You would think being a radio personality would only boost your music career.
Not so for Cathy Rivers, host of "Acoustic Sunset" on The Mountain.
"I've literally had people come up to me and say, 'I was really afraid to come see you play because I knew you from all those years on the radio,'" said Rivers, whose show airs nightly from 8 to 11 p.m.
"When you like people, you don't want to not like their art."
Rivers, an Ohio native, has been on Tucson radio since the early '90s, when she was hired by KCDI (97.5-FM), then known as "CD Country."
She worked for KFMA (92.1-FM), KLPX (96.1-FM) and, before it was a conservative talk station, KZPT (104.1-FM). In 2001, she retired from radio to pursue her dream of being a full-time musician.
People are also reading…
That proved to be hard on the wallet, so early last year she returned to radio. In addition to her job at The Mountain, she works as a manager at Plush nightclub, where her husband, Kris Kerry, is entertainment director.
Rivers enjoys some of the perks of being a radio personality, like being able to host beneficial community events like AIDSWalk.
She's always played music and had been in bands, including '90s Tucson punk band Brenda's Never Been, before going solo under her own name.
The problem was, the name "Cathy Rivers" became confusing for some of her listeners. For instance, she would make public appearances being billed as "Cathy Rivers," and people would think she was playing a set instead of just hosting an event, or vice versa.
In November 2006, she changed her music project's name to Little Black Cloud. The name also acts as an umbrella for the many musicians she works with on her recordings, including members of Calexico and My Morning Jacket.
She's released two albums under the name Cathy Rivers, and her next album as Little Black Cloud will be released in a couple months.
The music on Rivers' MySpace page is broody, singer-songwriter territory with Rivers' breathy vocals surrounded by a full band.
When she performs live, it's mostly as a duo with local musician Jimmy Carr, but she's been known to play with up to six people.
Rivers, who enjoys the visual arts and the outdoors, just wrapped up a brief February tour of Australia that doubled as a vacation.
She's been taking a break from playing Tucson shows, but expects to start back up soon.
