Befriended and mentored by Bill Monroe, the Father of Bluegrass Music, Mike Compton is a Grammy and IBMA Award-winning mandolinist, composer, singer, arranger and teacher. His mastery of Monroe’s genre-bending style has been featured on recordings with a wide range of performers — from rock stars Sting, Gregg Allman and Elvis Costello – to more traditional bluegrass and old-time music artists such as John Hartford, Ralph Stanley, David Grisman, Norman Blake, Doc Watson and Peter Rowan. Laura Boosinger began her banjo career at Warren Wilson College in Swannanoa, under the tutelage of renowned musician David Holt. She is a student and teacher of Appalachian Music and Studies playing with the Luke Smathers Band, David Holt and the Lightning Bolts and the Midnight Plowboys. She has collaborated with musicians across the spectrum – from George Shuffler, guitarist and bass player for the Stanley Brothers, to Josh Goforth, one of her early students who has made a well-deserved name for himself in the world of Bluegrass. Mike and Laura have a new album under the name “The Knackered Ramblers”, and are performing at the new Burke Arts Council’s venue in Morganton on Saturday 20th.

In 1925, the small town of Mountain City, tucked into the northeast corner of Tennessee in Johnson County, hosted what turned out to be an iconic fiddler’s convention. As producer John McCutcheon writes, “Seems like everyone was there: Fiddlin’ John Carson, Uncle Am Stuart, Clarence Ashley, GB Grayson, the Hill Billies, the Fiddlin’ Powers Family, and more. The photograph taken that day makes it look like the Woodstock of early country music.” McCutcheon and others wanted to commemorate the centennial anniversary of this event with this new collection, which features Stuart Duncan, Tim O’Brien, Old Crow Medicine Show, Bruce Molsky, and Mountain City native Kody Norris.

Isothermal’s annual Constitution Day Blood Drive will be held next week on Wednesday, September 17, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. in the Student Center Gym.As we approach the first anniversary of the passing of our beloved WNCW host, Rob Daves, we will be honoring his memory during this blood drive. Rob was a faithful blood donor, and this is a meaningful way to continue his legacy.

Beginning Tuesday night September 16th and continuing for three successive weeks, WNCW will broadcast three documentaries made especially for WNCW, with two radio adaptations of David Weintraub’s films Flood, which chronicles the great Appalachian flood of 1916, and his newest documentary, From Helene and Back. In addition, we are partnering with EducationNC to broadcast the radio adaptation of their series Running Towards Disaster, which focused on the people who helped in all sorts of ways following Helene’s destruction to our region. Flood will air 9-10pm on Tuesday, September 16; From Helene and Back from 9-10pm on Tuesday, September 23; and Running Towards Disaster from 9-10pm on Tuesday, September 30.

“Eight and a half years separated Total Freedom and its predecessor, Voyageur, so the five years between albums for Kathleen Edwards now feels like the blink of an eye. For her new one, Billionaire, the Ottawa musician teamed up with producers Jason Isbell and Gena Johnson for 10 tracks of chugging rock and razor-sharp songwriting.” -Pitchfork

September 12th sees the release of Shawn Camp’s The Ghost of Sis Draper, which features 10 songs co-written by Camp and the late Guy Clark, as well as one solo Clark composition. All of the songs are centered around their famous character, immortalized in the song you may already be familiar with (we featured one of the variations of the title track for “New Tunes at 2” last week). We’re looking forward to seeing Shawn at the Earl Scruggs Music Festival coming up this weekend, both with his Earls of Leicester (he sings Lester Flatt’s part) and with another of Clark’s frequent collaborators, Verlon Thompson.

Over 50 years! That’s how long Ray Benson and his band Asleep at the Wheel have been together in Texas, continuously finding that balance between preserving the original magic of Western swing while freshening it up with each new album and personnel change. As a result, they remain the most important force in keeping the sound of Western swing alive. They’re celebrating with an extra-big emphasis on their love for the Lone Star State here, with help from folks like Billy Strings and (fellow Texan) Lyle Lovett.

This fall, the North Carolina Music Hall of Fame will pay homage to six North Carolinians with their induction into its prestigious Hall of Fame. The 2025 Induction Ceremony, presented by Visit Mooresville, will be held on Thursday, October 16, 2025. WNCW is proud to be a media sponsor of this event.

Saturday, February 21, 2026 | The Foundation Performing Arts Center | Spindale, NC

Sunday, September 21, 2025 | Asheville Yards | Asheville, NC