The Earl Scruggs Center and American Songcatcher are pleased to announce Roots Music Revue, a new live music and storytelling series debuting this fall. Produced in partnership with host Nicholas Edward Williams and regional public radio station WNCW 88.7, the series will bring audiences into the Great Hall at the Earl Scruggs Center for the live recording of a radio-style program exploring the people, places, and traditions that shape American roots music.
Blending thoughtful conversation, regional music history, and live performance, Roots Music Revue offers a format reminiscent of beloved radio programs such as Live From Here, creating an intimate experience for both audience members and listeners. Each program will be recorded before a live audience at the Earl Scruggs Center and later broadcast across the region on WNCW 88.7.
Hosted by Nicholas Edward Williams, creator and host of the acclaimed American Songcatcher podcast, the series will feature conversations with influential artists whose work reflects the rich and evolving traditions of roots music. Through interviews, stories, and performances, audiences will gain insight into the cultural influences and personal experiences that shape each artist's creative journey. Each show in the series will also include a live house band, made up of regional musicians.
"At the heart of this live radio series is Appalachian music history," said Williams. "The guest, the house string band and I will all work together to unravel a unique story of this rich heritage."
The inaugural season includes three programs:
Thursday, September 24 - Leah Song (Rising Appalachia)
Leah Song is a musician, storyteller, and community builder best known as co-founder and vocalist of the internationally acclaimed folk collective Rising Appalachia. Drawing on Southern soul, Appalachian traditions, and folk music from across the Americas, her work blends song and storytelling while honoring the communities that shape those traditions. Through Rising Appalachia, Song has championed sustainable touring, partnered with grassroots organizations, and played a role in community relief efforts following Hurricane Helene in Western North Carolina.
Thursday, October 29 - Travis Book (The Infamous Stringdusters)
A Grammy Award-winning bassist, vocalist, songwriter, and producer, Travis Book is a founding member of The Infamous Stringdusters. Beyond his work with The Infamous Stringdusters, Book has become a catalyst for collaboration in Western North Carolina, connecting musicians, creating opportunities for artistic exchange, and helping build a vibrant roots music community. His work bridges bluegrass traditions with contemporary innovation, helping to define the sound of modern acoustic music.
Thursday, November 19 - Melissa McKinney (MAMA)
Melissa McKinney, lead singer of Asheville-based band MAMA, is known for her soulful blend of blues, soul, and Americana music. She serves as Programming & Education Director for LEAF Global Arts, founded the WTF (Women to the Front) Music Festival, and serves on the board of AVLfest. Through her music and community leadership, McKinney has become an influential voice in Western North Carolina's roots music scene.
The partnership behind Roots Music Revue brings together three organizations deeply committed to preserving and promoting roots music traditions. Williams' American Songcatcher podcast has earned recognition for its thoughtful exploration of the people, stories, and traditions behind American roots music.
"Each artist we'll bring to the program has their own unique exposure to different genres connected with Appalachian music, and they were influenced by many moments within that lineage," Williams shared. "Each episode is as much theirs as it is mine."
The Earl Scruggs Center serves as a natural home for the series. Through exhibits, educational programming, and an annual concert series, the Center celebrates the music and stories of the American South while exploring their ongoing relevance and impact.
For decades, WNCW 88.7 has been one of the region's most trusted champions of roots music, introducing audiences to emerging artists, preserving connections to traditional music, and serving as a cultural tastemaker across the Carolinas and beyond. The station's longstanding partnership with the Earl Scruggs Center includes collaboration on the annual Earl Scruggs Music Festival.
Together, the three partners have created a series that invites audiences to experience roots music not only as entertainment, but as a living cultural tradition shaped by musicians, communities, and storytellers.
Tickets and additional information about Roots Music Revue are available through the Earl Scruggs Center's website,
www.EarlScruggsCenter.org/events.
Earl Scruggs Center
The Earl Scruggs Center connects cultural traditions to the future through exhibits, educational programs, and special events that explore the music, stories, and experiences of the American South. Located in historic Uptown Shelby, North Carolina, the Center celebrates the life and legacy of Earl Scruggs while fostering a deeper understanding of regional history and culture.
American Songcatcher Podcast
Tracing the roots of American music from its cultured past to artists playing it forward, American Songcatcher is an independent educational program produced and hosted by folk musician and musicologist Nicholas Edward Williams. Listeners embark on a unique documentary-style podcast experience that weaves stories across the spectrum of Traditional music, to artists who shaped and played integral roles in different forms of Blues, Country, Jazz, Bluegrass, Western, Gospel, Old-Time and the Folk music that is derived from it all.
WNCW 88.7
WNCW is a listener-supported public media service of Isothermal Community College, which serves the community through advancing new musical discoveries, showcasing local and regional talent, and preserving and promoting the traditions of Appalachian and roots music in our area and beyond. Listeners can find WNCW at 88.7 FM throughout most of its listening area, which includes Western NC, Upstate SC, and Eastern Tennessee. The station also has a worldwide audience through its livestream at wncw.org.
Media Contact:
Mary Beth Martin, Executive Director
Earl Scruggs Center: Music & Stories from the American South
704.487.6233 |
marybeth@earlscruggscenter.org
Submitted by Mary Beth Martin