BY MICHAEL CHOWNE

A very good afternoon at a sold out Lil’ Nashville in Chiswick, West London for Song Suffragettes London on Sunday 2nd August 2026 with a 4pm start, well presented by Madeline Christy of Briar Bookings.

Florida born Nashville artist Maggie Baugh was playing the last of her 6 date UK tour, alongside 3 rising UK country artists in Manchester born Louise Connor Music, Yorkshire’s KIER and Amy Jo Clough from Morecambe Bay. I’ve seen and enjoyed all 4 singer-songwriters before and this gig took the form of a songwriters’ round with 4 original songs from each of them and one cover collaboration to finish.

All 4 played acoustic guitar – sadly no fiddle for multi-instrumentalist Maggie this time – and contributed some thoughtful, well written, and catchy, songs. Maggie’s ‘Entertainer’s Heart’ epitomised what she’s all about, Louise’s new single showed very much how she deserves a seat at ‘The Table’ of country music, Kier had everybody singing along, including the other 3 girls, to ‘Someone To You’ and Amy Jo’s ‘Dumb’ highlights her educational (as well as musical) prowess – no dumb blonde here, she has a degree in History & Politics and a Masters in Gender Studies. When Amy Jo suggested, with more than a hint of sarcasm, that we should imagine a man’s guitar solo, Maggie was affronted and stepped in to show what a fantastic guitar player this woman could provide!

With the English girls somewhat in awe of Maggie’s guitar playing skills, they all deferred to her to play guitar on the final collaboration of Shania Twain’s ‘You’re Still The One’ whilst Maggie left the singing on that one to them.

Really great to see the female companionship on stage and you could visibly see how inspired Louise, Kier and Amy Jo were by Maggie as they seemed to grow on stage. Maggie seemed suitably impressed with her English counterparts too and her new UK record company execs in the room can’t fail to have admired what they saw.