Tag: MusiCares

“Guitar Prodigy” Doesn’t Quite Resonate with Grace Bowers

Posted on by Justin Hiltner

Boasting an Instrumentalist of the Year nomination at the 2024 Americana Music Association Honors & Awards (held September 18), Grace Bowers may be one of the most exciting new guitar players on the planet – with extra emphasis on “new.”

Still in her teens, the Bay Area native has made a splash with soulful-beyond-her-years playing and the enthusiasm of youth, but she’s proving to be more than just a six-string specialist. Now leading a funky blues-rock outfit called The Hodge Podge, Bowers dropped a strutting, co-written debut single – “Tell Me Why U Do That” – and has a cosmic follow up to come. Plus, she’s not afraid to speak her mind.

Already using her platform for positive impact, Bowers will host the 2nd annual An Evening Supporting Love, Life & Music benefit concert at Nashville’s Brooklyn Bowl June 10. Founded to support victims of the Covenant School Shooting and now benefiting Voices for a Safer Tennessee and MusiCares, the show will feature Bowers and The Cadillac Three, Devon Gilfillian, Caroline Jones, Meg McRee, Jared James Nichols, John Osborne, Lucie Silvas, SistaStrings, Brittney Spencer, and Butch Walker, as the rising star looks to leverage her “prodigy” label attention.

BGS caught up with Bowers just as the summer festival season kicked into gear, getting to know an exceptional breakout talent who seems primed for a long career to come.

After blowing up on social media during the pandemic, you’ve done a lot in the last few years – but, you still have a few months before you turn 18, right? How have you managed to balance this music career with growing up and just being a teenager?

Grace Bowers: It’s definitely a weird balance, and especially since I don’t go to school anymore. I started doing [school] online a year-and-a-half ago … and I don’t miss homework, but I definitely miss being around people my own age and just a normal experience. But at the same time, I’m getting to do this stuff that I love almost every night, and I would take that over anything. Some people look at it like I’m doing it too fast, or someone’s pulling strings for me, and it’s not true. This is what I love and I can’t imagine doing anything else.

What drew you to guitar in the first place? I know people like to compare you to the female guitar greats, like Bonnie Raitt or H.E.R., but I feel like it doesn’t have to be just women. I hear a lot of Prince’s style in you, or even Derek Trucks.

Yeah, I love all those players that you just mentioned! The first time I was drawn to a guitar or just to music in general was when I was 9 years old, and I saw Slash on YouTube. Which is kind of a basic answer, but that’s how it happened. I was watching the “Welcome to The Jungle” music video.

Really? So did you just rush right out and say, “Hey, mom and dad, I need a guitar”?

That’s pretty much how it went. I think I tried almost every other hobby there was. I got kicked out of soccer, hated Girl Scouts. I’m pretty sure I got kicked out of softball, too. I was not good at gymnastics. I tried everything and my parents tried everything. So when I came to them and said I wanted a guitar, they were like, “We’ll get you a guitar.”

Were you ripping leads within months, or how long did this take?

Oh, no, no. People call me a prodigy a lot and it’s entirely not true, because for the first three years I was so bad. I was awful, and I wasn’t even really passionate about it. It was just kind of something that I did. I never really practiced or dug into other music styles.

But when I was 13 and COVID had just started, I heard B.B. King for the first time – “Sweet Little Angel” – and that song starts off with three notes. I was so hooked on that, and it was a sound I had never heard before, because I didn’t grow up around music. I don’t have any players in my family, so it was a completely new thing to me, and that’s what really made me passionate about it. I started actually learning things on guitar, but it was not an immediate light bulb moment for me.

I think that’s actually a good message for people, because it’s easy to get burned out trying to learn an instrument.

Yeah, it takes time.

Was it a shock to get this Americana Music Association nomination? You’re up for Instrumentalist of the Year, right?

Yeah, I forgot. I didn’t even know I was nominated, to be honest with you. I had no idea. I opened Instagram one day and I was tagged in the post. I’m like, “Holy shit, this is insane.” Because the year before that, I was in the audience at the Ryman watching the Americana Awards. So now that I get to be there, that’s insane.

Tell me about getting the band going and working on songwriting. You’re known for your guitar playing, but it seems like you’ve been trying to diversify. Does that come natural?

Songwriting was a bit of a learning curve for me, but it is something I’m very, very much into these days. I feel like people just look at me as a guitar player, but I don’t really feel like I’m just a guitar player. And even at that, I’m not some bright virtuoso guitar player. I wouldn’t consider myself that at all. I lead this band, I wrote all the songs or co-wrote them. So I think that that’s something that a lot of people don’t realize when they’re leaving hate comments online.

Your band sounds amazing – I love how much funk and soul is in the mix. It’s also cool you present yourselves as an ensemble. It’s not just Grace Bowers and then some people behind her.

That was my goal, because like I said, I don’t want to be known as just a guitar player. If you think of Derek Trucks, you think of Susan [Tedeschi], too. Tedeschi Trucks Band would not be what it is without one another, and I love that. And since I don’t sing right now, I want to be known for this amazing band.

The first single, “Tell Me Why U Do That,” came out a little while back. It’s super funky and light – what did you write that about?

It wasn’t written about a single person. It sounds like it is, but I wrote it with John Osborne and his wife Lucie [Silvas], and honestly, we wrote it in an hour and we were kind of just bullshitting lines. … Normally I’m like, “Well, the lyrics have to mean something.” But I kind of let that go for this one. It’s just a fun song.

Does that speak to the other stuff you’re doing?

For the most part, the lyrics were very intentional. My second single that’s coming out is called “Wine on Venus,” and this one has a cool story behind it. It was written about my Nana who passed away a bit ago. I’m from California, so we went home for Christmas this year and it was the first year not having her at Christmas. Everyone was talking about her, and my uncle said she always told him that when she died, she’d be drinking wine on Venus. It’s the brightest star.

Oh, wow.

Yeah, and I thought that was such a cool thing to think about. So I brought it back here and I was writing with Ben Chapman and Meg McRee, and I told them this story, and this song just flowed right out of us.

Your grandma sounds like she was awesome.

Yeah, she was kind of crazy, but there were some good nuggets in there from time to time.

John Osborne is producing your work, and he’s an amazing guitarist in his own right. Does that have an impact on what you’re doing?

Absolutely. I don’t think enough people are talking about how good a guitar player John Osborne is. He’s on a whole ‘nother level, and I don’t hear his name mentioned when people are talking about great guitar players, but I can’t imagine doing it with anyone else. I think he just completely understood my vision and the sound I was going for, and I’ve worked with producers before who have a sound and they’ll try to mold you into their sound, and John wasn’t like that at all. I mean, he gave us direction and some really great ideas, but really let me and the band lead the ship on where it was going. So I really appreciated that.

Tell me about the benefit you put together for June 10 – An Evening Supporting Love, Life & Music. Why did you want to do this so early in your career?

This is my second year doing it, and the first year I put together after the Covenant School shooting. I have two little brothers in school, and I remember the day it happened, they were texting me like, “There’s a school shooting.” And at first they didn’t tell me what school, so my heart dropped thinking it was at their school. They eventually told me, but that brief moment of panic I had – I can’t imagine if you were a parent with a kid at Covenant on that day. Just to even think about that is awful. And it really upset me seeing how much of a divide there was, because coming from the Bay Area in California, we have different viewpoints.

I don’t know, it just upset me that it seemed to be such a divided issue, and really I think there’s a lot of common ground to be found. The first year I did it, the money went directly to the school and MusicCares, and it went amazing. So much so that the school is no longer accepting donations. They received so much support. So this year we’re donating [proceeds] to an organization called Voices for Safer Tennessee, and they’re non-partisan so it’s not political in any way, and they’re advocating for safer gun laws – which Tennessee needs some of that. I’m just doing all I can to support something that I’m passionate about, and I want to see some change.

Photo Credit: Cedric Jones

PHOTOS: Park City Song Summit 2023

Posted on by Justin Hiltner

[Editor’s Note: In September 2023, fine art photographer Erika Goldring (Getty Images, New York Times, Billboard) was on hand at Park City Song Summit in Utah to document the music and wellness event. Below, enjoy selections from her PCSS photographs and her reflections on this one of a kind gathering of songmakers.]

All in all, what moved me about Park City Song Summit was seeing artists and fans connect in a different way — more intimate shows, the opportunity to ask questions. We’re all just trying to make our way through this crazy world. Song Summit has created a community for those of us in the industry to have open and honest conversations about navigating personal struggles. – Erika Goldring, photographer

When I first heard about Park City Song Summit, I was like, “This is where I need to be!” It’s more than a music festival, it’s four days of music AND wellness! It’s a chance to take a deeper dive into the lives of the musicians I love, whether it’s hearing about someone’s creative process or what they do to maintain sanity on the road. No one is afraid to talk about mental health and recovery, and this is where the magic lies for me.

To see an artist do a solo acoustic set who doesn’t usually do that is always a treat. You know you’re getting something different. When Lukas Nelson sat down at the keyboard to do the title song of his last album, A Few Stars Apart, I got goosebumps — it felt so intimate and vulnerable. He did a few covers at the end of his set, including Pearl Jam’s “Breathe” and the Grateful Dead’s “Ripple.” I loved it, the audience loved it, we all joined in singing, and it was lovely to see him enjoying himself.

I first met Harold Owens at Imagine Recovery in New Orleans when MusiCares invited Ivan Neville to tell his recovery story. I have crossed paths with him many times since then. He’s helped a lot of people with substance abuse issues get into treatment.

Elliott Adnopoz, aka Ramblin Jack Elliott, a cowboy folksinger. The first time I saw him was on Arlo Guthrie’s Ridin’ on the City of New Orleans tour, post-Hurricane Katrina. He’s 92 years old and still at it! He sat in with Bob Weir for a cover of Bob Dylan’s “I’ll Be Your Baby Tonight.”

I was thrilled to see Caroline Randall Williams (right) announced as a panelist with Adia Victoria (left) and Celisse (center). She wrote a piece early on in the pandemic about Confederate monuments that really made me think in a different way. These are smart and eloquent women talking about the blues and loving every minute of it.

Emily Lichter has a great spirit. Not only did she speak about managing artists, but she also brought Leta Herman from Alchemy Healing Center and speaker Ruthie Lindsey to Song Summit. Hilary Saunders subbed for Marissa Moss as moderator, due to an illness, and did a great job.

I would say Steve Poltz is a stand-up comedian first and a songwriter second. He wrote “You Were Meant for Me” with Jewel. I met him about 20 years ago when he was still drinking. He’s sober now and his stories are hysterical. I left his panel with a smile on my face and then went to watch him teach people how to write songs. I have no musical abilities. I don’t know how to play any instrument and would not even know where to begin to write a song… maybe lyrics, but definitely not music. This creative process is foreign to me even though music is my life!


At 40, Danielle Ponder quit her job as a public defender to launch a career in music. She is a reminder to be brave and follow your dreams. She can command a crowd with her voice, sometimes delicate and sometimes roaring. While shooting the second photo, I saw this halo of light appear the very moment she belted out “Run!” during her cover of Radiohead’s “Creep” that ended her set.

I love a songwriter round – the joy in this hootenanny was infectious! This round featured Danny Myrick, Travis Howard, Aaron Benward and Matt Warren.

Darryl “DMC” McDaniels, half of Run DMC, was in Park City to celebrate 50 years of hip hop. While we were all watching Run’s House on TV, DMC was in rehab for addiction and depression. The first photo is another shot when I saw the light surrounding him in an intense moment of rap.

DMC and Chuck D of Public Enemy onstage discussing the first 50 years of hip hop. These two guys toured all over together in the ’80s and ’90s, so they know each other well. I loved seeing them enjoy each other’s company while talking about their hugely successful careers.

Celisse loves you. She has such a beautiful smile and she let it rip on that guitar!

Bob Weir is the artist I was most excited to see at PCSS. The Grateful Dead were the soundtrack to my college years. I loved the album Blue Mountain and was excited to see what the Wolf Bros had in store for us on Saturday night. I love this photo, because he actually looks like he’s smiling.

The first time I saw Brittney Spencer, she opened for Jason Isbell in Detroit, Michigan. She joined Isbell and the 400 Unit to cover the Rolling Stones’ “Gimme Shelter” and nearly knocked me on my butt. The woman is a powerhouse! She joined Bobby for “Looks Like Rain” and showed all her tender glory. It was beautiful.


JD Souther, come on! This guy wrote or co-wrote some of the Eagles biggest hits. He also joined Bobby on stage for “Heartache Tonight.”

Devon Gilfillian was part of Sunday morning’s Biscuit and Jam benefitting Café Momentum, a restaurant and culinary program designed to teach teens involved in the juvenile justice system life skills so they don’t end up in jail again. Devon’s warm heart and soulful voice was a good compliment.

I think the only times I’ve seen Even Stevens have been in someone’s living room on a Sunday afternoon in Key West, playing hit after hit that I grew up listening to in the ’70s, many for Eddie Rabbit. “I Love a Rainy Night,” “When You’re in Love With a Beautiful Woman,” “Drivin’ My Life Away,” and “Step by Step,” to name a few. Kenny Rogers’ “Love Will Turn You Around.” Pop country classics!

Collaboration, connection. Negah Santos plays with Jon Batiste, but ended up in Park City as the guest of another participant. They added her to the Eric Krasno show on the mountain with Dumpstaphunk and some New Orleans horn players. She fit like a glove.



If you know me, you know I love Cuba and Cuban music. I’ve been traveling to Cuba for 20 years so I am always excited to see Cimafunk. The first time I saw Erik, the lead singer, was in Havana with an all-star band called Interactivo. It was March 2016 and I was in Havana to see the Rolling Stones. This band brings a mix of funk, hip hop, Cuban, and Afro-Caribbean music to the stage that will get you moving.

Tony Hall and Steve Poltz traveled all over the world together as part of Jewel’s band during the height of her career. Tony was performing with Eric Krasno & Friends on Saturday night of the Summit. It was mostly New Orleans musicians from Ivan Neville’s band, Dumpstaphunk, plus Anders Osborne and Negah Santos. I spotted Poltz in the crowd rocking out when Tony Hall stepped off stage to let Ben Anderson take over on bass. This photo is just a moment captured — two old friends running into each other. I honestly don’t think I’ve ever seen Tony smile like this.

All photos courtesy of Erika Goldring.
Lead Photo: Eric Krasno & Friends perform at Park City Song Summit 2023.

 

BGS Celebrates Black History Month (Part 2 of 2)

Posted on by Justin Hiltner

We invite our readers to celebrate Black History Month as we always do, by denoting that celebrating Black contributions in bluegrass, country, and old-time — and roots music as a whole — requires centering Black creators, artists, musicians, and perspectives in our community daily, not just in February.

Over the past year we’ve recommitted ourselves to fully incorporating Black Voices into everything we do and we hope that our readers and listeners, our followers and fans, and our family of artists constantly celebrate, acknowledge, and pay credit to Blackness and Black folks, who we have to thank for everything we love about American roots music.

Following a look back on our BGS Artists of the Month, Cover Story, and Shout & Shine subjects, we close our listicle celebration of Black History Month this year with a sampling of some of the most popular features, premieres, music videos, Friends & Neighbors posts, and 5+5 interviews that have featured Black, African American, and otherwise Afro-centric music. We are so grateful for the ongoing, vital contributions of Black artists, writers, creators, and journalists to American roots music and we’re proud to pay credit exactly where it’s due, in this small way.

Black history is American roots music history and all of these incredible folks certainly prove that point.

An edition of our Roots on Screen column featured an interview with Branford Marsalis and dove into his soundtrack for the new Netflix film based on August Wilson’s 1982 play, Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom.

Bona fide soul man Jerry “Swamp Dogg” Williams took us behind the scenes of his album, Sorry You Couldn’t Make It, showing humorous, casual, candid moments from the project’s creation — and giving us all the opportunity to be there, even though we “couldn’t make it.”

Sabine McCalla simply blew us away with her Western AF video session of an original, “Baby, Please Don’t Go,” last year, and we were ecstatic to include her on the BGS Stage lineup for Cabin Fever Fest last weekend, too.

Joy Oladokun’s vision and determination, and her unrelenting trust in both, paid off on a texturally varied second album, in defense of my own happiness (vol. 1), a self-produced exercise in vulnerability and subject of a feature interview. Oladokun will perform a few of her folk-pop songs as part of our Yamaha Guitars + BGS Spotlight Showcase during Folk Alliance’s virtual Folk Unlocked conference this week, as well.

The preeminent hip-hop-meets-bluegrass band, Gangstagrass, stopped by for a 5+5 and to plug their latest, No Time for Enemies. Gangstagrass were another excellent addition to our Cabin Fever Fest lineup and we look forward to being able to catch them in-person again, soon.

To mark Juneteenth 2020, we published a thoughtful round up of new movement music, a sort of patchwork soundtrack for protest, struggle, civil rights, and progress including songs by Leon Bridges, Chastity Brown, Kam Franklin (listen above), and more.

We were ecstatic to feature Valerie June, Rhiannon Giddens & Francesco Turrisi, Ben Harper, and Yola during our five-episode virtual online variety show, Whiskey Sour Happy Hour, last spring. The show raised over $50,000 for COVID-19 relief — through MusiCares and personal protective equipment via Direct Relief. WSHH season 2? We want that to happen, too! Stay tuned.

Pianist Matt Rollings’ collaboration with Americana-soul duo The War & Treaty was — UNDERSTANDABLY — a mini viral hit, taking off on our social media channels.

Rhiannon Giddens also powerfully and captivatingly warned all of us not to call her names with a new song recently: “The framework in the song is a love affair, but it can happen in any kind of connection,” she explained in a press release. “The real story was accepting my inner strength and refusing to continue being gaslit and held back; and refusing to keep sacrificing my mental health for the sake of anything or anyone.”

We visited once again with now mononymous Kenyan songwriter, Ondara, whose pandemic album, Folk n’ Roll Vol. 1: Tales of Isolation, kept many of us company during sheltering in place.

Speaking of which, Crys Matthews and Heather Mae didn’t let guidelines around social distancing keep them down, as evidenced on “Six Feet Apart.”

Our country-soul queen, Yola, wowed all of us with a Tiny Desk (Home) Concert and some acoustic renderings of her resplendent countrypolitan songs.

As did veteran bluesman Don Bryant, who after a lifelong career writing and recording earned his first Grammy nomination in 2020 for You Make Me Feel, a record that is nothing less than a physical incarnation of rhythm and blues. His Tiny Desk (Home) Concert is entrancing.

Selwyn Birchwood rightly reminded blues fans that it isn’t all sad; in fact, if you aren’t partying to the blues you’re doing it wrong. Just listen to “I Got Drunk, Laid and Stoned” to find out.

Leigh Nash and Ruby Amanfu joined forces on a Congressman John Lewis-inspired number entitled “Good Trouble” just last week, a perfect song to mark Black History Month.

Last year, to mark Women’s History Month (coming up again in March!) we spotlighted the huge influence and contributions of Elizabeth “Libba” Cotten, a folk singer and picker famous for playing her guitar left-handed — and upside down and “backwards!” Though Cotten spent most of her adult life working as a housekeeper, her original folksongs and her idiosyncratic picking style still inspire bluegrass, old-time, and blues musicians alike.

Country singer-songwriter Miko Marks returns this year with new music for the first time in thirteen years, after effectively being shut out of Music City and its country music machine because of her Blackness. A recent single release reclaims “Hard Times,” a song composed by Stephen Foster, who was an American songbook stalwart and folk music legend who performed in minstrel shows and in blackface.

Chris Pierce challenges his listeners with a new song this month, “American Silence,” because as he puts it, “It’s important to not give up on reaching out to those who have stayed silent for too long about the issues that affect those around us all.” A timely reminder to all of us — especially those of us who are allies and accomplices — as we approach the one-year anniversary of this most recent racial reckoning in the United States.

And finally, to close this gargantuan list — which is still just the tip of the iceberg of Black music in bluegrass, country, and Americana — we’ll leave you with a relative newcomer in country-soul and Americana, Annie Mack. Mack’s gorgeous blend of genres and styles is anchored by her powerful and tender voice and we were glad to be stopped in our tracks by her debut EP, Testify. 

Editor’s Note: Read part one of our Black History Month collection here.

Photo credit (L to R): Chris Pierce by Mathieu Bitton; Elizabeth Cotten; Annie Mack by Shelly Mosman.

LISTEN: Yola, “Hold On”

Posted on by Editor

Artist: Yola, with Brandi Carlile and Natalie Hemby on backing vocals, Sheryl Crow on piano, and Jason Isbell on guitar
Hometown: Bristol, England
Single: “Hold On”
Release Date: October 9, 2020

In Their Words: “‘Hold On’ is a conversation between me and the next generation of young black girls. My mother’s advice would always stress caution, that all that glitters isn’t gold, and that my black female role models on TV are probably having a hard time. She warned me that I should rethink my calling to be a writer and a singer…. but to me that was all the more reason I should take up this space. ‘Hold On’ is asking the next gen to take up space, to be visible and to show what it looks to be young, gifted and black.” — Yola

Editor’s Note: A portion of profits from sales of the track will be donated to MusicCares and National Bailout Collective.

Photo credit: Joseph Ross

Stay On Your Ass: If Days Still Mean Anything to You, It’s a Long Weekend!

Posted on by Justin Hiltner

Our plans: GET. OFF. YOUR. ASS. 2020: Nope, lol.

In the past, supporting musicians, writers, and creators meant going out to shows, buying drinks at venues, volunteering at festivals, and so much more. But music fans and supporters around the globe are finding new ways to show up for the folks who supply the soundtracks to our lives.

States and local jurisdictions may be loosening coronavirus lockdown restrictions, but the numbers are still very clear. Memorial Day or not, the healthy, safe choice is to just stay distanced, stay apart, and stay on your ass! We’ll continue to bring you a few of our favorite events, livestreams, and COVID-19 coping resources that we’ve scrolled by on our feeds or found in our inboxes each week until that reality changes.

Did we miss something? (We probably did.) Let us know in the comments or on social media!

Rhiannon Giddens Honors Bill Withers, Aids COVID-19 Relief Efforts

In early May, Rhiannon Giddens released a gem from her vault of B-sides and outtakes. Recorded in what she refers to as a “very un-socially distanced time,” Giddens and co. perform a lively tribute to an icon of American music. The release of this cover and music video celebrate the life and music of Bill Withers, while also portraying life in quarantine and raising funds for Global Giving’s Coronavirus Relief Fund.

Like many of his other hits, Withers’ “Just the Two of Us” has an infectious cheerfulness that, especially when juxtaposed with images of quarantine and sheltering in place, can brighten any day. Giddens explains, “When Bill Withers passed, we suddenly remembered we had made this beautiful [cover]… So whether it’s just the two of us, or just a few of us; whether the lockdown has been for months or it’s about to be lifted; COVID-19 is here for the foreseeable future, and the more we can be alone together now, the better the future will be.” 

Whiskey Sour Happy Hour Concludes

Our month-long online variety show came to a close last night with a surprise bonus episode featuring performances from past WSHH performers like Billy Strings, Valerie June, Rodney Crowell, and more. Last week, for the superjam of our final “official” episode, our cast of pickers pulled off this incredible cover of “The Weight,” a perfect finale for the series.

It’s been an incredible journey building and sharing these shows with all of you over the past few weeks, but the fun isn’t quite over yet. We’ve left all episodes of Whiskey Sour Happy Hour online so we can continue raising money for MusiCares and Direct Relief, two organizations leading the charge with critical support for musicians and front line responders facing this crisis.

Over your Memorial Day weekend, why not binge the whole show, enjoy world-class songs and comedy, and if you can, give a little to support the cause, too? Watch all episodes and donate here.Our friends at Direct Relief have been working ceaselessly since the advent of this pandemic to supply personal protective equipment to front line responders. Watch this brief video that captures the importance and the magnitude of the work they’re accomplishing.

California Bluegrass Association Says to “Turn Your Radio OnLINE”

Founded in 1974, the California Bluegrass Association is one of the oldest and largest bluegrass associations in the world, with over 2,700 members. They produce events throughout the year, including the jewel in their bluegrassy crown, Father’s Day Bluegrass Festival, held every Father’s Day weekend in Grass Valley, CA since just a year after the organization’s inception.

This year, the festival has canceled all in-person programming, asking bluegrass fans in California and around the world to turn their radios “OnLine” to take part in music performances, live interviews, online interaction, and so much more, featuring artists such as Tim O’Brien, Laurie Lewis, Molly Tuttle, Lonesome River Band, Special Consensus, Joe Newberry & April Verch, and others.

The webcasts will be accompanied by an online auction to raise funds for the CBA’s newly announced COVID Artist Relief Fund. Items being auctioned include fine acoustic instruments, books, music lessons, historic bluegrass memorabilia, and items of interest from popular musicians.

Get all of the information, full performance schedules, and more right here.

Music Maker Relief Foundation’s Freight Train Blues 2020

Our friends at the Music Maker Relief Foundation, the Hillsborough, N.C. based nonprofit whose mission is to promote and preserve American musical traditions by partnering directly with elderly musicians, have announced their 2020 music series, Freight Train Blues. The event, which ordinarly takes place at Carrboro Town Commons in Carrboro, NC, will now be broadcasted on Facebook, YouTube, and by WCHL 97.9FM out of Chapel Hill.

Featuring performances from Phil Cook, Mandolin Orange, Thomas Rhyant, and more, Freight Train Blues celebrates the life and legacy of Piedmont blues legend Elizabeth “Libba” Cotten, a pioneer in bluegrass, old-time, and blues and whose songs have left an indelible mark on all of American roots music.

You can tune in all through May and June! Get more information from MMRF here.

Reinventing a Broken Wheel – Frank Conversations, Future Opportunities


BGS co-founder and executive director Amy Reitnouer Jacobs will moderate the sixth session in Folk Alliance International’s “CommUNITY Online” series of sessions and panels on Friday, May 22 at 2pm CDT / 12pm PDT. Joined by David Macias (Thirty Tigers), Erin Benjamin (President/CEO Canadian Live Music Association), Enrique Chi (artist/activist), and Megan West (Facebook/Instagram) this group of industry experts will discuss, identify, and explore opportunities to innovate, pivot, and move the industry along in new directions. We each have a role to play in constructing our “new normal” — from immediate action to big picture initiatives, this conversation promises to be inspiring, provocative, and realistic.

Register for free, inform the conversation, and participate here.

Justin Hiltner and Jonny Therrien contributed to this article.

LISTEN: Todd Snider, “I Wish We Had Our Time Again” (A Tribute to John Hartford)

Posted on by Editor

Artist: Todd Snider
Song: “I Wish We Had Our Time Again” (John Hartford cover)
Album: On The Road: A Tribute To John Hartford (to benefit MusiCares)
Release Date: June 26, 2020
Label: LoHi Records

In Their Words: “John Hartford was a leader on three sides of our town — the bluegrass side, the hippie side, and the troubadour side. I can’t think of anyone else like that. He wrote poetry, played banjo, and exuded freedom at as high of a level as you can. I appreciated getting to be the one who sang this song, because it’s exactly where I am in my life. Me and my friends starting singing in the ’90s and made all the music we could, still do, but now we’re kinda grey and rooting for the younger ones, and wishing we had our time again.” — Todd Snider

Photo credit: Rich Chapman

Watkins Family Hour Find a Silver Lining in Work From Home Livestream

Posted on by Editor

By the time Sean and Sara Watkins were about to launch a new Watkins Family Hour album and national tour, the live music industry (and life in general) got turned upside down by the sudden need for social distancing and sheltering at home. It could have been a major blow for the band, considering that they have built the WFH brand through live, multi-artist performances at the Los Angeles club Largo.

Nevertheless, the siblings are used to making decisions on the fly, so they put their heads together and figured out how to keep the spirit of their famous Watkins Family Hour shows intact. The result? Work From Home, a livestream series on Zoom every Thursday in May that begins at 4 pm PT. (However, your ticket purchases allows you to watch whenever it’s convenient for you.)

A portion of all ticket sales benefit MusiCares’ COVID-19 Relief Fund. Artists such as John C. Reilly, Mandy Moore & Taylor Goldsmith, Ruston Kelly, The War & Treaty, Mandolin Orange, Mike Viola and Tré Burt have all confirmed appearances for the series.

During an afternoon phone call, Sean and Sara shared the silver lining of virtually introducing their new album, titled brother sister, to the world, and the satisfaction that comes with launching a successful livestream.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CALW2u_heFt/

BGS: What kind of vibe did you want to capture in this Work From Home series?

Sara: We wanted to try and give people the sense of some kind of normalcy. Maybe if people are sitting at home in front of their TVs or their computers watching it, maybe they can for a second forget that they’re not able to go to shows and enjoy some of the genuine back-and-forth that would happen at a normal Family Hour show. It’s been really nice so far having these moments on screen to catch up with our friends and just connect, in a way, because a big part for everyone’s isolation is that feeling of disconnect.

It’s been surprising to both Sean and me how good it feels to do these shows. We’re putting a lot of thought into the shows and learning how to do them on the tech side. They’re live, so there’s a little bit of a countdown. It’s been a nice, familiar rhythm of, “OK, we’ve got to get ready! We’ve got 15 minutes!” Getting everything ready and making sure we have all the things we need — the set list, any notes we have to ask the guests, and then it starts! And we’re live!

That’s a huge part of our life when we’re working, and then afterwards, it’s a release. And it feels good to play these songs. So, on a selfish level, it’s so nice to have that familiar rhythm. The greater hope is that we’re able to share the genuine camaraderie that we have with other musicians and with each other, and to commune in these very strange times, and to hopefully give company to everyone else who’s in their own isolation.

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The banter makes the viewer feel like they’re part of the conversation, too.

Sara: Yeah! That’s what we hoped for. In the first week, we were able to ask for requests and do one of them, and that’s nice. But instead of chatting with people on this particular series, we’ve just been trying to play a show.

Sean: One thing that we always aim to do at Family Hour is to bring an element of what goes on backstage onto the stage. And a big part of what goes on backstage is conversations about music and life. There’s a tendency to have this onstage personality, or way of talking about things, and an offstage version. I think we’re trying to blend those two. There’s good stuff that gets talked about backstage. A lot of it can be boring for most people but a lot of it can be really interesting.

Sara: The thing about Family Hour is that every show is different, and typically there are a lot of guests coming on and off stage, so there’s not really room for a script, or even a rhythm. So, that has taught us that we need to be prepared and nimble, and to be professional, but in a way that feels natural and honest with the relationships we have with the musicians on stage. This is something that we really care about — these conversations — and we don’t want to fake moments on stage with our guests. We want to have genuine interaction. And a lot of audience members want to see what we genuinely care about, and talk with our friends about.

What has been the reward for you in seeing this Work From Home livestream come together?

Sean: Just being able to do a show for people and see that they’re listening, and hear back from them. A lot of the comments are from people saying where they’re listening from. Typically when we do our shows, it’s just LA people that are coming to Largo, so that’s really a cool aspect of doing these online. We did a fair amount of work and preparation for these shows, and when they go off, especially with technology in play, it feels really good to get to the end of it and to have done it! We’ve done two of them and it felt really good. It felt like walking off stage, kinda. [Laughs]

Sara: We’re learning new things about mediums every week and ways that we can make it look better and sound better. Sean is always trying to up the sonic level, but it sounds really good and it’s nice to be able to have a reason to practice different things, learn different things. The cyclical rhythm is really pleasing and I love that people are building us into their week. It seems like people either have all the time in the world, or no time at all, during this, and it takes an effort to carve out an hour in your day, so I really love that and appreciate that.

Photo credit: Jacob Boll

WATCH: Ed Helms Talks Whiskey Sour Happy Hour on Conan

Posted on by Justin Hiltner

BGS co-founder, actor, and comedian Ed Helms appeared on the #ConanAtHome iteration of Conan O’Brien’s TBS talk show on Monday, May 11, to talk about Whiskey Sour Happy Hour, as well as the meme-sharing group text he and his fellow cast members of The Office have going and the cardboard locomotive he made for his young daughter while in coronavirus isolation. He even picks a little on an early 1900s piccolo banjo, too. (Jump ahead to approximately 9:00 for banjo goodness + Whiskey Sour Happy Hour.)

The final episode of Whiskey Sour Happy Hour, a weekly online music and comedy show to raise money for MusiCares and Direct Relief, airs this Wednesday, May 13, at 5pm PDT. Find all the information on how to watch and how to donate here.

Stay On Your Ass: BGS Picks to Ease Your Boredom (We Hope)

Posted on by Justin Hiltner

Remember when we used to actually try to get our readers to go out and support live music? LOL. It’s not “Get Off Your Ass,” anymore, it’s, “Y’all stay put if you know what’s good for you!” At least, for the time being.

Each week, we round up a few of our favorite tunes, events, livestreams, and content from the BGS archives that will hopefully help make your isolation pass faster and with a little bit more joy.

Did we miss something? (We probably did.) Let us know in the comments or on social media!

The Whiskey Sour Happy Hour

Did you hear!? We’ve teamed up with our pal Ed Helms, the Americana Music Association, TX Whiskey, Allbirds, and a pantheon of incredible musicians, friends, and buddies for four weeks of online variety shows! Proceeds from the Whiskey Sour Happy Hour will benefit MusiCares’ COVID-19 relief fund and PPE supplies through Direct Relief. Lee Ann Womack, Billy Strings, Madison Cunningham, Aubrie Sellers, and some surprise guests, too. Our debut show goes up at 5pm PDT / 8pm EDT on April 22 right here on BGS, on our Facebook page, and our YouTube channel. We hope you’ll join us and donate! More information here.

The Lumineers, Together at Home

Wesley Schultz represented The Lumineers at the end of March on #TogetherAtHome, a livestream campaign that has seen performances from so many artists, including Coldplay, Jack Johnson, and Hozier. Originally performed for fans on Instagram Live, Schultz sang a selection of songs from the Lumineers discography, adding covers of Springsteen and the Felice Brothers. This showing is part of the #TogetherAtHome daily concert series, but the campaign is building up to its fruition on April 18th. Global Citizen has organized an international broadcast and digital special with the express intent of supporting healthcare workers and the World Health Organization. The centerpiece event will be called One World: Together At Home and will be hosted by television’s best, Jimmy Kimmel, Jimmy Fallon, and Stephen Colbert. For more info on the broadcast event, visit globalcitizen.org, and until then, enjoy this installment of the daily concert series given by The Lumineers.

Martin Guitar Presents Jam in Place

Everybody loves playing Martin Guitars, so of course nearly everybody who’s ever picked one up is playing Martin’s livestream series, Jam in Place. In the past couple of weeks they’ve featured performances from Kelsey Waldon, Charlie Worsham, John Oates, Tenille Townes, and many more. On the docket for the rest of this week: Son Little and Amythyst Kiah. Martin’s website explains that the series’ lineup is full for the “foreseeable future,” so stay tuned for many more jams!

You can watch Jam in Place on Martin’s Facebook page.

Is It Time for a Bluegrass Cocktail? Yes. It. Is. 

A while back we had a mouth-watering series of Bluegrass Cocktails, fancy libations for at-home mixology that referenced and drew inspiration from classic bluegrass songs. We scoured the archives for as simple and quarantine-friendly a recipe as possible to give you: the Molly & Tenbrooks. Whiskey (it calls for Irish, but we trust your judgement and your liquor reserves), honey simple, lime, bitters, and mint — done. Cherry for garnish, if you have one, you fancy lil bartender you. We highly recommend this horse race-in-a-glass. Perfect to pair with your Stay On Your Ass activity of choice. Get the full recipe.

Justin Hiltner and Jonny Therrien contributed to this article.

Stay On Your Ass: BGS Picks for Your Social Distancing

Posted on by Justin Hiltner

In the past, we’ve been pretty much adamant in our command to GET. OFF. YOUR. ASS. Supporting musicians, writers, and creators means going out to shows, buying drinks at venues, volunteering at festivals, and so much more — except… not right now.

So here’s what you can do to help the music business — and all of your favorite hard-working, paycheck-to-paycheck artists. Just stay on your ass! Each week, we’ll round up a few of our favorite events, livestreams, and COVID-19 coping resources that we’ve scrolled by on our feeds or found in our inboxes.

What music are you spending your time with, now that you’re staying on your ass, too? Let us know in the comments.

Margo Price Plays a Tiny Desk (Home) Concert


Thirteen days into self-quarantining with their two children, dog, and cat, husband and wife Margo Price and Jeremy Ivey play three songs — including an unreleased original, “Someone Else’s Problem” — for a recently retooled version of the ever-popular (and BGS favorite) Tiny Desk Concert series.

A List Of Live Virtual Concerts To Watch During The Coronavirus Shutdown

NPR Music has compiled, and continually updates, this gargantuan list of online concerts and livestreams, sorted by genre. There’s a little bit of something for everyone. Artists and performers: you can submit your show for inclusion here.

Béla Fleck & Abigail Washburn’s Banjo House Lockdown Livestream Series


Everyone’s favorite banjo power couple has been making the most of their isolation time, broadcasting on Facebook Live on Friday nights at 7:00 pm EDT (upcoming shows on March 27, April 3, and April 10). Whether you’re a banjo nerd or not, Fleck and Washburn are delightful entertainers, with innovative double banjo arrangements, traditional step dance, and the most adorable cameos made by their two cherubic children. It’s worth a tune-in.

Fleck’s expanded boxed set, Throw Down Your Heart – The Complete Africa Sessions, releases on March 27 and Washburn’s duo album with guzheng virtuoso Wu Fei drops April 3.

IBMA’s Bluegrass Community Resources for COVID-19

The International Bluegrass Music Association is curating a resources page specifically geared toward the bluegrass community and its working professionals, who, due to the grassroots, DIY nature of the genre, are set to be disproportionately impacted by this crisis. While IBMA is careful to point out this is not a complete list, it’s an excellent starting point for any performer who may feel like the proverbial “rug” has just been pulled out from underneath their feet.

MusiCares COVID-19 Relief Fund

A philanthropic arm of the Recording Academy / GRAMMY Awards, MusiCares has been supporting professionals in music industries with financial support for decades, providing a safety net of critical assistance in times of need. Artists and industry professionals can apply for assistance, but those who are able can donate as well — a rare opportunity for direct action! Find more information here, and apply for assistance here.

Jerry Douglas Performs LIVE to Raise Money for MusiCares

Speaking of MusiCares, the king of the resonator guitar himself, Jerry Douglas, will be going live on his Facebook page tomorrow, March 27, at 2:oopm CDT. So, if you’d like your donation with a side of the tastiest Dobro in the land, here’s your best bet!

WinterWonderGrass TV

Our friends at WinterWonderGrass, who’ve unfortunately had to postpone both remaining WWG events in 2020, remain undaunted! Starting tomorrow, March 27, at 8:00 pm EDT, they’ll release a series of hour-long livestream “episodes” featuring music and performances from artists on WWG’s cream-of-the-crop lineups and sneak peeks at events and highlights of the wintry, ski-centered festivals that make them so special. You can tune in on Facebook, either on WWG’s page, or with your old pals, BGS, too. Two more episodes will follow, on April 3 and 10.

‘There’s Nothing Set Up for Any of Us.’ — TIME Reports on the Music Industry Fallout

Banjoist, ethnomusicologist, and artist Jake Blount was interviewed by TIME regarding the financial repercussions of so many canceled events and shows so quickly. The report details how Blount was on his way to the airport to fly to Norway for a festival when he got word it was canceled. Blount’s upcoming album, Spider Tales, is set for release May 29.

Also, You Should Register to Vote

This is real, folks. Voting is the best way to ensure that this pandemic and its effects — economic, social, mental, spiritual, and so on — are actually addressed in a way that centers workers and those most at risk, including freelance and gig economy workers who make all of our jobs, our music, and our art possible. You can register to vote or volunteer here, and get more info on voter registration here.

Photo of Fleck/Washburn courtesy of the artist.