2020 is the fifth anniversary of AmericanaFest UK in London and we are really excited to share some news with you:

• The UK Americana Awards this year in the Iconic, grade 11 listed, art deco music venue The TROXY in east London.
• 3 Day Conference in Hackney Central (venue TBC)
• 2 nights of AmericanaFest showcase festival with up to 55 artists from across the UK, EU and beyond.  All in 5 venues across Hackney Central   

Super Early Bird Tickets (50% off final price)  will be on sale really soon, members will receive a discount -  so make sure your membership is up-to-date.

RED ROOSTER FESTIVAL ANNOUNCES PARTNERSHIP WITH AMERICANA MUSIC ASSOCIATION UK & KEYCHANGE- INSPIRED, FEMALE-LED ACOUSTIC STAGE LINE-UP FEATURING…

 SUNNY OZELL - BIRDS OF CHICAGO - FIONA BEVAN - JAMBALAYA BAND - CARSON MCHONE - THE SOUTHERN FOLD - LUCY KITT – WOOKALILY - WILLIAM THE CONQUEROR -LISA REDFORD - MISTY RIVER -MARTHA HEALY

 ..curated by New York singer/songwriter Sunny Ozell and inspired by the AMA-UK Keychange pledge -  that aims for gender balance in music.

As Red Rooster festival heads towards its 6^th edition at the end of May, this renowned champion of the very best in Rock’n’ Roll, Blues, Soul, Roots and Country music, is thrilled to announce a new collaboration with the Americana Music Association UK and New York singer/songwriter Sunny Ozell, who will be curating as well as headlining the female-led acoustic AMA UK stage on Friday 31^st May.  It comes with a very important message and action that Red Rooster festival is honoured to support.

Sunny Ozell:

"I am extremely proud to be a part of the Americana Music Association UK / Keychange-inspired stage at the Red Rooster festival.  Right in step with the changes we're seeing in all walks of life (from business to the film industry to government), Keychange aims to reach a 50/50 balance of gender representation in the music industry, particularly at festivals.  I've been a musician, and a woman, all my life.  I could talk about what that has been like, but wouldn't it be better to hear me express myself through my music and my craft?  Representation matters--when diverse voices are given a platform to be heard, the full richness of the human experience just might be within our grasp.  Come to the AMAUK PRS Keychange-inspired stage and take in the power of women's voices."

Stevie Freeman:

“This year the AMA-UK were excited to be asked to do something special at Red Rooster Festival, to curate a PRS Keychange-inspired stage, this is a pledge with PRS that AMA-UK have signed to have 50/50 gender balance by 2022.  We are really delighted to have been given this opportunity to share awareness of Keychange by the Red Rooster team.  We have teamed up with the American artist Sunny Ozell to host and curate the line-up and shine a light on the strong female representation in this genre. It’s not just about giving opportunities to female artists but also demonstrating to audiences that women are equally valid on festival line-ups and for aspiring female artists to see those women on stage and be inspired.”

Stevie Freeman CEO Americana Music Association UK

 Sunny Ozell, the New York City songstress, developed her craft over a decade plus of performing and collaborating with some of the city's best session musicians.  With this same tight-knit community of seasoned players, she honed her sound. Sunny's powerful voice effortlessly weaves together the elements of jazz, blues, and Americana roots that infuse her music.  Her upcoming record "Overnight Lows" showcases Sunny's growth as a lyricist and reveals a skilled singer in search of depth and expression.

Birds of Chicago have been riding a wave of good mojo in the Americana world since their inception in late 2012. With their new album, Love in Wartime, they are set to both validate that roots buzz, and break on through to a wider audience across the world. The invitation is joyous, but urgent … call it “secular gospel,” or call it what they used to call poetry intoned over roots music mash-ups: rock n roll. The Birds consider themselves a rock and roll band first and foremost.

Fiona Bevan is a British-Canadian songwriter, singer and multi-instrumentalist from Suffolk, UK with a sweet, fiery voice and a soulful folk-pop sound creating "startling odysseys that suggest Erykah Badu, Joanna Newsom and Kate Bush spine-tinglingly joined" (The Guardian).  Her new EP, ‘Wild Angels Sweet Demons’, was produced by Grammy award-winning engineer Robin Baynton (Mumford And Sons, Laura Marling, Isaac Gracie) and went straight to number 3 in the iTunes singer-songwriter chart in November 2018.

The Jambalaya Band have been making a name for themselves as the hottest honky tonk band in London. After setting up their own honky tonk at The Blues Kitchen in Camden they’ve got everyone shaking off their blues in true country style. Featuring Pedal Steel, Telecaster, Fiddle and female harmonies, these guys and gals mean business.

Cornwall trio William the Conqueror have been picking up praise from far flung corners ever since Ruarri Joseph took the step to go public with his erstwhile secret alter-ego. Debut album, Proud Disturber of the Peace, was released in 2017 to widespread critical acclaim, and their shows have been steadily winning over fans up and down the country.

A consummate songwriter and superbly accomplished folk player and singer, Essex born Lucy Kitt’s creative soul looks west across the Atlantic. Taking inspiration from the classic 70’s folk rock of Dylan, Joni Mitchell and Neil Young, Lucy’s signature sound evokes LA’s legendary Laurel Canyon at its height. One to watch!

Misty River are an Americana band from London with roots in the west coast of Ireland and the US.  They are set to release their first single on 14th June from their debut EP ‘Promises’  mixed in Nashville by Grammy award winner Vance Powell (Chris Stapleton, Sturgill Simpson, Elle King). Their songs feature in Oscar winning film The Phone Call as well as new US film Extra Innings. They combine sweet harmony vocals intertwined with dobro, electric guitar and songwriting firmly rooted in classic alt country, roots and blues.

Red Rooster tickets are on sale now, one of the best value festivals out there at just £69.50 + booking fee for the whole weekend, which includes 3 nights of camping and parking FREE. Kids under 12 are free as always… Get your ticket while you can HERE

Hopefully you will have all been to see the film Wild Rose by now, it opened across the country last Friday.  Starring the brilliant Jessie Buckley with cameo roles from both Bob Harris and his long time Radio 2 show producer Mark Hagen.  Some of the sound track was recorded in Nashville at Room & Board studios, produced by Ray Kennedy and features backing vocals from AMA-UK board member Siobhan Kennedy.

So to celebrate all of this we have a little bit of midweek fun for you!  Log in and click through to enter the competition with two simple questions linked to our awards - the winner will be chosen at random from the correct entries and will receive a signed poster and soundtrack from the film

NOW CLOSED  - winners will be notified by email by Wednesday 1st May

Open to all members types - log in to take part , closes on Friday 26th Midnight.

photo credit: Stevie Freeman

A brand new TV  series about Nashville is in the making,  and the producers are looking for songs - this is where AMA-UK members opportunity come in…

The first song they are looking for must have a strong Nashville connection - so either a positive song about the city of Nashville, a place in Nashville or Tennessee to give you an example the lyrics to Crazy Town by Jason Aldean work perfectly.

or

it could also be a song with one or more of these criteria:

• Making it  in music in Nashville maybe something like Bright Lights on Broadway ?
• Song writing 
• Playing music
• Living the music dream  or being born to dream ? Chasin’ That Neon rainbow by Alan Jackson is a good lyrical reference
• The artist needs to be either living in Nashville, or from Nashville or have recorded the track whilst in Nashville 

• The song can be: acapella, gospel, Americana , country, roots  the producers like the idea of something old fashioned.

NOW CLOSED - the artist selected will be contacted by the TV production company

Produced by festival and theatre show specialists Fit The Bill, in association with The Blackpool Entertainment Company, the event will be unique in focusing primarily on the best of British Country and Americana artists, promoting the wealth of talent in the UK that is now making Nashville sit up and take notice.

The Festival will run from 13th to the 15th Sept and the AMA-UK stage will be on the 14th daytime 

Support artists include Laura Oakes, Megan O’Neill, The Adelaides, Worry Dolls, Blair Dunlop, Rob Heron & The Tea Pad Orchestra, Danny McMahon and Jake Morrell. The festival will include performances on five stages in and around the Winter Gardens complex and it is anticipated that around 100 performers will participate in the event over the long weekend.

Martin Blore, Executive Producer from Fit The Bill said: “This is a very exciting time for British Country and Americana music. This genre is synonymous with Nashville, but the Brits are breaking barriers, creating their own style of country music and attracting fans from all over the world. Our home-grown talent is also achieving mainstream chart success and we felt it was a good time to create a festival that celebrates British Country and Americana artists.”

He added: “We also want to provide a public platform for talented, emerging artists whose music needs a wider audience and we will be inviting music industry colleagues to come and enjoy the Making Waves stages.”

The spectacular indoor setting of the Winter Gardens Blackpool enables music lovers to ditch the need for tents in favour of local accommodation providers, or the comfort of their own homes.

Michael Williams, Managing Director of Blackpool Entertainment Company and operators of the Winter Gardens added: “The Winter Gardens has attracted some of the greatest music artists over the years from Ed Sheeran to The Shires and we’ve hosted events including the Blackpool Dance Championships and The International Soul Festival. With the addition of the new £25m conference centre next year, it’s the perfect time for The British Country Music Festival to launch here and grow to include seminars and workshops.”

FESTIVAL TICKETS HERE

This opportunity has now closed - Thank you to everyone who applied- successful applicants will hear from the festival soon. 

We are delighted to be working with The Long Road again and to give our members the opportunity to apply to play on the Front Porch on Friday 6th September 2019.  

Festival information here 

Back for it's second year The Long Road is so much more than just a music festival; enjoy good times in the great outdoors, including BBQs, bushcraft, holistic therapies, well being workshops, a Classic American Car Show, artisan crafts, an awesome kids area & much more. 

Tickets HERE

NOW CLOSED the artists who are selected will be contacted in the next week.

SummerTyne Americana Festival 2019 is back for its 14^th edition, the excellent SummerTyne 2019 will take place on the sunny South Bank of the River Tyne 19-21 July in Newcastle Gateshead across the full site at Sage Gateshead. Celebrating the finest American roots and country music, this feel good festival brings together some legendary artists with a whole bunch of rising stars for a weekend long party and is this year headlined by the legendary KD Lang! 

More festival details HERE

This year we are excited to do something really special with Red Rooster Festival to curate a PRS Keychange inspired stage, this is a pledge AMA-UK have signed to have 50/50 gender balance by 2022, AMA-UK actually reached this at our conference by 2018 and will ensure this is the case at AmericanaFest UK by 2020 - we are really delighted to have been given this opportunity to share awareness of Keychange by the Red Rooster team.  We have teamed up with the American artist Sunny Ozell to host and curate the lineup.  So if you are a female artist or a band with an integral and permanent female band member then this is the stage for you to apply to this year.  

You have to be a member to be eligible to apply 

Sunny Ozell and AMA-UK will select up to 7 artists for this stage.  Only apply if you are able to perform on daytime Friday 31st May.  This stage is the Acoustic stage, but you can also apply if you are band with drums (no bigger than a five piece)

NOW CLOSED -  successful applicants will be emailed next week

It has been over a week since AmericanaFest UK 2019 and we have not sat still since; amazing photos and videos and reviews just keep on coming in and its very exciting and positive. It feels like we really hit our stride this year and that means there must a be a lot of wonderful people to thank…

As CEO it’s my honour to be the one to write an open letter of thanks to everyone for being part of this amazing event and I’m sure you will join me in celebrating the great achievement of AmericanaFest UK, and the community of people who made it happen.

I’m going to start by thanking the AMA-UK board. We meet regularly all year round to plan and plot and make this all happen, as well as playing really active roles during the event.

Executive Board: Trudie Myerscough-Harris, Baylen Leonard and CFO Ian Thomas. Board Members: Howard Mills, Kim Bayley, Ralph McLean, Luke Hill, Paul Fenn, Charlie Pierce, Brendan McCarthy, Lynne McDowell, Anton Lockwood, Lauren Kreisler and Siobhan Mayer-Kennedy. Thanks to all of you. 

UK Americana Awards

This year Trudie Myerscough-Harris produced our fourth awards show and it was once again an incredible night! Months of work goes into a show like this, planning and talking to artists and managers, finding the right presenters and secret surprises. Once again she gathered her team of hard-working crew, family and friends to run the night. This family and her personal team all work in great unison and with Trudie at the helm it ran like clockwork. It really can’t be stressed just how much work goes into an event with so many moving parts. Special thanks go to assistant producer Marc West too for being an absolute star with everything leading up to and during the event.  

Bob Harris… Can we all just take a moment in honour of this great man? Thank you to Bob Harris OBE, our hero, our patron, our ringmaster maestro! From the very first round table discussions with AMA-UK founders to this very day, Bob gives his time and support tirelessly to this Association because he is a true music man – it runs in his veins. The support to artists on every level comes from his heart. Let’s give him some deeply deserved thanks and gratitude.

Thank you to Ethan Johns with The Black Eyed Dogs: Seth Lakeman, CJ Hillman, Jonathan Harvey and Jeremy Stacey.Thank you Ethan for finding time for AMA-UK, we value your expertise more than you will ever know.

Thanks to Adrian Basketfield and his team from Night Owl Productions. Adrian’s work preparing for the Awards really showed; right down to the precise, minute-by-minute programming. Once again he made us all look and sound good – what a skill! Thank you Adrian.

Thank you to Miles Myerscough-Harris for filming the event – I think you will agree the clips coming out are a really wonderful memory of the night. 

Thank you to Catherine Myerscough-Harris for making sure the awards all got into the right hands at the right time during the show and safe guarding them with your life beforehand, handling the volunteer team and for ushering all those presenters and recipients off stage so adeptly with Jamie Freeman.

Thank you to all these amazing showtime volunteers: Flo Myerscough-Harris, Dylan Mysercough-Harris, Alison Ioannou, Anne Soh, Annemarija Paula, Giulia Cristaldi, Jadesola, Rachel Harney, Scott O'Neill, Sophie McCarthy, Harry Taylor, Genma Evans, Siobhan Mayer-Kennedy and Sara Kelly.  A special shout out to Andy Washington for multi tasking during the awards day, the show and the after party.  We are incredibly grateful for your efforts and the time you gave us to make the awards show a success.  Thank you to Caroline Staiger and Kristina Wolpers for all their hard work on ticketing and the VIP seating area. 

Thank you to the award presenters for joining our community and adding a touch of glamour, surprise and excitement: Alan Clarke, Nigel Elderton, Ray Benson, Ashley Monroe, Graham Gouldman, Emily Eavis, Martin Talbot, Micheal Dugher, John Oates, Robert Vincent, Rich Hall and John Paul White.

Last but not least, congratulations to all the nominees and winners.  Thank you to the show performers: Bennett Wilson Poole, Jade Bird, Israel Nash, Curse of Lono, Ben Glover, Mary Gauthier, Yola, Ethan John and The Black Eyed Dogs, Rhiannon Giddens, Graham Nash – thank you for making the show unique and special! 

Conference

Thank you to Lara Baker our Conference manager for producing such an incredible event. Lara has years of experience and her expertise really showed. We decided to do three full days of panels this year and Lara worked with me to create a full schedule for our delegates that was informative, educating and entertaining. 

Thank you to the volunteers: Effy Simonsson, Magdalena Denkiewicz, Laura Edwards, James Harbord, Maya Thompson, Nigel Sutton, Klaudia Kulawik, Rachel Griffin – you guys really worked hard and were a great addition to the team.

Enormous gratitude goes out to Rhiannon Giddens for her Keynote. It was not only poignant for this moment in time but historically informative and thought provoking. Many of those in attendance were moved to tears – it was a morning none of us will forget. Rhiannon has very kindly sent us the transcript of her keynote and poem which you can find on our website.

Thank you to Bob Harris and John Oates, Ralph McLean and Ray Benson, Ricky Ross and Fiona Bevan for the ‘in Conversation’ sessions, each with their own special focus – they were real highlights of each day.

We are extremely grateful to all our panelists at the conference. Thanks to: Trudie Myerscough-Harris, Brendan Mccarthy, Ian Thomas, Luke Hill, Charlie Pierce, John Shortell, Keith Harris, Kaia Kater, Allison Russell, Sam Beer, Jess Partridge, Natalie Stokes, Yola Carter, Bev Burton, Gill Tee, Louisa Rainbird, Matt Biffa, Angela Penhaligon, Ben Sumner, Michelle De Vries, Emily Barker, Crispin Parry, Tom Besford, Charlotte Penney, Phil Patterson, Neil Pearson, Winnie Sandy, Trisha Carter, Claire Gevaux, Paddy Nash, Tony Poole, Judith Owen, Judy Tzuke, Dan Moore, Graham Weber, Amy Speace, Chris Difford, Robert Vincent, Roseanne Reid and Beth Nielsen Chapman.  Thank you to Gary Horsman for doing the conference sound and making sure all those above and the audience was heard properly. 

Huge thanks go out to Emily Barker for bringing Folk in The Box to the conference. Thanks to Lukas Drinkwater and all the artists who popped in to perform over the course of the three days – I think you will join me in saying it was a truly unique experience and a welcome escape from the bustle of the event.

We have to say special thanks to Jamie Freeman who once again designed everything for AmericanaFest UK from the logo, the three brochures, posters, flyers, delegate passes, banners etc., as well as the slides for the awards show. He worked for months before-hand and non-stop during the event too, helping at the Awards show back-stage, and being the imperious voice over the PA.

Showcase Festival

Hard to express how much thanks we owe to James Walker from Brighthelmstone Promotions for totally running, organising and advancing the showcase festival and awards after party. This year we doubled the size of the event and he took it on without a single complaint – a true joy to work with a real team player. Jim also co-ordinated the volunteers in the venues and ran our new venue Night Tales each night. Thanks to the folks who ran all the showcase venues: Warren Wentworth, Phoebe Lunny, Sarah Claudine, Will Thomas, Will Moore – you were amazing!   Thanks so much to Rachael Muller and Jaz Connell for running the wristband exchange – a new venue for us and it was freezing cold, yet they smiled at every one of the 850 people who passed their desk. Thanks to the door volunteers and t-tshirt sellers: Millie Carter, Roisin Hodgins, Henrietta Clare, Amber Park, Tatiana Shelbourne, Bello Nrejaj, Leah Thompson, Emiliano Spence, Sophie Needham, Erika Severyns, Kerrin Gorrey, Coral Hutcheson, Skyelar Clarke – all super stars!

Thank you to all the  showcasing artists who made the festival incredible, this year was off the scale: Sam Lewis, Gangstagrass, CoCo and the Butterfields, Days Are Done, Martin Harley, The Luck, Birds of Chicago, Austin Lucas, Lucas & King, Jamie Freeman, Police Dog Hogan, Wild Ponies, Amy Speace, Martha L. Healy, Noble Jacks, The Blue Highways, Caleb Caudle, Caroline Spence, Arkansas Dave, Nicki Bluhm, Mike Farris, Ethan Johns With The Black Eyed Dogs, The Hanging Stars, Neilson Hubbard, The Southern Companion, Bennett Wilson Poole, Beth Rowley, Smith & Brewer, Amber Rubarth, Sam Morrow, Treetop Flyers, Carson McHone, The Hungry Mothers, William The Conqueror, Michaela Anne, Trevor Moss and Hannah-Lou, Pretty Archie, Oh Susanna, Madison Violet, Harrow Fair, Kaia Kater, John Oates, John Smith, The Rails, Ida Mae, Wade Bowen, Asleep at the Wheel, Chance McCoy, Rachel Baiman, Willi Carlile, Foreign Affairs, Robbie Cavanagh, Graham Weber, Danni Nicholls, Dylan Earle, Whiskey Shivers

This year we had brilliant venue take-overs from Thirty Tigers, Big Indie and Canadian Blast – all three brought something unique and special to the event as well as fantastic artists. We were so proud to have you as event partners and look forward to more collaborations in the future. Thank you to Bluegrass Situation for co-hosting the networking drinks with Southern Comfort, it was lovely to continue on our partnership after our Nashville collaboration.

Thank you to our sponsors and partners

Southern Comfort – thank you Drew Young and the Southern Comfort UK team for being our annual sponsors again this year; we really value the relationship we have built over the years and your support is amazing. TN Vacation Made in Tennessee and AMA Executive Director Jed Hilly again sponsored the now famous after party: we’ve seen it said online that it was the best after party ever thanks to the awesome Wild Ponies who put together an incredible line up of guests from the showcase festival artists who all sang songs from Tennessee – it was quite something! Thanks to Night Tales for taking a leap of faith with us and to Sons of Slice for opening their pizza oven in the snow!

Huge thanks go out to Marks & Clerk for amazing support, and thank you to Never No Management to co-hosting the pre show reception with them. Thanks goes out to MGR, we really have huge gratitude for ongoing support in so many ways, and especially for verifying the results of the voting. And for letting us have Ian Thomas who works so hard for AMA-UK.

Thank you Proper Music, Yep Roc, Thirty Tigers, CIMA, Big Indie, PPL, PRS, MU, CD Baby, Key Productions  and BMI for supporting us so generously.

Thank you to our  sponsors-in-kind: WBC Bags for Life, Axe Nicely Design, GigSwig, Brighthelmstone, Ooosh Tours, Folk in a Box and John Henry.

Thank you to our Hackney venues. It’s our fourth year in and we feel very at home in Hackney. Moth Club, Empire Bar, Paper Dress Vintage, Oslo and our new venue Night Tales. Thanks to our conference venue Hackney House, and of course to Hackney Empire and all of your staff especially Jane, Becca and Hoff.

Thank you to our PR team, LD Communications – David Cox, Libby Maguire and Dannika Webber.  Thanks to Joey Clarkson who kept our social media platforms buzzing in the lead up and throughout the events.

We are immensely proud of our awards – the wonderful ‘Woodys’. The original concept by Russell Beck of a 7” single was then designed by Jaz Auden of 29 Woodwork, with centre labels designed by Jamie Freeman.

Thanks to our photographers and videographers who were there to capture all that excitement. Georgie d’Albiac Brewin and Jools Owen, Chris Harvey, Music Up Close, Richard Young, James McCauley, plus Jonathan Stewart and Joanna Dudderidge courtesy of Musicians Union.

Thank you to our charity partner Help Musicians UK, who hosted the Career Longevity panel at the conference. It’s a really important topic in this genre and we are proud to be associated with you.  We were proud to work with Keychange to create a panel about women in music and happy to say we have already reached the 50/50 gender balance pledge at our conference and are very close too with the showcase festival - all well ahead of Keychange’s 2022 target.

Thank you to our members for making this community and being part of the family. So many of you nominated and voted in the Awards; the results are down to your choices and we value this so much. Thank you for attending and taking part in the conference which sold out again this year. Thank you for celebrating at the Awards with us. Welcome and thank you to our new Supporter and Patron members – your addition to this community is hugely valued.

I really hope I haven’t forgotten anyone! We’ll see you on a stage, a festival field or at a music venue soon.

Stevie Freeman
CEO Americana Music Association UK

Things don't sit still here at AMA-UK HQ so we are thrilled to bring you the first festival stage member opportunity for 2019 and delighted that this one is a brand new festival for AMA-UK.

Ramblin' Roots Revue is now going into their third year and is bigger than ever with a fantastic focus on UK talent.  We are going to be co-curating the Earbelly Acoustic Stage hosted by Trevor Moss & Hannah-Lou on Saturday 13th April.  There are five slots for AMA-UK members.

If you are not yet a member then now is a perfect time to join as this is the first of many member opportunities to come in the next few months JOIN

MEMBERS Log in and NOW CLOSED