Ashley McBryde, 49 Winchester headline Bristol's 2024 Rhythm & Roots Reunion in September
A series of local acts made good and national acts growing in global acclaim headline the Birthplace of Country Music's annual Bristol Rhythm & Roots Reunion from Sept. 13-15, 2024, at the eastern state line separating the city of Bristol between Tennessee and Virginia.
A myriad of multiple-time award-winning and critically acclaimed acts, including 49 Winchester, Ashley McBryde, The Wallflowers, The Red Clay Strays, Molly Tuttle & Golden Highway, Sam Bush, Wilderado, The SteelDrivers, Brittney Spencer, Drayton Farley, Jaime Wyatt, Bella White, and Silverada (formerly Mike & The Moonpies) are set to headline the 23rd annual event occurring at various venues along State Street in downtown Bristol.
For Spotify-favored and 2024 Grand Ole Opry NextStage class members 49 Winchester, headlining Bristol's Rhythm & Roots Reunion is a full-circle moment.
"We were – like a lot of acts that are claiming 'Americana' – borne from festivals like Rhythm and Roots," 49 Winchester's bass guitarist Chase Chafin told The Tennessean.
The band hails from near Bristol in Russell County, Virginia.
"It's the melting pot," he said. "Bluegrass with fiddles, a rock band with a trombone player, legendary country music -- all good American music that's not necessarily being made with the barriers of commercial success and genre restrictions in mind (can be found at the Rhythm & Roots Reunion)."
Other acts announced for the event include teenage guitar prodigy Grace Bowers, Jesse Daniel, Dale Watson & His Lone Stars, The Waybacks, Hannah Dasher, Stephen Day, Logan Ledger, Jim Lauderdale & The Game Changers, Rob Ickes and Trey Hensley, Tommy Prine, Joshua Hedley, Ed Snodderly, Dallas Wayne, AJ Lee & Blue Summit, J & The Causeways, The Kody Norris Show, Lauren Morrow and Bristol Lightning feat. Dave Eggar.
Tickets for the three-day event are currently on sale at https://bristolrhythm.com.
Over three days, the festival attracts over 40,000 visitors to the farthest reaches of East Tennessee to see 100 bands playing over a dozen outdoor stages and indoor venues along Bristol's historic State Street -- where the Bristol Sessions occurred.
"Bristol has always been a central space for country music," stated Music City and Bristol-favored singer-songwriter Jim Lauderdale in a 2022 Tennessean interview.
In recent years, Charley Crockett, Lucy Dacus, Sierra Ferrell, Margo Price, Alison Russell and The War and Treaty -- among many -- have played the annual Bristol festivities.
2024 marks the 10th anniversary of the Smithaonian-affiliated interactive museum sharing the name of the festival's co-sponsor (alongside Ballad Health), the Birthplace of Country Music.
Among many notable locales on Virginia's Heritage Music Trail, the decade-old museum is celebrating an anniversary in 2024.
Other noteworthy Heritage Music Trail anniversaries include:
The Carter Family Fold in Hiltons turns 50
The Floyd Country Store's Friday Night Jamboree in Floyd, Virginia, turns 40
The Ralph Stanley Museum in Clintwood turns 20
The 20th anniversary of the Song of the Mountainsconcert series in Marion, Virginia, also occurs in 2024.
These landmarks will be available to visit during Rhythm & Roots Reunion weekend.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Bristol event to include Ashley McBride, The Wallflowers and more
