Meadowlark
Meadowlark is a Hudson Valley festival celebrating roots and independent music in support of local farmers. For the second year in a row, Keepsake House returns to Meadowlark to produce The Writers Room, the cafe-style acoustic Cider House Stage for local songwriters to perform in-the-round.
This year, The Writers Room will include three sets on Saturday and three on Sunday, each featuring three artists: Round 1 at 1:30pm, Round 2 at 3:00pm, and Round 3 at 4:30pm.
Our venue’s capacity is extremely limited. Discounted tickets are available until August 31, or until sold out. Advance tickets are highly recommended!
Alex Bergan (he/him) - Saturday Round 1
As a native of Iowa, Alex began writing music at the age of 15. Like many artists, he navigated through countless avenues trying to find the most honest and authentic version of his sound. Once a successful formula was found, it didn’t take long until he’d open for artists such as Nathaniel Rateliff and Kenny Loggins, to name a few. Alex’s debut album, Undercover, is out now and features a wide array of friends and guest singers.
Allie Chip (she/her) - Saturday Round 1
Allie Chip is a Hudson Valley based folk artist whose songs are so relatable that you'll likely find yourself... relating to them. Especially if you’re a millennial who has ever asked the question: "wtf?" lol, but really: Allie's songs are genuine, heartfelt, funny, topical, human, and a joy to experience. Listeners draw comparisons to John Craigie, Olivia Barton, Malvina Reynolds, and Regina Spektor. Allie has performed her original music on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon and was selected as a 2024 Emerging Artist at Falcon Ridge Folk Festival. Her music has been recognized in the Telluride Troubadour Competition and she has sold songs to ABC among other songwriting accolades. Allie also writes and records custom wedding songs through her business, Give Love Originals (GLO).
Jonah Dratfield (he/him) - Saturday Round 1
Jonah Dratfield is a guitarist, composer, and singer/songwriter originally from Western Massachusetts. His primary musical influences include traditional American folk music, the 1970s singer-songwriter movement, and the Great American Songbook. I'm focused on crafting complex, expressive songs that capture the spirit and diversity of American music.
I’m Jay (he/him) - Saturday Round 2
I’m Jay makes songs that say: "I'm Jay!!! Like, this is me, I'm here, and I'm doing this." He has spent most of his life being very very shy. Writing songs is how he embraces who he is, tells the world about it, and turns his shame into entertainment. He would describe his songwriting style as elementary and minimal, heartfelt and hilarious. He hopes that when people listen to his songs, they feel tenderness for their shortcomings and they become invigorated by the sense of their potential, knowing that their failures brought them to the perfect place to make their dreams come true.
Madi Smith (she/they) - Saturday Round 2
Madi Smith is a singer/songwriter and wannabe stand-up comic, known for her fun gay songs and witty lyricism. She was born and raised in Los Angeles, but made the big coast-to-coast move to NYC two years ago where she has since gone all in on pursuing her music career. Madi has never been able to commit to any one genre, she's really interested in exploring comedy in music and capturing the array of emotions that come with the queer experience. She's also been told her music would sound great with a band, but as of now it's just her and her guitar against the world.
Madi is a 2025 Artist in Residence and has previously performed in the Keepsake House shows The Writers Room at Meadowlark (2024) Long Story Short, and Fingerprints.
Mona June (she/her) - Saturday Round 2
Mona June is a singer/songwriter and music educator based in Brooklyn, NY whose music aims to explore the depth, range, and expression of our emotions. Songwriting is how Mona processes her emotions, and singing is how she expresses them. She loves nature walks, party planning, and the world of children's media (especially Bluey). She is the proud daughter of Iranian-American immigrants. Her mother is Iranian-American novelist Marjan Kamali, and she is inspired by her artistry every day!
Belle Shea (she/her) - Saturday Round 3
Belle Shea is an independent alternative songwriter based in Brooklyn, NY. Her music has been called "a masterclass in vulnerability" (B Side Guys), layering soft, woodsy elements like acoustic guitar, cello, and violin with growling electric guitar, buzzing synths, and pounding drums. Her songs are anchored by her signature warm vocal, speaking directly to listeners about new beginnings and old patterns, holding on and letting go.
Belle Shea has been featured as one of the Official Bands at NAMM ‘25, at Ladybug Festival 2025, and in American Songwriter magazine as one of the top 25 songs of the 2023 Song Contest and winner of the "May Flowers" feature. She is part of the Breedlove Pro Artist Program. When she is not touring, she plays and organizes a monthly songwriters’ residency at McCarren Park House.
Lizzy Hilliard (she/her) - Saturday Round 3
A lifelong musician and songwriter, Lizzy’s current work is infused with warm guitars and sincere vocals. Bearing lyrics with evocative imagery, whimsy, and a twinge of fantasy, Lizzy's songs oscillate between candid observation and wistful reflection. Her three volume album anthology, entitled ‘growth’, is a journey of self discovery in the wake of newfound independence. On her newest release 'growth: the shoebox sessions', Lizzy revisits songs from this anthology, performing them live and intimately in her bedroom as if they were confessions from the girl next to you at a sleepover. She recently completed a choral commission for the University of Washington, a piece called The Bathtime Waltz (SSAA). Ask Lizzy about the new musical she’s developing - it’s about snail mail and murder in a small town.
Vincent Cross (he/him) - Saturday Round 3
Vincent Cross is an Irish song poet whose catalogue of critically-acclaimed albums draw from various traditional folk idioms and ancient myths. Born in Ireland, raised in Australia and now living in New York City, he frequently tours globally at folk clubs and festivals, and is a staple at the Brooklyn Folk Festival, and the renowned Scratcher Sessions in Manhattan. His next recorded release comprises a song cycle about 19th Century Irish-American gang leader & colony chief, James “The Rooster” Corcoran (his distant relative).
Kin River Works (he/him) - Sunday Round 1
Kin River Works is the solo act of Steph Philipps, whose music combines elements of soul, folk, and soundscape art to create music that aims to heal and uplift people's spirits. In addition to debuting a new EP this fall with his duo Speak Friend, he used this summer to launch a monthly musical gathering in the park that brings people together and feeds them (literally), while also providing an intimate outlet to hold space for people to discuss what's been burdening their mind.
Ryan Carter Martin (he/him) - Sunday Round 1
Ryan Carter Martin grew up in a musical household where Stevie Wonder, Bob Marley, and The Beatles played on repeat. When he was twelve he got his first guitar and by fifteen he was writing and performing original songs at local venues and battles of the bands. After being accepted and graduating from Berklee College of Music in 2016 with a Bachelor's in Music Production, Ryan moved to New York City to work at renowned Quad Studios as a recording engineer on sessions with Post Malone, Cyndi Lauper, and Billie Porter. In his free time, he continued to write, record, and perform folk songs, and in 2022 released his first single "Mercy" followed by "Go Now" and "Hollow Heart," writing from the turmoil experienced in a codependent relationship and overcoming those struggles. He is currently motivated by using music as a way to give voice to those who suffer in silence and provide catharsis through being open about his own feelings of inadequacy, dealings with grief, and finding light in the face of insurmountable darkness.
Sharon Klein (she/her) - Sunday Round 1
Greenwich Village native and resident of Hudson Valley for over 20 years, Sharon Klein has been writing songs since she was 17. She spent several years as a music producer in NYC and even had a song on the Billboard Charts. These days, she performs her original work solo and is also part of an acoustic trio MartinTullyKlein.
Blue Jay (he/they) - Sunday Round 2
Born in China, raised in Canada, and now living in New York City, singer-songwriter Justin Gerstle (performing under the Blue Jay moniker) has always found a deep connection to place. Through his songs – all of which he alone writes, records, and produces – he reflects on memories and the places which hold them. His string-driven folk styling is simultaneously grounded and liminal, capturing the nostalgic embrace of returning to an old home. A poet at heart, his confessional lyrics take listeners through carefully crafted stories, rich with imagery and finding meaning in the everyday. Through his years of performing, he’s played everything from intimate audiences to campus-wide festivals, and always brings the gentle presence of a friend plucking out a tune by the campfire. Though he’s never felt settled in any one place, his songs continue to help him carry along everyone he’s had the joy to cross paths with – never lost, always remembered.
C. E. Foster (she/they) - Sunday Round 2
Since before they can even remember, C. E. Foster’s life has been filled with music. She was raised by a prolific blues guitarist and a rock n roll fanatic, both of whom instilled in her a deep and unshakable adoration for these sounds of the soul. While they live for modern jazz, indie rock, and urban folk, they still sing from the traditions of Howlin’ Wolf, Muddy Waters, Big Mama Thornton, and the like. Their songwriting is fueled by the knowledge of music as one of the purest and oldest human traditions—they, like all musicians, exist in this context, each of us adding our own voice. C. E writes not always from personal experience, but from the human experience, with intense intimate detail to create a direct link between herself and the listener, if only for a few short minutes.
Pete Mancini (he/him) - Sunday Round 2
For NYC songwriter Pete Mancini, life in sobriety still has its challenges, but the satisfaction of making art with a clear mind is unparalleled. His new record, American Equator (out March 7th on Paradiddle Records) could only come from an artist who has weathered more than his fair share of storms. Over the years, Mancini has toured with Jimmy Webb and opened for Los Lobos, Blues Traveler, Gin Blossoms, Southside Johnny & The Asbury Jukes, Cracker, Rhett Miller, Amy Helm, Larry Campbell & Theresa Williams, and Iain Matthews. In addition to playing guitar with Jimmy Webb, Mancini is also a member of The Famous Doctor Scanlon Band, which honors the musical legacy of Travis McKeveny.
Louie Lou Louis (he/him) - Sunday Round 3
Louie Lou Louis is a Haitian-American songster based in Brooklyn, NY who combines an uplifting musicality with a soothing, yet energizing vibe. Through life experiences and short stories, he celebrates human imperfection and engages audiences with an infectious positivity. With a unique blend of folk, jazz, and global music, he inspires joy and connection in any audience.
Louis is a 2025 Artist in Residence and has previously performed in the Keepsake House show Long Story Short, and Fingerprints.
Rob McMahon (he/him) - Sunday Round 3
Rob McMahon is a New York based singer/songwriter who has been walking a path of healing and recovery since 2001. He's played treatment centers, American Legion halls, recovery groups, yoga studios, wellness centers, music conferences, house concerts, colleges and high schools, and more traditional music venues, both coast to coast, and internationally (in Ireland, Peru, India, and China). A New York City public school teacher, Rob has 10 years of classroom experience under his belt working with "at risk" youth with special needs. As a graduate of the Four Winds Society's Shamanic Energy Medicine Program and a certified instructor of Turtle Longevity Qigong, Rob has been teaching community meditation classes, leading group healing ceremonies, and offering spiritual guidance and energetic healing to individuals and families since 2008. He also co-facilitates holistic wellness retreats for combat veterans faced with the challenges of reintegrating into civilian life post deployment.
Rose Stoller (she/her) - Sunday Round 3
Rose Stoller is a former jazz singer who came into her own via songwriting after graduating college in 2019. Inspired by Joni Mitchell records that she just couldn't put down, she learned her first songs on guitar by messing around in open-tunings and turning her poems into songs. She has been lifted up by the Hudson Valley music community, making friends at house shows and even hosting house shows of her own. Her community is the most important thing to her, and she has so many songwriting peers who inspire her with their unique voices every day. Since beginning this journey, she has opened for some amazing artists including Ivan Julian, Trixie Whitley, Allegra Krieger, Madame Gandhi, and Duendita.
Original songs feel like pieces of the artist's DNA, and Rose is obsessed with hearing the story behind the song, what compels someone to write a certain way, and how artists cultivate their unique voice. So much of songwriting cannot be taught and is just a gift that is given to artists by their subconscious minds. She is forever interested in excavating her own mind for her own unique song-gifts.