An Evening with Swearingen & Kelli - An Indie-Americana Duo (with guest Jonathan Beedle)

On Sunday, December 7, 2025, AJ Swearingen & Jayne Kelli, an Indie-Americana duo, will be returning to Harrisburg to perform on the Mansion Concert stage of the River Room at The Manor on Front. The doors will open at 5:00 PM, and the show will begin promptly at 6:00 PM. They will be joined by a guest singer/songwriter and long-time collaborator, Jonathan Beedle.

Seating is limited to the first 85 interested persons who sign up at this site. To support our artists, we recommend a donation of $37.50 per person for this concert. All donated proceeds are directed to the artist.

This will be a private, BYOB event; wine, beer (no liquor), and cold food snacks. If you are reading this, you are invited.  Our attendees are invited to contribute and share their favorite baked goods, munchies, and other delightful snacks. Polly and I will provide bottled water, hot coffee, hot tea, and a good supply of Polly's now-famous chocolate chip cookies (these should not be missed).

To learn more about our Mansion Concerts, go to www.mansionconcert.com.
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About AJ & Jayne

Indie-Americana duo Swearingen & Kelli are gearing up to release a series of standalone singles while hitting the road and preparing to record their next full-length album.

Hailing from Lapeer, Michigan, songstress Jayne Kelli first crossed paths with Pennsylvania native, Aj Swearingen, over a decade ago at a songwriters club in Florida.

After becoming fast friends and bandmates, they eloped in Punta Cana and headed for Nashville, where their music continues to evolve. Last fall’s release, Build Myself Up From the Ground, garnered features on The Bluegrass Situation, Wide Open Country, and Americana Highways, who praised them for sounding "as good as John Prine with Bonnie Raitt on ‘Angel From Montgomery.’”

​With siren-like vocals and prolific songwriting, Swearingen & Kelli have carved out their own space in the Americana landscape, earning praise from Red Line Roots as artists “others would do well to emulate.”Their earlier albums, The Marrying Kind and Cold-Hearted Truth, drew critical acclaim from Gretsch Guitars, Cowboys & Indians Magazine, and NY Country Swag.

With a sound steeped in the soul of ‘60s and ‘70s songwriters, they’ve shared the stage with legends like Crystal Gayle, Kenny Rogers, and folk heroes Tom Rush and David Bromberg.

More than music binds the couple, who both lost their fathers to Parkinson's, and had to move five times in one year due to mold exposure complications. Aj and Jayne stay centered by finding humor in everything, staying passionate about nutrition and fitness, all while touring and creating music. Home for the couple is the road, the stage, and the people they connect with at every show.

What are others saying about these artists?

Swearingen & Kelli have earned consistent praise across the Americana landscape for their heartfelt songwriting, luminous harmonies, and the emotional depth of their performances. Americana Highways described their sound as “country-folk evoking a morsel of nostalgia, yet rooted in a generous amount of originality,” while Music Street Journal called their vocal blend “exceptional” and their track This Old House “a true duet of poignancy and grace.”

When performing live, the duo shines even brighter. Americana UK praised Jayne Kelli’s “emotional vocal control” and AJ Swearingen’s “breathtaking slide guitar that finds notes beautifully lonesome.” Together, they embody the timeless spirit of Americana — modern yet steeped in storytelling traditions that recall Prine, Raitt, and Simon & Garfunkel.

“As good as John Prine with Bonnie Raitt on Angel From Montgomery.” — Americana Highways

“Some of the best harmonies today.” — Take Effect Reviews

“Breathtaking slide guitar… beautifully lonesome.” — Americana UK

“Exceptional vocal harmonies and heartfelt songwriting.” — Music Street Journal

“A true gem of rural beauty and inimitable chemistry.” — Take Effect Reviews

Americana Highways describes the duo's EP Build Myself Up from the Ground as a beautiful blend of nostalgia and originality. “Their voices are how watercolors run together to create an unexpected new hue.” The EP is “country-folk but evoking a morsel of nostalgia,” rooted in a bygone style yet with “a generous amount of originality.”

Take Effect Reviews (TER) described the duo's third album release, Cold-Hearted Truth, as "A record that’s full of nostalgic sounds as well as modern melodies, Swearingen & Kelli once again prove that their inimitable chemistry puts them at the top of today’s folk, country, Americana, and roots scene. TER commented on the EP's “balance of light and dark sensibilities,” which incorporates “some of the best harmonies today.” TER hailed their earlier work (Cold Hearted Truth) as “a true gem of rural beauty” and “a display of inimitable chemistry.”

Jayne Kelli — Solo Piano Intimacy

In the sparse quiet of a dimly lit room, Jayne Kelli sits at the piano. No backing band, no harmony partner—just her voice and the keys. What emerges is a moment of raw vulnerability, the kind that turns song into confession.

Kelli’s voice, already praised in her duo work as “sweet,” “haunting,” and “cinematic,” takes on new dimensions here—each phrase stretched and shaped by her own phrasing, each pause pregnant with meaning. Her tonal control is evident: she hovers between breath and note, letting some words linger like whispered secrets, then leaning into others until they bloom.

The piano isn’t just an accompaniment; it converses with her. Subtle runs and gentle arpeggios heighten emotional undercurrents. In softer moments, chords are understated and spacious, leaving plenty of air. In more dramatic turns (a bridge, a key change), she allows the piano to swell—pushing into crescendos that feel earned, not forced.

Lyrically, the solo setting gives weight to every syllable. Lines about heartache, self-doubt, or resilience carry more room to breathe and resonate when held by nothing but her own touch. The listener is closer in—intimately so—to her inner life.

About Jonathan Beedle

Jonathan Beedle has been a performing musician whose forte is harmony. “I just gravitated toward harmony from the very beginning,” he says. “The parts just jumped out at me, and those are the parts I would sing.” His collaborations with various partners and bandmates have seasoned him as a performer. Influenced by The Beatles, Johnny Cash, John Prine, and Joni Mitchell, Jonathan is also an accomplished songwriter whose album A Long Day Gone is filled with rich, heartfelt songs in the storytelling style he finds so compelling.

Jonathan’s voice was heard in the Season 1 finale of the HBO series Big Love, singing the Civil War-era classic, Lorena. “Hearing myself singing in the background during a scene with Harry Dean Stanton was a surreal experience and quite a thrill!” he recalls. He has performed across the country and has shared the stage with Jimmy Webb, Steve Forbert, The Strawbs, Ellis Paul, and Lucy Kaplansky.