Sara Mae
Musical artist
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Sara Mae Henke is a writer and musician based in Philadelphia, PA. They founded the band The Noisy,[1][2][3] and have released two poetry collections as Sara Mae.[4][5]
Sara Mae | |
|---|---|
| Genres | Indie, Bedroom pop |
| Occupations | Musician, Writer |
| Label | Audio Antihero |
Early life and education
Sara Mae was raised on Chesapeake Bay, before relocating to Boston,[6][7] and later Knoxville,[8][9] where they received their MFA from the University of Tennessee. In 2021, they were a Sewanee Writers' Conference Scholar,[10][5] received a Graduate Creative Writing Award in 2022,[11] and were also a Big Ears Music Festival Artist Scholar in 2023.[12][13]
Writing (2016 - present)
While living in Boston in 2016, Sara Mae began writing for Boston Hassle,[14] in addition to performing poetry locally,[15][16][7] and winning a Boston Poetry Slam in 2017.[17] They published their debut poetry collection, Priestess of Tankinis through Game Over Books in 2018.[18][5][19]
In 2023, they were a finalist in the Just Buffalo Literary Center Poetry Fellowship,[20] their poetry was featured in Phoenix Magazine's "Issue 65" publication and exhibit,[21] and their second collection, Phantasmagossip, won that year's Vinyl45 chapbook competition.[22][23] Phantasmagossip was then published via YesYes Books in March 2025,[4][24] and Sara Mae accompanied the release with a reading a tour.[25][26]
On October 31, 2025, Sara Mae published an excerpt from their upcoming Lawn Madonna novella on The Alternative.[27][28]
Sara Mae has also contributed poetry,[29][30][31] fiction,[32] and reviews[33][34] to numerous music and literary publications,[35] including The Georgia Review,[13] Poetry Foundation,[36] FENCE, The Adroit Journal, and American Literary Review.[37][38][39]
The Noisy (2019 - present)
Early releases and debut album (2019 - 2024)
Sara Mae began writing and self-releasing music as The Noisy in 2019 with Day Night Dress,[40][2][41] which was followed by the Charm Bracelet EP in 2021.[42][43] In 2022, they released the Junie B Jones & The Strawberry Moons, a collection of demos from a "Song-a-Day" project,[44] and recorded a radio session for WDVX.[45]
Sara Mae evolved the project into a band lineup,[2][41] and in 2023, The Noisy released the “Morricone” single,[46][47] and crowd-funded the recording of their debut album The Secret Ingredient Is More Meat,[48][49] before relocating to Philadelphia.[3][8][50]
The album was preceded by the “Ballerino”[51] and “Backlit”[52] singles before its self-release on May 24, 2024.[53][54] The release was followed by a video for “Violet Lozenge.”[3]
The Secret Ingredient Is Even More Meat and new material (2025 - present)
In 2025, the band signed with the Audio Antihero label to issue a deluxe edition of the debut album, entitled ‘The Secret Ingredient Is Even More Meat,’[47][55] which featured new and unreleased material,[2][1] as well as radio session for WVKR.[56][57]
The “Twos” single was issued in June,[58][59] and was followed by “Grenadine,”[60][61] “Nightshade,”[2] and “Neckline (Deluxe Version)”[62][63] before the deluxe album's release on October 24, 2025,[64] with a video for “Tony Soprano (Deluxe)”[65][66] premiering on KLOF Mag the day prior.[1]
Critical reception
The original and reissued ...More Meat album album received positive coverage and support from Under the Radar Magazine,[2] KLOF Mag,[1] Jenesaispop,[67] WXPN,[68] Rockdelux,[69] God Is In the TV,[63] Spectrum Culture,[70] Muso's Guide,[71][66][72] Post-Trash,[73] The Alternative,[74][75][76] and other outlets.[77][47][78]
The “Grenadine” single reached No.3 in the Hype Machine “Most Posted” chart,[79] and “Twos” reached No.1 in the “Popular Now” and “Highlights” charts.[80][81]
The releases received airplay from BBC Radio Scotland,[58][62] WSUM,[82] Dandelion Radio,[83] WNYU,[84] WMFO,[85] CJSW,[86][52] and KXLU,[87] as well as the band recording sessions for KGNU,[88] WORT,[89] Y-Not Radio,[90] and WVKR.[91]
Discography
Albums
- The Secret Ingredient Is More Meat (Self-Released, 2024)
- The Secret Ingredient Is Even More Meat (Audio Antihero, 2025)
EPs
- Day Night Dress (Self-Released, 2019)
- Charm Bracelet (Self-Released, 2021)
Demos
- Junie B Jones & The Strawberry Moons (Self-Released, 2022)
Singles
- "Morricone" (Self-Released, 2023)
- "Ballerino" (Self-Released, 2024)
- "Backlit" (Self-Released, 2024)
- "Twos" (Audio Antihero, 2025)
- "Grenadine" (Audio Antihero, 2025)
- Nightshade (Audio Antihero, 2025)
- "Neckline (Deluxe)" (Audio Antihero, 2025)
Compilation appearances
- Artists United Against Genocide Vol.1 (Artists United Against Genocide, 2025) - contributes "Everybody Wants to Be My Moon"
Bibliography
Poetry
- Priestess of Tankinis (Game Over Books, 2018)
- Phantasmagossip (YesYes Books, 2025)