Julianne Ankley understands the numbing effect of a breakup.
The Americana singer-songwriter explores that unexpected sensation and its lasting impact on her latest single, “Polar Train.”
“To me, the song is not so much about the pain of dating the wrong person,” said Ankley, who resides in Port Huron, Michigan. “It’s the aftermath ‘numb’ feeling that can follow post-breakup.”
Backed by bluesy electric guitar and driving instrumentation, she sings, “Those things you did turned me on / You cast your spell, now you’re up and gone / Leavin’ me chilled right to the bone / Didn’t realize that I’d soon be one.”
“At the time that I was writing this song, I was curious and drawn to this very attractive person who I thought might not be the best fit for me,” Ankley said. “It was about the inner struggle of knowing what might result if I let them pursue me.”
“It was well-received, and we had so much fun performing together that we decided to turn it into something,” Ankley said. “I suggested the name Triana, which means ‘three rivers.’ Since we are three different women with three different styles, it seemed fitting.”
Nearly a year later, Ankley, Chenard, and GlenBrooke are fusing their country, Americana, blues, and rock influences together for Triana’s rich, harmony-driven sound. The trio will share that sound during a September 13 performance at Trinity House Theatre in Livonia.
“We all come from different musical directions, which seem to blend together,” Ankley said.
To learn more, I did an email interview with Ankley about Triana ahead of the show.
Lilly MacPhee closes a difficult chapter and finds catharsis on “This Too Shall Pass.” Photo courtesy of the artist.
Lilly MacPhee knows moments of heartbreak and disappointment are fleeting.
The Detroit singer-songwriter acknowledges those emotions and their ephemeral impact on her latest indie-folk single, “This Too Shall Pass.”
“It was the first song I had written when I moved back from Nashville, and it was an accumulation of everything I had been through over the years. When I was living in Nashville, my best friend Jackie [Pappas] and I would talk on the phone several times a day,” said MacPhee, who briefly relocated to Nashville in 2023.
“I would vent to her, or she would vent to me about something. But when I would vent to her, she would always say, ‘Lilly, this too shall pass,’ and it [stayed] with me. And then I thought, ‘That sounds like a song. Thank you, Jackie.’”
On “This Too Shall Pass,” MacPhee closes that difficult chapter and finds catharsis in family and friends. Comforted by serene acoustic guitar, she sings, “I kissed lips that spoke lies / Met grief eye to eye / Cried to the ones who cared / When silence was too much to bear.”
“Songwriting itself is like therapy—it’s how I view it. You get everything out and it makes you feel better. A song like that is bittersweet,” she said.
“You hope people don’t relate to it, but you’re OK if they do because it’s a comforting feeling for them to know that they’re not the only ones experiencing heartbreak, grief, or whatever else they might be going through in life.”
Kylee Phillips offers heartfelt tales of resilience and acceptance on “The Good Parts.” Photo – Misty Lyn Bergeron
Kylee Phillips doesn’t need to give herself daily pep talks anymore.
After some deep introspection, the Ypsilanti, Michigan singer-songwriter/keyboardist gained a fresh perspective and wanted to share “the good parts” of her journey on a new EP.
“I feel like the pep talks worked,” said Phillips about The Good Parts, her sophomore release. “It’s encouraging because it’s hard to see yourself grow when it’s happening, and it’s not until you look back that you say, ‘Oh, I made it to the other side.’”
Coming out the other side, Phillips offers heartfelt tales of resilience and acceptance across four honest tracks on her indie-folk-pop EP.
“The songs are about saying, ‘Maybe I need to try a different path,’ but they’re also saying, ‘These are the things I’ve noticed about myself that are not going to change—that I’m not letting go of,’” she said.
“It’s this funny combination of ‘I’m going to have to make some different choices, but I also know better who I actually am now.’”
That authenticity quickly resonates with listeners on The Good Parts, which features reflective lyrics and lush instrumentation.
“I had a friend reach out to me and say, ‘I feel like you wrote this song for me.’ And I said, ‘I wrote it for myself, and now I feel like you need it more than I do,’” she said. “I always write the stuff that I need to hear, but when it’s also what other people need to hear, it feels special.”
The Detroit singer-songwriter asserts her true feelings and finds closure from a past relationship on her new emo-pop single.
“‘Enough’ is a song that I’m very proud of, and I’m really thankful to have had music to lean on when the events behind the song were taking place,” Pierce said.
“The song is a reflection of events that hurt or things that at the time I looked at through rose-colored glasses. Then I pulled them off and said, ‘This sucked … and it’s enough for me to get over this and move on.’’”
Surrounded by fearless acoustic guitar, electric guitar, bass, and drums, she sings: “I poured my heart out and I wrote you songs / You felt awkward, said it’s like someone’s singing happy birthday to you / Someday, I’m gonna find someone who actually deserves all I do / So I reclaim every song I sent you and the magic you had access to / And the girl that would have done anything for you.”
“It’s a song that screams, ‘I don’t deserve this,’” Pierce said. “I hope the takeaway for listeners is exactly that. You don’t deserve the shit you’ve put up with and you’re stronger than this.”
As a local music champion, Steve Taylor is eager to showcase some homegrown talent.
The Lake Orion, Michigan singer-songwriter is relaunching his monthly songwriter series spotlighting Michigan artists at 20 Front Street on September 19.
“I’m excited to have a new home to do this series,” said Taylor, who last hosted the series in late 2023 at the now-closed Berkley Coffee & Oak Park Dry.
“I hope it’s something that people will come out and support and help give some love to our local artists who write their own music.”
Known as the Michigan Songwriter Showcase, the first show in the series features Taylor and Metro Detroit singer-songwriters Rebecca Cameron, Dan Cafferty, and Jacki Daniels.
“I’ve done shows with Dan at Trinity House and Berkley Coffee, and he was just getting started with songwriter rounds at that point. He’s such a great guy and talented guitar player, and his songs are upbeat and funny,” Taylor said.
“Rebecca is really talented, and she’s done other shows that I’ve hosted at Berkley Coffee. Since she’s in Clarkston, I thought this would be close by and be a good show for her as well. Jacki also hosts songwriter rounds and she’s been heavily involved in our music scene.”
Kyran Daniel headlines several upcoming live shows in partnership with the Michigan Fingerstyle Guitar Society.
As longtime musicians, Ron Stavale and Yeman Al-Rawi strongly advocate for fingerstyle guitarists in Michigan and beyond.
The Michigan Fingerstyle Guitar Society (MFGS) members celebrate the skill and artistry of contemporary acoustic guitarists by showcasing their talent and technique through live shows and workshops.
“When you see an artist, it’s not gimmicky like somebody with a drum and a bell on their head doing all these things,” said Stavale, who’s played fingerstyle guitar since his 20s.
“They’re orchestrating compositions on a guitar by filling in all the things that maybe Yeman and I or another person would try and do. They do it in such a way that really draws me in.”
A Michigan music collective is ready to spring forward with a new tour and music sampler.
Earthwork Music, a collective of artists and musicians that fuses music with cultural and environmental awareness, is kicking off its first collaborative tour in five years this week with a run of Michigan shows.
“The spring tour features 18 musicians and will be a cabaret-style show featuring each person leading one song with a varying backing band supporting. It will be beautiful, chaotic and absolutely magical,” said Nicholas James Thomasma, a Grand Rapids folk singer-songwriter and an Earthwork Music collective artist.
“Sometimes it will just be one or two people on stage; sometimes it’s a full band. Sometimes there are strings, sometimes drums, sometimes acoustic guitars and sometimes all 18 of us will be on stage together. Part of the excitement about this tour is that even the artists aren’t sure how it’s all going to work yet!”
“The thing I enjoy most is the thoughtful and creative people that make up our collective,” Thomasma said. “It’s a treat to play music with these folks, but even more so it’s a treat to simply know them as friends and spend time with them off stage.”
The Real Dan Minard, Aaron Markovitz and Jackie Pappas perform at Wiltsie’s. The three singer-songwriters also are part of the Midwest Sounds festival lineup. Photo – Brandon Still
Wiltsie’s thoughtfully highlights the artistic brilliance of independent Michigan artists.
The intimate Clarkston listening room will spotlight and support local singer-songwriters during their inaugural Midwest Sounds festival on Nov. 27 at Bay Court Park’s Brady Lodge.
“Festivals have a whole ‘nother dynamic and atmosphere, and I think we’ll get a different crowd in to see these musicians and artists. The goal is for them to get more recognition and acknowledgement for what they’re doing while being able to pay them,” said Jackie Pappas, an Americana singer-songwriter who co-runs Wiltsie’s with Brandon Still and Paul Angelini.
Meanwhile, the newly formed Americana quartet of Jason Dennie, Aaron Markovitz, Keith Billik and Scott Kendall – also known as Through the Thicket – will headline the daylong festival.
“It’s all about giving back to the musicians, getting more of a crowd in and shining a light on everyone because they work so hard and are so talented,” said Pappas, who’s also partnered with Oxford’s HomeGrown Brewing Co. and Fenton’s D&W’s Street Eatery for refreshing festival craft brews and food.
In addition, festival ticket proceeds will support a new Wiltsie’s grant and mentorship program for independent musicians. As a newly established nonprofit housed in Main Street MI’s historic co-working space, Wiltsie’s will help one artist each month with recordings, videos, photos and music distribution.
“We want to help get them on their feet and give them that first nudge, so they can have a great portfolio to move forward and send their stuff to some venues. If they really like what we’re doing, then they’ll come back and have the funds to hopefully continue with us,” Pappas said.
The folk rock duo will demonstrate their sonic superpowers live Thursday night before an intimate crowd at Lake Orion’s 20 Front Street. It will be their first time captivating fans there together.
“Billy and I have a ‘Vulcan mind meld’ on stage where we can follow each other effortlessly and know what direction to go in when we go off-piste and improvise instrumentally,” said VerLin, a U.K.-based singer-songwriter, violinist and multi-instrumentalist. “When we play and write together, we rub against and wear away each other’s rough edges to get a sound blend that neither of us gets on our own.”
The enchanting pair will share timeless tales from their latest release, “Are You Listening?” – a magical 10-track odyssey that includes Shakespearean characters, ghosts, emperors, dystopian worlds and whales. Magical acoustic guitars, violins and mandolins whisk listeners away to a stunning sonic world beautifully constructed in their minds.
“‘Are You Listening?’ took about two years to complete. When I was here in Detroit a few years ago, I said we should go in the studio to record. We had a few songs that had not been recorded yet so we started with those,” said VerLin, who originally hails from Trenton.
“Billy had written a song called ‘Sailing Away,’ and coincidentally and separately, I had written a song called ‘Sailing Away.’ A completely different feel but in a similar key, so we combined them into a two-part song.”
Released in 2018 via Drum Dancer Records, “Are You Listening?” also unearths another folk rock treasure, “I Wish I Knew,” which includes a splendid picking arrangement of a melody Brandt wrote and envisioned as part of a monotone vocal accompaniment.
Back in July 2011, VerLin wrote the lyrics during a trip to Chamberlain’s Ole Forest Inn in Curtis, but couldn’t pair it will the right melody. Six years later, Brandt’s guitar melody formed the perfect marriage for the song.
The Stratton Setlist 