10 Famous Singers Born in Maine

There are a lot of famous people who have moved to Maine, but here are 10 famous singers born in our great state.

10. Bill Flagg

Bill Flagg was born and raised in Waterville, Maine, in 1934. Shortly after the start of World War II, the family moved to Connecticut. According to Wikipedia, he started as a "singing cowboy", moved to bluegrass, and then rockabilly in 1954. "Go Cat, Go" was one of his first singles.

9. Dick Curless

Dick Curless was born in Fort Fairfield, Maine, in 1932. According to Wikipedia, he moved with his family to Massachusetts when he was eight. But he was always a Mainer. One of his biggest hits was about a dangerous stretch of road in Northern Maine. 'Tombstone Every Mile' cracked the top five on the Billboard country charts in 1965, and got him national fame. In his career, he recorded 22 Billboard Top 40 hits.

8. Patty Griffin

Patricia Jean Griffin was born in Old Town, Maine, in 1964. According to Wikipedia, she's known for her stripped-down songwriting style in the folk music genre. She plays the guitar and piano, and her songs have been covered by artists like Emmylou Harris, Ellis Paul, Kelly Clarkson, Rory Block, Dave Hause, Sugarland, Bette Midler, and The Chicks. In 2007, Griffin won the Artist of the Year award from the Americana Music Association, and her album, Children Running Through, won the award for Best Album. She received the Lifetime Achievement Award for Songwriting at the 2023 Americana Music Honors & Awards.

7. Ellis Paul

Ellis Paul (born Paul Plissey) was born in Fort Kent, Maine, in 1965. He's an American singer-songwriter and folk musician, according to Wikipedia.  His pop songs have been in movies and on television. By the end of 2014, he had released 19 albums and received 14 Boston Music Awards, a very prestigious award. He's still performing, doing almost 200 live shows a year.

6. Rebecca Martin

Rebecca was born in Rumford, Maine, in 1969. According to Stereophile Magazine,

Rebecca Martin is a singer/songwriter with a small but devoted following. Martin is a rarity among jazz singers: a true composer. But her songs are performed infrequently by others, perhaps because they are so specific to her. Martin sings from the heart with plain-spoken humanity. Martin thinks it aloud, like a diary entry…

5. David Mallett

David was born in Sebec, Maine, in 1951. He has spent most of his life in Maine, but did go to Nashville in the '80s to record some music. According to Wikipedia, his songs have been recorded by more than 150 artists, including Pete Seeger, Alison Krauss, John Denver, Arlo Guthrie, Emmylou Harris, and Peter, Paul & Mary. "Garden Song" was even recorded by the Muppets. He got the inspiration for "Garden Song" by helping his dad plant the garden in Sebec. His sons are the Mallett Brothers Band, so music is in the family's genes.

4. Juliana Hatfield

Juliana was born in Wiscasset, Maine, in 1967. Hatfield's song, "My Sister", was a success despite the fact that Juliana only had brothers. According to Wikipedia, 'My Sister' was based on Hatfield's older brother's girlfriend, Maggie Rafferty, who lived with the family while Hatfield was in high school. Maggie took Juliana to a couple of concerts, inspiring her to form a band.

3. Spose

Spose (Ryan Michael Peters) was born in Portland, Maine, in 1985. According to Wikipedia, he self-released his first album, Preposterously Dank, in 2007, and kept working selling lobster at the Barnacle Billy's restaurant in Ogunquit. "I'm Awesome" was huge in Maine, and that got the attention of the rest of the country. "I'm Awesome" peaked at #37 on the Billboard Hot 100. Having met Spose a dozen or so times, he's as nice as he is talented.

2. Howie Day

Howie Day (Howard Kearn Day) was born in Bangor, Maine, in 1981. According to Wikipedia, he had great success with two hits in the late '90s. The hits "She Says" and "Collide", are Day's most successful to date. "Collide" later became Howie's first platinum single, eventually selling 1.5 million downloads.

1. Anna Kendrick

Anna Kendrick was born in Portland, Maine, in 1985. We first heard of Anna when she was nominated for a Tony for the musical High Society in 1998, when she was only 13 years old. It's only been an acting and singing world-wind ever since. The song "Cups" was a byproduct of her hugely successful film, Pitch Perfect. Her parents are still in Maine, but Anna lives in Los Angeles and is still a Mainer in her soul.