What's Happening in Bluegrass?
The kids have grown up
I like music. I’m a blues lover, but I appreciate different forms of music. One of the most exciting forms of music right now is bluegrass music.
I never thought I would say that.
Bluegrass music is experiencing a generational change that we haven’t seen since the early 1970s, when the hippies moved in. Tony Rice, the renowned bluegrass guitar player, jammed with Jerry Garcia of the Grateful Dead and David Grisman, the swing/jazz/bluegrass mandolinist. In improvisational jam sessions, they created a hybrid of jazz, swing, and bluegrass. They recorded themselves as they were playing, and the jams were later released as The Pizza Tapes.
Of course, it’s never that simple. There was a wave happening in bluegrass around that time. The young bands were getting noticed. Bela Fleck changed what the banjo could do, John Hartford broke the boundaries of bluegrass, and David Grisman added bluegrassy touches to the Grateful Dead music, most famously on Friend of the Devil. Jerry Douglas changed the role of the dobro in bluegrass forever. This was all a part of the new beginnings of bluegrass music. For a non-bluegrass fan like me, Old and In The Way, a hippie bluegrass band, opened up a new world of music. Most of the audience who bought it were previously unfamiliar with bluegrass music. It was the top-selling bluegrass album of all time until O Brother, Where Art Thou? outsold it twenty-five years later.
Today, the brand-new generation has come to be represented by Billy Strings, born William Lee Apostol. Strings was a kid from Michigan who started playing along with his dad when he was five years old. He went to his first bluegrass festival a couple of years later and was awed by the appearance of people he thought only existed on records. There they were, in their spangly suits and cowboy hats, playing the hell out of the music. Meanwhile, most of the audience was jamming in the parking lot. That’s what bluegrassers do. Little Billy was never the same.
Billy grew up and got into trouble, but he never quit playing. He developed many of the bad habits of the underprivileged rural population. He discovered drugs and meth. He became known to the police.
He moved to Traverse City, Michigan. Traverse City has a community college, a cherry festival, and a lively folk community. Young Billy just naturally found an open mic. He played a bluegrass song, a fast fiddle tune played on guitar, and he got a standing ovation. “Hell,” he thought, “maybe I should just do this.” He turned pro. He credits this decision, as well as the influence of his wife, with saving his life, and he was determined never to return to drugs and brushes with the law. He went “California sober,” as he calls it. That means no hard drugs and no alcohol. Weed is ok. He didn’t want to wind up as a loser in prison with his life in a shambles.
He started playing everywhere. Today, he has a fine band of his contemporaries, and they play stadiums and big festivals. He is the biggest star in bluegrass. He’s one of the biggest stars in music.
He is not alone. He is at the head of a new generation of music stars rooted in bluegrass but unafraid to step out of the genre and fool around with the form.
They are also unafraid of being stalwart traditionalists in bluegrass, making sure nobody forgets where they came from. These are people like Molly Tuttle, a guitar player and singer who grew up playing with her dad. She is a wonderful picker and performer, and another real leader of this new generation. She plays a mean guitar and is a fine singer.
Interestingly, both Molly and Billy have separate YouTube videos of them playing with Tommy Emanuel. Tuttle and Emmanuel have a sit-down video of the two of them jamming, and Emmanuel could not be more impressed. He specifically points out her wonderful and somewhat unique right-hand technique. Strings and Emmanuel have a video of them playing at a festival. Billy keeps up with Tommy just fine. So, both Molly Tuttle and Billy Strings have the old man’s blessings.
Billy has been coming along for a while, just like Molly. Both in their early 30s, they represent the 10 years it takes to become an overnight sensation. Both Molly Tuttle and Billy Strings have won the Best Bluegrass Album Grammy twice since 2020.
Also in the new generation are stars like Sierra Hull, a great mandolinist, and Sarah Jarosz, a singer-songwriter who plays octave mandolin. I’m With Her is an outstanding trio, consisting of Sara Watkins, Sarah Jarosz, and Aoife O’Donovan. These three women evoke the feeling of the trio featured in the movie O Brother, Where Art Thou: Emmylou Harris, Gillian Welch, and Alison Krauss.
Many talented people are striding into the ranks of the new bluegrass. They’re not afraid to bring in songs from outside the genre, and they’re not afraid to be who they are. And the audiences love them.
That’s the key. The audiences love them so much. I saw a video of Billy Strings performing for an arena-sized crowd, playing When the Levee Breaks on a double-neck electric guitar. Individuals in the crowd shout, “We love you, Billy,” while he plays through the old Led Zeppelin chestnut. It’s not bluegrass, but the fans eat it up.
There’s a sense that the audience for this music is so happy that the new generation has arrived, bringing fresh enthusiasm, fearless setlists, and an eagerness for collaboration that shines. They’re out there, and they are doing it. They carry on the tradition and recreate it as they go. It’s a joyous thing.
Rest assured, bluegrass music is in good hands.
Of course, the younger generation is coming of age in other genres, too. Whether it’s blues, R’n’B, country, hip-hop, classical, or pop music, young people seemingly arise from nowhere and show us the future. That’s how it works.
Don’t block the young ones, whatever the form. Nurture them, make them feel welcome, and give them what they need to grow.
If you’re an artist or artisan, or a fan, welcome the young folks. Give them room, even if that means giving them some of your space or a piece of your gig. Achieving greatness is often easier if you start young. As a young artist, seek the respect of your elders, and give them the respect they deserve. After all, we’re all in this together.
And, if you go to a bluegrass festival, don’t forget to check out the parking lot.