Biography
Mary McAdams is a Des Moines-based, award-winning singer-songwriter and educator. Her music is a mix of folk and Americana, blended with the blues. She has performed at music festivals, art festivals, house concerts, coffeehouses, schools and many private events. Mary performs solo, duo and with her full band.
Mary's songwriting awards include: Regional Finalist, 2011 Mountain Stage NewSong Songwriting Contest; Finalist, 2011 Susanne Millsap Songwriters Showcase, Snowbird Mountain Music Festival; Regional Finalist, 2010 Mountain Stage NewSong Songwriting Contest; Finalist, 2010 Big Top Chautauqua Songwriting Contest; Second Place, 2010 Susanne Millsap Songwriters Showcase, Snowbird Mountain Music Festival;
Semi-Finalist, 2010 Lilith Fair Local Talent Search. She was a Finalist in the Minnesota Folk Festival’s "New Folk Songwriting Contest" in 2002 and 2005.
Mary hosts Ritual Café’s weekly open mic, which provides space for new songwriters and performers to develop their skills. Mary has been on the Iowa Arts Council Performing Artist Roster since 2005 and is an active teaching artist with Metro Arts Alliance, teaching songwriting to students. She has sat on the Metro Arts Alliance Artist Advisory Committee since 2005. Mary was honored as Metro Arts Alliance “Artist of the Month” in February 2009 and Iowa Arts Council’s "Featured Artist" in March 2009.
In May, 2011, Mary’s music was accepted by the music library and synch-licensing powerhouse, Crucial Music. Located in Los Angeles, Crucial Music has secured substantial film/TV placements for its artists and is notoriously selective in the artists they represent.
Mary is a member of Nashville Songwriters Association International and Folk Alliance International and is the Musical Co-Director of Wellspring Community Church in Des Moines.
Mary’s artistic mission includes building a strong and acclaimed songwriting community in Des Moines.
Press Quote:
“Mary McAdams brings a mother’s love and a lover’s passion to the 10 original compositions on this Iowa-based release. Mary can serve up slow and saucy roadhouse blues, earnest Americana roots rockin’ or a lullaby ballad with equal authenticity. From the funky piano fills of “Greed” to the simple guitar picking of “Fourth of July” – you’ll fall in love with the subjects in Mary’s songs.”
Artist descriptions on Last.fm are editable by everyone. Feel free to contribute!
All user-contributed text on this page is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License; additional terms may apply.
