Marie Trout PhD
Marie is Danish and has lived 30 years in Southern California. Traveling extensively all over the world as long-term manager for Walter Trout, an internationally acclaimed blues rock artist, she views the world through a wide lens.
Her first book, The Blues – Why it Still Hurts so Good, raised $12,000 for the HART Fund, helping musicians without healthcare. The book was based on a Grounded Theory study completed for her PhD dissertation about the role of blues to modern fans.
She is currently finishing the manuscript for her second book, a memoir.
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Marie has written for various publications including Classic Rock Blues Rock Magazine
The Daily Beast, and medium.com
During the Covid-19 crisis, she started a podcast, Deep Dives in Extraordinary Times interviewing people who in each their own way contribute deep insights in times of crisis and change.
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Born in Århus, Denmark in 1962, growing up Marie often felt alone and that she was “a bit of a strange bird.” Torn between interest in psychology, writing, and love of learning, she settled on a BA in Education. During her studies, she managed a night club, and upon graduating, she started an advertising sales company. By the end of 1990, she left Denmark and sold her company.
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She was in love, and moved to Southern California with Walter Trout: an internationally celebrated blues rock guitarist, singer, song-writer, who had recently gone solo after a steady career as a sideman with five years each in Canned Heat and John Mayall’s band, the Bluesbreakers.
Shortly after landing on American soil, Marie started working as part of Walter’s touring crew, a position that gave her access to business elements of Walter’s career. Although he had a Top Ten hit in the Netherlands and was voted the sixth best guitarist in BBC’s 1993 Listener’s Poll, financial success did not follow the accolades. Marie gradually discovered that there were many irregularities regarding the management of Walter’s career, explaining why financial success eluded him.
After Walter and Marie’s first child was born in 1993, Marie took over as Walter’s manager, a position she still fills today.
In 1996, after giving birth to their second son, she also took over as Walter’s agent in Europe. A third son followed in 2001.
In 2012, she completed her MA along with being certified in Life Coaching. In 2015, she completed her PhD in Wisdom Studies, which allowed many components of Marie’s work, observations, and professional pursuits to come together. She credits her Major Advisor, Mark Ryan, a 20-year Dean at Yale University with providing structure and encouragement to finish her studies when her life fell apart in 2013. Walter was diagnosed with end-stage liver disease.
In 2014, Walter came close to death repeatedly. In a desperate, last-ditch effort to improve odds of Walter receiving a liver transplant Marie brought Walter to Nebraska for six months, leaving two still-at-home middle-and high school children with a caregiver in California. Marie blogged about the experience accompanying a fundraiser. A groundswell of support from Walter’s fans, and an organ donor found at the eleventh hour, saved Walter’s life.
During Walter’s illness, and after he recovered, Marie has advocated for organ donation, appearing on several radio as well as TV news and talk-shows. This commitment continues in support of Donate Life campaigns, and Walter and Marie jointly serve as protectors for the Danish Liver Foundation, and Organdonation – Ja Tak.