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About Erin
Erin Lunsford is an award-winning singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist (guitar, banjo, piano) originally from Fincastle, Va and now located in Richmond, Va. Best known as the front-woman, lead vocalist and lyricist in touring indie-pop/soul band Erin & The Wildfire, her vocals have been described as soulful, expressive, and powerhouse and her effortless vocal prowess has been compared to Chris Stapleton, Eva Cassidy, and Susan Tedeschi.
Erin has a love for personal storytelling - rooted in a deep history of family folk music - that is highlighted by her poignant lyrics, as evidenced in her most recent releases.
The Wildfire’s “Touchy Feely,” was released in April 2022 after a year and a half of virtual songwriting. The lyrics are an exploration of self-love and self-acceptance through body positivity, inner child healing, and letting go of limiting thoughts to make space for growth.
Female empowerment, the antithesis of a damsel in distress, is at the heart of Lunsford's music and message, making "The Damsel,” an intentionally ironic title for her first solo album. The album takes a deep dive into unrequited love, family forgiveness, and coming-of-age in your 20s, and spans genres spouting from Erin's bluegrass roots and folding into her soulful, R&B vocal tendencies.
Erin & The Wildfire’s first show after 2020’s pandemic hiatus was a sold-out Friday Cheers in Richmond, Va in 2021. The band then made their debut on NPR’s Mountain Stage alongside Amy Helm, Chris Pierce, and Christian Lopez. E&TW has provided direct support for national tours including Sammy Rae & The Friends’ 2022 Follow Me Like the Moon Tour, Maggie Rose’s Summer 2022 Tour, and The Dip’s Fall 2019 Tour. They have shared the stage with other dynamic acts including Oh He Dead, Marcus King Band, Natalie Prass, Jill Scott, Butcher Brown, Mighty Joshua, The Village People, and Sister Sparrow & The Dirty Birds.
Solo, Lunsford has opened for Darrell Scott, Love Canon, Bruce Hornsby, Carbon Leaf, Love Canon, The Village People, Leon Russel and more, and performed with Keller Williams and Leftover Salmon, the Grammy-award winning newgrass band, The Infamous Stringdusters, and Pimps of Joytime.
THE DAMSEL
After nearly eight years in the making, Erin’s first full-length solo album The Damsel takes a deep dive into unrequited love, family forgiveness and coming-of-age in your 20s. Lunsford’s love for personal storytelling shines through her captivating lyrics and unforgettably dynamic vocals. The ironic title of the album, The Damsel, is inspired by Lunsford’s personal growth and resolve to be a fierce friend, sister, daughter, activist and woman.
“This album feels like a necessary nod to my musical upbringings and a simultaneous look forward to my next creative project,” elaborates Lunsford, “I have been writing music for my solo project for years before Erin & The Wildfire came along, but have not given my solo project the same kind of attention [as the Wildfire]. My bluegrass and Americana roots are hard to turn away from, so I decided to lean into it a little more.”
Music
DISCOGRAPHY
Erin Lunsford
The Damsel, 2020
I Saw the Thread - 2012
Erin & The Wildfire
Touchy Feely, 2022
Rising (Single), 2019
Thirst, 2017
Blame The Rain (EP), 2014
Erin & The Wildfire (EP), 2014
NPR Tiny Desk Contest Submissions
2023 - “Everybody Else”
2021 - “Sweet Thing”
2022 - “Summer You Can Wait Your Turn”
2020 - “Sweethearts”
2019 - “What The Fire Is Made Of,” NPR Muisc’s Favorite Entries
2018 - “Don’t Leave Me in The Dark,” NPR Music’s Entries We Love
Merch
Featured
“The Damsel”: A Visual Album
“The Damsel”: A Visual Album is a digital exhibition that began with an idea to support the visual arts community during the COVID-19 pandemic. This project subsequently turned into a collaboration that not only benefitted the artists involved but the Richmond arts community at large through a partnership with CultureWorks Richmond. It is a visual exploration of “The Damsel,” a deep dive into unrequited love, family forgiveness, and coming-of-age in your 20s with an ironic title inspired by Erin’s personal growth and resolve to be a fierce friend, sister, daughter, activist, woman..
Each artist has chosen one song off the album and has created a new piece around the themes of that song. This diverse group of artists includes painters, photographers, illustrators, sculptors, and more all from Virginia. The ironic title of the album, “The Damsel,” is inspired by Erin’s personal growth and resolve to be a fierce friend, sister, daughter, activist, woman.
To continue supporting the artists, you can PAY ADMISSION to view this gallery! Admission donations will be sent to the artists and CultureWorks Richmond.
“The Damsel”
by: Jessica Camilli
oil on canvas
“27 Summers Down”
by: Molly Dvorak
acrylic and marker on recycled wood
“Undone”
by: Angela Corpuz
star book created with paper cutouts, cyanotypes, and sewn binding
“Hatching of Romance:
by: Christina Swanson
digital
“Goodbye To Greenbank”
by: Madison Hall
ink, colored digitally
“How Many Birds”
by: Lily Erb
photograph of sculpture
“The Wolf”
by: Jessica Camilli
oil on canvas
“Don’t Leave Me In The Dark”
by: Maggie Graff (Ignited Creative)
digital collage
“Wherever You Are”
by: Jerred Fykes
illustration and digital
“Yellow House Blues”
by: Emily Herr
gouache
“Neighbor’s Eye”
by: Alexa Taveras
digital illustration
“Virginia Brother”
by: Alfonso Perez Acosta
illustration
“Whatever U Like”
by: Brent McCormick
digital collage
“Just A Ghost”
by: Carson McNamara
digital illustration
Erin’s latest album The Damsel on CD.