Missouri-born, Valerie Smith is a renowned Americana, roots and bluegrass singer who has been recording and performing since the late ‘90s. Her latest project, Maggie’s Journal, is an ambitious double-disc album which has been twelve years in the making, inspired by the journals of her late grandmother, Margaret. Decades after Margaret’s death, a journal was discovered in a trunk in the attic by Smith’s cousins, giving a raw and powerful first-hand account of life in late-nineteenth century rural Missouri. Detailing a brutal existence marred by poverty, domestic violence, infant mortality, spousal addiction and endless betrayal, Little House on the Prairie this is not.

Valerie Smith: “Her story was surprising for many reasons; she had told no one of her younger years. We found out that she had been married at a very early age to a violent man, and we also learned that under her hardened exterior was a beautiful, kind, and gentle soul. She has a story to tell and her words are very personal, emotional, and raw. To me, her story is a masterpiece about life was like on the Missouri farms after the Civil War. This project took me 12 years to create because I literally felt that I was writing music with my great-grandmother, Maggie, whom I had never met.”

Featuring a mixture of original song compositions and spoken-word readings over musical accompaniment across it’s thirty tracks, Maggie’s Journal, is an enormously powerful tale of hardship, endurance and resilience but ultimately one of independence, love and fulfilment. Smith is a powerful storyteller and while the words do not always make for comfortable listening, it’s an absolutely gripping album that’s beautifully performed.

Released: 1 January 2026 https://thevaleriesmith.com/