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Peach Jam Podcast: Michelle Malone
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Michelle Malone's career spans decades. She sang in the church choir, struck out on her own at the tender age of 16, and signed a record deal with a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. She likes to keep her music Georgia-oriented because, according to her, "what we have here, it's just so different from anywhere else."
Michelle Malone: Hi, I'm Michelle Malone. I'm an Atlanta native and I play Americana music.
Jeremy Powell: But you kind of have a rock and roll soul. It seems you like things loud.
Michelle Malone: And?
Jeremy Powell: That's a good thing.
Michelle Malone: You know, I've always played both acoustic and electric. I still play solo or duo and with a band, and I love it all. I don't feel like I should ever have to choose. Life is a buffet and I want to try it all. I have a Christmas band. I have a 70s cover band. Uh, my records span from, I think acoustic folk rock to rock and roll to blues to, I don't know, some kind of neo folk stuff. I don't even like to categorize things. To me, it's just music, you know? So that's what I think.
Michelle Malone: Well, first and foremost, you know, I came up with the Indigo Girls and we met in the 80s before either of us had record deals, you know, and they were already playing out. And they found out I played music and wrote songs, but I hadn't been playing out. So they kind of gave me a I don't know, they gave me a hard time about that. And said I had to get out and play my songs. So they inspired me to do that and invited me to come to this little place in Emory Village. It was called the Dugout. It's not there anymore, but it was a college haunt, you know. And I remember between their sets they let me get up and sing three or four songs. And I was scared to death. My knees were knocking, literally physically knocking together. And, you know, and after that, you know, you break the seal and then you move on. So I just started playing around town. That was, I guess, 87. And, you know, a lot of wonderful folks in Atlanta helped me out, showed me I guess I followed them by example. You know, they didn't necessarily show me what to do, but I just watched and and it was the Indigo Girls and Caroline Aikin and Didi Vogt and folks like that. And then on the other side of of my world, I used to sneak in to see the Georgia Satellites at Hedgens in Buckhead when I was a kid. I wasn't even old enough to be in there. And they made a huge impression on me because although my mother is a singer and I grew up watching her and her band, it was a lot more reserved. And so, you know, Caroline and Didi and Amy and Emily, and then I got to play music and got a record deal early on before I really even knew what I was doing or I was even good at, I think. I guess they thought otherwise.
Jeremy Powell: if you could take these lessons that you've learned now over the years and go back and talk to that 16 year old Michelle, what is it you tell her?
Michelle Malone: I've thought about that a lot. I really don't know because I don't know if I could have stayed and made it work. I think I may have had to have, you know, taken a similar path, maybe not done as many drugs, maybe not drank so much, maybe not tried to escape all the things that were going on in my life and and all the feelings I had. Maybe I would tell myself that and and tell myself that it would be okay, that I don't have to do all that. And eventually things will settle down and you'll be all right. It was a it was a tough row to hoe back then and probably for a good 20 years, you know, 16 to I would say 36. I was still trying to figure it all out. Even though I had stopped all the shenanigans, I still wasn't really quite settled in me yet. And that takes a long time, I think, for most people. Now I've met some people who were just they come out, they come out just complete it seems like. John Mayer was that way. He used to open for me at my shows or he would show up with his little guitar and his amp. Just he was such a goober when he was young, you know, this 19 year old kid. But he was so talented and had. He was so self-assured and he just always seemed like he was fully baked when he showed up, like, here I am. Here's my sound. Here's what I'm going to do. Yeah. So I wasn't that it's taken me a long time to get here. So good for him. And good for me, too.
The Peach Jam podcast from GPB features songs and stories from a variety of the incredibly talented and diverse bands and artists who call the Peach State home.
Recorded live in our GPB studios, you get a front row seat for the intimate musical performances and free-flowing conversation from a truly eclectic variety of Georgia musicians. You can find more at GPB.org/PeachJamPodcast — please download and subscribe on your favorite podcast platform as well.
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