HOLMES BEACH – When Janis Ian makes her appearance for the Island Branch Library’s Friends’ Lecture and Travel Series Thursday, Jan. 31 at 2 p.m., she will likely do so before the largest audience in series history.
The library has enlisted the aid of Waterline Marina Resort and Beach Club, located nearby at 5325 Marina Drive in Holmes Beach, to handle the large crowd. To attend, you will have to get a free ticket at Waterline at 11:30 a.m. on the day of her appearance.
Ian will sing, read and talk about her life and career. Her appearance at Waterline will be live streamed to the library so more people can watch. Afterward, she will sign copies of her book for attendees.
Ian broke into the popular music world at the age of 16 with “Society’s Child,” a ballad about interracial dating in the socially conscious mid-1960s. She followed up in the 1970s with “At Seventeen,” a Grammy award-winning song about the importance of looks among young females.
She won a second Grammy in 2013 for Best Spoken Word Album, for her autobiography, “Society’s Child,” with a total of 10 nominations in eight different categories.
Janis Ian currently lives in Nashville with her wife, Patricia. The couple has visited Anna Maria Island in the past and is trying to engineer a move to the Island. Ian is familiar with the Island Branch Library but has not previously taken part in the popular lecture series.
“That’s why I said yes when they asked me to be a speaker in the lecture series,” she said. “I love what they do there and I’m a big supporter.”
Ian, who continues to write music, said she kept busy after “At Seventeen.”
“I went on the road from 1978 to 1982 and explored some things, but I was and am always writing,” she said.
“I look forward to my appearance for the library and I’m expecting to meet some nice people,” Ian said.
