CAROLINA CALLING, New Series from the BGS Podcast Network and Come Hear NC, Premieres January 31
Featuring appearances from Rhiannon Giddens, Hiss Golden Messenger, Nnenna Freelon, Alice Gerrard, and more, season one explores the history of North Carolina as told through the music and musicians that made it.
January 26, 2022 – Nashville, TN – The Bluegrass Situation is excited to announce its latest addition to the BGS Podcast Network, CAROLINA CALLING, a podcast produced in association with Come Hear NC that explores the history of North Carolina as told through its music and the musicians who made it.
Season one delves into five distinct locales: Asheville, Shelby, Greensboro, Durham and Wilmington, that each influenced various musical styles across the U.S. and beyond.
Carolina Calling’s first episodes aim to connect the roots of these progressions and uncover the unique spark and story within five different artistic communities. From Asheville to Wilmington, we’ll be spanning the state to dive into cities and regions that have cultivated decades of talent as diverse as Blind Boy Fuller to the Steep Canyon Rangers, from Robert Moog to James Taylor and Rhiannon Giddens.
Hosted by writer David Menconi — longtime North Carolinian, frequent BGS-contributor, and author of the award-winning 2020 book Step It Up and Go: The Story of North Carolina Music (University of North Carolina Press) — the series’ first episode premieres Monday, Jan. 31 and focuses on Asheville with appearances from Pokey LaFarge, Woody Platt of the Steep Canyon Rangers, Gar Ragland of Citizen Vinyl and more.
“It’s been my pleasure to spend the past three decades immersed in the music of North Carolina,” says Menconi. “I’m excited to be a part of carrying that forward and spreading the word to an even wider audience through this new series.”
Listen to the series trailer here and subscribe to the show wherever you listen to podcasts. Host interviews, episode previews, and exclusive clip premieres available upon request.
More About Come Hear NC:
Come Hear NC is a promotional campaign of the North Carolina Department of Natural & Cultural Resources designed to celebrate North Carolinians’ contribution to the canon of American music. Musicians from North Carolina have made brilliant, groundbreaking contributions to many of America’s most important musical genres: John Coltrane, Nina Simone, and Thelonious Monk in jazz; Charlie Poole, Earl Scruggs, and Doc Watson in bluegrass; Elizabeth Cotten, Blind Boy Fuller, and Etta Baker in Piedmont blues, well, you get the idea. Today new generations of North Carolina musicians are building on this rich legacy by making their own mark in hip hop, indie music, and more. North Carolina music is American Music.
More About The Bluegrass Situation:
The Bluegrass Situation [BGS] is the world’s largest community for American roots music, culture and lifestyle. What began as a blog for like-minded Angelenos pining for bluegrass in Southern California has morphed and grown over a decade to become an international standard-bearer for all the things we love about bluegrass within every branch and offshoot of the roots-music family tree — from vibey pop-folk to ravishing alt-country; plus blues, singer/songwriter, Americana, old-time and everything else above, below and in between. The Bluegrass Situation proudly represents a unique gathering place, even in a global pandemic lockdown, producing virtual events such as online variety show Whiskey Sour Happy Hour, presented by BGS co-founder Ed Helms, and the fifth annual Shout & Shine showcase celebrating equity and inclusion in bluegrass. BGS is proud to support and uplift the rich, diverse and varied history of these musics while looking ahead with a progressive vision to transform these folkways and traditions into a carefully curated, 21st-century lifestyle open to all. Discover more at TheBluegrassSituation.com
CAROLINA CALLING SEASON ONE URL: http://hyperurl.co/carolinacalling
