Baltimore City Paper

Powerful. Soulful. Distinctive. These are just a few of the adjectives used to describe the incredible voice and natural allure of Meghan Linsey. She uses her voice and overall presence, along with the songs she so carefully crafts, to tell the stories she wants, or more accurately, “needs” to tell. Her years growing up in the musical melting pot in and around New Orleans are what she credits as influences of her unique sound. “I grew up listening to Etta James, Aretha Franklin, and my favorite… Whitney Houston,” Meghan says. “I loved the soulfulness of their voices. But I also fell in love with the storytelling of country music and the songs of artists like Dolly Parton, Tanya Tucker and Patty Griffin. Anything with grit and soul really resonated with me growing up, and it still does.” At age 14, Meghan started playing shows with her own band and a short year later she was opening for acts such as Brad Paisley and Blake Shelton at events around Louisiana and Texas. She also began to make regular trips to Nashville to play at the legendary Bluebird Cafe. “I played the early slot, but I would always stay for the late show because that’s when so many of the great songwriters I loved would play,” she says. It wasn’t long before she began writing with many of those same songwriters. After graduation, Meghan made the trip to Nashville and stayed to chase her dream. She enrolled at Belmont University to study music and continued to write songs and play shows. To make ends meet, Meghan began hosting karaoke at a bar in Printer’s Alley in downtown Nashville. It was there she met Joshua Scott Jones. The two began writing and performing together as Steel Magnolia. The duo’s sound and style caught the attention of the producers of CMT’s music competition show Can You Duet, and their unique sound and powerful stage performances propelled them to win the competition which resulted in a record contract with Big Machine Records. Their first single, “Keep On Loving You,” shot to #4 and was the highest charting debut single from a male/female duo in Country music history. Meghan and Josh went on to sell nearly one million downloads and albums, appeared on national television shows and toured with superstar acts such as Brad Paisley, Blake Shelton, Reba, and Bob Seger. In 2013, Meghan and Josh decided to part ways and Meghan began work on new music, a new sound and a solo career. “I’ve really poured my heart and soul into writing songs the last couple years,” Meghan says. “I’ve been through and lost a lot and it’s been really hard. Writing songs and creating has been therapy for me. I think it’s obvious that the songs come from a real place and I hope that will resonate with people. For once, I have no boundaries,” Meghan continues, “and I can be as honest and expressive as I want and need to be.” In 2015, Meghan takes her new musical journey to a national level as a contestant on NBC’s The Voice. “I’ve always been a risk taker, and as an artist, I want to continue to challenge myself and push the boundaries. I’m looking forward to The Voice as an opportunity to grow and to reach an even broader fan base! I’m excited to show America who I am!” Paul Pfau (rhymes with "wow") is an award-winning singer-songwriter from the rural hills of western Maryland. His sound is often likened to a fusion between John Mayer and Michael Buble because of his crooning voice and tasteful guitar playing. In 2011 Paul was nominated Best New Artist by the Washington Area Music Association, opened for The Lumineers, and jammed with the Beach Boys. In 2012 he began recording his debut full-length album, Happy To Be, with double-platinum recording engineer Sean Russell (Bruno Mars), which was mixed and mastered by grammy-award-winning engineers Jeff Juliano (John Mayer, Jason Mraz, Dave Matthews Band) and Brad Blackwood (Maroon 5, Keith Urban, O.A.R). In 2013 Happy To Be won a WAMMIE for Debut Album of the Year. Currently, Paul is touring the country performing at some of the nations most prestigious clubs, colleges, and music festivals.