She began her career in the iconic folk venues of New York City where she was discovered by Judy Collins and signed to her Wildflower Records label. Relocating to Nashville in 2009, she quickly became embraced by the songwriting community, with regular shows at The Bluebird Café as well as her international touring. In 2020, her song “Me and the Ghost of Charlemagne” was named International Song of the Year by the Americana Music Association UK. Her 2021 release, “There Used To Be Horses Here” received widespread critical acclaim from Rolling Stone to Billboard. Performing Songwriter gave it 5 out of 5 stars and named it as the #4 release of 2021. Her latest album, “Tucson” (Windbone/Proper Records) landed #1 on the Folk Radio Charts in April, 2022 and was widely lauded as one of Speace’s finest work. This year, her 2013 record, “How To Sleep In A Stormy Boat,” which was featured on NPR’s All Things Considered was named to the Top 10 Albums of the century.

A “writer’s writer”, she is a published poet, with pieces appearing in 2022’s Spring edition of 2River Review and Euophia. Her essays have been published in The New York Times, Salon.com, American Songwriter, No Depression.