The members of bluegrass outfit Appalachian Smoke literally embody the first part of their moniker, all residing in the southern portion of the great mountain chain. “…Where Tennessee, Georgia and North Carolina all meet, there’s kind of a point there and we’re all roughly an hour away from that in different directions,” says Tim Williams, the group’s bass player, when ...

““It just feels like, it can’t be 20 years.” That’s what founding member, Danny Roberts said to me recently, when we sat down to chat about the 20 year anniversary of the Grascals. “We’ve had some ups and downs, and a few member changes along the way, but it’s been a great ride this far. I just can’t I look ...

When Connecticut’s Rusty Gear got started in music, he was playing bass along with his older brother John, who was an accomplished guitarist. At a certain point however, Rusty decided that he too would like to play guitar. “I went to a friend’s house, a guy who was pretty handy. And we drilled a couple of extra holes in it, ...

Hailing originally from small town New Brunswick, Canada, singer-songwriter Robert Ross grew up in a music-loving household and started singing at a young age. “I was shy as a kid. I kind of just sang in the back room,” Robert remembers. His first public performance came at the tender age of twelve, at a community fundraiser. He laughs, “I was ...

With four decades in country music under his belt and a membership in the Ohio Country Music Hall of Fame, it’s safe to say Richard Lynch has become somewhat of an Ohio “institution” in the genre. He certainly maintains some real country street cred: “I’m a farmer. I’m a builder. I do a lot of things to make a living,” ...

Luanne Hunt recently celebrated her 30th year in the music business and released her 24th album, fittingly titled Miles and Memories. The current Floridian originally from Pennsylvania, has certainly logged countless miles and accumulated a treasure trove of memories along with many chart successes and accolades throughout her career as an independent singer-songwriter. About the new album’s title track, along ...

“It started for me when I was 17,” says San Antonio native Jeremy Parsons. “I was a junior in high school, and looking for a new hobby.” Sports had lost their luster for him (too much pressure from coaches). Luckily, he says, “there was a guitar lying around.” He was immediately hooked. Then, after six or eight months, he found ...

As a young girl, Adele Lassiter was inspired by the love of music her mom and grandmother exuded, and felt drawn, early on to singing and songwriting as her own mode of expression. During her high school years, Adele developed her musical skills in a number of separate ways at first. While she continued writing songs for herself that she ...

Not a single artist but a duo, Eleyet McConnell is the moniker spouses Chris and Angie (nee Eleyet) McConnell use to describe their vehicle for delivering music to their appreciative audiences. They met in 2013 and immediately clicked musically. Both hailing from rural Ohio, they ended up together in a cover band based in Urbana (OH). “…She might go from ...

Unlike so many artists we’ve profiled Alexa Rose (her real name) says, “I grew up in not a very musical family. I was just always drawn to singing and writing songs. Then when I was 13, my uncle gave me a guitar…” Once she dug in with her new songwriting tool, one musical predecessor came to light: “As soon as ...