“Inspired by artists such as Sara Bareilles, Ingrid Michaelson, and Taylor Swift, Mandy Pennington creates piano-led pop that invokes a visceral reaction from her audiences. Her style is influenced not only by these three artists, but also brings in elements of musical theater and soul.”
Focused around the idea that music is a form of therapy, Mandy’s goal is to write music that makes her listeners feel understood and moved, an experience that Mandy’s favorite artists have given to her. Mandy is passionate about mental and emotional health, and believes that music is a tool for healing.
Growing up in Louisville, Kentucky, Mandy was constantly surrounded by music and art. Her first solo performance was “Silent Night” in German in a church Christmas pageant at the age of four. She was raised in the church and gained much of her musical experience singing and playing piano on worship teams, which she continues to this day. Mandy was classically trained in the violin for seven years, the piano for ten years, and voice for eight years. She began taking lessons at the age of seven, and has been in love with music ever since. At the age of nine, Mandy played a role in her first musical, “The Wizard of Oz,” which sparked her love for musical theater. She was inspired by some of the greats: Judy Garland, Julie Andrews, Audra McDonald, Idina Menzel, and Kristin Chenoweth, and this musical theater influence is still found in her music today.
When Mandy was in high school, she found a way to combine her love for writing poetry and her love for music: songwriting. Her dreams quickly shifted from becoming a Broadway star to becoming a singer-songwriter. She continued to hone her craft with Vocal Performance, Audio Engineering, and Creative Writing majors at Greenville University, from where she graduated in 2018.
Mandy released her first full-length album, “Kindling,” in March 2016. Following that success, she released a light-hearted four-song ukulele EP called “Aria” in June of the same year. After a heart-wrenching breakup, Mandy composed a seven-song EP called “Enough,” which she recorded, produced, and performed all on her own as a tribute to the love that she had lost. This project came out in January 2017. After spending a summer interning in Nashville, Tennessee, Mandy recorded her first professional EP, “Now & Then” in the city. This EP was released in December 2017, with subsequent remixes and acoustic versions following the next year.
Currently living in Louisville, KY, Mandy continues to perform in writer’s rounds and shows around both Louisville and Nashville with her newly-formed band. She is working on three new singles based around the idea of “letting go” that will be released in 2019.
Artist Release schedule
“Getting Better” - Single 6/21/19
“Getting Better” - Video 6/27/19
“Trick of the light” - Single 7/26/19
“Let Go” - Single 8/16/19
“Let Go” - Video 8/22/19
Balance - Album 9/6/19
“Getting Better” Single - June 21st, 2019
“Getting Better” is the first of piano-pop artist Mandy Pennington’s three-single summer release, and makes its debut on June 21st, 2019. A pop tune with catchy melodies and piercing lyrics, “Getting Better” is the first of three singles focused around the idea of letting go of love.
The song begins with a catchy riff, upbeat drumbeat, and driving bass line, effortlessly settling into verse one. Following a double verse, the first chorus hits with heavy synths and chilling background vocals. After verse three leaves us wanting more with its clever lyricism, chorus two brings even more life to the song before dropping down into a chill synth-bass line that introduces the bridge. The bridge’s catchy “I gotta feeling, gotta feeling” repetition builds as the band re-enters, leading in a final chorus, which finally settles into the full-time drum groove you’ve been waiting for. The song ends with its riff, more instrumentally layered than ever, and ends abruptly with a pluck of the violins that have been keeping pace throughout the track. With lines such as "love made me someone I don't wanna be" and "I just want to break the habit of loving all that's bad," the song delves into the ways that love can change someone negatively, and the freedom of getting out of a bad relationship and becoming themselves again. It's a sassy, fun "I'm leaving you" song with a twist: I'm doing it to work on me.
Mandy had a great time bringing the idea of this song to life. “I'm all for self-improvement and always strive to become a better person, whether that's in reference to strength, mental health, or being more in control of my emotions,” she explains. “I think this track paints the picture of a strong woman who finally realizes the pattern of bad relationships and mistakes she's made, has finally escaped, and is ‘telling the guy off’ in a way. I love bringing a little sass to my work, and this song definitely has that.” “Getting Better” introduces the theme of all three songs: letting go and walking away. Mandy shares her motivation for creating three tracks around that theme, “I'm definitely going through a season of growth, and part of that growth is the ability to tell a guy that he should've treated me right and that I'm walking away. Not walking away to punish him, but to allow myself to grow! Of course, that is sometimes hard to do, and letting go of someone whom you loved can be very difficult, which is why I chose to explore this theme in my new music.”
“Getting Better” boasts an energetic vocal, dynamic track, and singable lyrics. Mixing programmed elements with live drums, bass, and electric guitar, “Getting Better” leaves the listener humming and swaying even after it’s over. Released just in time to be a 2019 summer jam, “Getting Better” is sure to be found on car radios all over the country this summer.
“Getting Better” Music Video - June 27th, 2019
“Trick Of The Light” Single - July 26th, 2019
On July 26, 2019, piano-pop artist Mandy Pennington releases her second summer single, “Trick of the Light.” With sweeping melodies and haunting vocals, "Trick of the Light" gives its listeners feelings of melancholy and transports them back to a time when they, too, had to walk away from someone they loved. Its lyrics describe someone who realizes that love may not be what they once thought it was, and that the only thing left to do is walk away without a fight. The song is a classic piano ballad with hints of jazz and soul.
An upright piano begins the song with rolled chords, and gives “Trick of the Light” an immediate melancholic feel. Verse one begins with the words “I’ve never known loving arms or loving hands that were true / I guess I thought that they belonged to somebody like you,” taking the listener to a place of confusion and heartbreak. As the verse slowly transitions into the chorus, the vocals rise and the drums and bass sneak in to the track. Verse two hits hard with a full 6/8 beat from the drums, and ear-catching three-part harmonies. As the instruments swell into the second chorus, Mandy once again sings words of regret: “I wish you could love me, I wish you could care / I’ve spent some nights lonely, you could’ve been there.” Following chorus two, the listener is greeted again with simply an upright piano leading the track, as the vocal becomes quiet and resolute. The background vocals take over the track with their own melody line that builds into the biggest and most angst-filled chorus yet. The song ends with the first half of the bridge, allowing the song to return to its beginnings by simply being stripped down to piano once again.
Mandy’s creative process is centered around authenticity, and a listener can hear the realness in Mandy’s voice as she sings this song. When asked about the track, Mandy said, “‘Trick of the Light’ captures the melancholy of a relationship's downfall in the most authentic way I could possibly portray it, with a twinge of giving up, a pang of confusion, and a taste of heartbreak.” Producer Stephen Leiweke worked with Mandy to keep the song sounding as natural and as raw as possible.
“Let Go” Single - August 16th, 2019
The final of three songs by Mandy Pennington this summer, “Let Go,” coming out on August 16, 2019. It encompasses the overarching theme of all three: letting go of love and life mistakes that hold you back. Inspired by the full-band sound of Coldplay and the instrumentation of songs from Ingrid Michaelson’s Lights Out, “Let Go” features a piano-led band with soaring electric guitars, complex drum beats, and powerful vocals. Produced and engineered by Nashville producer Stephen Leiweke, the song is dynamic and electric.
The moving song questions who the speaker knows themself to be: they have found that perhaps their own commitment to loyalty and to the black and white rules of love are what have ruined love for them, and that letting go of their love and the standards they so desperately cling to may be the only way to move forward. "Let Go" begins with a lonely piano, and instruments make their way into the song until driving drum beats and climatic guitar riffs accompany the repetition of the question "can I let go?"
“It was completely purposeful that ‘Let Go’ was released last,” Mandy said, explaining how this final song captures so well the main idea of all three. Mandy dove into the meaning of the chorus, “This song came out in a flurry of words and heartache, in a moment when I realized that I can't always blame others for my hurt. I wrote the words of the chorus "I hold on to my need of balance, to my fear of challenge, to the black and the white" to describe my desire to always control everything and to think that maybe, if I just loved more or served more, that I could make someone love me. It's a hard-hitting truth to recognize that sometimes letting go of people is the best way to love them. Somehow, through the writing of this song, I learned that. It's still a journey, but I can truthfully say that this song helped me with these realizations, and I hope it can give my listeners some food for thought as well.”
An acoustic version of “Let Go” will be released as part of the full project, Balance, in late August.
“Let Go” Music Video - August 22nd, 2019
Balance Album - September 6th, 2019
Mandy Pennington’s Balance is a record that blends genres such as piano-led pop, singer-songwriter, and soul. Produced by Stephen Leiweke and supported by accomplished instrumentalists, Balance is more than simply three songs; it is a work of art. Mandy produces more poignant lyrics, stretches more melodic boundaries, and hits higher notes than ever before.
The record is a compilation of Mandy’s three summer singles, “Getting Better,” “Trick of the Light,” and “Let Go,” along with acoustic versions of each song and a remix. The theme of letting go is pervasive throughout, and Mandy continues to hone her technique of touching her audience with penetrating lyricism.
“Getting Better” boasts catchy melodies and memorable lyrics layered on top of a dynamic instrumental. It views letting go through the lens of someone who is ready to move on from love because of their desire for self-improvement. “Trick of the Light,” Mandy’s second single, is reminiscent of classic piano ballads and, at moments, displays hints of soul. The song is laden with melancholic lyrics as the speaker laments a lost love and resolves to walk away without “putting up a fight.” The final song, “Let Go,” confronts the struggles with truly letting go of pain in a self-reflective way. The chorus lyric “I hold on to my need of balance, to my fear of challenge, to the black and the white” expresses how hard it is to relinquish control when we are in pain. “Let Go” brings a live, energetic full-band sound to the record.
Mandy’s journey of learning to let go of her past is evident in these three songs, and she manages to present the same theme from three distinctly different perspectives. Mandy will always create works that are outside the box when it comes to songs focusing on “saying what needs to be said,” no matter how many minutes and seconds it takes.
Balance will be available everywhere September 6.