Heather Mae announces new LP 'GLIMMER'

Washington, DC-based artist Heather Mae has announced the forthcoming release of her new album GLIMMER, due out September 20th. Mae is here to shake up the status quo with her message: "Feel To Heal." Unfazed by what a typical pop artist today is "supposed" to look like and how the typical pop artist is "supposed" to sound, the award-winning songwriter whose evocative vocals and rhythmic piano style call to mind artists like Stevie Nicks and Sara Bareilles, creates intoxicating music that tackles complex topics surrounding mental health, LGBTQ+ issues, self-love, racial injustice, social inequality, and women's rights. Inspired by her own personal experiences and identities -- a queer, plus size woman living with Bipolar Disorder -- and those of her multifaceted fans with whom she has forged connections throughout her many years of touring across the United States, Mae crafts powerful lyrics and unforgettable music about life's moments -- from the quietly chaotic to the explosive. "Feelin' Crazy," the album's lead single which premiered this week at Billboard, was written to shatter stigmas around mental health and as Mae says, "to own her own crazy."

"I was so open about everything else -- my being queer and being fat and my politics. The one thing I had never really talked about was my mental illness," Mae told Billboard. "I realized, through my fans, that was the next thing. That's the next marginalized group I needed to talk about. It was hard, because there's so much f***ing shame around mental illness that we don't talk about it. But there's a lot of people, one in four Americans, that struggle with it, so I thought it was time to say something and write songs about it...I had a goal when I was writing these songs -- for (fans) and for me. The messages I get are not 'Yeah, I partied to your songs this weekend and I went on a road trip and blasted your songs.' What I get is, 'I didn't commit suicide 'cause I listened to your song' or 'I came out because of you' or 'I left my abusive partner because of your song.' Those are the messages I get. So f*** this music business; as long as I'm doing the work of keeping people alive, I'm successful."

In 2016, after an eight-month period of silence to recover from vocal nodules, Mae made a vow: she would dedicate her career to solely write music that made the world a better place. Her independently-released debut EP I AM ENOUGH, which reached #58 on iTunes Pop Album charts, was her announcement to the world. Mae, who was dubbed "the new queer Adele" by L-Mag, envelopes her audience with a message of hope. Her newest project, GLIMMER, is a collection of nine songs supporting that central theme of "Feel To Heal." Within the grooves of the new album, Mae wrestles with the complexities of existing as a human with mental illness. From her #MeToo-inspired feminist anthem "Warrior," featuring a choir of 100+ female vocalists, to "You Are My Favorite", a love song written for her wife inspired by her own wedding vows which will surely be the 2019 wedding soundtrack for LGBTQ+ couples, Mae shows she's nothing less than a powerhouse. She has examined her struggle with Bipolar Disorder from every angle in order to create her most sonically adventurous set of recordings yet -- and to remind us that we aren't alone.

On June 1st, Mae kicks off the co-headlining "Singing OUT Tour," an annual national tour for LGBTQ+ Pride Month, with artist and fellow powerhouse Crys Matthews. This year, the bands will play 23 shows in 15 states in 30 days. Mae's band consists of JJ Jones, the former drummer for queer folkpop supergroup Girlyman, and Joe Stevens, half of duo Coyote Grace who starred in the 2016 documentary Real Boy. See below for dates.

The Singing OUT Tour:

6/1 - Eddie's Attic- Decatur, GA

6/2 - Isis Music Hall - Asheville, NC

6/4 - Spot On Kirk - Roanoke, VA

6/5 - Arts Center Live - Carrboro, NC

6/6 - Jammin' Java - Vienna, VA

6/7 - Smith Opera House - Geneva, NY

6/8 - Philadelphia Folksong Society - Philadelphia, PA

6/9 - Joe's Pub - New York, NY

6/11 - Club Cafe - Pittsburgh, PA

6/12 - SPACE - Evanston, IL

6/14 - CSPS - Cedar Rapids, IA

6/15 - Oxbow Hotel - Eau Claire, WI

6/16 - Music at Moon Palace Books - Minneaoplis, MN

6/20 - Steve's Guitars - Carbondale, CO

6/23 - McCabe's - Santa Monica, CA

6/25 - Freight & Salvage - Berkeley, CA

6/26 - Michael's on Main - Soquel, CA

6/29 - Havurah Synagogue - Ashland, OR

6/30 - Tsunami Books - Eugene, OR

7/1 - Alberta Rose - Portland, OR

7/2 - The Triple Door - Seattle, WA

Photo credit: Rah Foard

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