There's Something about Mary Abraham; Singer/Songwriter From Eminem's Hometown Tackles The Entropy Of The Universe And The Wisdom Beyond A Broken Heart On Her Acclaimed EP 'The First Five'

Business Wire, March 1, 2006

LOS ANGELES -- A few years back, as an English major with minors in Religious Studies and Public Relations and specializing in Film, Mary Abraham remembers trying to study in her dorm room at Michigan State University and being distracted by an endless stream of songs that kept popping into her head. Shortly after graduation, she became Events Coordinator and eventually Promotions Coordinator for Detroit's Hot AC station, 96.3 WDVD.

A native of Warren, Michigan-hometown of Eminem-Abraham worked at the station for a year and a half, and could have had an incredible career behind the scenes. But there was one beautiful "obstacle" on her road to success: her singer/songwriter muse - cultivated by gigs at East Lansing hotspots like The Riv, Rick's American Music Cafe and The Blue Note - just refused to let her go. Now, with the release of her acclaimed debut EP "The First Five," she's drawing on her incredible experiences in the radio promotion world to launch her own career as an indie artist--with impressive out-of-the-box results.

The track "Fall On Your Knees" is currently hitting the Detroit market, receiving airplay on Ann Arbor's 107one-fm and attention from various radio programs with special hours dedicated to developing local musicians. Each of "The First Five" songs won coveted Honorable Mention Awards in the 2003 and 2004 Billboard Songwriting Contests, and the compelling opening track "Hey Love" was the Runner Up in The Recording Academy's 2004 Grammy Demo Review & Contest for the Chicago Chapter, out of close to 300 entries.

"The songs I chose to include on the EP were my favorites out of the many I had written over the course of my college years and just after graduation. They reflect an important 'growing up' time in my life, spiritually and emotionally," says Abraham, whose singer-songwriter oriented influences include Cat Stevens, David Bowie, 10,000 Maniacs, Joni Mitchell and Marvin Gaye. "The First Five" songs represent a unique songwriting partnership Abraham developed for a period of time with Jesse Young, a fellow MSU student she met in a new songwriting class on campus.