Artist · chart history
Madisen Ward and the Mama Bear
Band Kansas City
Madisen Ward and the Mama Bear formed in Kansas City. Madisen Ward and the Mama Bear has 11 chart appearances on 8 radio countdowns from 5 stations on RockLists, spanning 2015–2026. The most successful song on radio countdowns is “Silent Movies”, which appears on 6 lists with a best position of #39. The station that charted Madisen Ward and the Mama Bear most often is 90.9 The Bridge (Kansas City, MO), with 5 appearances. The artist’s biggest year on year-end countdowns was 2018.
Madisen Ward and the Mama Bear are a mother-and-son folk duo: Madisen Ward writes the songs, sings and plays guitar, while Ruth Ward, his mother, joins him on guitar and vocals. Their debut album, Skeleton Crew, came out in May 2015 on Glassnote Records, recorded in Nashville with Jim Abbiss producing, and it reached number 50 on the UK Albums Chart.
It's a warm, lived-in record: two guitars circling each other, Madisen's deep, soulful voice out front and Ruth's harmonies wrapped around it like a quilt. "Silent Movies" is the standout, an intimate, slow-burning folk song that sounds made for a front porch at dusk.
The rest of 2015 was a whirlwind. They played Late Show with David Letterman, Later... with Jools Holland and Today, did a Tiny Desk Concert for NPR Music, turned up at Bonnaroo and the Newport Folk Festival, and opened for the Tallest Man on Earth, Sufjan Stevens, Pixies and Old Crow Medicine Show. The Radio Winners EP followed in July 2018, and their second full-length, Started with a Family, produced by Nathan Chapman at Blackbird Studio in Nashville, arrived in September 2019.
Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.
Songs by Madisen Ward and the Mama Bear on radio countdowns
| # | Song | Strength | Lists | Best | #1s | Peak year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Silent Movies | 6 | #39 | – | 2015 | |
| 2 | Everybody's Got Problems | 1 | #14 | – | 2018 | |
| 3 | Childhood Goodbye | 1 | #20 | – | 2018 | |
| 4 | Never Met A Mutha | 1 | #29 | – | 2019 | |
| 5 | Walk In The Park | 1 | #44 | – | 2018 | |
| 6 | Yellow Taxi | 1 | #88 | – | 2015 |
Albums with charting songs
Where each song was first released, from MusicBrainz.
Year-end chart timeline
Combined year-end countdown points per year. Taller bars mean more songs placing higher across more stations.
Every countdown appearance
| Year | # | Song | Countdown |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 466 | Silent Movies | KXT 917 Song Countdown |
| 2025 | 114 | Silent Movies | 90.9 The Bridge Top 909 Songs of the 21st Century |
| 2019 | 29 | Never Met A Mutha | 90.9 The Bridge Top 90 Songs of 2019 |
| 2019 | 605 | Silent Movies | WYEP Labor Day Weekend Countdown 2019 |
| 2019 | 605 | Silent Movies | WYEP Big Spring Countdown 2019 |
| 2018 | 14 | Everybody's Got Problems | 90.9 The Bridge Top 90 Songs of 2018 |
| 2018 | 20 | Childhood Goodbye | 90.9 The Bridge Top 90 Songs of 2018 |
| 2018 | 44 | Walk In The Park | 90.9 The Bridge Top 90 Songs of 2018 |
| 2015 | 39 | Silent Movies | WRNR Top 103.1 Songs of 2015 |
| 2015 | 60 | Silent Movies | WFUV Top 90 Songs of 2015 |
| 2015 | 88 | Yellow Taxi | WRNR Top 103.1 Songs of 2015 |
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