Mary Lou Lord

Mary Lou Lord was born in Salem Massachusetts. She was a college D.J. from the ages of 13-16.

Shortly after graduating high school she went on to co-promote concerts with Bruce Solar who is the current Vice President of The Agency Group which is now one of the largest and most respected booking agencies in the world.

Mary Lou attended Berklee College of music with a degree in Audio Production and Engineering. After Berklee , Mary Lou moved to London England to study at The School of Audio at Holloway Rd.

While living in London, Mary Lou began busking and thus her career as a musician was born. “I had never really thought about being a musician myself until I became a busker. iI was great...I could play the same song over and over all night, and it really helped me out. The money was minimal, but it was better than being a waitress”.

Mary Lou moved back to the States and began discovering bands and artists like Daniel Johnston, Shawn Colvin, and Elliott Smith . Since many of these artists had no records out, Mary Lou would do covers of their songs to help bring attention to them as well as create a solid repetoir of songs deserving to be heard.

In the early 90’s, Mary Lou began to write her own songs and perform in the Subways and Streets of Boston and Cambridge. SHe attracted a very loyal following and built her fan base from the ground level-literally. She continued finding songs and artists that were un-discovered, under-rated, and beloved by music geeks and real music fans. She often would choose songs by artists such as The Bevis Frond, Daniel Johnston, Big Star, and a THEN unknown band-Nirvana.

While busking one day in Harvard Square, Mary Lou met a young woman named Tinuviel Sampson. Tinuviel had started a label with a friend named Slim Moon in Olympia Washington called “Kill Rock Stars:. Mary Lou was invited by her new friend Tinuviel to go visit with her in Olympia which led to Kill Rock Stars putting one of Mary Lou’s songs (Camden Town Rain) on one of their compilation releases.

Mary Lou soon began recording for Kill Rock Stars which got attention from Major Labels who were then very interested in the Seattle/Olympia scene..

“I was in the right place at the right time-ALL the time back then. I had great ears, and my friends were true music fans. It just worked out that way.”

After releasing several EP’s for KRS, Mary Lou signed with BMG for a publishing deal, and shortly after signed a

record deal with Sony. She released “Got No Shadow” in 1998. Some of the guesting artists on the record were some of Mary Lou’s closest friends and peers at the time. Elliott Smith, Shawn Colvin, Jon Brion, Roger McGuinn, The Bevis- Frond, and the list continues.

The Work Group (the subdivision label of Sony) fell apart shortly after the release of Got No SHadow, and Mary Lou found herself without a label.

She continued on and did the LIlith Fair and several other high profile concerts and tours.

“The record industry has changed so much over the course of the last two decades, it’s pretty much gone”

So, here we are in 2011. The internet has put the control back in the hands of real live people instead of corporations. It’s VERY exciting. We’re back to a DIY ethic that Mary Lou has been a part of for so long. “It’s all very punk rock”.....Indeed, the term “Kill Rock Stars” has never been more apparent.

“We are all rock stars. We are all interconnected and it’s never been of more importance than right now, that we ALL support each other.”...-Mary Lou Lord