American singer-songwriter Marybeth D’Amico likes to explore the darker side of everyday life. But she also loves a great tune."I like songs with catchy melodies that have something to say," Marybeth says. "I want listeners to hum along."

The five songs on her debut EP Waiting to Fly weave stories that are often heartbreaking but never hopeless – a girl who finds she's only lived to meet her parents expectations, the wife who leaves her family for hope of a better life and a teenage boy who can't find a reason to get up in the morning. Marybeth's distinctive, earthy voice conveys a vulnerability that listeners can connect with, bringing the characters to life.

Waiting to Fly was produced by Europe’s premier Americana artist Markus Rill and features some of Southern Germany’s finest musicians.

Marybeth sees herself as carrying on the tradition of female singer-songwriters such as Patty Griffin, Lori McKenna and Shawn Colvin, whose songs tell gripping stories yet convey a strong sense of melody, blending influences from country, folk, rock and even gospel. She also cites groups of the 60's and 70's as an influence – The Beatles, The Eagles, CSNY, and The Mamas and the Papas, as well as classic singer-songwriters like James Taylor, Carole King and Carly Simon.

Music has always been a part of her life. Growing up in New Jersey, Marybeth remembers harmonizing with her siblings to nearly all the Peter Paul and Mary albums in their parents’ record collection, besides later acting the lead in the high school musical.

The songwriting muse came to her much later, though. As a professional journalist she’s always been something of a wordsmith. Her discovery of Austin-based singer-songwriter Patty Griffin was an epiphany of sorts. "What struck me was how emotionally riveting yet simple to play her songs were," says Marybeth. It wasn't long before she began writing her own songs on guitar, drawing on her knack for storytelling and ear for a great tune.

Marybeth lives with her husband and their two daughters outside of Munich, Germany, where she works as a journalist and musician. In 2003 she co-founded the German alternative-country band Far From Home, with whom she has played venues including Germany's Four Corners Music Hall. She has recently begun focusing on her solo career, playing at locales in Bavaria (Wasserburg, Regensburg, Munich) as well as at the Tavern in the Gruene in New Braunfels near Austin, Texas.