Daily Inspiration: Meet Cat Mahatta

Today we’d like to introduce you to Cat Mahatta.

Hi Cat, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
I was born in Charleston, South Carolina to a Punjabi dad and an Irish-American mom from the south side of Chicago with stellar taste in music. I took a long and winding road through the Midwest, where I got a degree in Spanish linguistics and Classical Vocal Performance, to the West Coast, where I landed in the Social Practice art scene of Portland and played in an indie band. My bandmates were from the Bay Area so we moved down to Oakland where I was pulled into the punk scene and then started an experimental performance art solo music project that became Cat Mahatta. Through many collaborations and site-specific performances, this project evolved into queer dance music, soundtrack music, synth improvisation, and lately choral protest music. I’ve been in LA for 7 years now teaching private music lessons and I currently direct the Onward Voices protest choir and work for the social justice art lab Amplifier.

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Oh my goodness, no! Most of what I’ve done in my adult life had no road that I or anyone in my family could see. Everyone I love has pitched in ideas and support and opportunities to help me cobble this road together, laying down stones right in front of me as I go. The road continues to wind through a thick forest and I am not sure where it leads but the creative adventures and relationships I have are worth the mystery. Of course finding financial resources to create my visions presents a challenge, but one of the major struggles that I rarely talk about is that I have a handful of autoimmune disorders that make me feel sick much of the time and make it hard for me to travel. I struggle to maintain the energy required to perform and often use all my energy up working to pay my bills, which limits my capacity to create. My body is extremely sensitive so any variation in conditions or diet affects my ability to sing; for example, I have GERD and my stomach acid will burn my throat if I’m not careful about what I eat. Both the physical symptoms and emotional impact of experiencing them affect my mental health and I have Persistent Depressive Disorder so I am already prone to the type of depression that makes it hard to get out of bed and reach out to loved ones for support. Luckily, I have a beautiful diverse queer and creative community that holds me up in hard moments and is experienced at off-roading life so they keep me moving forward on my rocky road.

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
Honestly, I think I’m known for being gay, having a great voice, and always having snacks on me (see health issues above), maybe for being a great dancer if we were ever at a party together or you’ve seen my music videos. I don’t think people realize that I produce all of my music and direct my music videos – I even edited my last music video. I was especially proud when that video for the song “who cares?” was featured in SAFICXS International Short Film Fest in Buenos Aires last month, as well as Failed Films Festival. My “hymn to dudes” video was in Cinema Diverse Palm Springs LGBTQ+ Film Festival and the East Village Queer Film Festival, where it won “Best Music Video”.
One of the things that sets me apart is the way I integrate my music and art practice with my teaching practice. In addition to directing and vocal arranging the protest choir Onward Voices,
I’ve created improvisation workshops for both voice and synthesizer called New Sounds. The most recent iteration of New Sounds at an artist collective in France featured dozens of instruments collected throughout a convent that we used to improvise scores to short films, a live poetry reading, a sculpture and more. I’m looking forward to bringing New Sounds back to LA in the new year and everyone is welcome to join, absolutely no music experience necessary!
In general, collaboration is my raison d’être and I have been so honored this year to collaborate with artists like the photographer Rob Woodcox on his UNRWA campaign, poet Emji Saint Spero on Scream Sessions, Butoh dancer Crystal Sasaki for Fools Day, and to have the few text-based visual artworks I make featured in Kayla Hagstrom’s show In Good Company.
If you are curious and want to hear my music alongside my greatest inspirations, follow me on Tidal and look at the playlists I’ve made to honor the musicians that have most influenced me.

If we knew you growing up, how would we have described you?
I was quite a shy studious little guy! I was always observing and listening, which is how I learned to sing before I had memory formation. Music was obviously a primary interest, in part because of my parents’ profound relationship with it, but I also think I am wired to focus on and reproduce the sounds I hear. My sister is the same way and we sang together every day growing up and music constituted a good portion of our personalities. Creating bonds based on creative interests was my main social experience and still is! Back then it was dance team and show choir, and I always worked so hard I ended up dance captain or director. I have OCD, so it never occurred to me not to aim for perfection, something I have had to deconstruct in order to individuate and explore more unconventional creative avenues. It made it hard for me to relate to other kids socially – I was a very obedient, goal-oriented straight-A student. I had a violent home life so I moved through the world pretty fearful and hypervigilant, which didn’t make me very fun to hang out with. Many people only saw me show my personality in performances. Miraculously, I found friends in my elementary school choir who care about people no matter how weird they are, who saw me and my heart and remain my friends today. It’s taken a lifetime to heal my sweet little inner child that was obsessed with reading and climbing oak trees and the moon and fairies and integrate her into a more liberated empowered adult self that is still obsessed with those things.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://catmahatta.bandcamp.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/catmahatta/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/catmahatta
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/catherine-mehta-85274510
• Twitter: https://x.com/catmahatta
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@catmahatta
• Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/catherine-mehta-voice-and-piano-lessons-los-angeles-2?osq=catherine+mehta
• Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/cat-mahatta
• Other: https://open.spotify.com/artist/7Iv5JNhfAE288gBk21qoax?si=sI5tfR2IToGfaTMTM8zCsw

Image Credits
1) Personal Photo – Sandra Markarian
2) UNRWA “Keep the Children Safe” – Rob Woodcox
3) In Good Company – Bai Vicky
4) “When The Earth Divides” – Huntrezz Janos
5) Fools Day with Crystal Sasaki – George Chen
6) Scream Session – Emji Saint Spero
7) “who cares?” SAFICXS – Cat Mahatta & Sarah Reddy
8) Scream Score – Cat Mahatta
9) plot performance – Alice Yuan Zhang