When Gaby Moreno was announced as an official showcasing artist at this Fall’s Americanafest, it stirred a tingle of recognition in me, but I had to do some digging to realize what a big deal it was. The Guatemala-born, Los Angeles-based singer and songwriter became part of the Watkins Family Hour at Largo in LA and a regular on Chris Thile’s Live From Here Show. She’s released nine records, winning two Latin Grammy Awards - and an album Grammy Award earlier this year. She’s internationally known as one of the most versatile and enthralling voices in any genre, but her latest Dusk, produced by Nashville’s Dan Knobler, brings a needed Spanglish influence to the Americana community.
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While the public has become hyper aware of Billy Strings on his rocket ride to the top of bluegrass, only a small retinue of the music’s traditional veteran artists have achieved popular name recognition. I think especially of Del McCoury and Ricky Skaggs. But there’s a deeper world there, and we should work a little harder to shine the light on more of the old school masters working today. That’s what episode #299 of The String is about, through conversations with singer Danny Paisley and mandolinist John Reischman. They are “musicians’ musicians,” which doesn’t help them put food on the table or build their legacies.
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When the curtain falls on 2024, it will be hard to name an Americana/roots band that had a better year than Alabama’s Red Clay Strays. Last October, they traveled by van and played 3rd & Lindsley to a few hundred people. By the time they pulled their new bus in for their debut at the Ryman Auditorium in September, they had enough momentum to sell out three nights. That run has been curated into Live At The Ryman, announced recently for a quick turn Nov. 15 release, and that’s just the latest landmark in a remarkable rise.
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This week on The String, Molly Tuttle is the link in common between two of the exceptional breakout artists during an exciting era of bluegrass music. Bronwyn Keith-Hynes is the electrifying fiddle player in Tuttle’s band Golden Highway and a two time IBMA Fiddle Player of the Year. We get into her journey from Charlottesville, VA to school at Berklee to Nashville and the latest chapter in her solo life, the wonderful album I Built A World. AJ Lee and Tuttle go back even farther, to the family band they shared growing up in the fertile bluegrass community of California. AJ Lee, an exceptional and original singer, has led her own band Blue Summit for nine years, and their newest album City Of Glass is one reason they were nominated as IBMA New Artist of the Year for 2024.
LINER NOTES
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Check out these performances of songs from all eleven of our Mansion Sessions artists. These sessions were released on 9/3 and 9/10.
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The Lone Bellow stopped by the WMOT East Nashville Studio for a Words & Music performance with Jessie Scott.
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WMOT VIDEO: LIVE SESSIONS ON NPR MUSIC
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Watch Farmer Jason perform "Punk Rock Skunk" and "The Tractor Goes Chug, Chug, Chug" for WMOT's Mansion Sessions, recorded live from inside Two Rivers Mansion during this year's Roots on the Rivers festival.
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Watch The McCrary Sisters and The Wild Feathers perform LIVE for WMOT's monthly Wired In concert series at Riverside Revival in Nashville, TN at 7:00 p.m. CST on November 6th, 2024.
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Devon Gilfillian performs "All I Really Wanna Do" and "Love You Anyway" for WMOT's Mansion Sessions, recorded live from inside Two Rivers Mansion during this year's Roots on the Rivers festival.
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Join WMOT in celebrating Public Radio Music Day with live in-studio sessions from Brenna MacMillan, Andrew Leahey, Rosie Flores, and Drew Holcomb.
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Puerto Rico is holding elections that will be historic regardless of which of the top two gubernatorial candidates wins.
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Striking machinists voted to approve an agreement that will hike wages by 38%. The deal was endorsed by union leaders, who warned that Boeing’s next offer might be worse.
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Washington state's governor activated the National Guard to stand by to help local law enforcement as needed. Meanwhile, extra security is in place at locations across Washington, D.C.
Win a pair of tickets to Jason Isbell at The Pinnacle on March 21, 2025
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