American songwriter, composer, and record producer, born November 28, 1970, in Chicago, IL
Cat Ellington (born Kimberly Monique Hart to parents Linda Marie Hart and Ezell Ellington-Jenkins) is notable for her songwriting in two dozen music genres. Having written her first song, titled "The Baby's Song," in 1981, when she had been just ten years old, Cat Ellington, through The Black Jaguar Music Company, has since composed hundreds of song works that span several categories, including R&B, Jazz, Pop, Rock, Folk, Country, etc.
Ellington was given the nickname "Cat" by one of her teachers in 1980. And she later added the surname of her father to provide the moniker with a more syllabic flair. It was in 1982 that the young songwriter composed her third piece titled "Gluttony (The Shell)." Written for Barbra Streisand, the tale took its inspiration from her struggle with childhood obesity. And it is a work that Ellington refers to as her Janis Ian - At Seventeen—a classic made famous by Janis Ian, one of her biggest songwriting influences—in 1975. Over time, Ellington—an ASCAP member since 2003—would continue to write her songs. And each work drew its inspiration from not only her life experiences but also those around her. Each song work that she has ever written is an entity in itself, a unique storyline to which any individual can relate.
Her career would begin its launch in 1992 after meeting her husband, filmmaker, and fellow songwriter, Joseph Strickland (2). As the couple progressed in their relationship, Ellington would read the second draft to a screenplay written by Strickland titled Dual Mania. And with time, they would work to bring the film to fruition for the big screen. It was in 1993 that Strickland hired Cat to take over the casting process on Dual Mania. And while the job had its strenuous moments, Ellington completed her first assignment as an executive casting director in 1996.
With the cast set and pre-production underway, Strickland would commission her creative input once more for the film soundtrack. He wanted at least six original R&B songs from the Cat Ellington song catalog to place on the soundtrack. And Cat delivered the works. She furnished the filmmaker with seven tracks, including "I Do," "Something in Your Eyes," "The Book Of Us," "Free," "I'm Still In Love," and "You're Not Where I Belong." However, only four of the tracks would make it for scenes in the film. Eventually, Ellington, together with Strickland, would compose the heavy metal track, "Gett Out," to replace "You're Not Where I Belong." And when Dual Mania debuted on the international film festival circuit in 2018, the film garnered over a dozen awards worldwide. Incidentally, "I Do," a song that Cat originally wrote for R&B songstress Rachelle Ferrell, would win the 2019 Vegas Movie Award for Best Song - as well as an Honorable Mention from the notable festival in recognition of excellence in filmmaking.
Working with a great team of collaborators, including producers Princeton Brown and Greg Schutte, vocalist Jaki Cavins, and a horn section consisting of the trumpet and saxophone duo of DeCarlo Jackson and Josh Johnson (21), Cat Ellington produced Jaki Cavins, DeCarlo Jackson, Marcus Robson (2) - Dual Mania (The Original Motion Picture Soundtrack). And Vital Vision Records released the soundtrack on October 20, 2020—under the executive production of Joseph Strickland. In 2021, Vital Vision Records released the second effort under the composition of Cat Ellington, titled Cat Ellington, Joseph Strickland (2) - Instrumentals: Music From The Motion Picture Dual Mania. The album features the instrumental versions of five of Ellington's original song works, first recorded with vocals for the Dual Mania soundtrack, including "The Book of Us (Instrumental)," "Something in Your Eyes (Instrumental)," "I'm Still in Love (Instrumental)," "I Do (Instrumental)," and "Gett Out (Instrumental)."
In addition to her career in film and music, Cat Ellington is a published author and poet. Since 2018, Ellington has published over two dozen books, including the popular Reviews by Cat Ellington series, More Imaginative Than Ordinary Speech, Memoirs in Gogyohka, The Five-Star Review, and Strike a Prose. In 2021, Vital Vision Publications published The Cat Ellington Sheet Music Collection—an original series featuring the musical scores of songs written by Cat Ellington through The Black Jaguar Music Company, previously recorded with vocals by various artists.
