Episodes

  • Liam Purcell: Fueling the Future of Buegrass
    Apr 28 2026

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    Liam grew up just down the road from Doc Watson's home in Deep Gap, North Carolina. A child prodigy on several instruments, he surprised everyone by sweeping the 2022 RockyGrass instrumental contests in guitar, mandolin and banjo, the first person to ever do so.

    He attended Berklee College of Music, and leads the band Cane Mill Road, which won IBMA's Momentum Band of The Year award in 2019.

    Age 24, he is already an experienced bluegrass pro, thoughtful and insightful. He talked a lot about Billy Strings, Doc Watson, and the trials and pleasures of leading a bluegrass band!

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    1 hr and 15 mins
  • Blake Willams: Banjo Memories of Lester & Bill
    Apr 21 2026

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    Blake Wiliams played banjo with Lester Flatt and Nashville Grass, before his ten year stint with Bill Monroe and his Bluegrasss Boys. He was the longest tenured banjo player ever with Monore, and has some amazing stories to prove it!

    During his career, Blake has toured 48 states and 7 countries, played Carnegie Hall, The Kennedy Center, and Lincoln Center. He recorded 2 albums with Lester Flatt, and 6 albums with Bill Monroe, including the Grammy winning Southern Flavor.

    You won't want to miss his wonderful memories, some never told before!

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    1 hr and 17 mins
  • Darren Nicholson: Bringing North Carolina Bluegrass Home
    Apr 14 2026

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    Darren Nicholson has played mountain music since his youth in Western North Carolina. A great mandolinist with Alecia Nugent, and seventeen years with Balsam Range, he’s also an introspective songwriter, a harmony singer, lead vocalist, and guitarist. These days, he's a man on a mission, to bring North Carolina roots music back to the local community.

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    1 hr and 3 mins
  • Ettore Buzzini: Re-imagining The Banjo
    Apr 9 2026

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    Ettore Buzzini is an eighteen year old banjo prodigy from North Carolina. Winner of Fresh Grass 2025 Banjo Contest, he’s a strong songwriter, instrumentalist, and vocalist, whose dream is to "bring as much of the human experience to our music as possible.” His banjo work is very melodic and sounds like no one else in bluegrass. I think he's a force to be reckoned with. Check him out.

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    1 hr and 4 mins
  • Tim Stafford: The Song is The Story
    Mar 31 2026

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    Tim Stafford is a master songwriter, guitarist and teacher. From Alison Krauss & Union Station, to 30+ years with Blue Highway, he's had his finger on the pulse of bluegrass. A wide ranging intellect, with special love for Tony Rice, we could have easily talked for another hour!

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    1 hr and 17 mins
  • Andy Leftwich: Fiddle and Faith
    Mar 23 2026

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    4-time Grammy winner Andy Leftwich began playing fiddle at age 6, entered his first contest at 7, and won the National Championship for Beginners at 12. At age 19 he joined Ricky Skaggs & Kentucky Thunder, where he played for 15 years.

    He's also one of Nashville’s most sought after studio musicians, for artists like Bruce Hornsby, Dailey & Vincent, Alan Jackson, Taylor Swift, Ronnie Millsap, Craig Morgan, and many more. His third album "Aced" comes out April 17.

    Andy is an amazing musician, and a man of strong faith, and we discussed music and faith at length in this fascinating conversation.

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    1 hr and 1 min
  • David Benedict: Spreading Mandolin Joy
    Mar 11 2026

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    David Benedict is Grammy-nominated mandolinist. After 3 years with Missy Raines, he joined Mile Twelve, who were 2017 IBMA Momentum Award winners. David was also 2018 IBMA Momentum Instrumentalist of the Year, and a 2019 Grammy nominee. He might be even more well known for his You Tube channel, featuring his weekly series Mandolin Mondays, as well as his in-depth mandolin lessons.

    He talked at length about his musical story, the mandolin with all its quirks, favorite artists, and lots of ideas about new acoustic music.


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    1 hr and 4 mins
  • Brittany Haas: Fiddling "Force of Nature"!
    Mar 4 2026

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    Fiddler Brittany Haas is "a musical force of nature" says Chris Eldridge. From The Republic of Strings at age 13, through Crooked Still, The Dave Rawlings Machine, Hawktail, and now The Punch Brothers, she is a huge talent, that covers many genres, with brilliance and boundless happy energy.

    She discusses her classical upbringing, her mentors Darol Anger and Bruce Molsky, her attachment to her 5-string fiddle that is shedding its varnish, the challenges of learning the Punch Brothers' repertoire for their big 2026 tour, and even her least favorite key to play in! (C#major). A gem of a person and interview!

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    55 mins