Bluegrass & Beyond

Tony Rice, Bluegrass Guitar Virtuoso, 1951-2020

Tony Rice, an influential acoustic guitarist and 2013 inductee into the International Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame, died on Christmas Day, Dec. 25, 2020 at his home in Reidsville, North Carolina. He was 69. [To continue reading this article, click on the headline.]

IBMA Bluegrass Music Awards Winners Named

Sister Sadie –- a female quartet featuring Tina Adair, Dale Ann Bradley, Gena Britt and Deannie Richardson –- was the recipient of the coveted Entertainer of the Year award during the 31st annual IBMA Bluegrass Music Awards on October 1, 2020. The reigning IBMA Vocal Group of the Year also retained that distinction, while Richardson was named Fiddle Player of the Year and was also part of the Collaborative Recording of the Year (The Barber’s Fiddle). [Click on the headline to continue reading this article and view the complete list of award winners.]

Nominees Announced for 2020 IBMA Awards

Nominees have been named in 17 categories for the 2020 IBMA Bluegrass Music Awards. On June 26, the International Bluegrass Music Association also announced the 2020 inductees into the Bluegrass Music Hall Of Fame and a number of Distinguished Achievement Awards recipients. [To continue reading this article and to see the complete list of nominees, click on the headline.]

Doc Watson Week on Social Media, May 25-29

A number of artists will celebrate the life and legacy of American music legend Doc Watson on social media during the week of May 25-29, 2020 under the auspices of MerleFest, one of America’s premiere music festivals. [To continue reading this article, click on the headline.]
DelFest Hosts Free Virtual Festival Over Memorial Day Weekend

DelFest Hosts Free Virtual Festival Over Memorial Day Weekend

DelFest will stream performances from previous editions of the festival launched by Del McCoury, an acclaimed bluegrass musician, and members of his extended family, May 21-May 24, 2020 -- the originally scheduled festival weekend. Called DelFest At Home and celebrating musical highlights from DelFests past that have taken place in western Maryland for more than a decade, the free online event will showcase the festival’s namesake and his family, along with other notable bluegrass artists and jam bands. [To continue reading this article, click on the headline.]

Bluegrass Now! Airs on PBS Television Stations

Bluegrass Now!, a television special featuring a wide array of the musical genre’s leading performing artists, will begin airing on PBS stations across the U.S. on Saturday, February 29. Fittingly, it was filmed during a concert on December 19, 2019 at the Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame & Museum’s Woodward Theatre in Owensboro, Kentucky -- near the home of Bill Monroe, the "Father of Bluegrass Music." [To continue reading this article, click on the headline.]

SPBGMA Presents its 2020 Bluegrass Music Awards

Carolina Blue was the top winner in the 46th annual Bluegrass Music Awards presented by The Society for the Preservation of Bluegrass Music of America (SPBGMA) at the Sheraton Music City Hotel in Nashville, Tennessee on Sunday, February 2, 2020. Winners in 19 categories were honored during an awards show that capped the nonprofit organization’s 37th national convention. [To continue reading this article, click on the headline.]

Official Showcase Artists Sought for IBMA Bluegrass Ramble

February 29 is the deadline for artists to submit online applications for Official Showcases during the IBMA Bluegrass Ramble and IBMA Business Conference that are part of the International Bluegrass Music Association’s annual five-day World of Bluegrass, September 29 – October 3, 2020. Considered the genre’s annual industry gathering and family reunion, World of Bluegrass takes place in Raleigh, North Carolina for an eighth consecutive year. [To continue reading this article, click on the headline.]

Grammy Awards Presented in American Roots Music Field

Young singer-songwriter Billie Eilish and tributes & shout-outs to basketball great Kobe Bryant, who died in a helicopter crash earlier that day, dominated the 62nd Annual Grammy Awards telecast on Sunday, January 26. However, a number of coveted Grammy Awards also were presented by The Recording Academy in the American Roots Music Field and others during a premiere ceremony at Los Angeles’ Staples Center that streamed live on Grammy.com hours prior to the televised awards show on CBS. [To continue reading this article, click on the headline.]

2019 International Bluegrass Music Awards Presented

The coveted Entertainer of the Year Award, the top honor in the 30th Annual International Bluegrass Music Awards – presented Sept. 26, 2019 at Raleigh, North Carolina’s Duke Energy Center for the Arts – went to Joe Mullins & The Radio Ramblers, a five-member band that also serves as hosts of the Southern Ohio Indoor Music Festivals that are held twice annually. [To continue reading this article -- including the complete list of award winners -- click on the headline.]

2018 International Bluegrass Music Awards Presented

Entertainer of the Year, the top honor in the 29th Annual International Bluegrass Music Awards – presented Sept. 27 at Raleigh, North Carolina’s Duke Energy Center for the Arts – went to the Tar Heel State’s own Balsam Range. The five-member acoustic ensemble previously won this award in 2014. Balsam Range’s Buddy Melton was voted 2018 IBMA Male Vocalist of the Year, while Tim Surrett was named Bass Player of the Year. [To continue reading this article – including a listing of all the 2018 award-winners – click on the headline.]

IBMA Songwriter Showcase Applications Sought

Up to 10 songwriters (or songwriting teams) will be invited to perform one original bluegrass song each for an audience of artists, producers and other industry professionals during a Songwriter Showcase at this year’s World of Bluegrass in Raleigh, North Carolina, hosted by the International Bluegrass Music Association. The online application period for the IBMA Songwriter Showcase -- slated for Thursday, Sept. 27, 2018 -- extends through March 31. [To continue reading this article, click on the headline.]