Willy Mason (born November 21, 1984) is an American blues, folk and country singer, songwriter, and musician, hailing from Martha’s Vineyard, Massachusetts, U.S.
Born in Tarrytown, New York, Willy Mason moved to Martha’s Vineyard, Massachusetts with his family at the age of five. During his high school education Mason was a member of a number of bands including Keep Thinking, Cultivation and Slow Leslie, and participated in his school’s Minnesingers group and musical theatre productions. With the folk influences of his parent’s record collection and his teenage years’ proclivity towards Rage Against the Machine and Nirvana, Mason crafts a folky, socially-aware/revolution-in-the-air sound.
By sheer coincidence, during an appearance on a family friend’s local radio show, a Bright Eyes associate Sean Foley heard the singer-songwriter, and left his number with the station for Mason to contact. The song Mason played was entitled “Oxygen” and led to Mason and Bright Eyes’ Conor Oberst collaborating and touring together. As chance would have it when Mason played “Oxygen” again to an audience of three at South By Southwest festival, one of those members was BBC Radio 1 DJ Zane Lowe. The DJ then played it to a British audience and exposed the singer’s often raw delivery and socially-conscious message to a huge audience.
Ahead of his full-length debut Mason released two EPs, one untitled and one named “Hard Hand to Hold”. The singer-songwriter’s debut album, “Where the Humans Eat”, recorded at just 19 years of age, was issued in 2005, and peaked at No. 38 on the UK Albums chart. Due to the success Mason played a host of UK and U.S. festivals including Glastonbury Festival, before taking time off to return home and form a backing band. After releasing the subsequent EPs “Hard to Lie Down” in 2005 and “Scraps” in 2006, Willy Mason toured in support of the respected acts Beth Orton, Death Cab for Cutie, Radiohead and Sondre Lerche.
Mason’s sophomore album arrived in 2007 entitled “If the Ocean Gets Rough” to positive reviews, and peaked at No. 33 on the UK Albums chart. After contributing lyrics to The Chemical Brothers’ “We Are the Night” album, and a song to “Radio Waves, Vol. 1” – a Martha’s Vineyard compilation album – Mason performed at the 2007 Austin City Limits festival. The stresses of being a touring musician began to take their toll and Mason appeared rarely until 2011 where he embarked on a small venue tour of the UK and recorded a session at Manchester’s The Sharp Project.
The critically acclaimed singer-songwriter’s third studio album “Carry On” was issued in 2012 on Fiction Records. It was produced by Dan Carey and was supported by a sold-out tour of the UK, as well as a tour of Australia alongside Mumford and Sons and Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeroes.
Find tickets with See Tickets: | Search now |
Where possible we will update our listings to notify of cancelled, postponed and rescheduled events, however we STRONGLY ADVISE that you check with the venue/organiser in the first instance for updates.
All information (whether in text or photographs) is supplied in good faith but should not be relied upon as being a statement of representation or fact.GOT AN EVENT TO SHARE? It's free to post your events on What's On Edinburgh, click here to find out more!
Want to be the first to hear about what's happening in Edinburgh? Just hit 'Like' on our Facebook page, join the What's On Scotland Facebook Group and 'Follow' on our Twitter account and you're all set!Tom Hickox is going on tour this Autumn in support of his new album 'The Orchestra Of Stories', and plays The Caves Edinburgh on Thursday 2nd October!
READ MOREExperience The Promise Tour... join Unoma Okudo at The Caves for a rare first listen to songs from her forthcoming album with her soaring voice and evocative storytelling.
READ MOREWestcountry folk singer and multi-instrumentalist Seth Lakeman comes to Edinburgh for a headline show at The Caves on Monday 13th October!
READ MOREHugo Hamlet is a spiritual rockstar, a force of nature merging ancient wisdom with modern theatre, delivering ecstatic transmissions of truth & love. .
READ MOREAynsley Lister, billed as one of the most exciting contemporary Blues guitarists around today, returns to The Caves Edinburgh for his annual sell out December gig on the 14th!
READ MOREWe’re famous for the Ceilidhs in our stunning Auditorium at the Ghillie Dhu, so come along a make it a night to remember!
READ MOREEdinburgh Ceilidhs invites you to their regular ceilidh in the Charteris Centre with caller Ken Gourlay, ceilidh band and piper!
READ MORECome along to the Granary Leith for this Day Disco Brunch with live saxophone tunes and DJ beats!
READ MOREAnnasach Ceilidh Band invites you to our regular ceilidh in the hidden gem of Edinburgh’s Old Town, The Counting House!
READ MOREReady to swap your Saturday lie-in for a standing ovation? Step into the limelight with Broadway Brunch, Brewhemia’s razzle-dazzle new dining spectacular.
READ MOREBrought to you by City Music Promotions, treat yourself and your loved ones to an exceptional evening piano recital at the beautiful venue of St Giles' Cathedral.
READ MOREScotland's beloved over 30s afternoon clubbing event Disco Days returns to Club Tropicana Edinburgh in 2025!
READ MOREJoin us at Club Tropicana Edinburgh for an unforgettable day filled with the chart-topping tracks of Morgan Wallen, Dolly Parton, and many more!
READ MORE