IBMA Announces 2021 Bluegrass Music Awards Nominees AND Bluegrass Hall of Fame Inductees

Lots of big announcements coming from the International Bluegrass Music Association this week!

The International Bluegrass Music Association has announced its 2021 Nominees for the World Of Bluegrass Awards, as well as who will be inducted into the 2021 Hall of Fame Class.  Results of the balloting will be revealed at the IBMA Bluegrass Music Awards on Thursday, September 30, at the Duke Energy Center for the Performing Arts in Raleigh, North Carolina.  The Awards show will be broadcast on SiriusXM’s Bluegrass Junction at 7:30 p.m. EDT and streamed via Facebook Live.

Let’s get right to it, starting with the 2021 Bluegrass Awards Nominees:

The McCoury Family

As always, it’s going to be a big award year for the Del McCoury Band!  The bluegrass mainstay, headed by legendary Del McCoury, is up for just about every category.  Del himself is up for Male Vocalist of the Year, and his sons Ronnie and Robbie are up for Mandolin Player of the Year and Banjo Player of the Year, respectively.  The McCoury’s fiddle player, Jason Carter, is up for Fiddle Player of the Year.

Del McCoury is also nominated for Collaborative Recording of the Year for his work with Justin Moses on the  duo’s track, “My Baby’s Gone.”

Furthermore, The Del McCoury Band is nominated for Entertainer of the Year, and The Travelin’ McCourys are up for Instrumental Band of the Year.  And to top it all off, Travelin’ McCoury’s guitarist Cody Kilby is on the list a few times  – for his playing on the Earl Scruggs tune “Foggy Mountain Chimes,” (Instrumental Recording of the Year) and for his work on “Bluegrass 2020” (Album of the Year).

Did we miss anyone?  (Get ’em next year, Alan!)

Billy Strings

Billy Strings and his band – Billy Failing (banjo), Royal Masat (bass), and Jarrod Walker (mandolin) have hit the world of bluegrass like a freight train and have no signs of slowing down anytime soon.

After Billy Strings’ recent Grammy Award for Best Bluegrass Album, it seemed inevitable that he would be included in several categories when the IBMA Awards Nominees were announced.

Billy Strings and his band are up for Entertainer of the Year, and if you’ve been lucky enough to catch them live, you’d understand! They’re going up against the previously mentioned Del McCoury Band, representing a possible changing of the guard in the world of bluegrass?

The Billy Strings band is also nominated for Instrumental Group of the Year, facing The Travelin’ McCourys and Infamous Stringdusters, among others.

Billy Strings has guitar chops like none other in the business.  His punk-rock style has ushered in a new era of bluegrass and exposed a new and younger audience to the genre.  It’s no surprise that he is nominated for Guitar Player of the Year.  This might be his toughest competition, however, facing off against Molly Tuttle and Bryan Sutton.

Regardless of which IBMA Awards, if any, Billy Strings and his band bring home, you can rest assured that you’ll be seeing him on these lists for years to come.

Results of the balloting will be revealed at the IBMA Bluegrass Music Awards on Thursday, September 30, at the Duke Energy Center for the Performing Arts in Raleigh, North Carolina.

IBMA 2021 INDUCTEES TO THE BLUEGRASS MUSIC HALL OF FAME

The IBMA Bluegrass Hall of Fame recognizes the best in the business, the trailblazers and innovators that have shaped the world of bluegrass music as it is today.  People that need to be recognized.  (You better recognize!)

Alison Krauss has been the most commercially successful bluegrass-related artist since Flatt & Scruggs. She was signed to Rounder Records and started making waves before she left high school.  She was inducted into the Grand Ole Opry by the age of 22.

Krauss has 27 Grammy Awards (Not a typo!  Twenty-seven Grammy Awards!), 2 IBMA Entertainer of the Year awards, and 4 Female Vocalist of the Year awards.  Recognize!

Lynn Morris started playing the banjo after college quickly and became the first person to twice win the coveted National Banjo Championship in Winfield, Kansas.

In 1988 the Lynn Morris Band began recording for Rounder Records and earned numerous awards in the bluegrass industry. Her 1996 release, “Mama’s Hand,” won the IBMA Song of the Year award, and Morris is also a three-time recipient of IBMA’s Female Vocalist of the Year.

The Stoneman Family belongs on the bluegrass version of Mount Rushmore, if such a thing is ever built. (We imagine it would take decades to do Del McCoury’s hair alone!)

The Stoneman Family (later shortened to the Stonemans) band most often consisted of pioneering female artists Donna (mandolin) and Roni (banjo), alongside brothers Van (guitar); Jim (bass) and Scotty (fiddle).

Ernest V. “Pop” Stoneman was born in 1893 in a log cabin in Monarat, VA. In 1918 he married Hattie Frost of Galax, VA, and the marriage produced 23 children, 15 of whom survived to adulthood. Beginning with his recording of “The Sinking of the Titanic” in 1924, Stoneman became one of the best-selling early country artists before the emergence of Jimmie Rodgers and the Carter Family in 1927.

The induction ceremony will take place Thursday, September 30 during the IBMA Bluegrass Music Awards presented by Yamaha at the Duke Energy Center for the Performing Arts in Raleigh, North Carolina.

Tickets are now on sale for the 32nd Annual IBMA Bluegrass Music Awards, and for all IBMA World of Bluegrass events; visit worldofbluegrass.org for details.

The Awards show will be broadcast on SiriusXM’s Bluegrass Junction at 7:30 p.m. EDT, streamed via Facebook Live, and will be made available for rebroadcast by radio stations worldwide. 

The 2021 IBMA World of Bluegrass Awards Nominees:

ENTERTAINER OF THE YEAR
Balsam Range
Billy Strings
Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver
The Del McCoury Band
The Po’ Ramblin’ Boys

VOCAL GROUP OF THE YEAR
Darin & Brooke Aldridge
Balsam Range
Blue Highway
Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver
Sister Sadie

INSTRUMENTAL GROUP OF THE YEAR
Appalachian Road Show
Billy Strings
Michael Cleveland & Flamekeeper
The Infamous Stringdusters
The Travelin’ McCourys

NEW ARTIST OF THE YEAR sponsored by Ron & Nancy McFarlane
Appalachian Road Show
Carolina Blue
Gina Furtado Project
High Fidelity
Merle Monroe

SONG OF THE YEAR
“Banjo Player’s Blues”
Artist: High Fidelity
Songwriter: Charlie Monroe
Producers: Jeremy Stephens, Brad Benge
Label: Rebel Records

“Hitchhiking to California”
Artist: Alan Bibey & Grasstowne
Songwriters: Wes Golding/Alan Bibey/Jerry Salley
Producers: Jerry Salley, Ron Stewart, Dottie Leonard Miller
Label: Billy Blue Records

“Just Load the Wagon”
Artist: Junior Sisk
Songwriter: J.R. Satterwhite
Producers: Amanda Cook, Junior Sisk, Mark Hodges
Label: Mountain Fever Records

“Leaving on Her Mind”
Artist: Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver
Songwriter: Jack Clement
Producer: Rosta Capek
Label: Billy Blue Records

“Richest Man”
Artist: Balsam Range
Songwriters: Jim Beavers/Jimmy Yeary/Connie Harrington
Producer: Balsam Range
Label: Mountain Home Music Company

ALBUM OF THE YEAR (Tie)
Bluegrass 2020 
Artist: Scott Vestal, Patrick McAvinue, Cody Kilby, Dominick Leslie, Curtis Vestal
Producers: Scott Vestal, Ethan Burkhardt, Lonnie Lassiter
Label: Pinecastle Records

Distance and Time
Artist: Becky Buller
Producer: Stephen Mougin
Label: Dark Shadow Recording

Fall Like Rain
Artist: Justin Moses
Producer: Justin Moses
Label: Mountain Fever Records

Industrial Strength Bluegrass: Southwestern Ohio’s Musical Legacy 
Artist: Various Artists
Producer: Joe Mullins
Label: Smithsonian Folkways Recordings

Load the Wagon
Artist: Junior Sisk
Producers: Amanda Cook, Junior Sisk, Mark Hodges
Label: Mountain Fever Records

Still Here
Artist: Steve Gulley & Tim Stafford
Producers: Steve Gulley, Tim Stafford
Label: Mountain Home Music Company

GOSPEL RECORDING OF THE YEAR
“After Awhile”
Artist: Dale Ann Bradley
Songwriter: Public Domain
Producer: Dale Ann Bradley
Label: Pinecastle Records

“Grit and Grace”
Artist: Balsam Range
Songwriters: Ann Melton/Milan Miller/Beth Husband
Producer: Balsam Range
Label: Mountain Home Music Company

“Hear Jerusalem Calling”
Artist: Joe Mullins & The Radio Ramblers
Songwriters: Marty Stuart/Jerry Sullivan
Producers: Joe Mullins, Dottie Leonard Miller
Label: Billy Blue Records

“In the Resurrection Morning”
Artists: Sacred Reunion featuring Doyle Lawson, Vince Gill, Barry Abernathy, Tim Stafford, Mark Wheeler, Jim VanCleve, Phil Leadbetter, Jason Moore
Songwriter: Mark Wheeler
Producers: Barry Abernathy, Jim VanCleve, Dottie Leonard Miller
Label: Billy Blue Records

“When He Calls My Name”
Artist: Alan Bibey & Grasstowne
Songwriters: Alan Bibey/Ronnie Bowman
Producers: Alan Bibey & Grasstowne, Ron Stewart, Jerry Salley, Dottie Leonard Miller
Label: Billy Blue Records

INSTRUMENTAL RECORDING OF THE YEAR
“The Appalachian Road”
Artist: Appalachian Road Show
Songwriter: Jim VanCleve
Producers: Jim VanCleve, Barry Abernathy, Appalachian Road Show, Dottie Leonard Miller
Label: Billy Blue Records

“Foggy Mountain Chimes”
Artists: Scott Vestal, Patrick McAvinue, Cody Kilby, Dominick Leslie, Curtis Vestal
Songwriter: Earl Scruggs
Producer: Scott Vestal
Label: Pinecastle Records

“Ground Speed”
Artists: Kristin Scott Benson, Skip Cherryholmes, Jeremy Garrett, Kevin Kehrberg, Darren Nicholson
Songwriter: Earl Scruggs
Producer: Jon Weisberger
Label: Mountain Home Music Company

“Mountain Strings”
Artist: Sierra Hull
Songwriters: Frank Wakefield/Red Allen
Producer: Joe Mullins
Label: Smithsonian Folkways Recordings

“Taxland”
Artist: Justin Moses with Sierra Hull
Songwriter: Justin Moses
Producer: Justin Moses
Label: Mountain Fever Records

COLLABORATIVE RECORDING OF THE YEAR
“Birmingham Jail”
Artists: Barry Abernathy with Vince Gill
Songwriter: Public Domain
Producers: Barry Abernathy, Jim VanCleve, Dottie Leonard Miller
Label: Billy Blue Records

“In the Resurrection Morning”
Artists: Sacred Reunion featuring Doyle Lawson, Vince Gill, Barry Abernathy, Tim Stafford, Mark Wheeler, Jim VanCleve, Phil Leadbetter, Jason Moore
Songwriter: Mark Wheeler
Producers: Barry Abernathy, Jim VanCleve, Dottie Leonard Miller
Label: Billy Blue Records

“My Baby’s Gone”
Artists: Justin Moses with Del McCoury
Songwriter: Dennis Linde
Producer: Justin Moses
Label: Mountain Fever Records

“Tears of Regret”
Artists: High Fidelity with Jesse McReynolds
Songwriters: Jesse McReynolds/Lucille Hutton
Producers: Jeremy Stephens, Corrina Rose Logston, Brad Benge
Label: Rebel Records

“White Line Fever”
Artists: Bobby Osborne with Tim O’Brien, Trey Hensley, Sierra Hull, Stuart Duncan, Todd Phillips, Alison Brown
Songwriters: Merle Haggard/Jeff Tweedy
Producers: Alison Brown, Garry West
Label: Compass Records

MALE VOCALIST OF THE YEAR 
Ronnie Bowman
Del McCoury
Danny Paisley
Junior Sisk
Larry Sparks

FEMALE VOCALIST OF THE YEAR
Brooke Aldridge
Dale Ann Bradley
Sierra Hull
Molly Tuttle
Rhonda Vincent

BANJO PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Gena Britt
Gina Furtado
Rob McCoury
Kristin Scott Benson
Scott Vestal

BASS PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Mike Bub
Todd Phillips
Missy Raines
Mark Schatz
Marshall Wilborn

FIDDLE PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Jason Carter
Michael Cleveland
Stuart Duncan
Bronwyn Keith-Hynes
Deanie Richardson

RESOPHONIC GUITAR PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Jerry Douglas
Andy Hall
Rob Ickes
Phil Leadbetter
Justin Moses

GUITAR PLAYER OF THE YEAR sponsored by Yamaha
Trey Hensley
Billy Strings
Bryan Sutton
Molly Tuttle
Jake Workman

MANDOLIN PLAYER OF THE YEAR 
Jesse Brock
Sam Bush
Sierra Hull
Ronnie McCoury
Tristan Scroggins

IBMA World of Bluegrass is the most important week in bluegrass! The week encompasses four events: the IBMA Business Conference, September 28-30; the IBMA Bluegrass Ramble, an innovative series of showcases taking place September 28-30 in downtown Raleigh and at the Raleigh Convention Center; the 32nd Annual IBMA Bluegrass Music Awards presented by Yamaha, scheduled for Thursday evening, September 30; and IBMA Bluegrass Live! powered by PNC, October 1-2, a two-day festival. IBMA Bluegrass Live! features the best of the best in bluegrass today, benefiting the IBMA Trust Fund—a 501(c)(3) charitable organization that assists bluegrass professionals during financial emergencies—and introducing the music to thousands of new fans every year.

About IBMA

IBMA – the International Bluegrass Music Association – is the non-profit music association that connects, educates, and empowers bluegrass professionals and enthusiasts, honoring tradition and encouraging innovation in the bluegrass community worldwide.