Sister Sadie grabs 8 IBMA nominations

Among them are Entertainer of the Year. Others nominated were Billy Strings (reigning recipient), Del McCoury Band (Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame member, and nine-time Entertainer of the Year), Molly Tuttle & Golden Highway (third nomination) and The Po' Ramblin' Boys (fourth nomination).

Munde, Jerry Douglas and Katy Daley will be inducted into the Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame. Recipients of the IBMA Distinguished Achievement Award will be Cindy Baucom, Lau-rie Lewis, Richard Hurst, ArtistWorks and Bloomin' Bluegrass Festival.

Results of the balloting will be revealed at the IBMA Bluegrass Music Awards on Sept. 26 in Raleigh, North Carolina. Awards are voted on by the professional membership of the IBMA.

"We started this band out of friendships that reached back to when we were all kids," Sister Sadie fiddler Deanie Richardson said. "It was collecting all the memories and fun, then creating something from it. Along the way, Gena and I realized: Sister Sadie is as much about women playing music, carrying the traditions forward, sharing the roots of this music and encouraging the future.

"So what started out as old friends turned into new friends, young friends, even our friend Ashley McBryde who gave us 'Willow' to record. That's the spirit of Sister Sadie, and I love that we're starting new generations on their way, the same way older players jammed with us."

Other nominations were:
VOCAL GROUP OF THE YEAR
Authentic Unlimited
Sister Sadie
Blue Highway
Del McCoury Band
Molly Tuttle & Golden Highway

INSTRUMENTAL GROUP OF THE YEAR
Billy Strings
Michael Cleveland & Flamekeeper
Travelin' McCourys
East Nash Grass
Molly Tuttle & Golden Highway

SONG OF THE YEAR
"Fall in Tennessee" - Authentic Unlimited
Songwriters: John Meador/Bob Minner
Producer: Authentic Unlimited
Label: Billy Blue Records

"Willow" - Sister Sadie
Songwriter: Ashley McBryde
Producer: Sister Sadie
Label: Mountain Home

"Too Lonely, Way Too Long" - Rick Faris with Del McCoury
Songwriter: Rick Faris
Producer: Stephen Mougin
Label: Dark Shadow Recording

"Forever Young" - Daniel Grindstaff with Paul Brewster & Dolly Parton
Songwriters: Jim Cregan/Kevin Savigar/Bob Dylan/Rod Stewart
Producer: Daniel Grindstaff
Label: Bonfire Music Group

"Kentucky Gold" - Dale Ann Bradley with Sam Bush
Songwriters: Wayne Carson/Ronnie Reno
Producer: Dale Ann Bradley
Label: Pinecastle

ALBUM OF THE YEAR
City of Gold - Molly Tuttle & Golden Highway
Producers: Jerry Douglas/Molly Tuttle
Label: Nonesuch

Last Chance to Win - East Nash Grass
Producer: East Nash Grass
Label: Mountain Fever

Jubilation - Appalachian Road Show
Producer: Appalachian Road Show
Label: Billy Blue Records

No Fear - Sister Sadie
Producer: Sister Sadie
Label: Mountain Home

So Much for Forever - Authentic Unlimited
Producer: Authentic Unlimited
Label: Billy Blue Records

GOSPEL RECORDING OF THE YEAR
"When I Get There" - Russell Moore & IIIrd Tyme Out
Songwriter: Michael Feagan
Producer: Russell Moore & IIIrd Tyme Out
Label: Independent

"Thank You Lord for Grace" - Authentic Unlimited
Songwriter: Jerry Cole
Producer: Authentic Unlimited
Label: Billy Blue Records

"Just Beyond" - Barry Abernathy with John Meador, Tim Raybon, Bradley Walker
Songwriters: Rick Lang/Mike Richards/Windi Robinson
Producer: Jerry Salley
Label: Billy Blue Records

"God Already Has" - Dale Ann Bradley
Songwriter: Mark "Brink" Brinkman/David Stewart
Producer: Dale Ann Bradley
Label: Pinecastle

"Memories of Home" - Authentic Unlimited
Songwriter: Jerry Cole
Producer: Authentic Unlimited
Label: Billy Blue Records

INSTRUMENTAL RECORDING OF THE YEAR
"Rhapsody in Blue(grass)" - Béla Fleck
Songwriter: George Gershwin arr. Ferde Grofé/Béla Fleck
Producer: Béla Fleck
Label: Béla Fleck Productions/Thirty Tigers

"Knee Deep in Bluegrass" - Ashby Frank
Songwriter: Terry Baucom
Producer: Ashby Frank
Label: Mountain Home

"Panhandle Country" - Missy Raines & Allegheny
Songwriter: Bill Monroe
Producer: Alison Brown
Label: Compass Records

"Lloyd's of Lubbock" - Alan Munde
Songwriter: Alan Munde
Producer: Billy Bright
Label: Patuxent

"Behind the 8 Ball" - Andy Leftwich
Songwriter: Andy Leftwich
Producer: Andy Leftwich
Label: Mountain Home

NEW ARTIST OF THE YEAR
East Nash Grass
Bronwyn Keith-Hynes
AJ Lee & Blue Summit
Wyatt Ellis
The Kody Norris Show

COLLABORATIVE RECORDING OF THE YEAR
"Brown's Ferry Blues" - Tony Trischka featuring Billy Strings
Songwriters: Alton Delmore/Rabon Delmore
Producer: Béla Fleck
Label: Down the Road

"Fall in Tennessee" - Authentic Unlimited with Jerry Douglas
Songwriters: John Meador/Bob Minner
Producer: Authentic Unlimited
Label: Billy Blue Records

"Forever Young" - Daniel Grindstaff with Paul Brewster, Dolly Parton
Songwriters: Jim Cregan/Kevin Savigar/Bob Dylan/Rod Stewart
Producer: Daniel Grindstaff
Label: Bonfire Music Group

"Bluegrass Radio" - Alison Brown and Steve Martin
Songwriters: Steve Martin/Alison Brown
Producers: Alison Brown/Garry West
Label: Compass Records

"Too Old to Die Young" - Bobby Osborne and CJ Lewandowski
Songwriters: Scott Dooley/John Hadley/Kevin Welch
Producer: CJ Lewandowski
Label: Turnberry Records

MALE VOCALIST OF THE YEAR
Dan Tyminski
Greg Blake
Del McCoury
Danny Paisley
Russell Moore

FEMALE VOCALIST OF THE YEAR
Molly Tuttle
Jaelee Roberts
Dale Ann Bradley
AJ Lee
Rhonda Vincent

BANJO PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Kristin Scott Benson
Gena Britt
Alison Brown
Béla Fleck
Rob McCoury

BASS PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Missy Raines
Mike Bub
Vickie Vaughn
Todd Phillips
Mark Schatz

FIDDLE PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Jason Carter
Bronwyn Keith-Hynes
Michael Cleveland
Stuart Duncan
Deanie Richardson

RESOPHONIC GUITAR PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Justin Moses
Rob Ickes
Jerry Douglas
Andy Hall
Gaven Largent

GUITAR PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Billy Strings
Molly Tuttle
Trey Hensley
Bryan Sutton
Cody Kilby

MANDOLIN PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Sierra Hull
Sam Bush
Ronnie McCoury
Jesse Brock
Alan Bibey

MUSIC VIDEO OF THE YEAR
"Willow" - Sister Sadie
Label: Mountain Home

"Fall in Tennessee" - Authentic Unlimited
Label: Billy Blue Records "The City of New Orleans" - Rhonda Vincent & The Rage
Label: Upper Management Music

"I Call Her Sunshine" - The Kody Norris Show
Label: Rebel Records

"Alberta Bound" - Special Consensus with Ray Legere, John Reischman, Patrick Sauber, Trisha Ga-gnon, Pharis & Jason Romero, and Claire Lynch
Label: Compass Records

2024 Inductees to International Bluegrass Music Association Hall of Fame:
Munde has been at the forefront of bluegrass music as a banjo player, bandleader and educator for over five decades. Hailing from Norman, Okla., he played in his first band, The Stone Mountain Boys, in 1965. A subsequent jam session with Byron Berline, Sam Bush and Wayne Stewart led to the recording of the instrumental album "Poor Richard's Almanac." Starting in 1970, Munde began a two-year hitch with the King of Bluegrass, Jimmy Martin. From there, it was off to California and the country-rock group, the Flying Burrito Brothers. Munde scored a 20-year run with the progressive West Coast group Country Gazette. He was a 2008 recipient of an IBMA Distinguished Achievement award.

Douglas has reigned as bluegrass music's preeminent Dobro player ever since the middle 1970s when he started with the Country Gentlemen. His fascination with the instrument began at age six when he saw Dobro legend Josh Graves perform on a Flatt & Scruggs show. Throughout the 1970s and '80s, Douglas rotated through a series of bands including J. D. Crowe's New South, Boone Creek and The Whites. Dou-glas also became an in-demand session player for both bluegrass and country music albums. He played on thousands of recording sessions. In 1998, he was asked to join Alison Krauss's Union Station, and in 2014, he launched the award-winning Flatt & Scruggs tribute band, the Earls of Leister. Douglas has ear-ned numerous IBMA Awards, including 10 for Dobro Player of the Year. He also won 14 Grammy Awards, and was selected the CMA's Musician of the Year in 2002, 2005 and 2007.

Katy Daley (Patricia Cole Meloon Brown) made her mark as a bluegrass broadcaster in the Washing-ton, D.C., metro area, starting in the early 1970s. Her entry to bluegrass radio came in a circuitous way. She jokingly told WAMU-FM broadcaster Gary Henderson that listening to his program was part of her work assignment at the CIA. A short time later, she signed on at WAMU, preparing and announcing a weekly "Who's Playing Where" segment. This was followed by a weeknight disc jockey spot from 10 p.m. to midnight. In November 1978, Daley collaborated on a 13-part series which traced the development of the music: Bluegrass Anthology. In 1980, Daley joined WMZQ, a 24-hour country station in Washington, where her broadcast work included hosting a bluegrass program for three years. Eventually, Daley returned to WAMU's offshoot, bluegrasscountry.org, and served as a morning air personality. She received two IBMA awards for Bluegrass Broadcaster of the Year and one for Distinguished Achievement.

2024 IBMA Distinguished Achievement Award Recipients
Baucom rates as one of the most widely heard radio presenters of bluegrass of the last 30 years. Her syndicated program, Knee Deep in Bluegrass, is broadcast each week on more than 60 radio outlets and a dozen internet stations. Each program is a mix of bluegrass, old and new, and artist interviews. She began her full-time journey in broadcasting fresh out of high school in the early 1980s. A series of moves to se-veral regional North Carolina radio stations eventually brought her to the attention of the John Boy & Bil-ly network; an offer came shortly afterwards to syndicate the program. She has spent more than 30 years as a master of ceremonies at MerleFest, was a past two-term member of the IBMA's board of directors and was inducted to the Blue Ridge Music Hall of Fame.

Lewis is a fiddler, singer and songwriter. A native of California, she honed her early talents by per-forming with others in the San Francisco Bay area. Lewis has been at the forefront of numerous groups in-cluding the Grant Street String Band, her own Laurie Lewis and Grant Street, the Bluegrass Pals, and the Right Hands. She launched her solo career in the middle 1980s with a series of releases on the Flying Fish label. She won two IBMA Female Vocalist of the Year awards and her recording of "Who Will Watch the Home Place" won Song of the Year.

Hurst was the driving force behind the long-running Appalachian and Bluegrass Music Festival in Omagh, County Tyrone, in Northern Ireland. The event was first staged in 1992 and fostered interest in bluegrass throughout Ireland. In time, the event grew to attract 10,000 attendees. Recently re-named Blue-grass Omagh, the festival features a mix of entertainers from the U.S., Europe and Ireland

Since 2008, ArtistWorks has been making it possible for anyone with an internet connection to learn to play music. The company's stated mission is to "Teach the World Music" and have done so by buil-ding an inventory of 50,000 instructional videos taught by 47 master musician instructors. A key feature of the system is that it allows students, through their own video uploads, to have their work critiqued by an instructor.

The Bloomin' Bluegrass Festival is an annual event that takes place in an area not generally thought of as a bluegrass hot-spot: Dallas/Ft. Worth. Within the last five years, the festival has garnered three IBMA nominations for Bluegrass Event of the Year. The event is co-sponsored by the city of Farmers Branch, Texas, and the Dallas-based Bluegrass Heritage Foundation.