***2010 Falcon Ridge Folk Festival "Emerging Artist Showcase" Performer***
***2008 Great Waters Folk Festival Songwriting Competition Finalist**************************************************
"Mia Adams' soulful heart and earthy groove infuse her singing and make everyone who hears her feel a little less lonely each time she takes the stage."
- Tom Kimmel---------------------------------------------
In the musical tradition of Emmylou Harris, Bonnie Raitt, Linda Rondstadt or Maura OConnell, Mia Adams has a knack for choosing undiscovered covers written by top-notch songwriters. She'll also pepper in a few of her own when she's feeling brave. A passionate fan of passionate music, she sleuths for songs at picking parties, songwriter circles, folk festivals, jazz clubs and rock concerts and makes them her own with her silky, earnest alto. She submitted her own compositions to the Jim Beam Country Band Search Contest on a whim. With a combination of her own and others tunes, winning the live competition to a packed house at The Wildhorse Saloon was a surprise as her music is more funky folk pop than country, but it does go to show that she can put across a song. Her cover of Dana Cooper's "Standing in My Own Way" was featured in Lifetime Television's "Marriage Material". And recently she was a finalist in the Great Waters Songwriting Competition and a Runner Up in the Luna Guitars "Tell Us Your Story" Contest. -------------------------------------------
After graduating Bennington College in her native Vermont, this songbird packed her bags and migrated south to Nashville. Learning the ropes as a backup singer, Adams has performed live and/or recorded vocals with notables such as Norah Jones, Richard Julian, Amos Lee, Ellis Paul, Tom Kimmel (visit Tom's myspace page to hear her singing backup on "POETIC JUSTICE"), Adrienne Young, Buddy Mondlock, Dana Cooper, Michael Lille, Greta Gaines, David Halley, Toni Catlin, Kate Wallace, Scott Christopher Murray, Sam Bisbee, Patrick Fitzsimmons, Lowell Thompson and Brett Hughes. Recently she had the pleasure of performing on The Today Show singing backup for Norah Jones ,on Mountain Stage with Richard Julian broadcast nationally on NPR and being featured on her own on The Songwriter Sessions on Nashville Public Radio. She's opened for Maia Sharp, Ellis Paul and Vusi Mahlasela at Burlington's famous Higher Ground. She's had the distinct honor and pleasure of playing with local guitarist extrodinaire, D. Davis (Red Hot Juba, The Dirtfarmers) for the past year and hopes to continue to collaborate with him as long and as often as she can!------------------------
Mia grew up on a mixed musical diet of New England folk (Cheryl Wheeler, Carly Simon), 70s disco & rock (Stevie Wonder, Elton John) and 80s pop (Prince, The GoGos, Marshall Crenshaw). A true renaissance gal, Mia is an accomplished actress as well. She has been featured in videos for Suzi Ragsdale and Buddy Mondlock's music on European MTV and made a cameo in Norah Jones "Sunrise" (see NorahJones.com, go to the media page and you can see the video.), and was featured in David Lee Murphy's video for The Road You Leave Behind" (also viewable at davidlee.com). Mia also appeared in various independent movies and has been featured on TNN, CMT, CBS, PBS, and PAX TV. Her dream role would be to portray the life of a singer a la Sissy Spacek or Jessica Lange. She is currently developing a one-woman show to showcase her talents. "My acting background affects the material I choose," she says, "Most of it is very emotionally driven either through the story or the melody. I find myself gravitating towards songs that are almost like monologues. An infectious groove will also get me every time." She counts Maia Sharp, Shawn Colvin, Patti Griffin, Eliza Gilkyson, Aimee Mann, Jonatha Brooke and Joan Osbourne on her short list of contemporary influences.-----------------
Also a percussionist on occasion, anything from brushes on an upside down Crystal water container to Fischer Price Toys has been turned into a beat keeper in her hands. "So far no drummers taken a shaker out of my hands, and I usually get approving nods.", she says, "I play self taught auxiliary percussion with professional instruments mixed with odd noisy stuff I find at yard sales."---------------------
Currently, Adams is pulling resources to record her first albums worth of material
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