Zoetropolis Cinema 112 N. Water St. 17603
Poster for Songwriters in the Raw w/ Jessica Smucker, Brad Yoder, and Mirabelle Skipworth

Songwriters in the Raw w/ Jessica Smucker, Brad Yoder, and Mirabelle Skipworth

Coming on September 25

Run Time: 180 min.

~ Sunday September 25, 2022 ~ Doors @ 6:30PM, Showtime @ 7PM ~ $20 Advance/$25 Day-of ~

Songwriters in the Raw

Introducing Songwriters in the Raw, a unique new concert series hosted by Jessica Smucker featuring an up close and personal in-the-round performance by 2-3 touring singer-songwriters in conversation with one another.
September’s show will feature Brad Yoder, Mirabelle Skipworth, & Jessica Smucker

Brad Yoder

Brad Yoder believes musical success should be measured in more than just the obvious ways. Being voted in the top three slots multiple times since 2002 for “Best Acoustic/Solo Artist” by Pittsburgh City Paper readers is great; playing Poughkeepsie, New York, and having a college freshman from Los Angeles request songs she’s only heard via Internet downloads is actually cooler.

Acknowledged by Pittsburgh Magazine as “ruling the Pittsburgh coffeehouse scene,” Brad logs over 150 performances annually, playing colleges, cafés, churches, festivals, First Nights, and even the zoo. Brad has opened for a diverse range of artists, including Erin McKeown, Tegan & Sara, the Cowboy Junkies, Lucy Kaplansky, Carrie Newcomer, Vigilantes of Love, Emmylou Harris, Robyn Hitchcock, Ellis Paul, and Rob Dickinson of Catherine Wheel, plus played the second stage for David Gray, Peter Paul & Mary, and Steve Earle/Jackson Browne.

Along the way, Brad has sold over 7,000 copies of five self-released CDs, including Excellent Trouble (2010), Someday or Never (2007), Used (2002), Talk to Total Strangers (1999), and his 1997 debut disc, Best Sunday Heart. Songs from these recordings have been featured on CBS’s “NUMB3RS,” NPR’s “Car Talk,” the ABC Family Network’s “Beautiful People,” “Dawson’s Creek” 5th season DVD, and as part of the Pittsburgh Regional History Center’s 9-11 Memorial Exhibit.

It’s Brad’s unique mix of humorous, poetic, political, funky and edgy original songs, covering a musical range from folk to indie rock (with unexpected musical and lyrical twists), that has earned him a loyal following ranging from kids in single digits through retirees.
Website: bradyoder.com

Mirabelle Skipworth

Mirabelle Skipworth recently moved from Illinois and has played throughout the Chicagoland area as a solo singer/songwriter. Now local to Pittsburgh, she now plays with her newly-named, 4-piece band, “Mirabelle Skipworth and The Brink Of” (Made up of Terry Boring, Pete Bush, and Ian Green) as well as a solo singer-songwriter. Her folk-inspired melodies and lyrics with the alt-rock influence of her band makes for a dynamic, emotionally-intense experience. She occasionally draws on her own experiences, but often draws from books, concepts, and other people’s stories. Her album, Paraphrased in a Poet, was released Spring of 2019,  her EP, The Catalyst Has Called, was released Spring 2020, and her album, Postcards From Patmos released Dec. 12th 2020. Her most recent EP, “The Tables Trill” released Nov. 12th.

Jessica Smucker

Jessica Smucker‘s songs have a way of reaching deeply into people’s souls and inviting the kind of reflection that feels both reassuring and unsettling. Wrapped in catchy melodies, her lyrics appear simple and relatable on the surface, but each listen will uncover more hidden pockets of nuance. She’s the kind of writer and performer who can lull a noisy room into a hush with a single line.
Jessica has toured nationwide and has opened for Cheryl Wheeler, Susan Werner, and Bill Staines, and shared billing with Heather Maloney, Meghan Trainor, and the Stray Birds. She has won or placed in numerous national songwriting contests including SolarFest’s Singer/Songwriter Showcase Competition, the Connecticut Folk Festival Song Competition, and the Mid-Atlantic Song Contest. 

Her discography spans from 2008-2020 and includes two EPs and three full-length albums. Her most recent album, Lucid Stories, Tentative Lies, dropped in October 2020, followed by an irreverent Christmas single, “Let’s Get a Tree” that December. Since the start of 2021, she has released four more singles (with a fifth single, “War of Attrition” releasing this summer) – all slated to appear on her forthcoming album, After the Meteor (coming in 2023).

In her life beyond music Jessica is a published poet and essayist, a social justice warrior, freakishly good at Scrabble, and mother to two of the smartest people she’s ever met in real life.

powered by Filmbot