AmericanaFest 2025 Preview & Must-Sees
It’s time for AMERICANAFEST! I’m highlighting some must-sees for anyone else who’s making the trek to Nashville, as well as sharing my choices for the Americana Awards (to be held Wednesday evening at the Ryman Auditorium). My ground rules for the musts – they have to be folks I haven’t seen play before, and they have to be playing at events open to all passholders (hint – drop a pin at Third Man Records’ The Blue Room).
Must-sees (arranged chronologically by showcase)
Marfa – They’re based in Colorado. I live in Colorado. Yet, I haven’t managed to see them, but that’ll end this week. This twangy duo (Kellen Wall and Bryce Menchaca) shares a name with the artsy Texas town, but their influences also span the Rockies, SoCal and 70s radio country. Even with just a few songs out in the world, their reputation is starting to build.
Wednesday, 10pm – 3rd and Lindsley
Also: Friday, 12pm-5pm – Interstate 88 – The 5 Spot
Medium Build – The buzzy indie project of singer-songwriter Nick Carpenter has reached an increasing number of ears this year, culminating in a nomination for Emerging Act of the Year. Best catch this amazingly talented (and prolific) artist while he’s still playing these comfy spaces.
Thursday, 9pm – The Blue Room
Florry – The indie-country band out of Philadelphia (yes, really) released one of my favorite songs so far this year, “First it was a movie, then it was a book.” Their live shows appear to be as gloriously ramshackle as that song title, and singer-songwriter Francie Medosch can rip off one hell of a guitar solo.
Friday, 7pm – The Blue Room
Also: Thursday, 12:30pm-7pm – Illegal Mezcal Presents the Paste Americana Party – Love and Exile
Ken Pomeroy – This up-and-comer is all over Nashville this week, and when you check out her latest record, Cruel Joke (especially the shade-throwing “Flannel Cowboy”), you’ll want to hear more.
Friday, 9pm – The Blue Room
Also: Tuesday, 5pm-8pm – BMI Presents Rooftop on the Row, Official AMERICANAFEST Kick-off Party – BMI Rooftop
Friday, 12pm-6pm – AMERICANAFEST Day Stage Presented by NPR Music, World Cafe and WMOT – Riverside Revival
Friday, 1pm-5pm – Western AF Music Review – Nelson’s Green Brier
Fust – The thinking man’s holler band digs deep into Appalachian lore and language, courtesy of songwriter/literature PhD candidate Aaron Dowdy. Their Big Ugly is one of this year’s best records – because it’s smart, yes, but also because it rocks.
Friday, 10pm – The Blue Room
Also: Thursday, 12:30pm-7pm – Illegal Mezcal Presents the Paste Americana Party – Love and Exile
Awards
Album: Manning Fireworks, MJ Lenderman – The toughest call on my ballot was between this and Jason Isbell’s Foxes in the Snow, but this past year has seen a rise in indie country artists, and MJ has been at the head of the pack.
Artist: Waxahatchee – Tigers Blood continues to resonate a year and a half after its release. We’re going to see Katie Crutchfield’s presence in these awards for decades.
Duo/Group: Gillian Welch and David Rawlings – They may alternate who’s name goes first on the masthead, but this couple simply never misses. Last year’s Woodland was another highlight in a career full of deceptively simple masterworks.
Emerging Act: MJ Lenderman – This category is continually the antithesis of the GRAMMYs’ Best New Artist-turned-Witness Protection Program – all of these nominees have fantastic careers ahead of them. But Lenderman didn’t so much emerge as erupt – his influence is clear, but his influences (see: Ryan Davis and the Roadhouse Band) have also benefitted from his gravitational pull.
Instrumentalist: Fred Eltringham – The drummer is featured prominently on two of my favorite records of the past year – Sarah Jarosz’s Polaroid Lovers and Johnny Blue Skies’ Passage Du Desir.
Song of the Year: “Johnny Moonshine,” Maggie Antone – Penned with Natalie Hemby and Aaron Raitiere, the song has the typically acid-tongued singer breaking down and expressing her affection for booze, weed and that “somethin’ about his somethin’ drives me crazy.”
For all the information you’ll need about AmericanaFest, download the app, or go here: https://americanamusic.org/americanafest/
Go here to purchase tickets to the Americana Honors & Awards: https://americana.flicket.io/events/aef752ed-3616-40b9-aec6-4863e2c01dee
