Heather Mae
Washington, D.C., Washington, D.C., United States | Established. Jan 01, 2008 | SELF
Music
Press
Heather Mae has a calm, soulful sound that reaches out to you. It is a refreshing switch-up from fast paced life and booming music you hear in public places. If you like Carole King or Mamma Cass, Heather is the modern day version of these two ladies. - Beat On Repeat
Each day Mae wrote, produced and performed a new song. The process was stressful at times, and there were hurdles she needed to overcome. What resulted was a revolution. - Posh Seven Magazine
Local singer-songwriter Heather Mae Foard took on an ambitious project in October 2010: to write and record a song every day for a year. Out of those 365 songs, Foard (who records and performs under the name Heather Mae) chose 10 to re-record in a proper studio with a backing band and release as her first full-length album, “One Year of Songs.”
The studio polish suits Foard’s songs well, especially compared with the simplicity of her original recordings. A cello complements her ukulele on several songs, most notably the pleading “Just Stay,” while percussion and subtle backing vocals flesh out the vivid longing in her vocals on album standout “Mississippi Man.”
At times, Foard’s songs come across a bit like diary entries. “One Day Soon” and “One of These Days” both find her wistfully daydreaming about the future. That’s not a surprising perspective for a songwriter who sat down to write every day, but putting two such songs back-to-back on the album seems redundant. Still, Foard’s songs are charming even outside the context of the original project, and she captures her prolific streak with a reflective sigh on album-closing “Summer Road”: “I search for music inside of me.” - The Washington Post
"Artists and musicians love to talk about their creative process and how they might change it or get better. Heather Mae dives in and faces her art head on. [Heather Mae] has a long and beautiful career ahead of her." - 100.1 KRUU FM, Lyrical Venus: Focus on Female Singer-Songwriters
"Singer-songwriter Heather Mae is constantly searching in the darkest corners and the highest branches of the right half of her mind. She’s always devising new ways to lure out that elusive and slippery creature known as creativity." - Northern Virginia Magazine
“Beautifully written, engagingly crafted, and accomplished in execution, Heather Mae’s ‘One Year of Songs’ should see her gain plaudits and fans around the globe.” - PopCulturez.com
"[Heather Mae] decided rather than wait for opportunity to knock, she would bust down the door and show us what she was made of…" - Oh! My Muse Blog
"...one of those records that changes our world." - Andrew Eade, Owner of Green Room Recording Studio
"Heather has taken on even more creative responsibility while performing around the country, her goal being to write a song every day for a year. "Before starting this project, I would sit with a song for months, years even, waiting for inspiration to hit me," Heather admits. "'One Year of Songs'" has taught me how to brew creativity on the spot. Not every song I write is going to be a hit, but in writing both good and bad songs, I've realized it's the fact that I'm doing it that matters."" - Huffington Post
“I Am Enough” is an ode to body positivity and breaking away from self-imposed affliction to fit into what society defines as beautiful. - Curve Magazine
Heather Mae is tired of turning on the radio and hearing songs she can’t connect to. She’s tired of turning on the TV and seeing bodies that don’t look like her’s. So she’s doing something about it by redefining what its means to be ‘good enough.’
Heather Mae has always been a big girl. Big voice, big personality, and big body. Growing up in the suburbs of Virginia she didn’t know she was any different than the boys she and her older brother played with. It wasn’t until she and her family were forced out of their home and moved to the ‘other side’ of town that she realized she was different…and some people didn’t like that. And she was only 10.
So the story goes: She grew tough from the harsh words of her bullies but she found a love of music. As an adult, she feigned confidence. She’d sing her song, she’d cover up her curves she was confident no one wanted to see. She got by, by pretending. In the fall of 2012, she released her first record, One Year of Songs, which came after completing a year-long project where she wrote and recorded one song, every single day, for an entire year. But her love of music began to change and the bully in her mind became louder. The tours were consuming, the ticket prices were going up, and as long as she was getting paid – she didn’t care if the music was uninspiring. And then boom! In May of 2013, Heather Mae was diagnosed with a large cyst and nodule on her vocal chords and was told she may never be able to sing again.
When you’re told you must stop doing the thing that takes up 95% of your life, you suddenly have a lot of time on your hands to realize the person you have become is not the person you planned on being. It was in this stillness she came to terms with her negative body image, her silent battle with depression, and her identity as a queer woman. She made a promise to herself: If she ever got the chance to sing again, she’d do it differently. She’d write songs for people just like her.
Heather Mae’s new record is titled I AM ENOUGH and she’s on a mission to change the world for the better. - FLURT Magazine
Heather Mae was struggling to get her music heard for seven years – until she was told she had nodules and might not be able to sing again. Angry that her life had turned out this way, she decided that if she was going to take another shot at music she was going to do it right this time. So she launched the Kickstarter for her album I Am Enough, an album empowering listeners to be themselves, and by January 31, she had raised over $18,000 – that was $3,000 more than her goal!
The resident of Washington, DC is currently in the process of recording I Am Enough, with the demo for her first single, ‘Hero,’ on her website for those that helped fund it. The demo, which seems fully ready for radio play, is certain to give you chills. An upbeat, jazzy pop song, ‘Hero’ is every bit as appealing to the ears as it is empowering – just like the artist set out to make her new music. She sings, “I may be broken, but my feet are still on the ground, and if I give up this queen will never be crown/Even under ashes, I’ve got glory, and I’m the hero in my own story.”
We’re so excited that Heather Mae stuck it out despite her nodules and is working to inspire people around the world to write their own happy endings. To celebrate the funding of I Am Enough, Amanda, Editor in Chief of FLURT, spoke to Heather Mae over email about her Kickstarter campaign, upcoming album and what she’s learned about following her dreams.
Amanda: Tell me about the album you’re making and why you decided to start it.
Heather Mae: The record is the product of two years of self discovery. That sounds like I’m waxing poetic. I am. So, let’s be real. After a career busting my ass to get noticed, writing and performing songs I didn’t care about, I got nodules and was told I might never sing again. I went into this pretty dark place after that. Not only because I couldn’t do what I love, but I felt like I didn’t get my chance to use my voice for good. I had all these things I believed in, things I wanted to change in the world and make better, issues I wanted to write about. So I made a promise to myself: If I ever got the okay to sing again (which I did just 9 months after my diagnosis), I would do it differently. I would use my music and my voice for good. That’s what inspired the creation of I Am Enough. - FLURT Magazine
Discography
'One Year of Songs' - 2012
'Listen' - Single - 2013
'I Am Enough' - EP - 2016
Photos
Bio
An imaginative lyricist with a powerhouse voice, Heather Mae is forging new ground with her newest album—due to be released on June 10th, 2016. Entitled “I AM ENOUGH”, the collection is dubbed a KickStarter Staff Pick, as it smashed through its $15,000 fundraising goal, and has earned early praise by FLURT Magazine as “...every bit appealing to the ears as it is empowering.”
With producer Mark Williams (Sucker Punch Recording Co.) at the wheel, the collection of five songs is a bold breakout from her former years as a folk singer-songwriter strumming a ukulele. Mae breaks ground in “I AM ENOUGH” not only for her interesting indie-pop sound, but also for her musical take on touchy subjects ranging from LGBTQ discrimination, gender stereotypes, body image, and mental health issues. This is what sets Mae apart—she seeks to write music for those that need an anthem and doesn’t shy away from tackling topics not often heard in pop music.
The title track to her new album, ‘I Am Enough’ is an ode to body positivity and breaking away from self-imposed affliction to fit into what society defines as beautiful.
“I see this record as a platform for change. Pop music with a mission.” says Heather, I am inspired by artists who are able to combine both.”
‘Wanderer’ and ‘No Poor Soul’ are reflections of Mae’s own experience of publicly coming out and the relief associated with finding love that accepts you just as you are—externally and internally. ‘Stand Up’ wraps up the entire record with its challenge to listeners to fight against intolerances that so many of us face, such as racism, sexism and other prejudices.
Mae also includes references to the Black Lives Matter movement and the June SCOTUS ruling on gay marriage which destroyed DOMA.
After graduating in 2012 from the American Musical and Dramatic Academy in New York, directly afterwards she embarked on her first project entitled "One Year of Songs.” The collection was an ambitious project which involved writing and recording one song every day for a year. The record received local and national attention as she toured the country in support of the project.
The Washington Post wrote, “Mae’s songs are charming even outside the context of the original ‘One Year of Songs’ project” and popculturez.com noted that the album was “beautifully written, engagingly crafted, and accomplished in execution.”
As her star began to rise, Mae was diagnosed with nodules on her vocal chords. With her future suddenly in limbo, she was forced to re-evaluate her career and life.
“I was told I would never sing again and I went through a very introspective time. It was having to sit in silence that changed me. I hadn’t ever used my voice for good and that became my mantra as I recovered,” Mae says.
Heather realized she had never really written about the issues that meant the most to her.
“I knew that I had been too afraid to put myself out there and be exposed. It’s one thing to write about love, it’s another thing to write about loving your partner - who is a woman. To sing about what life is like as a plus size woman, the self acceptance and right to feel great about myself, and social issues that meant the most to me. Before I went through this health challenge, and almost lost it all, fear held me back. It wasn’t worth the risk but I got the message that it can be taken away in a second, and I knew it was time to step up.”
She vowed that her new music would not only be different, but sincere and significant. In spite of some of her darkest days, Mae relearned how to sing. She took a step away from her previous folk-heavy style and her new sound is a unique fusion of indie-pop Tegan and Sara meets dynamic vocalist Etta James.
“When people listen to my new music, my mission is that they feel they’re not alone and that they’re moved to rediscover the best versions of themselves,” Mae says. “Two years ago, I was told that the definition of who I was no longer existed. The thing that kept me going was believing that I wasn’t alone in my brokenness. We all fail at times and it is so much easier if we have more hands to help us up, rather than to point out our flaws. That is what this record is. A humble hand to help you get off your a**.”
Mae was selected as a 2016 Kerrville New Folk Finalist and has been lucky enough to perform, work, open for, and study one-on-one with diverse talents such as Tom Paxton, Amy Speace, Ron Browning (Wynonna Judd), Sarah Clanton, Rebecca Loebe (The Voice S1), and Paul Pfau (The Voice S8).
Mae will kick off her East Coast national tour for “I AM ENOUGH” in June 2016. Her record is available on iTunes and on her website: www.heathermae.net
Band Members
Links
