Fort Worth, Texas-based singer-songwriter and Americana artist Elizabeth Wills has a voice that Dallas Morning News compared to “female singer/songwriter greats such as Carly Simon, Shawn Colvin, and Sarah McLachlan.” Her songs – real and riveting – keep listeners engaged start to finish.
In her first studio project in seven years, Every Little Star (available June 3), Wills is featured on lead vocals and on piano, her first instrument. “I’m over-the-moon happy about it,” she says. “Since I was a kid, the piano has brought me comfort and peace and has been the vehicle through which I could allow my thoughts and emotions to run freely across the keyboard.”
Such freedom and beauty comes through in the album, which she says was worth the wait. “These new songs were ready to come out,” she explains of the timing. “I have been through what seems like a couple of lifetimes in the past several years, but there was immense beauty and lessons gracefully given to me to learn and walk through. I wanted an album that reflected that growth and movement.
“The culmination of every thought, prayer, action, and word has potential for power – light or dark. The title, Every Little Star, acknowledges that, no matter the size, light is brilliant and important. This project was a coming together of light, love, the highest intentions, and the greatest good. None of it would have happened without each of those points, coming from all directions, lighting the way.”
Along with Wills (vocals, acoustic guitar, piano, percussion, Irish tin whistle), Every Little Star features studio work by Mark Hallman (electric guitar, organ, percussion, bass, mandolins, accordion, Irish tin whistle), Andre Moran (electric guitar) and various guest vocalists. Album highlights are many and include “Coming Around,” about coming to accept who you are, and “This Much I know,” with its beautiful piano work and reassuring lyrics, “… I know I love you, and this is a beautiful life.”
“Long Road Home,” too, touches on the relief of learning that your choices don’t have to define who you ultimately become. From the other side of that, Wills sings, “I walked until I could see sun, it was a long, long, long road home … Today I could see some blue sky scattered beside the clouds above.”
Wills’ touring band includes herself on keys, guitar, and Irish tin whistle; guest bassists based on show regions; Brad Thompson on guitar; Blaine Crews on drums; and Kristin DeWitt (backing vocals). She has played notable festivals like South by Southwest, Kerrville Folk Festival, Austin City Limits Festival, Southwest Regional Folk Alliance, The Backyard and more.
Influenced by writer-artists like Joni Mitchell and Carole King, Wills bases her songs in honesty, goodness, and vulnerability. Fans relate, and the industry has taken notice. She is a past winner of the Dallas, Texas-based B.W. Stevenson Songwriting Competition and was a finalist in the New Folk Competition (Kerrville Folk Festival). Wills has guested on the nationally syndicated radio show “What D’ya Know” and enjoys regular airplay on college radio stations across the country and NPR affiliates.
Learn more about Elizabeth Will and upcoming tour dates at elizabethwills.com
2016 Tour dates include:
May 26 – Kerrville Folk Festival, Kerrville, Texas
June 17 – Poor David’s Pub, Dallas
July 30 – Dosey Doe, opening for Firefall, Conroe, Texas
August 6 – The Blue Door, Oklahoma City
September 16 – Yellow City Sounds on Panhandle PBS, Amarillo, Texas
September 17 – Solid Grounds Coffeehouse, Albuquerque
