Mama Sweet's first gig came in the spring of 2002, opening for the Hosty Duo, a show they refer to as ‘a nod from the King’ (Mike Hosty penned "Oklahoma Breakdown," a song made famous by Red Dirt artist, Stoney Larue.) The music began to grow, but so did tensions in the band. Holt needed a break, and consequently so did everyone else.

Holt packed his bags and headed to New York City. “The move was prompted by the call of the road and the ache of the heart, simple as that,” Holt said. Holt’s brash move to relocate to the big city changed the Oklahoma native. Looking back to the red dirt of Oklahoma from the grey streets of New York made him restless and homesick, but Holt turned his pain into verse.

After only nine months in the Big Apple, Holt returned to Oklahoma and his musical brethren. Mama Sweet fell back into place and using the material Holt had written in New York, they started recording a new album.  With the help of producers Travis Linville and Trent Bell (Chainsaw Kittens) and assistance from Mike McClure, Mama Sweet completed their first professionally recorded and mastered album "Welcome to the Well...".

With their first "real" album under their belt, Mama Sweet began venturing to venues outside of Oklahoma and soon found themselves playing with prominent regional acts like Jason Boland, No Justice, Wade Bowen, Micky and the Motorcars, Jack Ingram, and others.  In 2008, Smith Entertainment discovered "Welcomed to the Well" and worked with Mama Sweet to re-release the album.  As the album discovers new fans, Mama Sweet continues on.