21st Century Music: Jessica Lea Mayfield
21st Century Music are playlists and profiles that focus on artists that have released their music since 2000. These highlight new(er) acts that continue the sound and spirit of the older acts that are the focus of Ceremony. Click on the streaming service of your choice below to listen to the playlist as you read along.
One of my favourite artists of the past fifteen years is Jessica Lea Mayfield. I was looking forward to seeing her perform for the third time this November 2026 when her show was cancelled. In this age of blue dot fever, rising touring costs, or Canada-US trade and border tensions, I was concerned her Toronto show had succumbed to one or several of these obstacles. However, when she shortly after shared that she’d cancelled her fall tour on doctor’s orders to manage her pregnancy, I was instead thrilled and happy for her news. However, this has spurred me to do this long overdue profile of her interesting career.
My concerns over the show cancellation were also based on the fact that, as an indie-rocker blended with bluegrass and country accents, Mayfield has had some success but not anything close to the attention her talent and music has deserved. While country music is far from my tastes, Jessica’s adroit ability to blend catchy melodies, clever turns, edgy, ‘80s inspired guitar riffs, and lilting, affecting vocals, has made for an irrefutable combination. Her sound has reminded me of another favourite of mine over this period, Courtney Barnett.
A young Jessica, early in her career
Jessica started young in Kent, Ohio, performing from age eight with her family as part of their bluegrass band, One Way Rider. Travelling from her native Ohio to Tennessee in a 1950s bus formerly used by several country music luminaries, they were like a modern-day Partridge Family. She experienced the itinerant life of a working musician as a child, an early education of bluegrass festivals and the storytelling traditions of American roots music. She began writing songs at age eleven and at fifteen, released her first EP, White Lies (2006). The EP’s recording was aided by her brother, David, and originally issued under the artist name, Chittlin’. It was a downtempo, mostly acoustic country album that revealed her songwriting and vocal talents.
The EP caught the attention of fellow Ohioan, Dan Auerback of the Black Keys. He produced her first LP, 2008’s With Blasphemy So Heartfelt. Still mostly reflective, acoustic country tunes, there was more instrumentation mixed in with a rock edge, indicating Jessica was moving in a new, broader musical direction.
Tell Me era Jessica
There followed three consecutive LPs that are among the best indie rock albums of the past twenty years. Tell Me (2011), again produced by Auerback, started blending her country accents into more broadly accessible compositions filled with hooky turns. It was a transitional record in which Mayfield didn’t abandon country songwriting so much as loosen its grip on her music. The arrangements began to open doors toward indie pop, psychedelia and alternative rock.
Make My Head Sing (2014), recorded with her then husband, Jesse Newport, leaned fully into an edgy, alt-rock sound. Starting with the sludgy, acerbic, “Oblivious”, the LP rolled out one fetching tune after another. “Standing in the Sun” provided somewhat of a breakthrough hit and was the song that brought her to my attention.
The last of the stellar trio was Sorry Is Gone (2017), which distilled her evolving sound into perfection, driving through an intoxicating mix of alt-rockers and bluesy ballads, tinged with country accents and wrapped in tight, pop-styled compositions. The album’s title, lyrical themes of female power and reclamation, and raw edge of its sound reflected on the split with her husband and dealing with domestic abuse. She spent two years dealing with a broken shoulder as a result, eventually getting the needed surgery. Channeling the necessary sound for this content was producer John Agnello, whose credits included work with Dinosaur Jr., Sonic Youth, Kurt Vile, and The Hold Steady. Guest musicians included Sonic Youth drummer, Steve Shelley, and singer-songwriter Seth Avett of the Avett Brothers. The title track produced another minor hit for her.
Since then, Mayfield has toured occasionally and released several singles, rotating between a purer country sound and her raw, rock vibe. She has also regularly offered cover tunes, Christmas songs, and has collaborated often. She sang on the song, “Things Ain’t Like They Used to Be”, on the Black Keys 2008 LP, Attack and Release, and also on Dan Auerback’s solo release, Keep It Hid (2009). Mayfield has worked with Seth Avett often, releasing several singles and the LP, Seth Avett and Jessica Lea Mayfield Sing Elliott Smith (2015). Seth also performed on her 2025 EP, Choose Myself. Jessica performed on the 2022 single, “I’ll Still Stay”, which was included on the EP, American Drugs, by Garrett ‘Rett’ Smith. In early 2026, she issued an intriguing reinvention of the Weezer album, Pinkerton, performed with Dolour (Shane Tutmarc).
My photo of Jessica performing at The Rivoli in 2018
In 2025, we finally started to get more music from Jessica, starting with the EP, Choose Myself. This led to her first full album in almost ten years, with the mid-2026 issuance of Miss Obliteration. The new LP is good and notable for a distinct shift into a modern pop feel, with less of her indie rock and country accents.
After discovering Jessica around 2014, I first got to see her perform at the Rivoli in Toronto in 2018, touring for the Sorry Is Gone album. The next opportunity came in the cozy confines of the Monarch Tavern in early 2025, promoting the as yet unreleased, Choose Myself. With the cancellation of her fall 2026 tour and pregnancy, it looks like we’ll need to wait a little while to see her again and hear performances of the Miss Obliteration songs.
Performing at The Monarch Tavern in 2025
In the meantime, Jessica Lea Mayfield has provided us an evolving and engaging discography with which to explore and enjoy. I encourage you to lean in and discover this enigmatic singer, guitarist, and talented songwriter.
The Playlist - “song” \ album (year)
“White Lies” \ White Lies EP (2006) - issued under the name, Chittlin’
“I Miss You” \ White Lies EP (2006)
“Kiss Me Again” \ With Blashphemy So Heartfelt (2008)
“Our Hearts Are Wrong” \ Tell Me (2011)
“Blue Skies Again” \ Tell Me (2011)
“Grown Man” \ Tell Me (2011)
“Oblivious” \ Make My Head Sing (2014)
“I Wanna Love You” \ Make My Head Sing (2014)
“Standing in the Sun” \ Make My Head Sing (2014)
“Do I Have the Time” \ Make My Head Sing (2014)
“Wish You Could See Me Now” \ Sorry Is Gone (2017)
“Sorry Is Gone” \ Sorry Is Gone (2017)
“Meadow” \ Sorry Is Gone (2017)
“Bum Me Out” \ Sorry Is Gone (2017)
“Too Much Terrible” \ Sorry Is Gone (2017)
“Emotional Abandonment” \ non-album single (2020)
“Can You Feel It?” \ non-album single (2021)
“I’ll Still Stay” \ non-album single w\ Rett Smith (2022)
“Advice” \ Choose Myself EP (2025)
“Goodboy” \ Miss Obliteration (2026)
“Like You Always Do” \ Miss Obliteration (2026)
“Free Like Me” \ Miss Obliteration (2026)
“Prove Myself” \ Miss Obliteration (2026)
