The Caverns Sessions

Proud, black and queer, Allison Russell carries stories of tremendous weight and commands the spotlight in doing so. Her sensual roots-country earned a spot in Rhiannon Giddens’ group “Our Native Daughters,” and her songs have earned 4x GRAMMY (Album, Song, Performance) and 5x Americana nominations, as well as top music industry awards in the UK and Canada.

West Virginian Sierra Ferrell says, “I want my music to be like my mind is—all over the place.” Swirling her spellbinding voice with time-bending sensibilities, Ferrell makes music that’s as fantastically vagabond as she is herself, transporting audiences with a repertoire that spans Bluegrass, Techno, Goth metal, Jazz, and cowboy music with undertones of Latin and the blues.

Martin Harley, Daniel Kimbro and Sam Lewis serve up slow-cooked songs reminiscent of an early American songbook; celebrative pieces highlighting Daniel’s Appalachia roots, Sam’s Nashville tones and Martin’s world-traveling blues. Individually, they have worked with some of the biggest names in the music business. This is thinking, soulful, acoustic Americana at its finest.

Drawing on the energy of a Rock band infused with the Laurel Canyon creativity of the ‘70s, The Lil Smokies are invigorating a new approach to roots music, turning their a lively “Grassicana” sound into music that beckons the mainstream. Formed in Montana, this group has found the means to pay heed to tradition, while defining an utterly fresh and contemporary credence.

Once known as the acclaimed Mandolin Orange, this duo—from roadhouses to The Ryman to Red Rocks—presents as a band at the regenerative edges of Americana/Folk-Rock, flagbearers of the Contemporary Folk world. As challenging as they are charming, Watchhouse’s songs offer an inspired search for personal and political goodness, singing sweetly about the hardest parts of our lives.

Singer-songwriter Samuel "Sam" Ervin Beam, known by his stage name Iron & Wine, has released 13 live and studio albums over 20 years time, capturing the emotion and imagination of international fans with finely wrought, distinctly cinematic songs. Orbiting the genre planets of Americana and Indie-Folk, Iron & Wine has been critically compared to Simon & Garfunkel, John Fahey, and Neil Young.

GRAMMY-awarded and a 6-time GRAMMY nominee, Peter Rowan's career started back in 1964 with Bill Monroe's Blue Grass Boys; the legendary Monroe thought Rowan sounded like himself. Then, adding a twist to Bluegrass with David Grisman and Jerry Garcia to form the seminal band Old & In the Way and songwriting for such great acts as New Riders of the Purple Sage.

GRAMMY-nominated and a National Heritage Fellowship honoree Cedric Burnside is a 3rd-generation Blues Man: son of Blues drummer Calvin Jackson and raised in the Mississippi home of his blues singer/guitarist grandfather, R. L. Burnside. Proudly carrying the mantle of Mississippi Hill Country Blues around the world, Burnside’s songs deliver bruised but unfettered truth.

Della Mae formed in Boston in 2009 with the goal of disrupting the male-dominated Bluegrass scene. The band fearlessly pushes the genre, creating sonically adventurous and powerfully resonant work, viewing their lack of restraint as an imperative for the all-female band. GRAMMY-nominated with 30 countries in the tour wake, Della Mae is about creatively changing the conversation for women.

Darin & Brooke swing through The Caverns backing their incredible 9th album together. Grand Ole Opry regulars, Darin is a former member of The Country Gentlemen and Brooke the 4-time consecutive winner for Female Vocalist of the Year for the International Bluegrass Music Association (IBMA). Together, they won the IBMA’s nomination for 2021 Vocal Group of the Year.

For over 30 years, 3-time GRAMMY winner Bill Miller’s music has amplified the whispers of Native peoples’ hearts. Miller’s Mohican name is Fush-Ya Heay Aka (meaning "bird song"), and his songs have been deeply spiritual, exploring his Christian faith in his indigenous language while bridging cultures around the world with his signature sound.

This quartet twists a kaleidoscope of Bluegrass, Folk, and Rock genres in offering a rich, homegrown mythology of Western wanderlust in ‘acousta-delic’ hues. Amassing 5 million+ streams, the Kitchen Dwellers share timeless American stories from the heart of one of its treasured panoramas: Montana.