz. The L.A. Times review called The Mother Goose Jazz Band’s Go With the Flow an “outstanding new album…that heats up with lead singer Kelly Bird’s velvety, full-bodied vocals.”

For more than twenty years, Kelly held positions in various places of worship, including Westminster Presbyterian Church (Alto Soloist) and Congregation Beth Emeth (Soprano, Alto Soloist). Her most meaningful work in recent years has been as a soloist for funerals, both in sacred spaces and privately in funeral homes throughout the Capital District. She is married and lives in the Delmar area with her darlin’ husband and fellow Blue Sky instructor, Mitch Elrod. Her debut Jazz album Rebel Bird and a collection of sacred songs titled A Time for Tears are both slated for release in 2026.