The International Bluegrass Music Association Awards were handed out on Sept. 30 at the Duke Energy Center for the Performing Arts in Raleigh, NC. The awards show, hosted by the Infamous Stringdusters, are part of the annual World of Bluegrass conference, held Sept. 28- Oct. 2 in Raleigh.
Billy Strings took home the award for Entertainer of the Year, two years after winning New Artist of the Year at the ceremony. Dale Ann Bradley was named Female Vocalist of the Year, while Danny Paisley and Del McCoury tied for Male Vocalist of the Year.
2021 IBMA Hall of Fame Class
Twenty-seven time Grammy award-winner Alison Krauss joins banjo player Lynn Morris and the Stoneman Family in this year's IBMA (International Bluegrass Music Association) Hall of Fame class. It's the rare woman-dominated list of inductees from any music-themed hall of fame that isn't solely dedicated to honoring women. Beyond celebrating the leader of Alison Krauss & Union Station and Morris, the first woman to win the National Banjo Championship (1974), the Class of 2021 shines a light on Pop and Hattie Stoneman's three talented daughters: banjo great and Hee Haw star Roni, mandolin wiz Donna and the family band's leader after Pops' 1968 death, Patsy.
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Read on for a full list of nominees and winners. (Winners are marked in bold.)
2021 IBMA Award Winners
Entertainer of the Year
Balsam Range
Billy Strings — WINNER
Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver
The Del McCoury Band
The Po' Ramblin' Boys
Male Vocalist of the Year
Ronnie Bowman
Del McCoury — WINNER (tie)
Danny Paisley — WINNER (tie)
Junior Sisk
Larry Sparks
Female Vocalist of the Year
Brooke Aldridge
Dale Ann Bradley — WINNER
Sierra Hull
Molly Tuttle
Rhonda Vincent
Vocal Group of the Year
Darrin & Brooke Aldridge
Balsam Range
Blue Highway
Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver
Sister Sadie — WINNER
New Artist of the Year
Appalachian Road Show — WINNER
Carolina Blue
Gina Furtado Project
High Fidelity
Merle Monroe
Album of the Year
Bluegrass 2020, Scott Vestal, Patrick McAvinue, Cody Kilby, Dominick Leslie and Curtis Vestal
Distance and Time, Becky Buller
Fall Like Rain, Justin Moses
Industrial Strength Bluegrass: Southwestern Ohio's Musical Legacy, Various Artists — WINNER
Load the Wagon, Junior Sisk
Still Here, Steve Gulley & Tim Stafford
Song of the Year
"Banjo Player's Blues," High Fidelity
"Hitchhiking to California," Alan Bibey & Grasstowne
"Just Load the Wagon," Junior Sisk
"Leaving on Her Mind," Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver
"Richest Man," Balsam Range — WINNER
Gospel Recording of the Year
"After Awhile," Dale Ann Bradley — WINNER (tie)
"Grit and Grace," Balsam Range
"Hear Jerusalem Calling," Joe Mullins & the Radio Ramblers
"In the Resurrection Morning," Sacred Reunion featuring Doyle Lawson, Vince Gill, Barry Abernathy, Tim Stafford, Mark Wheeler, Jim VanCleve, Phil Leadbetter and Jason Moore — WINNER (tie)
"When He Calls My Name," Alan Bibey & Grasstowne
Instrumental Recording of the Year
"The Appalachian Road," Appalachian Road Show
"Foggy Mountain Chimes," Scott Vestal, Patrick McAvinue, Cody Kilby, Dominick Leslie and Curtis Vestal
"Ground Speed," Kristin Scott Benson, Skip Cherryholmes, Jeremy Garrett, Kevin Kehrberg and Darren Nicholson — WINNER
"Mountain Strings," Sierra Hull
"Taxland," Justin Moses with Sierra Hull
Collaborative Recording of the Year
"Birmingham Jail," Barry Abernathy with Vince Gill
"In the Resurrection Morning," Sacred Reunion featuring Doyle Lawson, Vince Gill, Barry Abernathy, Tim Stafford, Mark Wheeler, Jim VanCleve, Phil Leadbetter and Jason Moore
"My Baby's Gone," Justin Moses with Del McCoury
"Tears of Regret," High Fidelity with Jesse McReynolds
"White Line Fever," Bobby Osborne with Tim O'Brien, Trey Hensley, Sierra Hull, Stuart Duncan, Todd Phillips and Alison Brown — WINNER
Banjo Player of the Year
Gena Britt
Gina Furtado
Rob McCoury
Kristin Scott Benson
Scott Vestal — WINNER
Bass Player of the Year
Mike Bub
Todd Phillips
Missy Raines — WINNER
Mark Schatz
Marshall Wilborn
Fiddle Player of the Year
Jason Carter
Michael Cleveland
Stuart Duncan
Bronwyn Keith-Hynes — WINNER
Deanie Richardson
Resophonic Guitar Player of the Year
Jerry Douglas
Andy Hall
Rob Ickes
Phil Leadbetter
Justin Moses — WINNER
Guitar Player of the Year
Trey Hensley
Billy Strings — WINNER
Bryan Sutton
Molly Tuttle
Jake Workman
Mandolin Player of the Year
Jesse Brock
Sam Bush
Sierra Hull — WINNER
Ronnie McCoury
Tristan Scroggins
Edior's note: This article was originally published in July of 2021. It was updated on Oct. 4, 2021 to reflect the 2021 IBMA Award winners.
