Caitlin is an award-winning vocalist with a music degree from Grand Valley State University where she was classically trained in voice and piano. She has worked with Tony Award winning teachers and directors in New York City. She has been known to many in the Grand Rapids area as a performer, voice teacher, theatre director, and music director.
In 2022, she was one of fifty songwriters selected from worldwide applicants to attend the first “SongCon” in New York City with Ari Herstand (Ari’s Take) and Danny Ross (Forbes, Antisocial Producers Club). She looks forward to continuing collaborations internationally with those songwriters and producers.
Her debut single “I’ll Be Okay” landed spots on playlists with tens of thousands of listeners and was covered by multiple local news outlets including the Ionia Sentinel-Standard, Greenville Daily News, and the WGVU Morning Show with Shelley Irwin.
The May 2023 release of her debut EP Quiet My Mind represented a significant milestone on her healing journey and entry into a promising new era. Featuring songs inspired by her experiences of recovery from brain injury and loss, Cusack transformed her grief into joy in a genre-bending pop record in styles ranging from shimmery cinematic pop to folky pop with an Americana flavor. The EP amassed 15,000 streams on Spotify.
“Balancing light and darkness, joy and pain, Caitlin Cusack has created a powerful collection of pop music sparked by her struggles following a concussion – helping raise awareness of the seriousness of brain injuries,” says John Sinkevics of Local Spins.
In October 2024, Caitlin was selected to give a Tedx Talk, “Overcoming Brain Injury and Loss: The Healing Power of Music” at TedxMacatawa. She told her story with original music woven in.
In August 2024, Caitlin was announced the #1 most listened to artist of the Kent District Library Vibes Music Collection, holding 4 of the 5 most streamed songs by local musicians.
Fall 2024 brought the release of The You Carry Me Project, 3 original songs and music videos produced in honor of her parents, which went on to win the WYCE Jammie Award for Best Pop Album in February 2025. Caitlin also won a Jammie sponsored by Varnum, the “Against All Odds” award that recognized her for continuing to create music amidst adversity.