Michelle Mandico Partners With Jazz Pianist Eunha to New EP

Nashville-based Colorado-bred singer/songwriter Michelle Mandico has released Something New, a three-song collaboration with NYC jazz pianist Eunha So. The pair met while attending college at the University of Denver in 2012.

"On Something New, the artists merge styles," says Quip Magazine. "Mandico's vocals shine with depth and softness throughout the tracks, while So's melodies keep afloat a wistful, romantic hope. The piano succeeds in leveling these love songs, opening each track to the possibility of tenderness that rings more authentic than maudlin. All in all, Something New makes for an affecting teaser of songs from two talented upcoming musicians. So's exquisite piano complements Mandico's brand of sensitive Americana, adding layers of emotionality to the gentle and naturalistic style." "Besides my sister, she was the first pianist I hired to play in my band because she could play anything," says Mandico. "As we got to know each other more, we both were thinking that we wanted to write some music together," adds So. "At the time, we were mostly performing Michelle's original music with a band in Denver venues, but we thought it might be cool to bring my jazz side into our music."

In March, Mandico released a beautiful new video for "Ptarmigan," the title track of her widely-praised LP released in 2018. "Ptarmigan" was filmed on the ski slopes at Loveland Pass in Colorado; "The stripped-down acoustic-guitar based song features Mandico's delicate vocals as she contemplates her place in the world," said Billboard in its premiere of the video. "My hope is that this video as a visual story conveys the metaphor that this album has become for me. The courage and awareness to speak up about the blind spots that depression can cause and in contrast to the bright, wide ideas that artists flow through, oftentimes quietly riding the ups and downs of life, purpose, and existence," Mandico told Billboard of the video. The song features Scott Mulvahill and Luther Dickinson on guitars, and Ryan Joseph (Alan Jackson, Kacey Musgraves) on fiddle. The song (and album) was co-produced by Mandico and Kevin Houston and was executively produced by Dickinson.

Mandico traded in the snowy Colorado slopes for the warm sounds of Nashville to deepen her career as a writer and musician. Encouraged by a musical family, she grew up singing with her sisters before learning to play piano at age five and began songwriting shortly after. Her debut full-length album, PTARMIGAN, is a colorful tribute to her crossing from the Rocky Mountains to Music City. Venturing into Americana, Western-folk, and roots, Mandico began recording with Kevin Houston in Coldwater, Mississippi at Zebra Ranch, the legendary studio of Jim Dickinson.

Stripped down to live takes with no click and a handful of esteemed collaborators, the songs of PTARMIGAN lead with vocal intimacy and devoted lyrical imagery. Besides pursuing her music career, Mandico teaches yoga and encourages others to practice emotional wellness by holding space for honest conversation around mental wellness, openly sharing her struggle with anxiety and depression, and how she's directed these dark times towards artistic inspiration, like the ptarmigan. Stay tuned for more new music from Michelle Mandico, and be sure to follow her via her social media (links below) for updates.

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