Conversations with Mike Ward

Today we’d like to introduce you to Mike Ward.

Hi Mike, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
I grew up as the seventh out of eight kids in Port Huron, Michigan. In between school and Sunday masses I sang in choirs as a youngster and was listening to all kinds of music from Irish heritage songs to Simon & Garfunkel to The Stones and The Monkees. My mom wanted each of us to learn an instrument. I began with guitar at 13 but was a horrible student and dropped after couple months. At age 17, I picked it back up because I loved to sing and had the urge to start writing but had no idea how to go about it. With encouragement from some friends, I just started learning the simplest songs I could (Neil Young and many old folk songs) and soon I had enough songs to try performing out. I must have been terrible but I had a great time and people seemed to enjoy it. I was in community college to become and advertising art director. But in 1974 I spent my junior year of college at Siena Heights in Adrian Mi and I played at parties and even in some bars but a fellow student who played in a band sat me down one day and said, “you sing really great but you don’t play very well” I was pretty surprised but at the same time I knew he was right. So I spent about six months just playing…learning to play better. I still would like to be a better player today so I try to work on it a bit every day. In 75 I moved to California and played in coffeehouses, was short-order cook and held many odd jobs before realizing I needed to go back to school if I wanted to pursue being an advertising art director so I went to Univeristy of Michigan School of Art and graduated in 1978. From there I went on to spend the better part of 40 years as a creative director/ art director in the advertising world, creating award-winning ads for such brands as Chiquita Bananas, Purell, Progressive Insurance, Eukanuba, OhioHealth and the Detroit Zoo. Since 1995, I have served as a board member and board chair for MI-UCP (Michigan United Cerebral Palsy), an organization dedicated to closing the disability divide for 2.4 million Michiganders. In 2020, he spearheaded the rebranding of this statewide organization. Since my retirement from the ad world, I have been a working singer-songwriter creating lyric-driven, simple folk songs full time and being immersed in the acoustic music scene. In 2019, Ward immersed himself into the songwriting community in Detroit as well as Folk Alliance Region Midwest (FARM) and several online groups. This led to an association with David Roof of Rooftop Recording as well as collaborations with some of Michigan’s finest songwriters and musicians who would contribute mightily on his future projects.
 
Ward released his second album in 2021, “The Darkness and The Light”, as a thoughtful way to highlight past struggles, including regret and loss, and champion the need for hope in a changing world. The album landed at #33 on the Folk Alliance International (FAI) folk charts in March 2021 and has been played on the radio internationally.
 
A year later, Ward dropped “Particles to Pearls”, which explores the love of family and the passage of time. In addition to multiple Detroit Music Award recognitions, he received an honorable mention in the Great River Folk Fest Songwriting Contest for the song “Letting Go.” That same year also brought Ward’s sociopolitical EP “Troubled Times” as a bold reminder to raise your voice and chase your freedom. The EP’s three contemplative tracks emphasize protecting individual rights, upholding free speech, and supporting immigration.
 
In 2023, Mike released his fourth album Love Never Rests, which features 11 introspective tracks that examine observations about life, love and loss along with relationships of the past, present and future. All stories are told through his emotive viewpoints of wisdom and gratitude. 

Quick story: One of the first DJ’s to respond had seen me play a short set in 2019 at the Folk Alliance Midwest Showcase (which I joined upon the advice of other songwriters and where I met Mike Gentry). Her show is the longest running radio show in Chicago (The Midnight Special), but she remembered the “Lightbulb” song. She gave us some wonderful advice to revise our emails…making more personal connections then she offered to give me a quote that I could use in my email signature. It has helped for other DJ’s to see her endorsement. So far I am averaging ten to 15 plays per week.

I have good relationships with several writers who either write for online pubs or have blogs. I have bean able to get reviewed by eCurrent in Arbor by Jeff Milo, Lori Stratton’s Setlist, Several others are upcoming. The key is to keep news coming. Last week a DJ named the album as his number one in his Top Ten. Several Canadian stations put the album on their top ten charts. It is a process.
I have released the following music, “We Wonder” (2018) ,“The Darkness and The Light” (2021), “Career Advice” single (2021),“Particles to Pearls” (June 2022), “Love Never Rests” (April 2023), “Still Troubled” (2024) “The Heart Must Pay The Price” & “Transistor Dreams” singles (2025). “The Time That Remains” released July 1, 2025. (ForJuly 2025, the album landed at #13 on the top 50 Folk DJ charts. With the song “Instrument for Good” at #8 and “Why Not” at #12. Mike was also #16 for artist.)
My songs have landed me as a finalist for the 1st Alternate Finalist in the Songwriter Showcase/Rocky Mountain Folks Festival, finalist at 2025 Great River Songwriting Competition, honorable mentions for 2023 Telluride Troubadour Songwriting Competition and 2022 Great River Songwriting Competition.
I go by Mike Ward:Psychosongs. Why Psychosongs? Well, his nickname as a hockey player is “PsychoWard”. Enough said.

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
The road was definitely not a straight path nor a smooth one. I had many starts and stops to songwriting. I was always conflicted throughout my career in the ad world ( i knew may other writers and art directors who were making music with bands or as solo artists but most were single and I got married in 1980 to a wonderful life partner and had two great kids so they took proirity as well as my job which involved tons of late hours and travel. I continued to write songs but used it as an outlet away from advertising day to day life. Occasionally I would perform at parties, coffeehouses or bars but was very inconsistent. In 2014, ss I was approaching retirement (which was to be June 2017) I began immersing myself into more of the SE Michigan songwriting community and attending workshops to improve writing. I also began going tomany open mics to help my performance side. My wife and I moved from Farmington Hills into downtown Detroit in 2016 and I dug into performing anywhere I could, writing, attending songwriting groups and workshops so lots of late and long nights. Since I had no track record and was a virtual unknown in Detroit or Ann Arbor…I needed to learn how to make in roads at the places where acoustic music was being played and artists were being booked. It took about four years of steady work, communing with are songwriters, playing small shows, attending shows of those I found to be doing what I wanted to do and getting added to some of these shows. I also hosted an open mic for about 3 years and got to know many many more songwriters and from that base set out to record an album in 2018 with no experience whatsoever. While that album was named top Folk Album by Phil Maq of WHFR, it had very little exposure otherwise. Mainly because I have no idea what I was doing.

As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
I began my career as a graphic designer and art director and ended up as a Creative Director doing both writing and art directing for more than 30 of my 40 years in the business. (I had won a Clio Award for Chiquita Bananas and an Emmy Award for The Detroit Zoo…also designed the water tower for the Zoo in the early 90’s and it stayed until last year) Since 2017, I have been a full time singer-songwriter. My category is contemporary folk/sometimes Americana. Many of my shows are solo (me and an acoustic guitar) but I also perform often as a trio with a cellist (Sara Gibson from Ypsilanti) and a vocalist (either Downtown Judy Brown, Annie Bacon of Ann Arbor or Lynne Fredrickson of Ann Arbor). I have had several songs reach the finals in songwriting competitions over the past four years and I am really proud of that. In terms of what sets me apart I would say the content of my songs. My tools or my voice which has gotten better and better over time and my guitar playing (which still needs improvement) but I work really diligently on both lyrics and melody and the lyrics, especially is where I feel my point of view and my lasting impressions are made. I try not to stay in one single style (though I still need to broaden even more) but I emulate artists such as John Prine (who could make you laugh then cry sometimes in the same song) or the emotion of Jason Isbell or the power of Springsteen. Lofty goals but my most recent album got me closer ot where I want to be as both a writer and performer. The album has had many positive reviews and reached the #13 in the Folk Music Charts internationally with two singles also charting (Instrument For Good #8 and Why Not #12).

Any advice for finding a mentor or networking in general?
Mentoring has been so important not just for the actual songwriting (of which I have at least 10 great mentors) but also for all the areas like production, website, biography, marketing, performing, booking, touring, festivals and more. Each of these areas, I have sought out assistance when it was called for and I feel it has made me more open to asking for help. When I first began, I subscribed to way way way too many email lists. Venues, festivals, other songwriters, somgwriting publications, competitions, and radio stations and/or DJ’s. I worked as many angles as I could all the while knowing I had to write better songs. I currently run an online songwriting group where 12 songwriters get a single word prompt on the first of the month then share a song in a private group by month’s end. We each listen and comment and many of these songs have made up my last four albums. Becoming close friend with other songwriters has made a huge difference in my life both professionally and personally. Collaboration with other artists has been so important. Friends like Kyle Rasche of Alto MI, Dave Boutette of Dexter, Annie Capps of Chelsea, Emily Rose and Audra Kubat of Detroit, Annie Bacon of Ann Arbor, Dave Toennies of Windsor, Mike Gentry of Dexter and David Roof of Grand Blanc just to name a few. The John D Lamb Songwriting Retreat is a wonderful experience. I have met more truly gifted songwriters in the past eight years…really far too many mention. Part of my luck is to have an incredibly supportive and equally creative and dedicated partner whom I have been married to for more than 45 years. My wife, Angie Ward has been referred to as the godmother of folk music in Michigan. She is my shining star. I could never be doing this if she wasn’t right there beside me at every step. So many other songwriters say to me “I need an Angie!” I am very fortunate indeed.

Pricing:

• my album typically sell for $15
• I also sell a usb drive with an entire collection for $40
• i always create new merchandise each year

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.psychosongs.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/psychomike7/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/psychosongmike
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/psychoward/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/user/psycho5478
• Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/psychosongs
• Other: https://psychosongs.bandcamp.com/music