The Artists

Della Mae (left to right) Vickie Vaughn, Kimber Ludiker, Avril Smith and Celia Woodsmith. // Photo by Laura Schneider

Della Mae and the Spirit of the Sisterhood

It’s a dreary January evening, but a quiet euphoria emanates from the four members of hard-driving all-female bluegrass group Della Mae. Earlier in the day, Kimber Ludiker, the group’s founder and a fifth-generation fiddle player, had laid eyes for the first time on the finished product of their new album, Magic Accident, on Compass Records….

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Olivia Jo

Who I Am Photos by Sierra Cochran Finding ourselves is a journey that can be hard with a lot of ups and downs along the road. For rising bluegrass star Olivia Jo, she has traversed two different paths in her thirty years. The singer of “Down Life’s Road” drove the country music freeway before doing…

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photo by thomas crabtree

Jacob Burleson

Joins Alison Krauss and Union Station Featuring Jerry Douglas for their 2026 Tour Photo by Thomas Crabtree One of the most memorable things to come from my many interviews with friend and IBMA Hall of Fame musician J.D. Crowe centered on what he learned from Earl Scruggs. With Crowe and Scruggs both playing the banjo,…

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Paul Brewster performing at the Grand Ole Opry. Photo Courtesy of Paul Brewster.

Paul Brewster

“One of the Best Tenor Singers in the Business” Paul Brewster grew up around music and has been a part of several influential bands in bluegrass. He was a founding member of the highly regarded band, Knoxville Grass, during the 1970s and has since become known as a unique and influential tenor singer in bluegrass…

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Alum Ridge Boys & Ashlee at Bluegrass On The Grass, Carlisle, PA, July 2024. Photo by  Holly Cameron, HLC Art

Alum Ridge Boys & Ashlee

Finding a new favorite band through a performance or recording is one of the ultimate joys of being a music fan. Last June, at the California Bluegrass Association’s Father’s Day Festival in Grass Valley, the Alum Ridge Boys & Ashlee took the stage Friday afternoon for their first set of the weekend.  Three songs into…

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The Infamous Stringdusters (left to right): Jeremy Garrett, Chris Pandolfi, Travis Book, Andy Hall and Andy Falco. Photo by Daniel Milchev

20 for 20

Two Decades of Life, Music, and Personal Growth for the Infamous Stringdusters “Life is a constant journey, always changing, always presenting challenges and always forcing you to evolve,” says Infamous Stringdusters banjo-picker Chris Pandolfi. Pandolfi is reflecting on twenty years of the Infamous Stringdusters as a band. In those twenty years, the Stringdusters established themselves…

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