Mary McBride Band

Biography

Mary McBride

The Mary McBride Band, whose six members hail from New York, Los Angeles and Washington DC, take audiences on a rollercoaster ride with their fiery blend of country, gospel, blues and old school rock ‘n roll. AMERICAN SONGWRITER calls her live show, “impassioned and inspirational,” and HOUSTON PRESS adds, “McBride has huge pipes, writes a mean song, and comes with a band that’s rock-ready.”

Mary received significant acclaim for her performance of “No One’s Gonna Love You like Me” on-screen and on the soundtrack of the Academy-award winning film Brokeback Mountain. Mary and her band members have performed thousands of live shows and have collaborated, performed or toured with Blondie, Chubby Checker, Clarence Gatemouth Brown, Cyndi Lauper, Delbert McClinton, Jerry Lee Lewis, Joe Cocker, John Prine, Koko Taylor, LL Cool J, Lou Reed, Marcia Ball, Rufus Wainwright, Maria Muldaur, Natalie Merchant, Patti Smith, Mavis Staples, Philip Glass, Ray Davies, Son Volt, Sugarhill Gang, B52s, Indigo Girls, Tony Joe White, and Ziggy Marley. They also performed with Elton John for the 35th Anniversary Concert of “Goodbye Yellow Brick Road,” and at the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival. As a Cultural Envoy for the U.S. Department of State, Mary has performed in more than 30 countries, including Afghanistan, Pakistan, Iraq, Russia, Ukraine, Vietnam, and Saudi Arabia (where she toured with the first all-women touring band from the U.S.)

Mary is also the Founder of The Home Tour, which uses live music to inspire and connect people, and engage the global community. In partnership with more than 100 social service organizations worldwide, The Home Tour brings live concerts to long term health care centers, veterans facilities, homeless shelters, supported-housing, mental health facilities, and prisons. Between 2012 and 2016, Mary oversaw a music and leadership program, in coordination with the CT Mental Health Center, Yale School of Psychiatry and the CT Department of Mental Health Services, to support young people recovering from trauma and mental illness. Most recently, Mary founded Lead Out Louisiana, a songwriting and documentary series produced in coordination with the Department of Corrections in Louisiana.

Mary is a sought-after speaker on cultural diplomacy and international exchange. She was a featured speaker on a panel at NYU Abu Dhabi on a panel on Arts and Diplomacy in the Emirates, and also represented the United States on the plenary panel at the International Women’s Conference in Islamabad, Pakistan. Her work on the Home Tour was featured on a panel at Yale University as part of the International Art and Ideas Festival; at the International Society of Performing Arts Presenters in New York; and at The National Humanities Center in Chapel Hill, NC as part of a new public program entitled Novel Sounds: American Fiction in the Age of Rock and Roll. Mary’s work has been featured on CNN, MSNBC, and in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and The Washington Post..

Mary Collins

Mary Collins is an independent singer/songwriter studying Literature & Creative Writing and Music at NYU Abu Dhabi. She grew up performing American bluegrass music with her family in Ann Arbor, Michigan, and currently leans towards an indie-folk style of composition and performance. Her songs draw on her training as a writer, blending striking vocals and captivating guitar lines to portray honest stories and emotions. In her work, she often reflects on subjects such as mental health, concepts of home, and the relationship between humans and the environment. She enjoys looking for the fantastic in the mundane. Outside of music, Mary also writes fiction, poetry, and plays, and she is currently writing a children’s novel for her senior capstone project. You can connect with her on social media and listen to her music through the links here.