13-05-2025
Midwestern Mrs. talks upcoming ‘Tiny Stacks' performance
DAYTON, Ohio (WDTN) — Music and books will be in sync once again at Dayton Metro Library locations as Tiny Stacks returns.
Ahead of the first performance of the season, WDTN. com spoke with Midwestern Mrs. over Zoom, as she'll be playing at the Burkhardt Branch on Thursday at 6 p.m.
She's performed a few times in Dayton already, including performances at Dayton Porch Fest and the Battle of the Bands.
''If it's terrible, you don't have to share it with anyone.' And I thought, okay, I can do that.'
As the COVID-19 pandemic sunk its teeth into the globe, Midwestern Mrs. received sound advice that inspired her to feed her creativity once and for all.
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She used to write stories and play the violin growing up. Eventually, though, the words stopped flowing and the violin went quiet.
'Sometimes life kind of kills your creative side, like, you've got to be focused on doing things right and not really exploring that,' she says.
But creativity is a hard thing to stow away.
So, she started making music, listening and studying her favorite songwriters. Her instrument of choice is the guitar, which she uses to create soundscapes of folk and Americana.
'I grew up listening to lots of things — mostly classic rock — I guess what my dad listened to,' she says. 'I guess I started just playing with a guitar that was in my house that I never played before. So, it was like, 'what can I what kind of music can I make with this guitar?''
Although she had a musical background, the guitar was new to her. She learned how to play by strumming along with some of her favorites artists and songs. After that, she considered, 'Maybe I'll try writing my own songs.'
So, she began writing stories again, some more personal than others, including stories about her motherhood journey. She's even performed onstage with her kids, daytime performances of course.
'They'll come up and they'll sing my song with me, like, songs that they like that I've written. And that's really special. And it's something I never would have imagined experiencing,' she says. 'It's something I treasure.'
As Midwestern Mrs., she's played at venues across the country, including the Bluebird Café in Nashville — a particularly notable experience for her, as she won a songwriting contest to earn her spot there.
She performed her song 'Mother,' which details her journey as a mother.
She called the night an amazing experience.
'I was very nervous, but, it was, it was an amazing experience, she says. 'I was struggling to get into the song even because as I was trying not to, like, get too emotional with it, I heard people like sniffling and I think feeling the song along with me and it was just this beautiful moment and I'll just always remember it.'
Set to play at the Burkhardt Branch of the Dayton Metro Library on May 15, she raves about the city's music culture.
'It's really special because, you know, you get to see the music here in Dayton, and I like to say I think it's the best place to create art because you have such support.
'We have such a wide variety of music that exists here, and I think the Tiny Stacks performance is going to reflect that as well. All throughout the season there's all kinds of different music and a really good reflection of the music that's happening in Dayton.'
She first applied to perform for the fourth annual Tiny Stack series back in January, during a trip to the library with her kids.
'One of the librarians had suggested that I apply,' she recounts. 'Now, I wasn't going to, because I just didn't think my chances were very good, but because of her, I did and then I got that email, and I was so excited.'
As the performance nears, she's really looking forward to it.
'Something I've been thinking about a lot is that the library is full of stories, you know, real or fictional, and literally you're surrounded by them.
'I get to share my own stories in the form that I create them, there amongst all these stories, this building of stories. So, I'm really looking forward to that. I think it's going to be a neat experience.'
For more information about Midwestern Mrs., visit her website.
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