Los Angeles, CA · folk-rock · indie · alt-rock

Madison Cunningham

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Grammy-winning songwriter and a guitarist's guitarist: odd-metered, jazz-tinged folk-rock with lyrics that turn on a single sharp image.

Madison Cunningham was born in Escondido, California, and grew up in Costa Mesa, in Orange County. Her father was a pastor, and she began playing guitar at seven, performing in his church alongside her four sisters. As a teenager she worked with producer Tyler Chester on the self-released album Authenticity, which she later pulled from streaming, saying it no longer represented her.

Her songwriting favors odd tunings and shifting meters, and her electric guitar tone draws more from rock playing than the acoustic singer-songwriter tradition she is usually filed under. She has named the Beatles, Joni Mitchell, Bob Dylan, Radiohead, Fiona Apple and Jeff Buckley among her influences.

In 2017 Cunningham joined the cast of Chris Thile's radio show Live from Here, a connection that led to further collaboration with him. She also became a touring and recording partner of Andrew Bird, contributing vocals to his 2019 album My Finest Work Yet, and has opened tours for both Bird and Harry Styles.

Who Are You Now, her first full-length, appeared in 2019 and earned a Grammy nomination for Best Americana Album. A covers EP, Wednesday, followed in 2020, taking on songs by Tom Waits, Radiohead, John Mayer and the Beatles. Revealer, released in 2022, won the Grammy for Best Folk Album and was previewed with a Tiny Desk session at NPR.

In 2024 Cunningham and Andrew Bird released Cunningham Bird, a full cover version of Buckingham Nicks, the only album made by Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks before they joined Fleetwood Mac. She followed it in 2025 with the single "My Full Name" and her fourth studio album, Ace.

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folk-rockindiealt-rock