Nominees for the 33rd annual IBMA Bluegrass Music Awards were announced July 26 in Nashville, Tennessee. In the running for the coveted Entertainer of the Year award are Billy Strings, Del McCoury Band, and Po ‘Ramblin’ Boys. Sister Sadie, and Molly Tuttle & Golden Highway. McCoury is a Bluegrass Hall of Fame member, while McCoury, Billy Strings and Sister Sadie are past recipients of the International Bluegrass Music Association’s top award. Po Ramblin’ Boys were also among the nominees for this award last year, while this is Molly Tuttle’s first Entertainer of the Year nomination.
Awards are voted on by the professional membership of the International Bluegrass Music Association (IBMA), a nonprofit professional music organization that connects, educates, and empowers bluegrass professionals and enthusiasts, honoring tradition and encouraging innovation in the bluegrass community worldwide. Award recipients will be named during the IBMA Bluegrass Music Awards Show on Thursday night, September 29, 2022 at the Duke Energy Center for the Performing Arts in Raleigh, North Carolina. The awards show — a highlight of the IBMA’s World of Bluegrass — will also be broadcast on SiriusXM’s Bluegrass Junction and streamed via Facebook Live (as was the July 26 awards nominees announcement).
A complete list of nominees appears below, along with information about three Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame inductees, five Distinguished Achievement Awards recipient, and the first recipient of the IBMA International Band Performance Grant.
Entertainer of the Year: Billy Strings, The Del McCoury Band. Po Ramblin’ Boys, Sister Sadie, Molly Tuttle & Golden Highway
Vocal Group of the Year: Balsam Range, Blue Highway, Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver,
Del McCoury Band, Sister Sadie
Instrumental Group of the Year: Billy Strings, Michael Cleveland & Flamekeeper,
Béla Fleck’s My Bluegrass Heart, The Travelin’ McCourys, Molly Tuttle & Golden Highway
New Artist of the Year: Rick Faris, Fireside Collective, Laura Orshaw, Jaelee Roberts,
Tray Wellington
Song of the Year:
“Blink of an Eye”
Artist: Danny Paisley & The Southern Grass
Songwriter: Robert Amos
Label: Pinecastle Records
Producers: Bobby Lundy/Danny Paisley/Ryan Paisley/Wes Easter
“Deep River”
Artist: Rick Faris
Songwriter: Rick Faris/Brink Brinkman
Label: Dark Shadow Recording
Producer: Stephen Mougin
“I’ll Take the Lonesome Every Time”
Artist: Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver
Songwriters: Glen Duncan/Jerry Salley
Label: Billy Blue Records
Producer: Doyle Lawson
“Red Daisy”
Artist: Billy Strings
Songwriters: Jarrod Walker/Christian Ward
Label: Rounder Records
Producers: Jonathan Wilson/Billy Strings
“Riding the Chief”
Artist: Chris Jones & The Night Drivers
Songwriter: Chris Jones/Thomm Jutz
Label: Mountain Home
Producer: Chris Jones
Album of the Year:
Bluegrass Troubadour
Artist: Danny Paisley & The Southern Grass
Label: Pinecastle Records
Producer: Wes Easter
Crooked Tree
Artist: Molly Tuttle & Golden Highway
Label: Nonesuch Records
Producers: Molly Tuttle/Jerry Douglas
My Bluegrass Heart
Artist: Béla Fleck
Label: Renew Records
Producer: Béla Fleck
Never Slow Down
Artist: Po’ Ramblin’ Boys
Label: Smithsonian Folkways
Producers: Po’ Ramblin’ Boys/Dave Maggard
Renewal
Artist: Billy Strings
Label: Rounder Records
Producers: Jonathan Wilson/Billy Strings
Gospel Recording of the Year:
“A Little More Faith in Jesus”
Artist: Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver
Songwriters: Jerry Cole/Doyle Lawson
Label: Billy Blue Records
Producer: Doyle Lawson
“He’s Gettin’ Me Ready”
Artist: Darin & Brooke Aldridge with The Oak Ridge Boys
Songwriter: Jimmy Fortune
Label: Billy Blue Records
Producers: Darin Aldridge/Mark Fain
“In the End”
Artist: Dale Ann Bradley
Songwriter: Jill Gilliam
Label: Pinecastle Records
Producer: Dale Ann Bradley
“In the Sweet By and By”
Artist: Dolly Parton with Carl Jackson, Larry Cordle, Bradley Walker, and Jerry Salley
Songwriters: S. Fillmore Bennett/Joseph Webster
Label: Billy Blue Records
Producer: Jerry Salley
“See You on the Other Side”
Artist: Rick Faris featuring Sam Bush
Songwriter: Rick Faris/Rick Lang
Label: Dark Shadow Recording
Producer: Stephen Mougin
“Traveling the Highway Home”
Artist: The Grascals
Songwriters: Frankie Bailes/Walter Bailes
Label: Mountain Home
Producer: The Rascals
Instrumental Recording of the Year:
“EMD”
Artist: Scott Vestal – Bluegrass 2022
Songwriter: David Grisman
Label: Pinecastle Records
Producer: Scott Vestal
“Happy Go Lucky”
Artist: Doyle Lawson & Alan Bibey
Songwriter: Doyle Lawson
Label: Billy Blue Records
Producer: Doyle Lawson
“Ice Bridges”
Artist: Billy Strings
Songwriter: William Apostol
Label: Rounder Records
Producer: Jonathan Wilson/Billy Strings
“Orange Blossom Breakdown”
Artist: Mike Compton
Songwriter: Bill Monroe
Label: Taterbug Records
Producer: Mark Howard
“Vertigo”
Artist: Béla Fleck featuring Sam Bush, Stuart Duncan, Edgar Meyer, and Bryan Sutton
Songwriter: Béla Fleck
Label: Renew Records
Producer: Béla Fleck
Collaborative Recording of the Year:
“Blackbird”
Artist: Special Consensus with Amanda Smith, Dale Ann Bradley, Rob Ickes, and Alison Brown
Songwriter: J.P. Cormier
Label: Compass Records
Producer: Alison Brown
“East Bound and Down”
Artist: Po’ Ramblin’ Boys featuring Jason Carter & Bronwyn Keith-Hynes
Songwriters: Jerry Reed/Dick Feller
Label: Sound Biscuit Productions
Producer: The Po’ Rambling’ Boys/Dave Haggard
“Honky Tonk Nights”
Artist: Del McCoury Band featuring Vince Gill
Songwriter: Mike O’Reilly
Label: McCoury Music
Producer: Del McCoury/Ronnie McCoy
“In the Sweet By and By”
Artist: Dolly Parton with Carl Jackson, Larry Cordle, Bradley Walker, and Jerry Salley
Songwriters: S. Fillmore Bennett/Joseph Webster
Label: Billy Blue Records
Producer: Jerry Salley
“One By One”
Artist: Dale Ann Bradley with Danny Paisley
Songwriter: Jim Anglin/Jack Anglin/Johnny Wright
Label: Pinecastle Records
Producer: Dale Ann Bradley
Male Vocalist of the Year: Greg Blake, Rick Faris, Del McCoury, Danny Paisley, Larry Sparks
Female Vocalist of the Year: Brooke Aldridge, Dale Ann Bradley, Sierra Hull, Molly Tuttle, Rhonda Vincent
Banjo Player of the Year: Gena Britt, Bela Fleck, Rob McCoury, Kristin Scott Benson, Scott Vestal
Bass Player of the Year: Mike Bub, Jason Moore, Missy Raines, Mark Schatz, Vickie Vaughn
Fiddle Player of the Year: Jason Carter, Michael Cleveland, Stuart Duncan, Bronwyn Keith-Hynes. Beanie Richardson
Resophonic Guitar Player of the Year: Jerry Douglas, Andy Hall, Rob Ickes, Phil Leadbetter, Justin Moses
Guitar Player of the Year: Billy Strings, Trey Hensley, Cody Kilby, Bryan Sutton, Molly Tuttle
Mandolin Player of the Year: Alan Bibey, Jesse Brock, Sam Bush, Sierra Hull, Ronnie McCoury
2022 marks the 50th anniversary of the release of the seminal album – Will the Circle be Unbroken.
Inductions into the Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame are also set to take place during the IBMA Bluegrass Music Awards Show. Slated for induction are multi-instrumentalist and vocalist Norman Blake, a Grammy and Country Music Association Album of the Year award –winner whose prolific music career spans more than six decades; Paul “Moon” Mullins, a broadcast pioneer and recording artist whose work brought bluegrass music to tens of thousands in Ohio and beyond; and Grammy Award-winning singer-songwriter and renaissance musician Peter Rowan who has been performing for nearly 60 years.
Five Distinguished Achievement Awards Will Also Be Presented
2022 marks the 50th anniversary of the release of the seminal album – Will the Circle be Unbroken.[/caption]Five organizations and individuals will receive Distinguished Achievement Awards in recognition of their significant contributions to the genre. The five, who will be recognized and presented with plaques during a luncheon at the IBMA business conference, are flatpicking innovator Dan Crary, cutting-edge roots music organization Freshgrass Foundation, revered banjo creator and musician Steve Huber, the legendary Nitty Gritty Dirt Band (in celebration of the 50th anniversary of the landmark Will the Circle Be Unbroken album, and online education leaders Peghead Nation.
The IBMA Bluegrass Music Awards Show is the centerpiece of World of Bluegrass Week that is slated for September 27-October 1 in North Carolina’s capital city. IBMA World of Bluegrass also features a September 27-29 business conference (replete with a wide array of professional development programming, sponsored artist showcases and late-night hospitality functions, and plenty of networking and relationship-building opportunities), the IBMA Bluegrass Ramble (a series of official showcases in downtown Raleigh and the Raleigh Convention Center), and the two-day IBMA Bluegrass Live! festival, September 30-October 1, that draws throngs of music lovers to downtown Raleigh to enjoy more than 100 acts on different stages set up along Fayetteville Street –- from the state capitol to the Duke Performing Arts Center.
Considered the genre’s annual industry gathering and family reunion. IBMA’s annual World of Bluegrass week has taken place in Raleigh since 2013 – apart from 2020 when the trade and professional association for the global bluegrass community shifted to online presentation of its professional development seminars, artist showcases and awards in light of concerns surrounding the Covid-19 pandemic.
Estonian Group Curly Strings Awarded IBMA’s First International Band Performance Grant
New for 2022, IBMA recently named the first recipient of its International Band Performance Grant. Curly Strings, an Estonia-based four-piece ensemble, was selected via a competitive process and will be featured as a part of this year’s IBMA World of Bluegrass. The band achieved mainstream recognition and success in its home country — winning national music awards and being the top selling artists in music stores for more than a year. Combining the familiar with the unfamiliar, Curly Strings its unique Baltic take to the acoustic music world.
Estonia’s Curly Strings (Photo: Maris Savik)
While noting that a number of very talented international bands applied for the inaugural grant, Paul Schiminger, chair of the IBMA International Band Steering Committee, said: “We felt Curly Strings stood out with their exciting blend of Estonian-influenced bluegrass music. We look forward to seeing them in Raleigh and on their 2023 U.S. tour, which will include highlight performances at Grey Fox, ROMP, Frankfurt Bluegrass Festival, The Station Inn, and the Grand Ole Opry.” For more information on the band and to hear some of Curly Strings’ music, visit curlystrings.ee. This year’s World of Bluegrass will also feature an expanded exhibit hall and International Pavilion with a new stage.
IBMA (ibma.org) seeks to facilitate the growth and development of the bluegrass community – for professionals and enthusiasts who share a passion for the music.
Earlier this month, AcousticMusicScene.com published an article entitled Bluegrass Ramble and Songwriter Showcase Artists Chosen for IBMA World of Bluegrass.
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