Tag: Color Me Country

The Many Perspectives of Rissi Palmer

Posted on by Justin Hiltner

Rissi Palmer is putting her lifelong love of country music into Perspectives, her first project in six years. With three tracks produced by Shannon Sanders and a fourth by Dan Knobler, the new EP places Palmer back in the artist spotlight after a period of time focused on personal and professional evolution.

Palmer also hosts an Apple Music country radio show, Color Me Country, which spotlights original music from artists of color. But there’s even more to the story. She’s collaborated on a children’s book titled Color Me Country: A Celebration of Black Women Who Shaped Country Music and she’s also wrapped a memorable tour called The Trailblazing Women of Country, where she performed some of the best-loved songs from Patsy Cline, Loretta Lynn, and Dolly Parton. Off the stage, she’s devoted more time to her two daughters following her divorce, while still ramping up to the release of Perspectives.

Though she’s based in Durham, North Carolina, Palmer caught up with Good Country in Belfast, Northern Ireland, during the Your Roots Are Showing conference. At the event’s opening night concert, she sang “Old Black Southern Woman,” a heartfelt ballad that touches on the loss of her mother when Palmer was just seven years old. Perspectives also offers a cover of the SteelDrivers’ “Can You Run?” as well as an original song titled “Good For Me” (about diving back into the dating pool) and a rendition of a Loretta Lynn classic, “Somebody Somewhere.”

“All these things came together, and Shannon so graciously decided to be a part of this with me,” Palmer recalls. “He said, ‘Well, two of these songs sound very bluegrassy. What if we just did the whole project like that?’ I was like, ‘That’s kind of dope,’ because I hadn’t done anything like that. And again, perspectives. Two Black musicians, making this very bluegrassy, but still very soulful, project. And I decided midway through that we’re going to call it Perspectives.”

What was on your mind as “Old Black Southern Woman” was taking shape?

Rissi Palmer: I wrote that with Kyshona, and that was our first time writing together. Kyshona has a way of getting straight to the heart of whatever it is that you’re talking about. I had the idea for the chorus, the “ooh-ooooh” thing, in my head, and I hadn’t really started writing anything. So, we sat down and we started talking. When you go to her house, she’s got all these really cool plants from her mom and her grandma. We talked about that, and I wanted to write something that paid homage to my mother but also acknowledged all the other women that came in and helped raise me.

It’s a universal thing, too. Everybody thinks of getting older as really bad, and I don’t know what I thought my 40s were going to be like, when I was in my 20s. I honestly don’t know, but I don’t feel old! [Laughs] I think I thought 40 was going to feel different, but 40 actually feels just like a creakier 25! And I see the blessing in it. I feel really lucky to be here, because I outlived [my mother] and I have babies now. I just wanted to write something that says it’s OK to get old. It’s actually really cool to be able to get old and to see the fruits of your work.

I think the title kind of throws people off because they’re like, “Oh, this is a song about some Black people.” But it’s actually about getting to be old, seeing the blessing and good in that, and making the most of it.

When you sing that song now, it gives you a chance to talk about your mom and share her memory. Is that extra special for you?

Yeah. It was hard, I’ll be honest. The first few times that I sang it were really hard and I would cry. I’m starting not to cry when I sing it. Especially when we get to the lyric, “Every curse my family claimed ends with me.” That’s always where it got hard. You don’t realize how hard it is to overcome and not repeat mistakes.

Was it a dream for you as a kid to become a singer?

I’ve always known. I don’t know how, but I’ve always known that this is what I wanted to do. In that way, I’m very lucky. It was never, “Maybe I should be…” I would say that I was gonna do other stuff, just to make my parents happy, because I figured that they were probably really scared about me wanting to be a singer. So, I was like, “I’ll be a lawyer.” They’ve got a lawyer. My brother is a lawyer, so they got one. So, we’re good. [Laughs]

Now I did not always want to be a country singer. I wanted to be a singer and I wanted to write songs. I knew the kind of songs that I wanted to do, but I didn’t call it that. That didn’t become clear to me until I met my first managers, and then that was when I realized, “Yeah, I guess that is what I want to do.”

Is bluegrass an influence for you?

I like bluegrass! I’m a Rhonda Vincent fan and I’ve always been an Alison Krauss fan. And on Jon Randall’s first record he has this really cool song with Vince Gill called “My Life.” That’s one of my favorite records, by the way. It’s called Walking Among the Living.

I’ve always been a fan. I’ve always listened. I’ve always had those things on my playlist. I just never thought of myself as that, because there’s a very distinct vocal style. There’s a very distinct cadence in which they’re singing. A lot of the people on the show last night [at Your Roots Are Showing] were just brilliant bluegrass singers, and I never thought of myself that way because I can’t do that. Like, that’s not what I do. I didn’t really think of it as something that I could do. I used to write stuff like that all the time and I tried to give it to other people. But it was Shannon – Shannon was the push. Shannon was like, “Let’s do this.”

What was the Trailblazing Women of Country tour like?

It’s one of my favorite things that I’ve ever done. It was an all-female band and it was myself and Kristina Train, who’s a brilliant singer, as the two leads. We split the show in half, usually there was an intermission between Kristina and me, and we sang two songs together. You know how it is to be a fan, but you don’t necessarily know everything by a person? Patsy, I knew. For Patsy, I didn’t even have to study, because I knew all those songs. Most of my Dolly stuff I knew, but there’s a lot of words in “Coat of Many Colors”! And then Loretta, I’ll be perfectly honest, I had not gone super deep into Loretta’s catalog, so that was fun. That was the one that I needed the most work.

And I loved it! We did mostly theaters. I played in places I never went before. I went to Alaska. We did Wyoming – and you haven’t lived until you’ve driven across Wyoming! It’s just space! It’s wild! With the audiences, it was really funny how they varied. Sometimes we would make jokes, and sometimes people would say things to me. Like, someone asked me once, “Where’s your blonde wig?” when we got to the Dolly part. And I was just like, “Did you ask Kristina that?” They didn’t say anything, and I was like, “Girl, why would I cover up my fabulous hair?” and everybody started laughing.

You know, we got some weird comments. There were some people that (gasps) when I walked out. And afterwards, people would say really kind things. I never had anything rude said to me. But I did notice the [look of surprise] at first. It was good for me. It reminded me about why I love country music. I think I needed that, because you spend so much time, like with Color Me Country, talking about what’s wrong with the industry and talking about ways that we’ve been slighted or ignored. Then you lose sight of why you even started this in the first place, and that was why. It’s because of those songs. It’s because of those women. It’s because of the connection that the audience had with that music.

I can’t tell you how many people came up and told me stories. I met one woman who actually saw Patsy Cline performing on the bed of a truck when she was a kid. And I was just like, “That’s the most amazing thing I’ve ever heard before.” That’s country music.

You’ve got a lot of things coming up. Where would you like this new music to take you?

That’s a great question. I put so much into other facets of my career for the last few years. I put a lot into my children, because of our changing family situation, and just wanting to be there for them. At the same time, I was wanting to experience the career wave that I was having and trying to balance that. So, my own music took a backseat. I started feeling like, “I think people forget that I sing.” And really what I’m saying is, “I think I forgot that I sing,”

I was still doing shows, and still doing things in between, but it was like, “I don’t want everybody to forget why I’m here.” Really I’m saying, “I don’t want to forget why I’m here.” The Trailblazing Women of Country really cemented that for me, especially the “country” part. I’ve been experimenting and trying different things – and there is a project that comes later – but I wanted to do this. I felt like this was a really important statement to make, like, “This is why she talks so much shit.” [Laughs] Because this is where I started and this is what I do.

Photo Credit: Dire Image

Celebrating Black History Month: Rhiannon Giddens, Linda Martell, Miko Marks, and More

Posted on by Justin Hiltner

To celebrate Black History Month – and the vital contributions of Black, Afro-, and African American artists and musicians to American roots music – BGS, Good Country, and our friends at Real Roots Radio in Southwestern Ohio have partnered once again. This time, we’ll be bringing you weekly collections of a variety of Black roots musicians who have been featured on Real Roots Radio’s airwaves. You can listen to Real Roots Radio online 24/7 or via their FREE app for smartphones or tablets. If you’re based in Ohio, tune in via 100.3 (Xenia, Dayton, Springfield), 106.7 (Wilmington), or 105.5 (Eaton).

American roots music – in any of its many forms – wouldn’t exist today without the culture, stories, skills, and experiences of Black folks. Each week throughout February, we’ll spotlight this simple yet profound fact by diving into the catalogs and careers of some of the most important figures in our genres. For week three of our celebration, RRR host Daniel Mullins shares songs and stories of Linda Martell, B.B. King, Miko Marks, Darius Rucker, and Rhiannon Giddens. Be sure to check out the first week and second week of the series, too.

We’ll return for one last edition next Friday to bring you even more music celebrating Black History and the songs and sounds we all hold dear. Plus, you can find a full playlist with more than 100 songs below from dozens and dozens of seminal artists, performers, songwriters, and instrumentalists from every corner of folk, country, bluegrass, old-time, blues, and beyond.

Black history is American roots music history; the two are inseparable. As we celebrate Black History Month and its legacy, we hope you’ll join us in holding up and appreciating the artists who make country, bluegrass, blues, folk, and Americana the incredible and impactful genres that they are today.

Linda Martell (b. 1941) 

She was a trailblazer, a pioneer, and a voice that country music wasn’t ready for – but she made sure they heard her anyway!

Linda Martell, the first commercially successful Black female country artist, broke barriers in the late 1960s with her soulful voice and undeniable talent. In 1969, she made history with her hit song “Color Him Father,” reaching the Top 25 on the country charts before the release of her debut album – Color Me Country on Plantation Records — resulting in two more charting singles. She became the first Black woman to perform on the Grand Ole Opry, making a dozen appearances on the historic radio program and appearing as a special guest on television programs like Hee Haw, proving country music is for everyone.

Despite her success, the industry wasn’t kind. Racism and label conflicts cut her career short, leaving her influence overlooked for decades. She would spend many of those decades settling into domestic life, working a variety jobs including as a school bus driver. Still, her legacy lives on, inspiring a new generation of Black country artists. She is an influence on many African American country artists today, including Mickey Guyton. When Rissi Palmer began her program on Apple Music Radio, it was intentionally named “Color Me Country” after Martell’s historic album. As she puts it, she was “paying homage to the foundation on which my house is built, and that is Linda Martell.”

In 2021, Martell was recognized with CMT’s Equal Play Award and has had an even greater spotlight shone on her groundbreaking work after she made guest appearances on Beyoncé’s Cowboy Carter album, resulting in Martell’s first GRAMMY nomination at age 83. Thankfully, Linda Martell is finally getting the recognition she deserves. Her story is one of resilience, talent, and breaking down barriers—one song at a time.

Suggested Listening:
“Color Him Father”
“Before the Next Teardrop Falls”

B.B. King (1925 – 2015)

Let’s talk about a blues icon who found inspiration in country music – B.B. King! Born on a Mississippi plantation in 1925, B.B. grew up listening to blues. But did you know he also had a love for country music? As a young man, he was inspired by the guitar playing of country stars and tried to emulate the sound of a crying steel in his bluesy pickin’ style with his guitar, Lucille. He would frequently collaborate with country music stars both on stage and in the recording studio, including on his album, Deuces Wild, which featured appearances from Willie Nelson and Marty Stuart.

He performed at Willie’s FarmAid, on the GRAMMYs with Keith Urban, and even appeared on the popular That Nashville Music TV Show with Jerry Reed. In the ’90s, the hit all-star album Rhythm, Country & Blues closed with a legendary collaboration between B.B. King and George Jones on the old story song, “Patches.”

B.B. King proved that great music knows no boundaries. Blues, country, rock and roll – it’s all about storytelling from the soul and letting the good times roll! B.B. King was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 1987. He passed away in 2015 at the age of 89.

Suggested Listening:
“Patches” (featuring George Jones)
“Let the Good Times Roll” (featuring Brad Paisley)

Miko Marks (b. 1973)

She’s breaking barriers, blending genres, and bringing a fresh voice to country – meet Miko Marks. Born in Flint, Michigan, Marks has been redefining country since the early 2000s. She was named Best New Country Artist in 2006 by New Music Weekly and won several awards at the Independent Music Awards in the early aughts as well. With a voice that’s equal parts soul, blues, and traditional country, she has a compelling sound full of power and conviction.

After years of industry struggles, Marks focused on her role as a mother for the next decade-plus. She mounted a powerful comeback with her 2021 album, Our Country, earning critical acclaim and recognition from Rolling Stone and NPR. The equally impressive follow-up, Feel Like Going Home, was released in 2022. She was named one of CMT’s Next Women of Country that same year.

Miko’s music speaks of resilience, hope, and inclusivity, carving a space for new voices in country. Her release Race Records features her take on country classics from The Carter Family, Willie Nelson, and more. From performing at the Grand Ole Opry to rocking major festivals, Miko Marks is a name you need to know. If you haven’t heard her yet, now’s the time!

Suggested Listening:
“Tennessee Waltz”
“Freeway Bound”

Darius Rucker (b. 1966)

From Hootie & the Blowfish to country superstardom, Darius Rucker has done it all. This GRAMMY-winning artist first made waves in the ’90s by leading popular alt-rock band Hootie & The Blowfish, which he helped found while attending the University of South Carolina. They scored half a dozen Top 40 hits, including “Hold My Hand,” “Let Her Cry,” and “Only Wanna Be With You.” There were seeds even then of his future country success, especially with the band’s bluegrass-flavored “Desert Mountain Showdown” from their Musical Chairs album.

Rucker began pursuing a country career in 2008. His debut country single, “Don’t Think I Don’t Think About It,” made history as he became the first Black artist in over 25 years to top the country charts. He was named CMA’s New Artist of The Year in 2009, making him only the second African American artist to win a CMA award – the first being Charley Pride. He would join the Grand Ole Opry in 2012 as only the third Black member of country music’s oldest institution.

He has continued to release many country hits, including nine chart-toppers. In 2013, he released the biggest song of his career, his take on an Old Crow Medicine Show song, “Wagon Wheel.” This number one hit is only the fourth country song to be RIAA-certified Diamond (for 10 million units) and earned Darius Rucker a GRAMMY Award for Best Country Solo Vocal Performance, making him only the third Black artist to win a country vocal performance GRAMMY. With his distinctive voice, heartfelt lyrics, and undeniable charm, Darius Rucker continues to break barriers and bring fans together. Whether it’s rock, country, or beyond, one thing’s for sure – this guy’s got soul.

Suggested Listening:
“Don’t Think I Don’t Think About It”
“If I Told You”

Rhiannon Giddens (b. 1977)

From the rolling hills of North Carolina to the world stage, Rhiannon Giddens is a musical force re-centering American roots music. A singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and historian, Giddens brings the forgotten voices of history back to life one song at a time. After leading the GRAMMY-winning old-time band, the Carolina Chocolate Drops, she has focused on her solo career for now more than a decade.

Rhiannon blends folk, blues, gospel, country, Celtic influences, and more into her dazzling brand of American roots music, all while shining a light on Black contributions to the American musical landscape. Her voice? Soulful. Her banjo? Revolutionary, as she is a recipient of the Steve Martin Prize for Excellence in Banjo and Bluegrass. Giddens has also earned MacArthur Genius honors, collaborated with folks like Elvis Costello, Eric Church, and Gillian Welch, written ballet music, and even composed a Pulitzer Prize-winning opera! (She did study opera at Ohio’s Oberlin College after all.) She has even written several children’s books based off some of her original songs.

Recently, Giddens has partnered with fellow Carolina Chocolate Drops co-founder Justin Robinson to shine a light on fiddle & banjo music from North Carolina. Whatever she sets her sights on, Rhiannon Giddens tackles it head on, inspiring us all in the process.

Suggested Listening:
“Julie”
“Don’t Let it Trouble Your Mind”
“Hook and Line”

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Photo Credit: Rhiannon Giddens by Ebru Yildiz; Linda Martell courtesy of the artist; Miko Marks by Karen Santos.

Julie Williams’ Star Rises

Posted on by Justin Hiltner

“I like to say my music is mixed, like me,” laughs Julie Williams, a queer, biracial Nashville-based songwriter who happens to be one of the strongest new voices to emerge in country music this decade. “I grew up loving ‘90s country, but before I moved to Nashville I didn’t necessarily think I could make that music. I didn’t think I had a place in the genre. I had so many other influences too – like the Indigo Girls, James Taylor, and other folk music – so I thought that would be more my world. But the song that changed everything for me was ‘Southern Curls.’ I was like, whoa, this is undeniably a country song, and it feels more like me than anything else I’ve ever written.”

Released back in 2021, “Southern Curls” was a breakout single for Williams and continues to inform her subsequent work in a lot of ways. Like many of the best country songs, the track flirts with an existing trope while flipping it entirely on its head, invoking the texture of her own Black hair as a foil to disrupt the traditional image of coiffed ringlets favored by white southern belles. Williams uses her hair as a gateway to discuss the still prevalent differences between how Black and white women are treated in this country, particularly in the South, and opens the conversation with a matter-of-fact account of her personal experience.

It’s a simple, riveting song, intimate and singular, but also broad enough to provide desperately needed representation for a whole diaspora of Black female artists who, like Williams, have had a hard time making space for themselves in the predominantly whitewashed genre of mainstream country. Almost immediately, the track earned the attention of fellow Black country artist and Apple Music host Rissi Palmer, who named Williams to her 2021 Color Me Country cohort, and also caught the ear of the Black Opry, who invited the young artist to join the collective on stage and on tour in 2022.

Following this up with a self-titled EP in 2023, an appearance on a PBS special about Black women in country, and a performance at Newport Folk Festival, Williams joined the CMT Next Women of Country Class of 2023. Now, she’s touring behind another new EP, Tennessee Moon, which includes a new version of the impactful song. Williams is excited about the prospect of expanding her sound – and her writing voice – even further.

“‘Southern Curls’ gave me the bravery to write songs that feel authentic to me,” Williams says. “From there, I’ve been really lucky to work with some incredible people, like my partner Jonathan Smalt, who produced my new EP, Tennessee Moon. This is a big release for me in that it feels like an arrival.”

Another part of that feeling? Williams and “Southern Curls” were featured prominently as part of a new documentary on Hulu, It’s All Country, which features legends like Luke Combs, Wynonna Judd, and Sheryl Crow, plus a never-before-seen performances from Williams herself.

While out on tour behind Tennessee Moon, which released in October, Williams called in to speak with Good Country from the road. She talked about her experience shifting from the world of public policy to the music industry, all things ’90s country, navigating the bounds of folk and other genres in her sound, and those deeply felt, close friendships that might have always been more than… just friends.

What was your relationship to country music like when you were growing up?

Julie Williams: My mom used to play a lot of ‘90s country in the car, artists like The Chicks, Shania Twain, Trisha Yearwood, and Sara Evans – but especially The Chicks. I’ve been thinking a lot about them recently, especially in the last few weeks [since the presidential election]. A huge part of my musical introduction was around the time when The Chicks were kicked off country radio. Their song, “Not Ready To Make Nice,” I remember my mom explaining the lyrics to me. That was really where my love for storytelling and lyrics came from.

I noticed the lyrics in your songs right away, they’re not filler or frivolous, they’re stories.

I always thought people would only want to listen to me if I was playing the songs they already knew and loved. Once I started writing, I realized my stories have value. Growing up in Florida, I’d sing covers of Jimmy Buffett and Tom Petty, whatever songs I thought would get me the tips from the snowbirds. I didn’t go to school for music, I went to Duke University and studied public policy. I wanted to work for a non-profit and become a lawyer. But we had a student record label I was a part of, Small Town Records, and that was the first time I got the chance to start writing my own songs. I started to see the power in my own story.

How did you make the jump from studying public policy back into music?

I wanted the work I did to make somebody’s life just a little bit better, but I didn’t realize I could do that with music too. Some of the things I cared a lot about, too – issues of race, queer issues, and women’s issues – how do you get people to care about them? Part of it is through telling stories that move people. I soon realized I didn’t have to sit behind a desk all day and be a policy analyst. Music can also get me in spaces and in front of people that I wouldn’t be around.

Is there an artist who has a career path that you’d like to follow in the industry?

I’ve always been such a fan of Kacey Musgraves and the way that she’s always stood up for what she believes in. She’s never backed down in that, and she’s always put herself in her songs. Part of it is about love and heartbreak, but it’s also about following your arrow, and being yourself. Even the ways in which she’s created a whole new sound in country and in folk with Golden Hour. I fell in love with that album when it came out. I’ve always looked up to the way she can capture the simplest feelings of being a human in her songs.

How do you feel about your music as country or as folk? There are so many other elements to it, and you have a very layered, textured sound.

I have so many influences that aren’t from country, but pairing all of those things creates that mixed sound that really feels like me. As an artist, I’m constantly thinking about “How am I going to market this?” or “What genre is this going to be in?” and that can sometimes feel limiting. I don’t think my music would fit into a traditional pop-country radio sound, but I don’t think it fully fits into other genres either. I’m just trying to make what feels good for me.

How does Tennessee Moon fit into your current discography? It feels like another level.

It’s definitely a big release for me. That’s a testament to being here in Nashville for a few years and trying things out. Every time I put out music or write a song, I hope there’s going to be better ones that keep coming. “Tennessee Moon” was a really special one for me. It started with a film photo that I took of an ex while we were kayaking at Percy Priest lake at sunset. That relationship didn’t work out, but I took the photo to a co-write with a friend of mine, Melody Walker. I said, “I want to write a song that feels like this picture,” and I knew everything else was going to be around that song.

“Just Friends” is another one of my favorite songs on Tennessee Moon, and it seems like so many people relate to the experience of the blurred line between best friends and something more. How did it feel to address that?

I wrote this one with Melody Walker as well and it’s also one of my favorites. I love women, and I realized that I can love anyone regardless of their gender identity. I came to that realization in my twenties, but now that I know who I am – and who I love – I was looking back at a specific friendship of mine. Retrospectively, I realized I had a crush on this person. I was in love with this person. But getting the chance to create a pretty sapphic music video felt like ripping the band-aid off as far as talking about my queer identity in my songs. I hadn’t done that before. I’m really excited to write and put out music freely now.

Photo Credit: Chase Denton

Jett Holden’s Dreams Come to Life on ‘The Phoenix’

Posted on by Justin Hiltner

For years, Jett Holden dreamt and dreamt about making a living through music, but everywhere he turned he was met with doubt, subtle prejudice, and closeted racism that left him running on empty and searching for something new.

Following a journey to rock bottom, Holden is back stronger than ever on The Phoenix, a 10-song collection that catalogs his rise from the ashes and spotlights the community that embraced him when it seemed nobody else would. Told through a mix of countrypolitan, rock, punk, metal, and R&B sounds, the record is proof that there are no boundaries to who, where, and what good music can come from – and that we all benefit from everyone having a seat at the table, sharing their stories and perspectives.

“This album reflects who I’ve been throughout my entire life,” Holden explains to Good Country. “It’s been really cool to look back on when and where my different influences come from while bringing these songs to life. For example, ‘Karma’ is definitely Paramore meets Stapleton, while ‘West Virginia Sky’ harkens to my Tracy Chapman and Jim Croce influences.”

Fresh off a move to Nashville, Holden spoke with GC over the phone about the doubt and prejudice he’s faced along his musical journey, his work with the Black Opry, using music to heal past trauma, and more.

There’s a lot going on in your song ‘Scarecrow,’ from exploring your family’s reaction to coming out to masking the crippling weight of other’s doubts of what you’re capable of – along with a slew of Wizard of Oz references to the scarecrow, tin man, and cowardly lion. Mind sharing how all those ideas coalesced into one?

Jett Holden: It’s the first song I finished for the album. I wrote it back when I was 25, and at that point my family and I didn’t really have a personal relationship. It had gotten to the point where I came out 10 years earlier and wasn’t sure where I stood with them. I wasn’t disowned, but I also didn’t have anyone to turn to – they all pretty much told me they didn’t want to hear about it. I didn’t want to keep living in limbo, so a few years later I skipped town and moved to East Tennessee, which is where [Black Opry founder Holly G] found me in 2021.

You also had a brief stint living in California around this time that left you on the brink of quitting music for good. What all transpired out there?

I moved out to Long Beach after dropping out of community college. I was in talks about a development deal and during the “get-to-know-you” phase I let it slip that I was gay and they responded by saying that I wasn’t marketable as a Black, gay man doing the kind of music that I wanted to do. Things fell apart from there, which is why I left California and moved back to Virginia before eventually relocating to Tennessee.

Aside from that moment, were there any other circumstances that contributed to you feeling so defeated about your music prospects?

When I first moved out West, there was a very steep trajectory that isn’t common for most people, but it quickly deteriorated after I mentioned being gay, making for a really high peak and a really low low. When I returned to Virginia things got stagnant and didn’t progress at all, even moving backwards at times. It was a frustrating time of trying to figure myself out that culminated in the move to East Tennessee where I was roommates with a close friend before coming home one day after she committed suicide.

Another of my friends got cancer around the same time and just recently passed too, so those were very traumatic years for me.
By 2020, I just couldn’t do it anymore, so I started going to therapy right before the pandemic hit and the world shut down. Suddenly [music] was just too much to deal with, so I stopped making it. Being online was toxic so I shut down, got a stay-at-home job with AT&T, and accepted that as my future, working my way up in the company.

Then Holly — and the Black Opry — came around?

Exactly. I’d already called it quits when she found me on Instagram through a video I’d posted of my song “Taxidermy.” I only had that and a couple other covers posted, but it was enough for her to take interest and slowly pull me back into the industry. A couple months later she launched the Black Opry as a blog and it’s crazy to see where things have gone since then.

Within a year I’d gotten to tour all over the country, appear on The Kelly Clarkson Show, and I recorded my first single and EP through a grant I received from [Rissi Palmer’s] Color Me Country. Holly has made so many things possible that had been unavailable to me for my entire career until then, fighting for me in ways nobody else had before. She took chances because she wasn’t an industry person, but rather a flight attendant who was just a fan of country music and wanted to feel connected to it and the artists she was listening to, which is something a lot of others were in search of as well.

When I went to the first outlaw house she threw at Americanafest in 2021, I was expecting a bunch of Black country fans to show up, but it was also the queer community, the Latin community, and the women in country music that didn’t feel like they were getting a fair shake of things. Everyone who felt “othered” in country music showed up and it felt like immediate family. Seeing the excitement around that is what drew me back in.

Speaking of your song “Taxidermy,” I remember you being brought to tears while singing it during a Black Opry panel at Americanafest that same year. What’s that song meant to you, both in its message and what it’s meant to your career?

That song relaunched my career essentially, because I wasn’t chasing music when I wrote it. In fact, when I posted it online I only had one verse and the chorus. Despite it not being complete, Holly still sent it off to Rissi Palmer and got me the grant and I finished writing it the day we recorded. It’s a song of frustration that I didn’t expect many people to watch when I posted it, but Holly really connected with it, spread it around, and helped it blow up into something bigger than I ever imagined.

I was just singing about my frustrations with what was going on around our country at the time concerning police brutality, which was a big reason why I quit social media and music altogether in 2020. Instagram was the [only] online account I had when Holly found me. That song allowed me to vent about those things, but it also helped me gain the community I needed to break myself out of the news cycle that we were constantly absorbing, because we had nowhere to go. The song came about out of all that negativity, but had a huge positive impact on me that I never expected.

In addition to the support you’ve received from the Black Opry, you’ve also got a helluva team behind you for this record including the folks at Thirty Tigers, [producer] Will Hoge, and collaborators like John Osborne and Charlie Worsham (“Backwoods Proclamation”), Cassadee Pope (“Karma”), and Emily Scott Robinson (“When I’m Gone”). I imagine that, after everything you’ve been through, having folks like that working alongside you is incredibly validating?

Definitely! Emily was the first person I asked, since she was a very early supporter of the Black Opry. We both connected over “When I’m Gone” and our similar stories [around] suicide, so it was a no-brainer to have her sing with me on it. Holly ended up reaching out to Cassadee after I mentioned wanting someone similar to Hayley Williams featured, and she nailed it. It’s very cool seeing all these people I’ve looked up to legitimately wanting to work with me. I still haven’t met Charlie or John, but it’s wild knowing that they’ve heard my song and wanted to be involved in it.

Regarding “When I’m Gone,” is that a reference to your friend in East Tennessee that you walked in on after committing suicide? If so I’m sorry for your loss, but I love how you used the song to memorialize them and bring attention to the plight of suicide. It’s an awful thing to experience, but putting your feelings from it to song is a great way to bring beauty to an otherwise unimaginable situation.

You’re completely right. When I play songs like “When I’m Gone” or “Scarecrow” live I always have people coming up to talk to me about them afterwards, whether it’s someone who’s come out, dealt with religious trauma, or a person who’s just lost somebody close to them. There’s something very cathartic and heavy all at once that’s led to a lot of crying, but more importantly a lot of growth. It’s been great feeling like I’m not going unheard – which I did for over a decade – and having interest in what I’m doing where there wasn’t any before.

We’ve talked about a lot of the trauma captured in these songs, which brings me to the album’s title, The Phoenix. Is that reference meant to reflect how your life — specifically your musical dreams — have been reborn in recent years?

That was the intention. It was about the resurrection of my career, plus I also referenced the phoenix in “West Virginia Sky,” so it felt appropriate. Then, weirdly enough, just after recording the album I had a friend, also named Holly, give me a phoenix bolo tie for Christmas. It was a very kismet occurrence and a sign that that was the correct title to move forward with on the project. It makes for the perfect project, one where I have creative control and wrote every song (besides co-writing “Backwoods Proclamation”). I put my heart and soul into it, and am really excited for people to hear it.

If you could go back in time to speak with yourself when you were about to call it quits, what would you tell them?

Prioritize the relationships you build, because those are the people that will help you get to where you are supposed to be.

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Photo Credit: Kai Lendzion

Women’s History Spotlight: Rhonda Vincent, Rissi Palmer, and More

Posted on by Justin Hiltner

March is Women’s History Month, and BGS, Good Country, and Real Roots Radio have partnered to highlight a variety of our favorite women in country, bluegrass, and roots music with our Women’s History Spotlight.

Each weekday in March at 11AM Eastern (8AM Pacific) on Real Roots Radio, host Daniel Mullins will be celebrating a powerful woman in roots music during the Women’s History Spotlight segment of The Daniel Mullins Midday Music Spectacular. You can listen to Real Roots Radio online 24/7 or via their FREE app for smartphones or tablets.

Then, we will have a Friday recap here on BGS featuring the artists highlighted throughout the previous week. No list is comprehensive, but we hope to feature some familiar favorites as well as some trailblazers whose music and impact might not be as familiar to you.

This week’s edition of our Women’s History Spotlight features musicians and artists like Jean Shepard, Rissi Palmer, Tammy Wynette, Rhonda Vincent, and Leona Williams. Tune in next week for more accomplished and impactful women of roots music!

Jean Shepard

Jean Shepard was a boss. She was the first female country artist to have a million-selling single after World War II with the smash hit, “Dear John Letter” (featuring Ferlin Husky), which was also a Top 5 hit on the Billboard Pop charts. Her debut album, Songs of A Love Affair, may very well be country music’s first concept album – and certainly the first by a female country artist. Her feisty spirit came across in her honky-tonk sound.

Tall tales abound about Jean’s moxy, including her being the only artist on a big package tour who was brave enough to call out George Jones for his drunkenness embarrassing the entire troupe (supposedly, he sobered up quick rather than face her wrath again). Her straight ahead country sound can be heard on such hits as “Slippin’ Away,” “Second Fiddle (To An Old Guitar),” “A Satisfied Mind,” and more.

In a career spanning seven different decades, she was the first female Grand Ole Opry member to remain active for 60 consecutive years, and she was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 2011 (decades late according to some, myself included). Jean married fellow country star Hawkshaw Hawkins in 1960, and was widowed after only three years of marriage as Hawkshaw passed away in the same plane crash that took the lives of Patsy Cline and Cowboy Copas. She would remarry to Benny Birchfield (who appeared on countless classic recordings by The Osborne Brothers), and they would be a quintessential country couple until her passing in 2016.

Rissi Palmer

In 2007, Rissi Palmer ended a 20 year drought, during which a woman African-American country artist had not appeared on the country charts. Her debut single, the catchy as heck “Country Girl,” marked the occasion and since then she has continued to be an advocate for Black women in country music spaces. The Pittsburgh native was largely influenced by Patsy Cline (whose “Leavin’ On Your Mind” was beautifully covered by Palmer on her debut album). For over a decade and a half, she has been a leader for Black voices in country, illuminating the stories of Black country artists — past and present — with her Apple Music Radio show, Color Me Country, named after the debut album of country trailblazer Linda Martell, who Beyoncé recently just overtook as the highest charting African-American woman on the Billboard country charts. Palmer’s most personal song, “You Were Here” has encouraged women worldwide, as it deals openly and honestly with miscarriage.

“This song was written for and to the child I lost at 3 months pregnant in the Summer of 2018, who would have been named Sage. I dedicate this song to anyone who has suffered a miscarriage or loss of any kind. You aren’t alone…” — Rissi Palmer

Tammy Wynette

Known was “The First Lady of Country Music,” Tammy Wynette’s life was filled with tragic twists and turns. Born Virginia Wynette Pugh in Itawamba County, Mississippi, she became a massive country music star shortly following the release of her debut single, “Apartment No. 9.” Her working relationship with producer Billy Sherrill (who came up with the stage name “Tammy” and paired it with her middle name, Wynette) was one of the most fruitful artist-producer pairings in the country music history, resulting in such massive hits as “Your Good Girl’s Gonna Go Bad,” “I Don’t Wanna Play House,” “D-I-V-O-R-C-E,” and dozens more.

Her signature song, “Stand By Your Man,” was viewed as an anti-feminist anthem when it was released. Topping the country charts and reaching the Top 20 on the Billboard Hot 100, the popularity of “Stand By Your Man” catapulted Wynette’s career to another level, including Grand Ole Opry membership and a slew of awards. Ironically, the “Stand By Your Man” singer’s personal life was tabloid fodder for decades, as she was married five times (including famously to George Jones, with whom she released some of the most iconic country duet hits of all time).

Tragically, the public stigma of having been divorced four times was a contributing factor to her not leaving her last husband, George Richey. Wynette’s toxic relationship with Richey resulted in her (presumably) faking her own kidnapping to cover up signs of abuse, expedited her decline into drug abuse, and ended with her mysterious passing at only 55 years of age. She was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1998, the same year as her passing.

Rhonda Vincent

The undisputed “Queen of Bluegrass,” Rhonda Vincent grew up performing with her family band, The Sally Mountain Show. This Missouri family band performed frequently at Silver Dollar City and was a popular bluegrass festival act, also including Rhonda’s younger brother, Darrin Vincent of Dailey & Vincent. In the 1980s, she would be hired by country music legend Jim Ed Brown. (When she went on the road with Jim Ed Brown, The Sally Mountain Show hired a young Illinois girl named Alison Krauss to fill Rhonda’s shows for their summer festival schedule.)

Rhonda would release some solo bluegrass projects for Rebel Records in the early 1990s before signing a country deal with Giant Records. Her country records in the mid-’90s are phenomenal, but unfortunately for Rhonda, the fickle winds of music industry trends shifted to a more pop sound at the same time she was releasing these great traditional country records, resulting in a lack of commercial success. As the new millennium dawned, Rhonda Vincent triumphantly returned to bluegrass in 2000 with the release of Back Home Again on Rounder Records, and hasn’t looked back.

The All-American Bluegrass Girl has certainly been one of the genre’s biggest stars for the last few decades, with no signs of slowing down, winning her first Grammy and joining the Grand Ole Opry in recent years. She is also a popular collaboration partner both inside and outside of bluegrass, including recordings with Gene Watson, Daryle Singletary, Cody Johnson, Dolly Parton, Bobby Osborne, and many more. Her influence is felt all over bluegrass — heck, one of the most popular bluegrass Instagram accounts, Bluegrass Barbie, is practically a Rhonda Vincent stan account, and we’re here for it.

Bluegrass fans are blessed to live in a time where this future member of the Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame is still in her prime – enjoy it because your future great-grandchildren will want to hear about it someday.

See if you can recognize the future superstar that makes a brief appearance in this 2003 Rhonda Vincent music video.

Leona Williams

Another Missouri gal, Leona Williams is one of the best traditional country singers with whom you may not be as familiar. She has been making country music for over 65 years! Early in her career, she played bass and sang backup on the road with Loretta Lynn, before releasing her own solo records. She had modest success with “Country Girl With Hot Pants On” and “Once More,” but her signature song, the now classic, “Yes Ma’am, He Found Me In A Honky Tonk,” never charted.

Leona also became the first female country artist to release a live prison album with 1976’s San Quentin’s First Lady. Many may remember Leona for her duet recordings with Merle Haggard (like “The Bull and The Beaver”); they were married for five years. Leona penned some major hits for her ex-husband, like “Some Day When Things Are Good” and “You Take Me For Granted,” the latter of which she supposedly wrote about her rocky relationship with The Hag and sang to him to express how she was feeling. She also wrote hits for Connie Smith and Loretta Lynn. Leona continues to record and tour. Having seen her in concert just a few years ago, be sure to catch her live show if you are in need of pure country music from a living legend!

Last week we included a bonus video of Jessie the Yodeling Cowgirl. No beloved Pixar characters are included this week, but hopefully Tammy Wynette’s guest appearance with The KLF in the hit music video, “Justified & Ancient,” will suffice:

 

Ed’s Picks: Country From All Corners

Posted on by Justin Hiltner

(Editor’s note: Each issue of Good Country, our co-founder Ed Helms will share a handful of good country artists, albums, and songs direct from his own earphones in Ed’s Picks. 

Sign up here to receive Good Country issues when they launch, direct to your email inbox via Substack.)

‘Color Me Country’ Host Rissi Palmer Finds a Musical Home in North Carolina

Posted on by Justin Hiltner

Between caring for her two kids and hosting her brand new show, Color Me Country, on Apple Music Country, singer/songwriter and creator Rissi Palmer has had plenty to keep her busy since the touring industry shut down due to coronavirus. 

This week, Palmer will take part in our fifth annual Shout & Shine Online as part of IBMA’s World of Bluegrass conference and festival, performing a song from her most recent album, Revival. BGS jumped on the phone with Palmer to talk about the showcase, the musical heritage of North Carolina (her home for the past ten years), her musical community, Color Me Country, and more. 

(Editor’s note: Watch Shout & Shine Online here on October 3 at 2pm ET)

BGS: The production end of things has felt really different this year, putting Shout & Shine Online together virtually rather than in-person, like the last four years. But I bet being a performer feels pretty different to you in a pandemic right now as well? 

Rissi Palmer: The performance part of it is extremely strange. I’ll be perfectly honest, I don’t like doing livestreams. [Laughs] I do them, because that’s what we have to do, but yeah. Not a big fan. 

As far as the other [aspects], though, I have to say the time at home has been good for getting projects done. I’ll be honest with you, Color Me Country, I had been thinking about doing it for at least a year, but I didn’t have time, ’cause I was out on the road and doing all this stuff. Once we got to be home, once quarantine was happening, I had a little time — not a lot, because I have two children — to start working on it and actually sitting down and focusing. At the same time, with everything that’s going on I found it really hard to write. I’m flooded with a lot of different emotions right now, so I want to be creative, but the easiest thing for me has been channeling a lot of my feelings and frustrations into my show, not so much the music. I hate it, but I’m not being as musically creative as I’d like to be. It’s hard, I’m having a hard time. 

I did want to talk about Color Me Country, because Shout & Shine was created to literally provide a space for othered folks, marginalized folks, to exist within these genre formats and communities that have — whether stereotypically or traditionally or both — been white spaces for so long, and straight spaces for so long, and male spaces for so long. Shout & Shine is a space that’s not owned by any of the above, where we can celebrate the marginalized and underrepresented folks who have always been in these musics. I see you doing the same thing with Color Me Country. 

That’s exactly what Color Me Country is. That’s what I wanted to do. I feel like so many times, as an artist of color in a genre that is predominately white, you’re mostly talking to white journalists. You’re mostly talking to white outlets. A lot of times you are othered. I don’t think people do it to be mean, I don’t think it’s done in malice or anything like that. It just ends up being one of the more interesting parts of the interview, it’s more interesting to ask an interviewee [about identity or race]. For me, in my experience — and I can’t speak for everybody else — I spent most of my interviews when my album first came out in 2007 talking about being Black, not really talking about my art. That starts to wear on you after a while! 

When you’re in a situation where you know that you’re a part of “the system” and you don’t necessarily want to bite the hand that feeds you, you can’t be as honest as you want to be. You don’t want people to be immediately turned off. That’s how I felt as a new artist in a lot of ways. Now that I’m on my own and I’m older, I feel differently about the world and I have lots of opinions. [Laughs] I recognize the power in my platform that I didn’t recognize thirteen years ago. [With Color Me Country] I was just like, there has to be somewhere people can just talk. And not just talk about race, but about music and being a musician. A space free from worrying about alienating anybody or offending anyone. It’s just being honest.

Outside of the fact that I’m Black, outside of the fact that I’m a woman, I’m also a musician. I’ve been in a lot of the same rooms that these other artists have been in. I’ve had a lot of the experiences that they’ve had. So [on the show] we’re speaking to each other as peers. It’s an easier situation, I find. I end up getting stories or confessions or thoughts that people wouldn’t normally share. I think that’s good! I sometimes end up revealing things about myself in these conversations, because we’re being honest with each other. That’s what I wanted, because I didn’t feel like I had an outlet like that. Not that people weren’t kind to me or any of that, I just never felt that safe. 

The local connection of Shout & Shine has been a really important part of our mission, in years where we’ve held the showcase during IBMA’s conference in Raleigh in-person, connecting the show to the legacy of North Carolina’s roots music has been a part every year. The stories of bluegrass and country are tied so tightly to North Carolina, so I wanted to ask you about your connection to the state and what about its musical history and community that resonates with you?

First of all, I have been a North Carolinian for ten years now. I absolutely love it here. I live in Durham and specifically in our community — and I’ve lived in Los Angeles, I’ve lived in Nashville, I’ve lived in New York and Atlanta — I have to say this particular music community is my favorite. I say that because there are so many types of music here! There are so many really ridiculously talented people. I think that has something to do with the fact there are so many colleges here — or there’s something in the water! Really, nationally important music is being made here. Everyone is so open and so giving. It’s one of the few music communities that actually feels like a community. I know for me, being here has made me a better artist.

Being in Nashville, being in New York and being a part of the rat race, you tend to think in terms of commerciality and sales and that sort of thing, monetizing your creativity. Whereas here, mind you we want to make money, I’m always looking for ways to make money, but here it’s more like, “How can you use your art to help your community? How can you use your art to collaborate with these people for this cause?” Everywhere I turn there’s a way to use my platform, my voice, my art to elevate something. That’s really awesome and for me, that’s made my art more global. 

Just look at the art that comes out of here! Everything is extremely conscious, it’s thoughtful; I think that whatever is happening with the artists here, it resonates. Showing people what’s going on here and exposing it [to the world] is really important, because there’s so much good stuff here. 

Speaking of collaborations, your Shout & Shine Online performance includes Omar Ruiz-Lopez on a song you wrote called “You Were Here.” The performance is excellent and exquisite and we won’t give it away entirely, but tell us a bit about working with Omar and the song? 

First of all, I’m super excited to be a part of it! I was so excited when I got the email. Omar and Lizzy [Ross] of Violet Bell are two of my favorite people in the world. I think the world of them. They’re so ridiculously stupid talented. It’s not even funny. 

In 2018 I was a part of an artist in residency for like a week and we were all put in a house, the Oyster House, out on the coast. It was myself, Violet Bell, XOXOK — Keenan Jenkins, he’s local he’s amazing as well. We were there with a couple of playwrights, some artists, and we were in this house for a week. We got along really well, we’d jam at night, that sort of a thing. We all formed such tight relationships between us musicians, so any time we can perform together we try to make it happen. Omar actually played on the record of the song I did for the performance and so when I got the email and knew I was going to do this I knew I had to call Omar. Not only that, I was just chomping at the bit to have another musician in the shot with me!! I’m so sick of playing things by myself! [Laughs] I wanted to make it big and beautiful.

Another thing I just thought of while we’re talking, the song I’m doing is called “You Were Here.” It’s from my new album, Revival, and it’s about a miscarriage that I had in 2018. I had just met Lizzy and Omar and had just found out I was pregnant when we did the residency. The day that everything started happening I was actually in the studio with them — I didn’t even think about that, I was recording on their record. There was no one else I could do this with. 

Omar plays emotionally and that’s what this song needed. I remember when I called him to track on it, he did it in about two takes. We were sitting in the studio just bawling while we were recording it. He did an excellent job. I couldn’t imagine sharing this moment with anybody else. 

Photo courtesy of the artist.

Meet the Full Lineup of Shout & Shine Online

Posted on by Amy Reitnouer

The entire BGS team is pretty stoked for our fifth year of Shout & Shine performances! In 2016 we partnered with PineCone Piedmont Council of Traditional Music in Raleigh, NC to showcase diversity in bluegrass and roots music at IBMA’s World of Bluegrass business conference and festival. In doing so, a wonderful platform has been provided to artists so often overlooked, as well as those just starting their journeys in the music industry.

Things are a bit different this go ‘round, and we’ll be celebrating equity and inclusion in a more pandemic-suited way this year with Shout & Shine Online! The showcase will take place Saturday, October 3rd at 2pm ET — viewers can tune in right here on BGS, or on our Facebook page or YouTube channel, as well as via PineCone’s channels, and IBMA’s conference platform, Swapcard (free music pass registration available here).

 

In celebration, we’ve put together a preview of what you can look forward to during Shout & Shine Online.

Brandi Waller-Pace

BGS joined hands with Decolonizing the Music Room’s founder Brandi Waller-Pace to curate 2020’s lineup. “The mission of Decolonizing the Music Room is to center Black, Brown, Indigenous, and Asian voices, knowledge, and experiences within the field of music education,” says Waller-Pace. “In addition to that, it is part of DTMR’s core values that we are an openly LGBTQ+ affirming non-profit organization. I am honored to have served as curator for this year’s Shout & Shine and to have had this opportunity to partner with BGS and PineCone on work that highlights a convergence of our values.”

Here you can see Waller-Pace along with Caitlin Hearn playing an old-time standard, “Five Miles From Town.” Waller-Pace’s music is dripping with that sweet, old-timey-ness.

Rissi Palmer

The IBMA isn’t the only thing we love in Raleigh — there’s also Rissi Palmer. In 2007 she released “Country Girl,” making her the first African American woman on the country charts in over 20 years. She’s been releasing consistently powerful music since, leading all the way up to her most recent album, Revival. On top of all of this, Palmer hosts the new Apple Music Country radio show, Color Me Country: a conversation between herself and various Black and Brown women in country/Americana/roots music. We can’t wait to have her right here on BGS!

Sunny War

You may have already seen our friend Sunny War’s episode 2 of our monthly Shout & Shine series. In our interview that came out earlier this month, War speaks about her current outlook on the music scene and how it feels to be surrounded by new “activist” musicians who weren’t doing it before, as well as her incredibly unique guitar style.

Kaïa Kater

Kaïa Kater is no stranger at BGS. She has been featuring in a Cover Story, she’s written an op-ed, and she’s had some important conversations with other musicians. Needless to stay, we’re ecstatic to have this Afro-Caribbean-Canadian songwriter and Appalachian musician back for Shout & Shine Online!

Stephanie Anne Johnson

While Stephanie Anne Johnson’s music is often rooted in America’s painful past, it’s always got down home roots. Maybe that’s why they’ve got the “American Blues.” A veteran of NBC’s The Voice, Johnson is the leader of Tacoma-based band The Hidogs, whose most recent album is entitled Take This Love.

Jerron “Blind Boy” Paxton

Blind Boy Paxton’s music is something of a journey back in time. But his songs and stories aren’t from dusty old books or archives — they are the soundtrack of his growing up in south-central Los Angeles, among the largest Creole and Cajun population outside of Louisiana. Our friend Paxton has been featured in our Shout & Shine column before, but Shout & Shine Online is his appearance on the showcase. We couldn’t be more excited!

Tray Wellington Band

North Carolina’s Tray Wellington is an acclaimed progressive banjo player — and he’s only 21. From his 2019 IBMA awards — one for Momentum Instrumentalist of the Year and another for Momentum Band of the Year with his former group Cane Mill Road — it’s easy to tell what a bright future he’s got in the world of bluegrass and beyond. He’ll be joining us with his whole band!

Amythyst Kiah

You may know her from Our Native Daughters, or our BGS Class of 2019  — either way, Amythyst Kiah is one of the most powerful, raw, and soulful singers and songwriters the roots music scene has today. We’re beyond thrilled that she’ll be joining us to anchor the Shout & Shine Online lineup!

Photos courtesy of the artists
Poster design by Grant Prettyman, Belhum