McNally was born in Hempstead, New York, on Long Island. While studying anthropology at Franklin and Marshall College, she began singing and playing guitar in small clubs. In 1997, after graduating and honing her skills on the streets of Paris as a busker, she got a contract with Capitol Records. She recorded her debut album, Jukebox Sparrows, with Jim Keltner, Greg Leisz, and James Gadson. The album was not released at the time of its recording. In the interim, McNally opened for Stevie Nicks and Ryan Adams and was part of the 1999 Girl's Room tour with Tara MacLean, Kendall Payne, and Amy Correia. She also modeled for Urban Decay cosmetics. In 2000, she issued the EP When Capitol issued Jukebox Sparrows in January 2002, it did so in a market that had already embraced such roots-flavored material such as Ryan Adams and the O Brother, Where Art Thou soundtrack. McNally embarked on a press tour and spent the summer of that year on tour opening for John Mellencamp. In late 2002, she released the Ran on Pure Lightning EP, a collaboration with songwriter Neal Casal. In 2005, McNally returned with the country, blues, and soul influences on her album Geronimo, which included her song, "Banshee Moan". The album's June release was accompanied by a summer's worth of live tour dates. In early 2006, she released North American Ghost Music. Tour dates with Son Volt also coincided its release. McNally took off most of 2008 and 2009 after the birth of her first child. She resumed performing and recording and toured with Dave Alvin & the Guilty Women. In 2009 she released the albumColdwater with her band Hot Sauce. In 2013, McNally released Small Town Talk, a tribute to the songs of Bobby Charles. In an interview, McNally said that she was a longtime friend of Charles and that her album was inspired by Charles's debut album from 1973. The album is a musical collaboration with the legendary Dr. John. Shortly after, McNally and her young daughter moved from New Orleans to Holly Springs, Mississippi, where McNally nursed her terminally ill mother until her passing in 2015. She took solace in her friendship with Rodney Crowell. Together the two wrote songs and exchanged ideas until her tenth studio album was born. The album was released in 2017 on Compass Records. Shortly after the release, McNally set out on a nationwide tour with Erin Costelo. In 2019, McNally joined a new management team and continued to collaborate with Terry Allen as part of his band. She is currently working on her next studio album release to come in 2020.
