Mountain Grass Unit Enjoy Big Moments at 2026 DelFest

Editor’s Note: This story and photos are a contribution from writer and photographer Kevin Smith.

On Sunday, May 26, 2026, during the late afternoon at DelFest in Maryland, music fans were treated to a performance that many had been anticipating all weekend. The band Mountain Grass Unit took to the stage to a sea of highly excited onlookers. The moment marked the band’s third appearance at DelFest, but this year was very different for the band of four young rising bluegrass stars. It marked their debut performance on the Delfest main stage.

In 2024, the young men had played the festival’s indoor music hall as virtual unknowns from Birmingham, Alabama. In 2025, they played the secondary stage to great acclaim, and the momentum has been building ever since.

Other festival appearances followed including a breakout moment that occurred at the legendary Telluride Music Festival that was documented by Saving Country Music in a now viral Instagram video of guitarist extraordinaire Luke Black demonstrating his massive flatpicking prowess to an excited crowd of onlookers. The moment even got the attention of Billy Strings, and in due time Black got the opportunity to trade licks with Strings himself.

Since that time, the band’s reputation and fanbase have swelled impressively. Furthermore, the band received a prestigious Momentum Award for rising stars at The International Bluegrass Music Association’s 2025 awards banquet. They have also toured with noted Jamgrass band The Kitchen Dwellers which gave them even greater exposure to the scene.

Its become very clear that this is a band that is going places, and the DelFest crowd assembled on Sunday seemed to sense this. Mercifully, the previous three days of nonstop rain had ceased for a time, and folks had peeled off the raingear and were downright giddy with anticipation for this set.

Amid Delfest announcer Joe Craven’s ringing endorsement and introduction for the band, a roar erupted from the crowd as they filed onstage. This was the big moment for not only Mountain Grass Unit, but for the fans of the band who had been following them all along, watching their rise.

Their set featured a highly eclectic mix of songs including some originals as well as many well-known covers with surprises along the way. Very early on, the band covered the scorching Bill Monroe classic “Uncle Pen” much to the crowd’s delight. To a hardcore bluegrass fan, its heartening to see the younger generation embrace these legendary songs that defined the genre. It signals that the music is in good hands.

Frontman and mandolin virtuoso Drury Anderson showed off his large array of lightning fast mandolin licks to great applause and cheers. Fiddler Josiah Nelson also dazzled listeners with his superb fiddling runs, showcased on several ripping instrumentals.

Josiah Nelson really had a special moment during this set when IBMA and Grammy award-winning fiddle player Michael Cleveland emerged onto the stage, fiddle in hand and joined the boys in a song. Cleveland is one of the finest bluegrass fiddlers on the planet and is a modern-day living legend without a doubt. The audience loved every minute of it. Half the fun at DelFest is trying to guess who may emerge from the side of the stage at any point to join in the performance.

More intriguing covers came during the band’s spirited set, and included a bluegrass take on the Jerry Reed country-funk song “When Your Hot Your Hot” that not only put smiles on faces but had some dancing excitedly in the vast, muddy pit area in front of the stage. A pair of Beatles songs were also played, including the psychedelic “I Am The Walrus” that has perhaps the craziest lyrics of any Beatles song, yet is so irresistibly catchy, it became a sing-along to the crowd who were by this time in full-on party mode.

Guitarist Luke Black got his moments to shine during the set as well. The band played a nod to Woody Guthrie with the song “Ashes to Ashes, Dust to Dust,” which put his massive flatpicking licks on full display as he traded leads with mandolinist Drury Anderson. Black also shined during the numerous instrumentals that were played, performing lightning-fast lead runs that made jaws drop everywhere. Black is heavily influenced by bluegrass legend Tony Rice and it clearly shows. It doesn’t hurt either that Billy Strings called Black “the real deal.”

You couldn’t help but notice during the performance that a pair of microphones stood between the band and wonder who else may be coming out to join them. That question was answered when none other than festival founder Del McCoury, and son Ronnie McCoury emerged to join the band near the end of the set. After singing with them, Del told the audience not to go anywhere as the band had one more song. Unbeknownst to the members of Mountain Grass Unit, Del had something of a big surprise up his sleeve.

The band then went on to play their finale number which turned into a full on progressive-grass jam with Luke Black and Drury Anderson firing on all cylinders. As the music subsided and the crowd roared in approval, once again Del McCoury and Ronnie McCoury emerged to quiet the crowd with a major announcement. Del turned to the band and mentioned that “As you may know, Ronnie and I are members of the Grand Ole Opry and we would like to know where you boys will be on August 26th this year.”

Obviously, caught off guard but sensing what was coming, Drury Anderson said “Uh, I guess we’ll be in Nashville,” to which Del replied, “We’d like to invite you to make your Grand Ole Opry debut on August 26th as our special guests.” You could see the smiles on this band’s faces from a mile away as they savored the moment, as the crowd howled and cheered with delight.

It was a very big moment on the DelFest main stage, and it validated the hard work, the sweat, the miles of touring and the dedication these four young men have put into their music. August 26, 2026 will mark the debut of Mountain Grass Unit on The Grand Ole Opry. What a milestone this represents for these young men from Birmingham, Alabama who only two short years ago were virtually unknowns, playing the third stage of Delfest and hoping to get noticed. How far they have come indeed.