THERE'S SOMETHING ABOUT MARY
(MARY ABRAHAM, THAT IS):

Singer/Songwriter From Eminem's Hometown Tackles The Entropy Of The Universe And The Wisdom Beyond A Broken Heart On Her Acclaimed EP ‘The First Five'

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Songs From Debut Collection By The Warren, Michigan Native Have Won Numerous Honorable Mention Awards In Billboard Magazine Songwriting Contests, While The Opening Track “Hey Love” Was Runner-Up In The Recording Academy's 2004 Grammy Demo Review

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Energetic Scrabble Addict, Monster Truck Rally Enthusiast And Old School WWF Wrestling Fanatic Is Currently Receiving Airplay On Ann Arbor's 107one-fm With “Fall On Your Knees”

 

A few years back, when she was an English major with minors in Religious Studies and Public Relations and specializing in Film (got all that?), Mary Abraham remembers trying to study for finals in her dorm room at Michigan State University and being distracted by an endless stream of songs that kept popping into her head. Shortly after graduation, she snagged “the coolest job in the world,” becoming Events Coordinator and eventually Promotions Coordinator for Detroit 's taste-making Hot AC station, 96.3 WDVD.

 

A native of Warren , Michigan —hometown of none other than Eminem –Abraham worked at the station for a year and a half, and could have had an incredible career behind the scenes. But there was one beautiful “obstacle” on her road to success: her singer/songwriter muse - cultivated by gigs at East Lansing hotspots like The Riv, Rick's American Music Café and The Blue Note – just refused to let her go. Now, with the release of her acclaimed debut EP The First Five, she's drawing on her incredible experiences in the radio promotion world to launch her own career as an indie artist—with impressive out-of-the-box results.

 

The track “Fall On Your Knees” is currently hitting the Detroit market, receiving airplay on Ann Arbor's 107one-fm and attention from various radio programs with special hours dedicated to developing local musicians. Each of The First Five songs won coveted Honorable Mention Awards in the 2003 and 2004 Billboard Songwriting Contests, and the compelling opening track “Hey Love” was the Runner Up in The Recording Academy's 2004 Grammy Demo Review & Contest for the Chicago Chapter, out of close to 300 entries.

 

“The songs I chose to include on the EP were my favorites out of the many I had written over the course of my college years and just after graduation. They reflect an important ‘growing up' time in my life, spiritually and emotionally,” says Abraham, whose vast array of singer-songwriter oriented influences include Cat Stevens, David Bowie, 10,000 Maniacs, Joni Mitchell and Marvin Gaye.

 

“There was always a lot to write about, especially if falling in and out of love seems to be a constant in your life!” she adds. “Each tune is very different, but all are meant to express the different aspects of a young woman's emergence into the grown-up world, and the understanding, or lack there of, that comes with it. But I think no matter what stage you are at in your life, The First Five deals with pretty universal hiccups and triumphs that we all face, time and time again.”

 

The First Five songs represent a unique songwriting partnership Abraham developed for a period of time with Jesse Young, a fellow MSU student she met in a new songwriting class on campus; the class was designed for music majors, but she and Young, fueled by their passion for the craft, found ways to secure waivers that allowed them to take it. Abraham wrote all the melodies and lyrics and did the arrangements, which she would then give to Young to create chord progressions and richer guitar elements.

 

“My background is as a drummer/percussionist, so my style of singing has a percussive quality that helps convey the messages in the songs,” she says. “He plays the guitar very percussively, so it was a good match and we instantly clicked. Working with Jesse was a major turning point for me as a songwriter and artist.” Though Mary still writes songs with Jesse, onstage she performs with Aaron Soave on guitar and Johnny Victor on keyboards, and the trio also has a full-band available for showcases.

 

The songs currently receiving the most attention from radio stations and labels are “Someone Like You” and “Fall On Your Knees.” Both reflect a great deal of wisdom that Abraham has gained falling in and out of love over the years. “'Someone Like You' is a classic pop song about coming out of a relationship and feeling burned, whereas ‘Fall On Your Knees' touches on what you feel going into a relationship - cautious about everything.”

 

Track number four, “Entropy,” is also receiving attention from critics and songwriters in the music industry. “Entropy refers to the chaos and deterioration of the universe, and how we're always trying to find answers to or put a stop to things we don't understand or can't control,” Abraham adds. “There are so many questions, and life can be so out of control despite our best intentions.”

 

Abraham's songs probe deeply and sometimes seriously into the depths of the listener's heart, but both onstage and in life, she has an insanely upbeat, hyper personality that proves completely infectious upon the first encounter. A playful profile on her website www.maryabraham.com features a section called “Fun Facts About Mary,” where her growing legions of fans can learn about all of her favorite movies and TV shows and some very surprising but cool pastimes.

 

These include going to Detroit Pistons, Lions and Tigers games, and Monster Truck Rallies; playing Nintendo, Tekken, and - true to her English major roots - Scrabble; cooking while singing Joni Mitchell with her mom; playing in the snow in winter; hanging out with her dad and listening to Elvis, Kinks, and Cat Stevens albums; doing yoga; boxing; riding roller coasters; playing pinball, and watching “Family Guy,” “Jeopardy,” and pretty much anything on the History channel. She also knows more about Old School WWF Wrestling than one twenty -something female should!

 

“Like most indie artists," she says, "my goal is to not only make a living as a musician but to also reach a large amount of people, the way my musical influences have reached me, and helped me out along the way. Sometimes it's difficult for others, including myself, to truly pin-point my style as either rock, folk, pop, or even alt-country; I think I can easily fit into any of those genres. I am more concerned, though, with composing music and lyrics that everyone can connect with. In line with all these things, I like to make smart music that is also very upbeat, and very uplifting. You should get something out of it, but you don't have to be in a soul-searching mood to get it. In fact, you should be smiling going in and laughing going out, because every song reflects the message that no matter what, things will always be alright – you will always be alright!”