FEATURED BONNAROO ARTIST: Molly Tuttle

Bonnaroo is only 14 days away and the Nashville.com team is getting excited! Today’s featured Bonnaroo artist is Molly Tuttle who will be playing in THAT tent at 5:00. We’ll be there. You should be there too! BUY TICKETS HERE.

Raised in Northern California, Tuttle moved to Nashville in 2015. In the years since, she’s been nominated for Best New Artist at the 65th Annual GRAMMY Awards, won Album of the Year at the 2023 International Folk Music Awards, Female Vocalist of the Year at the 2022 International Bluegrass Music Awards, Instrumentalist of the Year at the 2018 Americana Music Awards and Guitar Player of the Year at the IBMAs in both 2017 and 2018, the first woman to receive the honor. Tuttle has performed around the world, including shows with Sam Bush, Béla Fleck, Hiss Golden Messenger, Jason Isbell, Old Crow Medicine Show and Dwight Yoakam as well as at several major festivals including Newport Folk Festival and Pilgrimage.

“Next Rodeo,” the latest song from Grammy Award winner and her band, Golden Highway, is debuting today. (listen above) The track is the second unveiled from Tuttle’s new album, City of Gold, which will be released July 21 via Nonesuch Records.

Tuttle says of the song, “This ain’t my first rodeo – I’ve spent most of my adult life playing shows all around the world and my new single ‘Next Rodeo’ reflects the miles I’ve put in with my band. We played 100+ shows over the past year, which led to recording our upcoming record, City of Gold. ‘Next Rodeo’ feels like a fitting metaphor for my second Golden Highway record. Going back to my bluegrass roots has felt both nostalgic and brand new and this song encapsulates my feelings as I look back on a great year and look ahead to another one full of new places, people and songs.”

In celebration of the new music, “Molly Tuttle and Golden Highway: Live in Nashville”—a special concert event filmed earlier this year—will air on PBS starting this Saturday, June 3 (check local listings here). The band will also tour through this summer including dates supporting Dierks Bentley, Greensky Bluegrass, Charley Crockett and Marcus King, as well as other festival appearances. The new album follows Tuttle’s acclaimed 2022 record, Crooked Tree, which won Best Bluegrass Album at the 65th Annual GRAMMY Awards and also led to a Best New Artist nomination. Produced by Tuttle and Jerry Douglas and recorded at Nashville’s Sound Emporium Studios, City of Gold was inspired by Tuttle’s constant touring with Golden Highway these past few years, during which they have grown together as musicians and performers, cohering as a band. These 13 tracks—mostly written by Tuttle and Ketch Secor (Old Crow Medicine Show) — capture the electric energy of band’s live shows by highlighting each members’ musical strengths.

Reflecting on the project, Tuttle shares, “When I was a kid, we took a field trip to Coloma, CA to learn about the gold rush. I’ll never forget the dusty hills and the grizzled old miner who showed us the nugget around his neck. Just like gold fever, music has always captivated me, captured my heart, and driven me to great lengths to explore its depths. On my new album I dug deep as a songwriter (with Ketch Secor) and co-producer (with Jerry Douglas) and surfaced with a record that celebrates the music of my heart, my life, the land where I grew up, and the stories I heard along the way. I made this record with my band Golden Highway after playing over 100 shows across the country last year. On the road and in the studio, we are inspired by artists such as John Hartford, Gillian Welch and Peter Rowan to name a few, whose records are like family albums to us. Just like them, on this album we chart some new territory along some old familiar ground. The songs span from breakdowns to ballads, fairytales and fiddle tunes, from Yosemite up to the Gold Country and out beyond the mountains. That visit to Coloma, site of California’s first gold strike is where I first heard about El Dorado, the city of gold. Playing music can take you to a place that is just as precious. I hope you like this record!”

In addition to Tuttle (vocals, acoustic guitar), Douglas (dobro) and Golden Highway—Bronwyn Keith-Hynes (fiddle, harmony vocals), Dominick Leslie (mandolin), Shelby Means (bass, harmony vocals) and Kyle Tuttle (banjo, harmony vocals)—City of Gold also features special guest Dave Matthews on “Yosemite.”