Fireside Collective, an Asheville, North Carolina–based newgrass-turned-eclectic jam band rooted in groove, connection, and escape. Formed in 2014 by Jesse Iaquinto (mandolin), Joe Cicero (guitar), Tommy Maher (resonator guitar), and Carson White (bass), the band grew out of a shared love of roots music and original songwriting. After diving deep into bluegrass and newgrass—touring the festival circuit, winning the 2016 MerleFest Band Contest, and charting #3 on the Billboard Bluegrass Charts with Elements (2020)—Fireside Collective established themselves as a forward-thinking force in the acoustic world.

Following the pandemic, the band reemerged with renewed intention, drawing inspiration from jam bands like the Grateful Dead and embracing deeper improvisation, fluid setlists, and expanded sonic exploration. The addition of drummer Michael Tillis in 2023 pushed their sound further into funk, rock, and beyond, creating a vibrant hybrid that blends bluegrass and folk with electric energy. Guided by a philosophy of unity and transcendence, Fireside Collective aims to create music that moves both body and spirit—inviting listeners to dance, reflect, and lose themselves in the moment.

Dangermuffin, a well-seasoned outfit that’s put over a million miles on the road, returns to its roots through a special all-acoustic performance featuring the core trio of Dan Lotti on lead vocals and acoustic guitar, Mike Sivilli on harmony vocals and acoustic guitar, and Steven Sandifer on harmony vocals and acoustic upright bass.  The Dangermuffin Acoustic Trio mixes classic Dangermuffin originals with timeless covers, performed through the lens of Dangermuffin’s acoustic sensibilities.  

The music of Asheville, North Carolina based outfit Amanda Anne Platt & The Honeycutters is nuanced, bringing insight and wit to the stories Platt tells through songwriting. Lyrically driven, the band’s country roots music often inspires introspection, whether it be about life on the road, heartache or hope.

There is an empathetic and charming wit ingrained in Platt’s songwriting. She has a knack for accessing a deep well of emotion and applying it to her story-telling, whether she is writing from her own experiences or immersing herself into the melody of emotions in another person's life.

Born in the soul-basted countryside of Alabama, then brought to the heart of the Blue Ridge Mountains to marinade and mature, Red Clay Revival delivers an experience that continues to reshape the parameters of roots music with skillful, heart-driven compositions. 

Bandleader and songsmith extraordinaire, Doug McElvy, lays a solid foundation at the epicenter of Red Clay’s musical magnitude. 

The band’s high energy shows are filled with slam-grass/bluegrass breaks, with a rock feel; it’s an entertaining performance sure to get the crowd moving regardless of musical taste.

Where Electronic Funk pulses through the veins, entwined with a stampede of live Beats and Brass. This musical journey begins with a deep connection between electronics and live musicians, ignited by a passion for multi-cultural rhythms that echo across the festival scene

Their odyssey into the realms of Funk, Latin, Cuban, and Afrobeat reads like a musical adventure, spawned from encounters with diverse cultures while on the road and under the influence of vinyl treasures unearthed in record shops scattered across the nation. 

Strap in and let the music guide you through this electrifying tapestry of sound and sensation.

Swimming in an ocean of sound, Auspicious Golden Fish weaves together searing guitar riffs, hypnotic synth textures, and deep funk grooves into a transcendent musical experience. Guitarist/producer Jamie Hendrickson (The Fritz/ElectroLust) assembles a revolving lineup of all-star musicians that bring his compositions to life. The result is a sonic journey—one that invites listeners to dissolve the ego, embrace the present moment, and dance into higher states of consciousness.

Josh Phillips is an Asheville, North Carolina–based musician known for his deep roots in groove-driven music and long-standing presence in the local scene. With a focus on rhythm, feel, and live performance, Phillips has built a career centered on musical connection, collaboration, and energy, drawing from funk, soul, and other rhythm-forward traditions.

He is the founder of Yo Mama’s Big Fat Booty Band, a project that helped elevate Asheville’s profile as a nationally recognized music town. Beyond that role, Phillips’ work reflects a broader commitment to musicianship and community, contributing to a culture where live music remains central to Asheville’s identity.

Hi-Energy Psychedelic Prog-Fusion Rock from Asheville, NC

The Snozzberries are an undeniable force of raw musical power, a constantly evolving band laser-focused on pushing boundaries. Their huge, distinct sound is a sonic voyage, epitomized by hi-energy psychedelia, progressive rock, and deep-fried funk. Praised by Rolling Stone as a “jubilant rock act,” The Snozzberries are a rising star in the world of alternative psych rock.

The Asheville, NC based rock group has always emphasized engaging with their audience through tight musical arrangements and improvisational exploration. Delving deeper into a new era of progressive fusion based storytelling, The Snozzberries are ready to nourish the masses with their infectious riffs and memorable vocal harmonies.

Magenta Sunshine is a 6-piece original band emerging from the vibrant music scene in Asheville, North Carolina.  The band's musical chemistry shines in live performance settings while pulsing a genre-defiant array of energized, elegant, and complex writing/arrangements.  Members of Magenta Sunshine have shared stages with the likes of Karl Denson (Rolling Stones), Kerry Brown (Allman Brothers),  Roger Lewis (Dirty Dozen Brass Band), Andrew Heller (Toubab Krewe), and Ben Folds amongst others.

Established in June of 2025 formed out of a mutual calling to start an all star original string band out of Asheville, North Carolina. Coyote Rodeo is based around songwriters John Colby Elswick  (Guitar) and Chad Brown (Mandolin). Featuring Jackson Weldon on Dobro, Connor Kozlosky on second guitar and Brad Poplin on Bass.

Coyote Rodeo seeks to push the boundaries of acoustic music while pulling from tradition and the current state of bluegrass and jamgrass. 

Host of the popular roots music history podcast American Songcatcher, Nicholas Edward Williams is a multi-instrumentalist, storyteller and musicologist who is dedicated to "playing it forward" by preserving the songs and styles that have shaped our country: ragtime, Piedmont blues, traditional folk, old time and early country. Williams has spent the last 15 years touring around the US, the UK, Western Europe and Australia, blending the roots music spectrum in his own style. He's opened for Taj Mahal, The Wood Brothers, Dom Flemons, CAAMP, John Paul White, Town Mountain, John Craigie, Ballroom Thieves, Rachel Baiman and Lucy Daucus, and has performed at festival stages on three continents.

Blue Ridge Betty was formed in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene in the Bent Creek neighborhood in Asheville, NC. The band released their first all original album “Firefly” in July 2025, and it was featured on WNCW’s new tunes at 2. Blue Ridge Betty continues to develop their Americana sound, by blending harmonies, acoustic and electric instruments, and jam-inspiring grooves. Their second album will be released in Spring 2026.

Starting as a grassroots project in Baltimore, SOOHAN has taken off as an identity in global dance floor fusion, effortlessly combining diverse rarities with familiar 808s and basslines. Since his initial east coast success, SOOHAN finds himself touring the US and Canada on a consistent and constant basis, with festival appearances at the likes of Envision, Shambhala, Lightning In A Bottle, Symbiosis, Burning Man, and numerous others. With some seven albums, 18 million streams, and a widely celebrated DJ mix series with Global Bass Radio, SOOHAN has hit his stride and shows no signs of slowing. SOOHAN’s most ardent fans will have even more to look forward to in 2025, as a steady output of remix compilations, DJ mixes, and original material looms on the horizon. Cultivating an appreciation for the music which lies beneath the surfaces all around us, driving a direct line to celebration of global culture, and bringing people together in rapturous dance remain in SOOHAN’s sights, virtually everywhere he goes.

Cactus Kate and The Pricks is an Asheville based country-Americana band whose heartfelt original songs range from sentimental to witty dive bar country. Their music features vocal harmonies, fiddle solos, and plenty of small town gossip. Core members include singer-songwriter/fiddler Kate Leigh Bryant, cellist/bassist Ashlee Booth, guitarist Curtis Killian, and drummer Scott Voloshin.

Jonathan Lloyd is an Asheville-based musician known for his creative energy and community presence, most notably as the mind behind the local favorite Monday Mashups. Blending spontaneity, collaboration, and musical curiosity, Lloyd has built a reputation for crafting unique live experiences that bring artists and audiences together in unexpected ways. Rooted in Asheville’s vibrant music scene, he continues to explore new sounds, connections, and formats that keep each performance fresh and engaging.

Melissa McKinney is a singer/songwriter, musician, educator, and event curator living in Asheville, NC. She is the lead singer of the band, MAMA. Renowned for her powerful vocals, Melissa has a deep love for music and community and is dedicated to using her voice for good and empowering youth to do the same. Her love for the blues began as a child. She was mentored by Nathaniel Reese, a blues musician from the coalfields of West Virginia—an intergenerational experience that laid the foundation for her life’s work. She serves as the Programming & Education Director for LEAF Global Arts, is the founder of the WTF (Women to the Front) music festival, which highlights women in music and she is on the board of AVLFest, a multi venue music festival in Asheville, NC. MAMA  won the Merlefest Band Competition in 2025 and won 2nd place at the International Blues Challenge in Memphis in January 2026. She is eager to use her voice to shine a light on Western North Carolina as they continue to recover from Hurricane Helene. Melissa's biggest joy comes from performing alongside her daughter, McKinney, who is also a musician, singer, and songwriter and just released her first album.

From a tow-headed wild child prancing the hills and streams of southwestern, VA to a powerful and innovative voice in the world of electric guitar, Isaac Hadden is a rising star in the national festival circuit. Immersed in music from early childhood, he began to play the guitar at age 5. By late middle school, he was gigging locally near his hometown in southwest Virginia. By age 15, his first band was playing regional venues and festivals, and supporting heavyweights of the jam and guitar circuits.

A music minister’s daughter and vocal force of nature turned fierce frontwoman on the festival scene, Abby Bryant learned early how to turn faith into fire, fusing Sunday spirit with Saturday night energy. Bryant enchants audiences with a unique best-of-both-worlds edge that proves beautifully-crafted songs and the living pulse of the jam world can synergize into one unforgettable experience. Her striking stage presence and electrifying five-piece band bring palpable energy and groove to the last note.

Josh Blake is a Grammy nominated musician, producer, and engineer with over 30 years of experience. Born and raised in the San Francisco Bay Area, Josh now calls Asheville, North Carolina his home since setting roots there in 1997. 

As a musician and producer, Josh uses whatever toys are available, but on stage a guitar is his instrument of choice. He has recorded with and performed in a wide variety of bands over the past 30 years, whose styles include hip-hop, funk, reggae, bluegrass, acoustic and rock. In late 90’s and early aughts Josh toured the country from coast coast playing 120+ shows a year with live hip-hop collective GFE. 

As a guitarist he has become a hired gun, playing with numerous projects both on the stage and in the studio when not playing with his many bands and passion projects.