Look alive, and get ready for this Friday, because that’s when a slew of new Billy Strings dates go on sale, and it’s not a question of if they will sell out, but how fast. We can confirm this since every single venue Strings played in the Fall/Winter of 2021 sold out.
Out with 2021 and on to 2022, which means getting you ready for the new albums and songs that are about to break out in country music for the new year. What better way than giving the ‘ol Top 25 Current Playlist a refresh with the best stuff to get 2022 started.
Live music in 2021 saw its return after the worst moments of the pandemic, but only in fits and starts, with multiple postponements and cancellations wrecking many plans, yet a few important moments still going off in the windows when they could.
Make no mistake though, if you want to hear the absolute pinnacle of bluegrass in 2021 when it comes to just sheer blazing imagination and artistry, then accept no substitutes. Béla Fleck and ‘My Bluegrass Heart’ are it, period. ‘My Bluegrass Heart’ is a masterwork
I know what some will say: Bluegrass has always been here. And that’s most certainly true. But for these subgenres of country music to sustain, they need fresh blood every few years, both in the form of exciting new performers, and new fans. And in 2021, bluegrass is enjoying both.
Nominees for the 2022 Grammy Awards were announced on Wednesday, November 23rd from the Grammy Museum in Los Angeles, with some big names receiving some important nominations, a few obvious omissions, and the “who” being nominated as opposed to the “what.”
All this talk of the superpowers of Billy Strings lately, one can foolishly shoot their gaze over the other superpicker of our generation, who came up trading flatpicking licks with Billy, and competing for the IBMA’s Guitarist of the Year—and honor Molly beat out Billy for twice.
Soon Billy Strings could be selling out arenas across the United States. But for the time being, he’s still content to play mid-sized venues, often booking multiple dates in the same location to fulfill demand. Up until today, all but three of the live dates he had on his calendar were sold out.
Far and away, the best performance of the night was turned in by an artist entirely outside of the country music fold when Jennifer Hudson took the stage to sing Willie Nelson’s “Night Life,” leading into “You Are My Sunshine,” with assistance from Chris Stapleton on guitar.
At about 10 a.m., Billy Strings pulled into the parking lot of the Twin Rivers Elementary School in Muir, Michigan in his tour bus, followed by a U-Haul truck. In the U-Haul were no less than 208 acoustic guitars of various age appropriate sizes—one for each student at the school.
Steve Poltz has morphed into an bonafide underground folk hero. His songs work like kids songs for adults, similar to the songwriting legacy of John Prine. Poltz’s storytelling skills in the live setting rival or surpass the very titans of the craft such as Todd Snider.
This is one of those moments when it all gets real. All the touring, all the stellar performances, all the live streams, all the great songs and the sowing of grassroots with blood and sweat from a prodigy musician to now a 29-year-old modern musical marvel…
Not every season of Austin City Limits these days is worth stopping down for, or has such close ties to the country and roots scene like it did back in the program’s heyday. But the first portion of Season 47 sure does. Set to premier on Saturday, October 2nd.
You know going into a new Billy Strings album that whatever it is you experience live will never be captured at the same caliber in a studio. But instead of trying to ensnare those surreal moments on a disc, Billy Strings and his cohorts must embrace the studio time as a separate medium.
Well damn, the summer of 2021 didn’t exactly turn out like we all had planned. But country music is the crutch we all lean on when times get tough, or heartbreak and disappointment creeps into our lives. So here’s a newly-freshened selection of some the best country stuff.
Well ladies and gentlemen, all the down time of the quarantine is catching up with us with an extra busy final portion of 2021 when it comes to the release of new albums. So to help you stay on top of it all, find this handy dandy guide to the albums you should be on top of.
Everyone recognizes what Sierra Ferrel has, and wants to be a part of it. It’s like Janis Joplin in the 60’s. A lioness. Sierra isn’t just a singer and songwriter. She’s a force of nature who melds gypsy jazz and mountain music into an alluring and intoxicating concoction.
What’s for certain is that we’re living in the era of Billy Strings. What this young man and his band are doing right now when they step up to the microphones in municipalities all across the country is other-worldly. Of course capturing that electric magic in the studio is another matter.
It’s not that Luke Combs is ideal, because he isn’t. Hell, who is? And for many independent fans, he will never compete with the likes of Cody Jinks or Tyler Childers in their hearts. But who would you rather have being the face of mainstream country at the moment?
Sierra Hull leads the 2021 nominations for the International Bluegrass Music Awards with 5, tying her with the retiring Doyle Lawson who picks up 5 himself, while Balsam Range, Justin Moses, and Billy Strings also pick up multiple big nominations, and Molly Tuttle comes in with 2.
One thing was clearly evident after traveling to Whitefish, Montana to experience the massive Under The Big Sky Festival with its incredible lineup and expansive grounds: the independent country and roots music we all enjoy has officially arrived. This is no longer a boutique subgenre.
In what’s always a promising sign for an artist and often results in extra revenue streams, there has been some big signings recently to publishing deals in the independent country and roots world, with Billy Strings, Wade Bowen, and Morgan Wade all inking new contracts.
Now the ball is in Post Malone’s court to wear a bootleg T-shirt of Tyler Childers wearing a Post Malone T-shirt of Post Malone wearing a bootleg Tyler Childers T-shirt, and soon we’ll be starring into infinity like when you stand between two mirrors on opposing walls.
Many folks have been feverishly awaiting news on when the debut album from gypsy jazz Appalachian folk phenom Sierra Ferrell would finally emerge after signing to Rounder Records in 2019. Well now we’ve been made aware the album is coming, and it’s appropriately titled “Long Time Coming.”