Monarch Artist Feature: Ellie Ruth

By Kelsey Knott Photos By Matt Johnson 

Take a dreamy, unrushed journey with Ellie Ruth Miller in her latest music video, “Take My Time,” as she enchants us with seemingly ordinary Louisville spaces and animates her beloved home in the most magically moving way.

A Smithfield girl with roots in classical music, Ellie Ruth started on the viola at age five and was part of the Louisville Youth Orchestra growing up before attending UofL for classical viola performance. Simultaneously, fiddle music found her in her teens, and she learned to improvise at local Bluegrass jams with her dad. “I’m inspired by the people I’m playing with. I felt burnt out when I finished college and wasn’t even feeling like I wanted to be a musician, but I had made good friends. We clicked as people but also in how we approached music, and it felt fun and freeing to play and have no other expectation but to have fun together with it.” Whether traveling to other cities or trekking back home, she stays inspired by people and places around her. 

As a songwriter, musical accompaniments find her prior to lyrics. A sought-after session musician and fiddle player for local bands like Hot Brown Smackdown, she’s a melody master who keeps honesty at the forefront of her songwriting. “Great songwriting is going to be impactful if you’re as honest as you can be. Once I write about something that feels hard and I let it into the world, I can get to even more vulnerable places eventually… I worry about seeming selfish, or like it’s about me, but it really is about connection. If you tell your story, then you’re inviting other people to tell theirs and connect with you.”

Ellie Ruth compares mastering the violin to the human voice: “It’s very vocal-like, the way you can control it. What makes it hard is that every tiny motion affects it, so once you’re able to control that, you can control so many aspects and sounds of the instrument and create so much texture and emotion.” We spoke about the sometimes overlooked gift of living in Kentucky, a major Bluegrass space: “Kentucky’s history of Bluegrass, country, and old time music is really special. When I go to other places and meet people who love it too, I realize that.”

While her creative work of writing and performing stays central, Ellie Ruth found an unexpected joy along the way: teaching. “I actually have become a better musician, like exponentially, when I started teaching. It brought back this excitement about music that I lost.” Whether her students dream of being violinists or provide her the challenge of winning them over, lessons with the littles keep her inspired and fuel her own creativity.

On October 4th, The Monarch will host Ellie Ruth’s release show, where you’ll see her alongside local musicians like Chris Rodahaffer, Fiona Palensky, Chris Cupp, Isaac May, and Jailynn Noel. Listen to “Take My Time” now, follow her @ellieruth_music, and get hype for her debut album!