Even in a month as packed with festivals as September, Nashville's AmericanaFest, a five-day event held in venues across Music City, stands out. Given the staggering number of artists participating, it's nearly impossible to catch every set you want to see. (Just try.) Sometimes the best way to experience the whirlwind week is to throw out your plans and embrace the delightful, madcap nature of AmericanaFest. After all, where else are you going to see Asleep at the Wheel and the Dropkick Murphys in the same week?
Below, we've rounded up some of our favorite moments from AmericanaFest 2022.
Music From 'Yellowstone'
NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE - SEPTEMBER 14: (L-R) Hayes Carll, Lainey Wilson, William Prince, and Andrea von Foerster onstage during In the Round: Songs of "Yellowstone" panel for AMERICANAFEST 2022 at Hutton Hotel on September 14, 2022 in Nashville, Tennessee. (Photo by Terry Wyatt/Getty Images for for Americana Music )
It's not every year that a television soundtrack gets its own showcase at AmericanaFest. But then again, not every television soundtrack is as impressive as Yellowstone's. On Wednesday, Dutton devotees packed into the Analog at Hutton Hotel for an in-the-round performance from Lainey Wilson, Hayes Carll and William Prince. Hosted by the hit western series' music supervisor Andrea von Foerster, the set gave fans an inside look at how music is chosen for the show. Foerster was careful to avoid any season 5 spoilers ("This song's called 'Everybody Dies,'" Prince quipped) but soundtrack favorite and future Yellowstone star Lainey Wilson gave a preview of her song "Watermelon Moonshine," which is set to appear in the forthcoming season.
"Taylor loves working with musicians and there's just a soul in people that make music that you can't find anywhere else," Foerster said of featuring Wilson's music and series creator Taylor Sheridan's decision to cast Wilson in a musical role on the series.
It was a fascinating look at the integral role country and Americana music plays on Yellowstone and how the perfect song can shape a scene.
— Bobbie Jean Sawyer
Ishkode Records and the 8th Fire Sessions
Wednesday's panel titled Indigenous Americana: Reclamation & Celebration, moderated by artist and co-founder of Ishkode Records, Shoshona Kish, explored the systemic practices that have limited the amount of indigenous artists at AmericanaFest over the years.
"I think the impacts of colonialism....coming into a physical space and claiming it as your own when there's already people living and being [who have] centuries of knowledge of that land base — the impact of that alone and pushing people out and displacing people...every single art form and food and ceremony and any kind of cultural practice gets pushed aside because our people were pushed aside," Amanda Rheaume, artist and co-founder of Ishkode Records said during the panel. "The great thing is we're still here and we're still doing all those things...It's such a big part of why we now feel those impacts at AmericanaFest and whatever spaces we go into."
On Thursday, Ishkode Records, an Indigenous and women-owned label, hosted AmericanaFest's first ever Indigenous Showcase at Dee's Country Cocktail Lounge. The 8th Fire Sessions found Digging Roots, Amanda Rheaume, Aysanabee and Evan Redsky claiming their rightful space at the festival — a reminder of what we all gain when stellar artists have a seat at the table.
— Bobbie Jean Sawyer
Allison Russell
Photo by Jason Davis/Getty Images for Americana Music Association
Allison Russell and her band, made up of Chauntee Ross, Monique Ross, Larissa Maestro, Joy Clark and Mandy Fer, were a highlight of an already stacked set list at the Americana Honors & Awards ceremony. Along with Brandi Carlile, Russell and her band made a joyful noise with the buoyant "You're Not Alone." Technical difficulties lead to a second performance of the song — a happy accident for the audience members who were all too happy to hear the anthemic song again.
Russell, a triple nominee at the Honors & Awards, also took home the award for Album of the Year for her extraordinary 2021 release Outside Child.
— Bobbie Jean Sawyer
The Black Opry
Even if its airwaves and stages are less systemically flawed than those of mainstream country music, Americana's main platforms should better reflect racial and gender identity diversity. A stride toward a safer and more inclusive space was taken this year by AmericanaFest through opening previously-locked doors for the Black Opry.
Founded by Holly G in April 2021, the Black Opry website and touring revue exalts next-level performing and songwriting talents while championing a level playing field for BIPOC and LGBTQ+ artists. The collective's Friday afternoon panel at the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum encapsulated its mission by pointing new eyes and ears to the songs and backstories of Aaron Vance, Nikki Morgan, Julie Williams and the Kentucky Gentlemen.
— Bobby Moore
Dropkick Murphys
On paper, the Dropkick Murphys' AmericanaFest debut looked a little out of place. After all, throughout the Celtic punk band's 26-year run, its streetwise image suited Warped Tour more so than a roots music festival.
It wasn't out of the blue, though, between the band's long-held folk reference points and its two forthcoming albums built off unused Woody Guthrie lyrics. Still, there was something surreal about seeing Dropkicks singer and co-founder Ken Casey try to spark spirited sing-alongs in a Westin hotel conference room to a seated, sober and polite audience.
— Bobby Moore
Asleep at the Wheel and Other Legends
Not only does AmericanaFest serve as a goldmine of new music discoveries. As importantly, event organizers do a great job showcasing the country, folk and rock tastemakers in rising stars' record collections.
For an example of the latter, consider Thursday afternoon's WMOT Roots Radio, World Cafe and NPR Music event, where Asleep at the Wheel, Amy Ray and Lyle Lovett shared the same stage for as strong a legacy act showcase as you'll find at any roots music gathering. Other notable moments involving history-making talents teamed Jim Lauderdale on Tuesday night with modern bluegrass traditionalists Po' Ramblin' Boys and landed innovative banjoist Alison Brown on the same stage Saturday night as the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band.
— Bobby Moore
