Marjie is an artist/painter and singer/songwriter from Iowa. She grew up in a country music environment surrounded by her parents' band, who opened up for major country acts around the region such as Faith Hill, Tim McGraw, Patty Loveless, Vince Gill andReba. She started writing poetry and songs at age 10 to the beat of her step-dad's drums while his band practiced. They charted songs on the independent country charts at #1, 9, and 16, which took them to Nashville frequently.
Marjie moved to New York City at 18 to study philosophy, art and music and studied abroad in Czechoslovakia, which greatly influenced her passion for the power of music and art. She worked on staff at the Joseph Papp Public Theater and the Delacourte Theater Shakespeare Festival in Central Park, participating in whatever she could, working with props, bit parts in shows with Kevin Kline, and participating in poetry slams at the downtown theater. She exhibited her art in SOHO, sang in clubs, and painted murals with Evolving Image, a group of New York mural painters. Later, Marjie moved to Los Angeles, where she was a regular performer at Billy Block's Western Beat at Highland Grounds. She traveled to Nashville to co-write songs with local writers such as Billy Burnette, Richard Leigh, and others. Singing with the Southern California Choral Society rounded out her musical experiences, and took her to the Prague Castle, Nuremberg, Royce Hall at UCLA, and Beverly Hills Presbyterian Church. Marjie has worked as an artist, graphic artist and digital retoucher in New York, L.A. and Nashville, as an artist for FoxKids, and as an art teacher in downtown Los Angeles, and with Michael Neal (who created Mr. Snuffalufagus for Sesame Street) for a traveling puppet exhibit.
Marjie has now relocated to Nashville, where she continues to work on her art and songwriting, and to be creative in any way that she is inspired. Please look for her website, which will be launched soon, at www.paintedmuse.net.