THE CAT’S MEOW –
April 6, 2024 – “A lot of my fans in recovery say that, ‘You’re super inspiring.’ They feel like they can really connect with me on a deeper level since we’re both in recovery and kind of get it,” Ji said. “I have my regular normal fans and then my recovery fan base, but my recovery fan base — I feel a genuine connection with them. Jilan Ji had no idea when she dropped a TikTok video in 2021 of a song she wrote about working in healthcare in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic that it would resonate with many who saw it and lead her to pivot careers.
Ji, who goes by the stage name Kitty Noir, said she’s always used music as an outlet for her emotions, whether or not it was heard by others. And until she posted just a few seconds of her song “Never Go Back,” her only experience in front of an audience was garage shows she put on as a kid with her next-door neighbor in Pasadena. They called their group the Ocean Band.
