About TRACY GRAMMER
singer, writer, actor, director, multi-instrumentalist, cat-whisperer, and fearless navigator of the heart
TRACY GRAMMER is one of contemporary folk music's most beloved artists. Renowned for her pure, emotive vocals, perfectly intoned violin, and guitar playing that is by turns percussive and delicate, Grammer is also a gifted storyteller whose incantations add a rare mixture of vulnerability, intimacy, and hard-won insight to her performances. As one fan puts it, "With Tracy, it's never just about the music; it's a soul journey."
And what a journey it has been. Grammer rose to acclaim as half of the "postmodern, mythic American folk" duo, Dave Carter & Tracy Grammer. From 1998-2001, the duo released three internationally celebrated, chart-topping albums featuring Carter's mytho-poetic Americana songcraft and in 2002, toured with Joan Baez, both as featured artists and Baez's band mates. Called “the new voice of modern folk music,” the duo was clearly in its ascendancy when in July 2002, Carter suffered a fatal heart attack mid-tour. He was 49; Grammer, 34.
Determined to honor the duo's trajectory and bring Carter's songs and those of other favorite writers to broader audiences, Grammer kept to the road, releasing several solo and archival recordings, including 2012's LITTLE BLUE EGG (Red House Records), the #1 most-played album on Folk Radio in 2012 with that year's #1 most-played song. She also heads the Dave Carter Legacy Project and administers the publishing for Carter’s songs, as well as her own.
In 2018 Grammer released LOW TIDE, her first album of original songs. Says Grammer, “Even though I am a practiced writer, I didn’t see myself a songwriter until writing songs became the only way to resolve the pains and unanswered questions of my life. LOW TIDE is an album of revelations, confessions, and ultimately, healing. I am proud of the writing and utterly thrilled with the sounds." Co-produced with long-time musical collaborator Jim Henry, LOW TIDE was released January 19, 2018 on Grammer's own label, Tracy Grammer Music, and was the #9 most-played album on folk radio for the year.
Grammer plays theaters, coffeehouses, and festivals across the United States and Canada regularly, and has performed in Europe and Japan as well. She holds the record for the most consecutive appearances at the Falcon Ridge Folk Festival and performs in a variety of configurations, with Jim Henry (Mary Chapin Carpenter, Burns Sisters, Susan Werner), Paul Kochanski (Lori McKenna, Threesies, Nields), Lorne Entress (Lori McKenna, Catie Curtis, Mark Erelli) and David Chalfant (Nields, Stephen Kellogg) rounding out her ensembles. Since 2020, she and Jim Henry have offered a monthly livestream concert via YouTube and Facebook from Henry's Rubytone Studio.
In 2018, Grammer began pursuing the call to act, and has since appeared in numerous community and regional theater productions, three small films, and several staged readings. She completed a rigorous month-long intensive training at Shakespeare & Co. in 2024 and has studied at HB Studio, Greenfield Community College, Hartford Stage, and Happier Valley Comedy. She lives in Greenfield, Massachusetts with her beloved Pickles and the dashing Mr. Brown.