Mean Mary at The White Lilac

She’s called Mean Mary, but the only truly mean thing about her is what she can do to a banjo.

Internationally touring singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Mary James brings lightning-fast picking, haunting vocals, dark humor and fiercely original storytelling to White Lilac. Moving effortlessly through Americana, bluegrass, folk, blues and Southern Gothic shadows, Mary creates songs that can race like a runaway train one moment and leave a room completely spellbound the next.

A musical prodigy who recorded her first album at age six, Mary now plays 11 instruments, has released 18 albums and has attracted nearly 30 million visits to her videos. Her blistering performance of the award-winning banjo instrumental “Iron Horse” alone has surpassed 14 million YouTube views. She is also a Deering Banjos Goodtime Ambassador, an award-winning author and a relentless touring artist whose extraordinary life story sounds like it was pulled from an American folk legend.

Her newest album, Woman Creature, blends powerful vocals, intricate instrumentation, wicked wit and what Americana Highways described as a sophisticated “backwoods noir” atmosphere, praising Mary’s exceptional voice, banjo work and emotionally charged performances.

“The voice of a ragged angel combined with the banjo playing of the devil … you will want to run away with her.” — No Depression

This is the kind of artist White Lilac was built for: a dazzling musician, a natural storyteller and a one-of-a-kind performer experienced from just a few feet away in A Room That Listens.