PBS Announces Season VII Artist Lineup for Bluegrass Underground

Bluegrass icons, rising stars of Americana, roots rock masters, country music game changers, Nashville gospel royalty, a generation-spanning Memphis soul supergroup, jam band pioneers and even Australia's Queen of Alt-Country - Bluegrass Underground's seventh PBS season looks to be its widest ranging to date.

On the heels of garnering five nominations (Entertainment, Audio, Lighting, Directing and Technical Achievement), for Bluegrass Underground Season VI in the 2017  Regional Emmy Awards, BGU executive producers Todd Mayo and Todd Jarrell have announced performers for the 13-time Emmy-Award-winning PBSseries' Season VII, filming March 24, 25 and 26 in Cumberland Caverns' Volcano Room, and you're invited. Package Tickets go on sale at 11 a.m. CST on Saturday, Jan. 14. A very limited number of  VIP Weekend packages   will be available prior to General Admission sales. Packages include early access to VIP seating, lodging, food, limited-edition merchandise and lots more for a weekend you'll never forget. General Admission weekend and daily tickets will be available at noon, one hour after after early VIP package sales: www.bluegrassunderground.com/tickets Don't miss you chance to experience history in the making, in one of the most historical, coolest venues. 

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The  March 24  taping brings together two of the greatest voices of our time -

Americana's Raul Malo fronting the GRAMMY and AMA award-winning Mavericks and five-time International Bluegrass Music Association Male Vocalist of the Year  Russell Moore with his band, seven-time IBMA Vocal Group of the Year IIIrd Tyme Out. Jam Band favorites The Chris Robinson Brotherhood, featuring the former Black Crowes frontman, and progressive singer/songwriter  Conor Oberst, known for Bright Eyes as well as working with folks like My Morning Jacket's Jim James, round out the evening concert. The music starts at 6 p.m.
 
Saturday, March 25, the lineup features Australian Americana (Australiana?) star  Kasey Chambers   making her journey from the Land Down Under to Tennessee's

Show Down Under for her Bluegrass Underground debut. The McCrary Sisters, daughters of the late Fairfield Four leader Rev. Sam McCrary, and one of the world's premier gospel quartets in their own right, return to the Volcano Room for their first performance there as headliners (they previously backed gospel-rock powerhouse Mike Farris in his Season I BGU appearance). Memphis singer/songwriter Drew Holcomb and his band The Neighbors, who usually come to Middle Tennessee to sell out the Ryman, will make their Volcano Room debut, along with one of Nashville's hottest new country roots artists,  Parker Milsap.

Sunday, March 26, it's bona-fide country star  Marty Stuart  and his red-hot band  The Fabulous Superlatives, along with Queen of Bluegrass Rhonda Vincent, eight-time IBMA Female Vocalist of the Year, and her multiple IBMA-winning band The Rage. Jam band pioneers Blues Traveler, featuring the blazing harmonica of John Popper, and the Southern Soul all-star band  The Bo-Keys, fronted by classic Memphis soul singer Don Bryant, complete the weekend.

Unlike most TV productions, where multiple takes of a single song are the norm, at  Bluegrass Undergrounds, tapings run like concerts, each band playing a full set of music, much more than will appear in the half-hour TV show with few, if any second takes.

PBS's Bluegrass Underground is filmed 333 feet beneath the Cumberland Plateau outside the city of McMinnville, Tenn., The Volcano Room has been home to Bluegrass Underground since the concert series began in 2008 with The SteelDrivers featuring Chris Stapleton.

Bluegrass Underground is presented by PBS member station WCTE and airs throughout the U.S. (check your local listings).  "This program is a tremendous asset for WCTE and continues to be a unique addition to PBS' stable of musical and cultural offerings," says WCTE CEO Becky Magura. BGU is supported by Nissan North America, The Tennessee Department of Tourism, The City Of McMinnville and Warren County, Ascend Federal Credit Union  and  Tennessee State Parks.
 
BGU Season VII Filming Schedule*:

Friday, March 24 - The Mavericks, The Chris Robinson Brotherhood, Russell Moore & IIIrd Tyme Out, Conor Oberst. Showtime is 6 p.m.
 
Saturday, March 25 - Kasey Chambers, The McCrary Sisters, Drew Holcomb & The Neighbors, Parker Milsap. Showtime is 2 p.m.
 
Sunday, March 26 - Marty Stuart & The Fabulous Superlatives, Rhonda Vincent & The Rage, Blues Traveler, Don Bryant & The Bo-Keys. Showtime is 2 p.m.
*all times listed in CST, all artists & times subject to change.