The Artists

Discipline, Hard Work, and High Standards  Written By Dale and Darcy Cahill Jacob Jolliff’s bluegrass roots run deep. He picked up a mandolin at seven years old and attended his first bluegrass festival at age nine. Already an eager mandolin player, Jolliff surprised everyone by sitting in his lawn chair not for one or two…

Bluegrass veteran Don Rigsby’s reputation speaks for itself. The award-winning musician has been a member of top bluegrass music groups including The Bluegrass Cardinals, JD Crowe and The New South, and the Lonesome River Band. A two-time Grammy nominee, Rigsby has won two SPBGMA “Traditional Male Vocalist of the Year” awards, multiple IBMA trophies, and…

It was a dramatic moment when Larry Sparks walked onto the stage at Ralph Stanley’s funeral in the summer of 2016 to sing a song of tribute. Before he hit the first notes, Sparks turned to his right to address Ralph Stanley II, who was sitting in a chair near the microphone.      There…

Longs For Return To Playing  Photos By Stacie Huckaba After four years of hard work, Grammy-nominated fiddler Mike Barnett was pumped to release his dream duets project when tragedy struck. Two days after celebrating his July 23 birthday last year, the now 31-year-old musician was cleaning house with his wife when he tried to tell…

Goes Deep into his  New 19-cut Album  My Bluegrass Heart Photos by Kevin Slick “I want the recording to sound like the musicians own that music, and not sound like they have just managed to get through it.” It was a bittersweet occasion when the news broke that Béla Fleck had recorded a follow up…

 A Great Banjo Picker and a Good Person Steve Dilling is a very humble and thankful man. Instead of listing his many accolades from 40 years in the music industry, he references all those who have helped him along the way. He is reflective, appreciative, and grateful. His dad, Don Dilling, explained his son’s demeanor….