Nickel Creek, Margo Price, and Bruce Hornsby & The Noisemakers headline Bristol Rhythm & Roots Reunion Sept. 8-10 in Historic Downtown Bristol, Tenn.-Va. - the town where the 1927 Bristol Sessions famously sparked the "big bang of country music." Voted among the top five music festivals in the country by USA Today 10Best readers in 2023, the jam-packed, three-day event is honoring its heritage by serving 133 sets of live music and entertainment on 14 stages.
The massive lineup is comprised of 99 acts including Watchhouse, The Mavericks, 49 Winchester, Larkin Poe, Marty Stuart & His Fabulous Superlatives, Allison Russell, Sierra Hull, Darrell Scott's Electrifying Band, Amythyst Kiah, Brent Cobb, Daniel Donato's Cosmic Country, Oliver Wood Trio, Alison Brown, Jim Lauderdale, Carlene Carter, Adia Victoria, Sons of the East, and Illiterate Light, to name a few.
Bristol Rhythm has a knack for catching stars on the rise; buzzworthy acts on the bill this year include TK & The Holy Know-Nothings, Twisted Pine, Tommy Prine, Arcy Drive, Palmyra, Happy Landing, Erin & The Wildfire, and Nigel Wearne.
The festival will wrap with a Super Set finale by 49 Winchester on Sunday at the Cumberland Square Park Stage, featuring a wide range of special guests soon to be announced...stay tuned!
Other festival events of note include Hoot and Holler, a Roanoke, Va.-based storytelling collective that will bring its stimulating live stage show to Bristol Rhythm for the first time at 12:30 p.m., Sept. 10, on the Theatre Bristol stage.
WBCM Radio Bristol's Farm and Fun Time variety show, hosted by Kris Truelsen and his house band Bill and the Belles, will broadcast before a live festival audience from the historic Paramount Bristol stage on Saturday of the event with special guests to be announced. The popular program is syndicated for television on Blue Ridge PBS, East Tennessee PBS, and PBS North Carolina.
The Crooked Road: Virginia's Heritage Music Trail will offer special music programming at the Birthplace of Country Music Museum on Friday and Saturday with traditional acts Mustard Cutters, The Loose Strings Band, Ferrum College's Orchestra Appalachia, Whitetop Mountain Band, and Addie Levy.
Bring your mat and join BristolYOGA at Cumberland Square Park at 9 a.m., Sept. 9, for a little self-love and zen; festival wristband is required to participate.
