Wide Open Country is honored to announce that Valerie June is the 2026 Song Contest Dream Co-Write Artist.
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The Grand Prize Winner of the 2026 Song Contest will win a prize package that includes a "Dream Co-Write" with June, $5000, a premium guitar and more.
Learn more about this year's Dream Co-Write artist:
Known for her distinctive voice and singing style, "[Valerie June's] every quiver bespeaks emotional honesty" (New Yorker). As a Grammy-nominated singer-songwriter and three-time Americana Music Honors and Awards nominee, June weaves fresh medicinal downloads of love, sweetness, goodness, and joy with songs that have flowed through her for years. An author, poet, certified yoga and mindfulness meditation instructor, June has recorded three best-selling solo albums and written songs for legendary artists such as Mavis Staples and The Blind Boys of Alabama. She has been praised by Bob Dylan and shared the stage with myriad artists including John Prine, Norah Jones, Tyler Childers, Dinosaur Jr., Booker T. Jones, M. Ward, Robert Plant, Meshell Ndegeocello, Avett Brothers, Dave Matthews, Angelique Kidjo, Willie Nelson, Brandi Carlile, and Elvis Costello. Her albums have been praised by numerous publications such as Pitchfork, Rolling Stone, The Washington Post, NPR Music, Vogue, Elle, Mojo, Uncut, and many others, and she's made television appearances on The Tonight Show, CBS Saturday Morning, PBS, Austin City Limits, BBC, and many more. She splits her time between Tennessee and New York when she's not touring.
