NOLAxNashville showcases New Orleans artists at Americanafest 2022

Article Contributed by Baby Robot Media | Published on Thursday, September 8, 2022

From the recent Grammy successes of Jon Batiste and Lost Bayou Ramblers to the explosion of Chapel Hart onto the national stage and the rising chatter around emerging artists Lilli Lewis and Joy Clark, the Americana music of New Orleans-based and  Louisiana-born performers is commanding attention. The Crescent City is exporting  more than the funk and jazz music it’s known for, and the birthplace of America’s music  is ripe with unique Americana voices.

New Orleans-based multi platinum-selling songwriter Jim McCormick says “Americana music is always pushing the boundaries of received definitions of genre.” Grammy and  CMA-nominated McCormick has celebrated three #1 songs on the Billboard Country Airplay chart, placing songs with the likes of Tim McGraw, Keith Urban, Kelly Clarkson,  and Jeff Tweedy. McMormick continues, “...New Orleans music has always done [that],  so today’s sounds of New Orleans are an exciting fit with the rich and textured  multiplicities of the current Americana music world.”

With 11 nominations and five wins (including Best American Roots Performance and  Best American Roots Song), New Orleans native Jon Batiste placed the city on music’s  highest stage. Meanwhile, Chapel Hart hit the Golden Buzzer on America’s Got Talent, earning an invite to the Grand Ole Opry and high praise from country legend Dolly  Parton. A new name earning national acclaim is Joy Clark, whose singing, guitar work,  and songwriting have landed her time in her own spotlight and in that of Allison  Russell’s band currently on tour with Brandi Carlile.

Established Americana artists like Hurray for the Riff Raff and 2022 Americanafest showcasing artists Leyla McCalla and The Deslondes are all touring with exceptional  new albums, as is Lilli Lewis, whose 2021 album titled Americana earned high praise  from Rolling Stone and claimed a Top 10 spot from NPR’s All Songs Considered.

“Americana artists in New Orleans often feel we’re swimming upstream thanks to the  perception that the main thrust of Louisiana music exports centers around funk, trad  jazz, blues, and Mardi Gras music,” says Lewis. “But after spending eight years running  a Louisiana label centered around that, I realized it could all be viewed as Americana with a widened lens. I’m excited that those of us who claim that moniker are forming a  community, and it only makes sense to bring our scene to Nashville.”

Building on recent successes, Lewis—along with artists Jeremy Joyce and Ever More  Nest—are launching “NOLAxNashville,” the first New Orleans-focused showcases  during Americana Fest. Performers include Lewis, Joyce, Ever More Nest, Mia Borders, Lynn Drury, Shawn Williams, and Loose Cattle (fronted by cult-podcaster Kimberly Kaye  and Tony Award-Winner / HBO’s The Gilded Age actor Michael Cerveris).

The diverse lineup shows just how seamlessly New Orleans’ music scene increasingly  integrates intersectional identity. Borders— both a performer and entrepreneur—organized an expansive PrideFest this year that included Lewis, Borders, Ever More Nest and Loose Cattle, all queer-identifying artists. Earlier this spring, Offbeat Magazine highlighted the city’s blooming Americana star power with a feature centered on the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival performances of Lilli Lewis, Joy Clark, and Mia Borders, all black, queer frontwomen.

NOLAxNashville: Crescent City Meets Music City

These shows are open to the public. 

Thursday, September 15, 2022

Vinyl Tap (2038 Greenwood Ave., Nashville, TN 37206) 

1pm – 4pm  

Lilli Lewis 

Ever More Nest 

Lynn Drury 

Shawn Williams 

Loose Cattle 

Jeremy Joyce w/Carolyn Broussard  

Sunday, September 18, 2022 

Dee’s Country Cocktail Lounge (102 E. Palestine Ave., Madison, TN 37115)

1pm – 5pm 

Shawn Williams 

Mia Borders 

Lynn Drury 

Jeremy Joyce w/ Carolyn Broussard

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