Megan Moreaux

Country music is known for tearful, tragic ballads. And early on, it appeared that Megan Moreaux' own story would unfold just that way.

But she has risen from the darkness, found the light and seems poised to become one of country's brightest stars. She has just released her debut EP, "Praying For Rain," available for download on iTunes and Spotify. Autographed copies are available through her website. Or, catch her at Angelica's in Redwood City on Thursday.

Moreaux wraps her lovely, expressive voice around uplifting songs. "Through my music, I want to get across the message that you don't have to be a victim of your past," she says. "You're able to choose the direction you want to go in. One of the most healing things is to be able to externally express how you feel. And that's what music is for."

Moreaux was victimized early. Born in Monterey, she lived in Mountain View and Palo Alto until age 8. But those were horrific years for her. Her mother was out of the picture. And her father, a drug dealer, was rarely around. That left only his girlfriend to watch over the little girl.

"She used to severely abuse me, beat me, and lock me in the closet for crying about it," Moreaux says.

For a few months, when Moreaux was 5, she lived with her aunt, who taught her to ride, and introduced her to country music.

"I had watched a Michael Jackson concert on HBO and was so mesmerized, I decided I wanted to be a performer. Then when my aunt started playing me all the country music, I just loved how it was all about the story. Even at the age of 5, I already knew that I had lots of stories to tell. I decided I wanted to be a country singer, so that people could hear my story."

When she was locked in the closet again, Moreaux would sneak in her Walkman. "I would just sit there, tune out everything that was going on and use music to escape life, but also to learn about life, what struggles other people were going through. I would really relate to all the stories, the heartbreak and the trauma.

"One song that really moved me was 'Concrete Angel,' by Martina McBride. I would listen to my music and cry, let out my emotions. The music could help me to find something happy, as well, and to focus on that."

When she turned 8, her father moved with her to Los Angeles. But his illegal activities continued to make him unavailable to his daughter.

At 15, with her father's permission, Moreaux moved into her own apartment and began taking steps toward establishing a music career. She attended Burbank High School, which had a strong arts program. She worked, singing at a restaurant.

Moreaux forged her father's signature so she could get into college as a vocal performance major. But she was unable to complete the program.

She landed a job as Mary Jane in the Universal Studios tour's "Spiderman: The Musical," as well as a starring role in Disneyland's "High School Musical."

But Moreaux hadn't outrun her troubles. She fell into a number of abusive relationships. And when her father opened a large medical marijuana dispensary, angry drug dealers attempted to kidnap Moreaux. "My dad had to hire 24-hour bodyguards to protect me."

One day Moreaux went to the dispensary to tell her dad she was going to visit Nashville to explore opportunities. But he wasn't there.

"Suddenly there were 12 DEA agents with machine guns in my face, screaming at me to get on the floor. And I had never done a drug in my life. I was terrified. I was handcuffed and questioned for eight hours."

Moreaux felt desperate, depressed and, eventually, suicidal. "Six-and-a-half years ago, I actually tried to take my own life. Then I met Jesus for the first time."

A pastor called her out in a crowd, revealing that the Lord had told him that this young woman had attempted suicide. "He said, 'The Lord wants you to come up and be healed. He wants to see what he can do with your life.' After 20 minutes of denying it, I finally walked up. I bawled my eyes out. I was prayed over. I gave my life to Jesus that night and was delivered from suicide. And I've watched miracle after miracle ever since."

Three-and-a-half years ago, Moreaux was leading a prayer meeting, when she sensed the Lord telling her it was time to move to Nashville. But she was reluctant, because she was feeling healthy, happy and healed, surrounded by her new spiritual family. She asked the Lord for a clear sign.

Two days later, Moreaux received a call from her friend, Jennifer Adan, a Nashville transplant who wrote Blake Shelton's smash, "She Wouldn't Be Gone."

"She said, 'The weirdest thing has just happened. Southwest mailed me a free one-way ticket. I called and they said it was a mistake, but that I could keep it. I feel like I'm supposed to give it to you and that you're supposed to move here.' And I was just like, 'Gosh, that's pretty clear,'" Moreaux says. "So I sold everything I owned, packed up and moved to Nashville. I started writing a lot of songs and people responded really well to my music. I've seen God's grace and favor shine on pretty much everything I do."

Adan, now Moreaux's manager and frequent co-writer, says, "Megan is a one-of-a-kind artist. I describe her as the Mariah Carey of country music."

Winner of the Country Thunder USA singing contest, Moreaux has opened for ZZ Top and country legend Loretta Lynn. Opening for Martina McBride was a special moment.

"It was absolutely a dream come true," Moreaux says. "I cried on stage, when I told my story. And I could see people in the audience crying with me. That's my goal, to touch people with my story, so they can feel inspired, as well.

"After I performed, I got to meet Martina. I thanked her and told her how her song 'Concrete Angel' had touched my heart and helped me get through such a difficult time in my life. She gave me a hug."

Moreaux, who works at a Tennessee horse rescue, has reconnected with her Florida-based mother and has built a supportive relationship with her father. He is rebuilding his life, following a stretch in federal prison.

Strangers at Moreaux's performances feel a kinship. "When you're willing to be so open and vulnerable, people are willing to be open and vulnerable with you. People come up at every single show I do, crying, saying, 'I'm going through something myself in life right now. Hearing your story has helped me believe that I can get through it.' That's what I strive for, to let everybody know -- you're not alone in your trauma. It's not a rarity. It's not something to be ashamed of." - San Jose Mercury News

Live performance on Good Day Sacramento morning show in Sacramento, CA - Good Day Sacramento

Born in California, Megan Moreaux found country music as an escape from her traumatic childhood. Coming from an unstable family environment, a Mom who left her at an early age, a father who sold drugs for a living, and a childhood full of physical and mental abuse, abandonment, and neglect, Megan found solace with her Aunt when she was five. For the few months she spent with her, her aunt introduced her to country music. Megan’s journey, one of courage, perseverance and faith ultimately led her to a career in music. In addition to releasing her debut EP Praying For Rain in 2014, she found herself opening for Martina McBride. With what looks to be a big year, Megan took the time to speak about her past, wanting to inspire, the music and more.

You had a very traumatic childhood and a lot of times people in those situations tend to go in one of two directions. Where you are now and what you have accomplished really are testaments to your strength.

Thank you. I wrote “Finding My Own Voice” for that reason. People can go off the deep end and blame their past when they don’t realize they can choose to make their lives different and not be a victim of their past. The whole goal of why I want to do music is to help inspire people, to let them know that they have hope and that when something bad happens it’s not the end of the line.

Megan's struggles continued throughout her childhood. With the combination of needing 24 hour bodyguards because angry drug dealers were attempting to kidnap her to get to her dad, being held at gun point and questioned by the DEA, her father being arrested and put into federal prison, and being in abusive relationships, Megan temporarily lost her strength. She decided she wasn't able to deal with everything, so she attempted to take her own life. In this attempt she had a realization that something was seriously wrong. There was something missing, but there was hope. A few days later she was called out in a crowd where she knew no one, and no one knew her, by a pastor who said the Lord told him she was attempting to take her life but God wanted to redeem her. After a struggle with embarrassment and hesitation, she found redemption, love, joy, hope, and purpose in Jesus and devoted her life to Him from that moment.

A turning point for you seemed to be that moment when you were in the crowd and the pastor called you out about taking your own life. That seemed to be divine intervention.

It was miraculous to say the least and it’s all been a crazy miracle since then as well. I had tried to take my life the week prior and that was God saying “if you don’t want your life then why don’t you try giving it to me and try seeing what I can do with it.” It was ultimate divine intervention.
And now, are you in a much happier place?

Oh yes, I went through extensive healing and I am doing fantastic now. I was in group called The River which focuses on internal healing, life trauma healing, emotional healing and relational healing. I went through healing and the leaders told me that no one had ever come into the group with as much trauma as I did and make a complete 180 degree turn. They asked me to help teach which I did for two and a half years.

And you are still helping others heal by going out and speaking to people of all ages about hope, healing, and love as well as overcoming abandonment, depression and other traumatic life events.

As you can tell, I’m an open book. I am not afraid to talk about things most people are scared to talk about. I go into schools and talk to teens about suicide, which is at an all-time high. Some of the parents get angry with me, but at the end of one day a girl came up to me and thanked me. Her sister had committed suicide and she had no one to talk with about it. She said talking with me made a difference--and that makes the parents getting upset not bother me. Teens go through a lot of what adults do, but grown-ups know how to deal with issues better.

I want to help people realize they don’t have to be a victim, they can get out of a situation. I always tell people I’m an artist who isn’t here to be served, I’m here to serve. I want to give my attention to the audience and for them to know that they have my time and that I want to help them in any way I can. It’s very important for me to write songs that inspire.

I always reference diamonds when I speak to people. Diamonds come from lumps of coal and if you weren’t able to dig through the coal you wouldn’t find the diamond. I dug through the coal and found that diamond and I want to share it with the world so they can also dig through the coal and find their diamond. God always promises to make something terrible into something beautiful and I wanted to do that in my life.

You certainly have done that, and continue to do that, in your life and with your music as well. Music has been a large part of your life from a young age, almost a refuge. Did you always know that it was what you wanted to pursue professionally?

Absolutely. For the first eight years of my life, I lived with a woman who was a cocaine addict and very abusive to me. She would beat me and lock me in a closet. I had my Walkman and would just listen to Michael Jackson, The Judds and Willie Nelson as an escape from everything. When I was five I saw Michael Jackson’s ‘Live in Bucharest’ on HBO and knew I wanted to be a performer. I knew I wanted to sing country, because those songs were stories and I knew I had stories I could sing about.

Did you have any support along the way or were you solely self-motivated?

I definitely had some angels on my side in human form. When I was very young, I lived with my Aunt Lori for a few months and she was the one who introduced me to country music. In high school there was Mrs. Jensen. She knew my situation and was a motherly figure to me. At the time, I was living on my own, which she knew, and she encouraged me with my music and helped me get into a music school for college. Recently, my best friend, Jennifer Adan, who wrote Blake Shelton’s #1 “She Wouldn’t Be Gone,” has been on my team helping me manage, write, find songs and make the album.

Definitely some human angels!
In addition to those artists you mentioned, do you have any particular influences on your style?

I love a lot of music. My passion is country, but I draw influences from everywhere. I love Mariah Carey, Celine Dion and Whitney Houston. I also love Wynonna, Trisha Yearwood, Shania, Reba, Willie and Garth. I also draw influences from Etta James and Aretha Franklin. I just love music pretty much! My music meshes the blues, pop and country into one super genre.

That variety of influences can be heard on your EP, Praying For Rain, which was released in September. After all you have been through, that must have been an incredible high point.

It was basically a dream come true. It was a long time in the making, but it happened fast because I was opening for Martina McBride and we wanted to have it ready for that show. We used an Indiegogo campaign, raised the money and recorded it in four days at Blackbird Studios. It was really fun to bring it all to life and give it to people instead of just saying to people "if you want to hear my song come to my show."

I love songwriting, but I am aware that I am a better singer than I am a songwriter, so I wrote two of the songs, and my extremely talented songwriter friends wrote the rest. A lot of my friends know me and my story well, so they know how to write something that I would be interested in singing. My best friend Jennifer Adan wrote “Let You Go.” She played me the song and it was just gorgeous. I asked her if she needed me to sing on the demo, which I did, then I asked if I could sing it at my show, then if I could keep it (laughing). That one I fell in love with and took from her! “Praying for Rain” was written by my friend who is an Aussie rocker. He knew the song was too country for him and he had me in mind to sing it as it is about the Holy Spirit. The song is my first single and means the most to me because it basically invites the Holy Spirit into my show, into all I do and into the lives of the people at my show. It’s very truthful and I love singing about truth, no matter what truth it is. It’s not a party song or about destruction, it’s just real emotion and about the things people go through.

Did you chose to title the album Praying for Rain because the song meant so much to you?

Yes. It’s a summation of the album, that no matter where you are or what you’re going through, you can ask God to rain down his presence and everything will be okay. I had spent so much of my life struggling on my own that six years ago when I met Jesus I learned how I can ask Him to come into your life and help you. It’s very elementary, but it changed my life. It’s important for me to let people know that this is what I want: for God to rain down his presence on everything.

You end the record with a song we briefly spoke about, “Finding My Own Voice.” Was that intentional?

Yes it was. That is one of the songs I wrote a long time ago. I had been singing it for so long that I had gotten tired of it, but I still loved the song. It’s a song about my life and the ability to change one’s path. It’s an ode to the self, but as the last song it’s one that when people listen to the album end, they can let the topic resonate with them. It’s like a bonus song for myself and others.

It’s a song that definitely resonates and leaves you with food for thought for sure.
Switching gears a bit, you spoke of opening for Martina McBride. That must have been an amazing experience.

It was phenomenal, a dream come true. I got to meet Martina and tell her how much her song “Concrete Angel” means to me. Then, I cried on stage, as I knew I would. During the show I tell the audience about my life so I can connect with them. I looked down in the front row and saw people bawling their eyes out. I know it sounds terrible but that’s my goal--to make someone cry, but in a good way because then I know someone’s life is changed. After the show, I had a line almost out the door with people talking to me about how my songs relate to their lives and how they touched them. That’s what I want—to touch people on a global scale.

You're well on your way.
What are your professional plans for the summer?

I have been opening for Ronnie McDowell a bit. He’s one of the sweetest people you will ever meet, a genuine, good human being who loves to smile. He invited me to sing with him at other shows, so I just agreed to do twenty more dates with him. I was also asked to be a part of the American Legacy Cruise and we are finally releasing “Praying for Rain” to radio. That’s what this summer look like so far and I am really excited!

For more information visit Megan's official website
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Purchase Praying For Rain here - The Daily Country

Megan Moreaux

Praying For Rain

EP



Recorded in the famous Blackbird Studios in Nashville, Megan Moreaux has released her first EP of soulful, Country songs called Praying For Rain. Her early life struggles in California led her to music as a balm for the childhood pain and confusion. She arrived in Nashville and began writing with top notch songwriters and introducing crowds to her amazing vocal range and passionate delivery of any song she sings. The lead tune of the collection may give fans an insight into this artist. Trouble Maker is sassy and strong, musically and lyrically. The opening notes set you up for a nice ride, with banjos leading the way. Ms. Moreaux is letting the world know she has seen some tough times, caused a little trouble and been called a few names and has no intention of compromising who she is today.

What does it get her? Opening for Martina McBride, for one thing. Keep your eyes and ears on this artist. Megan Moreaux is a musical force on the rise.

Track List

Trouble Maker

Let you Go

Who Said

Another Day In The Dark

Die Of A Broken Heart

Praying For Rain

Finding My Own Voice - Digital Rodeo