Making Mom Proud: Matraca Berg

Write You A Song Podcast

This month’s guest, Matraca Berg, grew up in a musical family. Her mother Icee Berg (yep, real name!) was a songwriter and session singer who at first wasn't crazy that her daughter wanted a career in country music but later became her best teacher. Her stepfather, Dave Kirby, was a songwriter whose credits include the Gene Watson classic I’ve Got Memories to Burn and Charlie Pride’s Is Anybody Goin to San Antone. The family lived in Nashville and often hosted parties featuring writers and singers. So, it stands to reason that being around that kind of environment would kinda rub off on a person. But in Matraca’s case, it was more than just a smudge; she was gifted the talent- and the drive- to have over 50 of her songs recorded, including several that helped female artists to dominate country music in the 1990s like they have never before... or since. She is a CMA and ACM-winning 2008 Nashville Songwriting Hall of Fame inductee who’s quick to give credit to her co-writers, she’s married to Jeff Hanna of the legendary Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, and she’s a pretty great solo artist too.

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