Molly Brandt

Characters come vividly to life in Brandt’s lyrics and fiery delivery: the twisted, traumatized killer in the feminist murder ballad Revenge; the tired and jaded aging star in Rhinestone Teardrops; the runaway bride of Surrender to the Night. So do places, from bucolic backroads to quirky bars (as in her ode to a real-life Minneapolis honky-tonk Eagles 34).

Many of Brandt’s songs are vividly set in the Midwest, reflecting all its seasons, from summery Bluff Country Paradise to the chill of Old Northern Woman. But her lyrics resonate broadly. They tell American stories - of blue-collar struggles, hard-won revels at dive bars, wide-open country and long car rides, and heartache, disillusionment, and revenge.

Brandt’s own story began in Colorado where she was born, but she spent much of her life in Iowa until moving to the Twin Cities in 2019. Music has always been a core part of her existence - she studies classical piano from age 5 through high school, sang in show choirs in high school and college, and performed jazz around Des Moines after college, even forming her own band. But the Molly Brandt of today is a fairly recent development. Laid off and recovering from a bad breakup during the pandemic lockdown, she taught herself guitar and started writing songs. With a little help from some producer and musician friends, she began recording, releasing her first singles in 2022 and playing her first Minneapolis show at the legendary West Bank Bar Palmer’s. Since then she’s played numerous venues in Minnesota as well as Wisconsin, Iowa, and Chicago, and regional festivals such as Big Turn and Boats & Bluegrass.

Her debut album Surrender to the Night was released in July 2023. The collection showcases Brandt’s vocal and lyrical strengths against a tapestry of styles ranging from classic two-step honky-tonk to 70s countrypolitan to 90s alt-rock. Molly went on to win the award for Americana Artist of the Year at the 2023 Midwest Country Music Awards.

Brandt returned to the studio in early 2024 with another batch of songs that evolved and expanded her sound to embrace an even broader range of roots music. American Saga was released in September of 2024, instantly earning media attention and radio play across the United States. The album is a collection of distinctly American stories, containing larger-than-life characters, place-based narratives, hard truths, and poignant messages. Exploring topics of addiction, misogyny, capitalism, death, abuse, and climate change, American Saga approaches the stylistic edges of Americana, creating something entirely new and unmistakably unique.