Because the Americana Music Affiliation celebrates 25 years as a commerce group dedicated to honoring, supporting and advocating for a myriad of roots-oriented music, the group held its 23rd annual Americana Honors & Awards on the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville on Wednesday night (Sept. 18).
The historic constructing, which has been dwelling to generations of performers, was applicable for the ceremony, because the night was a revelry of Americana music’s roots and branches, winding by and meshing collectively rock n’ roll, Gospel, people, nation, blues, R&B and extra.
Sierra Ferrell was the night’s largest winner, taking dwelling the coveted artist of the 12 months honor in addition to album of the 12 months (for Path of Flowers). “Questioning Why” hitmakers The Pink Clay Strays had been named rising artist of the 12 months.
Duane Betts opened the present with a tribute to his late father Dickey Betts by performing a relaxed, rollicking rendition of The Allman Brothers Band’s “Blue Sky” (from The Allman Brothers Band’s 1972 album Eat a Peach), punctuated by Betts’ note-perfect guitar abilities and relaxed-yet-commanding guitar acumen.
“That one’s for you, Dad. We love you,” Betts mentioned, honoring his father, Dickey, who died in April.
The Milk Carton Children welcomed the viewers watching each in-person on the Ryman in addition to these watching at dwelling. Buddy Miller continued his reign as band chief, main the 2024 home band with Don Was, The McCrary Sisters, Bryan Owings, Jerry Pentecost, Jen Gunderman, Jim Hoke and Larry Campbell.
From there, Oklahoma native and rising artist of the 12 months nominee Kaitlin Butts carried out a roaring rendition of the witty, fiddle laden “You Ain’t Gotta Die (to Be Useless to Me).” The primary accolade of the night, instrumentalist of the 12 months, was awarded to 18-year-old guitarist/singer phenom Grace Bowers, who in August launched her debut album, Wine on Venus. Bowers was on the highway and couldn’t be in attendance.
Waxahatchee carried out her track of the year-nominated “Proper Again To It,” from her album Tigers Blood. Charles Wesley Godwin, his voice golden and burnished, carried out the banjo-inflected love track “All Once more.”
The night rolled on with performances from the agile-voiced Jobi Riccio, in addition to Wyatt Flores, who previewed the title observe from his upcoming venture Welcome to the Plains.
The Milk Carton Children devoted their efficiency of “When You’re Gone” to sound engineer Mark Richards. Additionally beautiful the viewers had been performances from sibling duo Larkin Poe, Pink Filth country-rockers Turnpike Troubadours, and the octave-scaling, peerless vocal dynamo The Struggle and Treaty (who drew an instantaneous, rowdy standing ovation). Additionally on the invoice had been participating performances from Sarah Jarosz, Brandy Clark accompanied by SistaStrings, and a masterful efficiency of “American Dreaming” from Ferrell. Noah Kahan additionally carried out his smash hit “Dial Drunk.”
All through the night, highly effective performances had been punctuated by extra awards winners, together with Larkin Poe (duo/group of the 12 months), Grace Bowers (instrumentalist of the 12 months) and Brandy Clark (track of the 12 months, for “Pricey Insecurity,” that includes Brandi Carlile).
“I’ve struggled most of my profession with the place my music suits and also you guys have made me really feel at dwelling,” Clark mentioned in accepting the track of the 12 months honor. “I bear in mind I used to be at a low time of not fittin’ in and [Americana Music Association executive director] Jed Hilly invited me to play AmericanaFest.” Clark additionally thanked a number of of her music business champions, together with Gail Gellman, Tracy Gershon, CMT’s Leslie Fram, in addition to the musicians on Clark’s self-titled album and Carlile, who not solely sang on the track, however produced the album.
The Americana Music Affiliation additionally honored a number of artists and musicians with the lifetime achievement award, together with the gospel group The Blind Boys of Alabama, who carried out an ovation-drawing rendition of “Work Till My Days are Accomplished.” Fellow lifetime achievement honorees included Dave Alvin (recognized for his work as an artist, author and member of The Blasters, X and The Knitters), Rev. Gary Davis, Shelby Lynne, Dwight Yoakam and musician/producer Don Was (recognized for working with a slate of artists together with Bonnie Raitt, the Rolling Stones, Bob Dylan, Elton John, John Mayer, Ziggy Marley, Lucinda Williams, Ringo Starr, Delbert McClinton, Hootie & the Blowfish, The Black Crowes and Martina McBride (who launched Was in the course of the night’s celebration).
“Go the place the love is,” Alvin suggested these listening. “Encompass your self with individuals who love music the identical method that you just do, it doesn’t matter what passing tastes or fads may be, and all the time encompass yourselves with musicians who’re higher than you might be.”
The Americana Music Affiliation has for the previous 5 years teamed with the Nationwide Museum of African American Music, and was instrumental Wednesday night in honoring Davis with the legacy of americana award, with Implausible Negrito performing “Samson and Delilah.”
Singer-songwriter Allison Moorer celebrated her huge sister and Wednesday night’s lifetime achievement honoree Shelby Lynne, calling Lynne “my private trailblazer.”
“I’m proud to be part of Americana. If I used to be ever to slot in wherever, it was with the misfits, storytellers, outlaws and truth-tellers, the heartbreakers, the hippies,” Lynne mentioned, earlier than she was joined by Moorer in singing “Gotta Get Again,” from Lynne’s landmark album I Am Shelby Lynne.
Versatile musician, author and actor Yoakam was additionally feted by Clark with a lifetime achievement award. He earned a standing ovation as he took the stage, first paying tribute to Alvin, saying, “With out Dave Alvin coming into my life, I don’t know the place my journey would have taken me. The twists and turns that lay forward of me at that time wouldn’t have turned corners into vibrant daylight with out Dave championing me…I owe him a debt of gratitude together with [guitarist/producer] Pete Anderson.”
“That was really an unbiased report,” Yoakam mentioned of Guitars, Cadillacs, And so on., And so on., which Yoakam initially launched as a six-song indie report in 1984, earlier than it was picked up by Warner’s Reprise Data and re-released with further songs in 1986. The venture would change into the primary of three consecutive Yoakam albums to hit No. 1 on Billboard’s high nation albums chart. On Wednesday night, Yoakam additionally mentioned that authentic indie venture was a part of, “…why the spirit of the Americana Music Affiliation felt at dwelling to me…Thanks for the reminder yearly when the AMA permits me to take part in something they’re doing. They all the time make room for us to return down… Each decade or so there’s one other era that rediscovers the big influence of early nation music, blues, rock and roll, soul, all of it might have on their friends and a model new viewers. The one place I ever received an artist of the 12 months award was the Americana Awards [in 2013],” he famous. From there, fastening his guitar strap, Yoakam plunged the viewers into his Bakersfield-meets-rockabilly groove of his 1993 hit “Quick as You.”
Through the night, Elizabeth Cook dinner additionally took a second to honor Jeremy Tepper, government and program director of SiriusXM’s Outlaw Nation station, who handed away in June.
“Jeremy was a key a part of this neighborhood,” Cook dinner mentioned. “He was a musician first-off, and a label proprietor, a extremely intelligent man who acknowledged that truck stops nonetheless had jukeboxes…and thus was born Diesel Solely Data….he was an early and ardent supporter of the Americana Music Affiliation.”
The star-studded night closed with Emmylou Harris and Rodney Crowell providing a model of the Gram Parsons track “Return of the Grievous Angel.”
See the complete checklist of this 12 months’s Americana Music Honors & Awards honorees under:
Instrumentalist of the 12 months: Grace Bowers
Album of the 12 months: Path of Flowers, Sierra Ferrell (produced by Eddie Spear and Gary Paczosa)
Duo/Group of the 12 months: Larkin Poe
Rising act of the 12 months: The Pink Clay Strays
Music of the 12 months: “Pricey Insecurity,” by Brandy Clark (feat. Brandi Carlile) (written by Clark and Michael Pollack)
Artist of the 12 months: Sierra Ferrell