YOUR 2026 OBR LINEUP
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St. Paul & The Broken Bones are a powerhouse soul ensemble from Alabama known for their electrifying live shows and impassioned vocals. Formed in Birmingham in 2011, the band features Paul Janeway (vocals), Jesse Phillips (bass), Browan Lollar (guitar), Kevin Leon (drums), Al Gamble (keyboards), Allen Branstetter (trumpet), Chad Fisher (trombone), and Amari Ansari (saxophone).
Their new self-titled sixth album marks a creative renewal—melding the band’s adventurous spirit with a return to soulful, song-focused roots. Recorded at the legendary FAME Studios and produced by Eg White (Adele, Celine Dion), the record blends psych-funk grooves, gospel-tinged ballads, and cinematic rock flourishes. Tracks like “Sushi and Coca-Cola” and “Going Back” reflect both personal introspection and the band’s deepened identity after a decade of evolution.
St. Paul & The Broken Bones have shared stages with The Rolling Stones, Lizzo, and Black Pumas, and performed at major festivals like Coachella, Glastonbury, Lollapalooza, and Bonnaroo. Even Sir Elton John took notice, inviting them to perform at his Oscar party. Blending rock & roll, soul, R&B, and more, the band continues to captivate audiences around the world.
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According to musician, singer and songwriter JJ Grey, “The best songs I've ever written, I never wrote. They wrote themselves. The best show I ever played, played itself and had little to do with me or talent. To me, those things come from the power of an honest moment, and I guess I'm trying to live in that power and not force life to cough up what I want.”
Since his first album, Blackwater, back in 2001, Grey has been releasing deeply moving, masterfully written, funkified rock and front porch Southern soul music. Now, with his new album, Olustee – his tenth and first in nine years, and the first he has self-produced – Grey is back, singing his personal stories with universal themes of redemption, rebirth, hard luck, and inner peace. With his music, Grey also celebrates good times with lifelong friends, oftentimes mixing the carnal with the cerebral in the very same song. Fueled by his vividly detailed, timeless originals spun from his own life and experiences in the Northern Florida swampland, Grey’s gritty baritone drips with honest passion and testifies with a preacher’s foot-pounding fervor.
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For Trousdale—the trio of Quinn D’Andrea, Georgia Greene, and Lauren Jones—the ache of growing through change resonates deeply. Like certain long nights of childhood where growing pains can feel like every inch is aching, cramping, pinching, Trousdale understands the feeling that comes with facing down existential anxiety, and matters of the heart. “We can acknowledge the strides we’ve made and be grateful, but we’ve talked a lot about how tired we are,” Jones says with a laugh. “We’ve been thinking a lot about the tension that comes with change, wanting it, fighting it, embracing it, but learning to thrive in that moment.” On Trousdale’s upcoming LP, Growing Pains (due April 11th) the band works through those struggles to find strength, courage, and growth in each other. “From what was, something new can always grow.” D’Andrea says.
Opening on a ripping electric guitar and bolstered by their trademark harmonies, the title track and lead single perfectly encapsulates those feelings in the life of Trousdale. “I’m making it through the tough times when it feels like I’ve been burning out/ Trying to build up the muscle so the hustle doesn’t pull me down,” they sing, a limber bass line drawing each new syllable forward. The album was recorded largely live in the room and co-produced by the band and John Mark Nelson, a songwriter who has also co-written and produced songs for Suki Waterhouse and Shaboozey, as well as engineered tracks for the likes of Taylor Swift and Mitski. Songs like “Growing Pains” highlight just how much warmth and depth lent to Trousdale’s already golden tones. “This song was about what we feel every day in this band, what we’re going through as a band,” Greene says. “This is our shared experience, being exhausted but finding beauty together.”
Trousdale’s debut album, 2023’s Out of My Mind, earned raves from the likes of the Boston Globe, Consequence, and Atwood Magazine for its powerful songwriting, immaculate harmonies, and ability to bridge gaps between country and indie pop. The group further honed those strengths on the road, finding deeper grooves and learning how to further highlight each of their voices individually. That process continued when writing Growing Pains, when the three songwriters set off to write rough ideas on their own, then refining and finishing them in the room together. “We can be vulnerable and share our feelings, but none of us has to feel like our heart is on the line alone,” D’Andrea explains. “We’re all adding to each other’s ideas, drawing from personal experiences and then expanding them into something more people can connect with.”
To that end, second single “Secondhand Smoke” feels every ounce of personal specifics in its story of an abusive relationship, but elevates into something far more haunting. There’s an icy chill to the acoustic guitar, the pain ringing softly into the night as the trio take on the perspective of a woman struggling to find hope: “Does it make me a fighter, does it make me a fool?/ Is it a matter of time til I burn with you?” Greene recalls the intense energy in the room as they finished writing the song, the trio and co-writers Mags Duval and Adam Yaron talking through their own experiences with people who have destructive personalities. “As a creative, working with brilliant people like this can make these experiences feel very real,” she says. “It’s easier to get into that space with everyone’s voices ringing out together.”
While those songwriters proved brilliant collaborators, the trio credit John Mark Nelson as a particularly powerful aide in seeing the album through its growing pains. “He’s always thinking about the big picture and staying out of the weeds, but getting in the weeds has always been our bread and butter,” Jones laughs. “We used to live in the weeds. But John Mark helped us focus on the album as a whole.”
That lesson shows both in the totality of Growing Pains and in the summery charm of a track like “Over and Over”. Nelson shared a rough sketch of the track, and Trousdale eagerly carved out their own version: a tale of running into an ex and trying to decipher how you feel about everyone moving on. “There’s never a good time to run into your ex , and it’s even worse when they’re bragging about how well they’re doing now,” Greene explains. D’Andrea points to the way the track leaps between tight-knit harmonies and lead vocal flourishes as emblematic of the new heights Trousdale has reached. “Every time we record and we're in the vocal booth, we're all getting better and figuring out what we need,” she says. “We know how to accentuate the writing and make sure we’re hitting a song’s fullest potential.”
Part of that reach came from expanding their sonic palette and using a larger band. “We made charts for a full band and went in with concrete ideas of where each song could go,” Greene says. “We have such incredible musicians on the record and knew they would run with it. It just feels way more organic and fresh than we’ve done before—less takes, less editing, and less chances to overthink things .”
As good as Trousdale sounds when they lean into their gold-hued pop, the group work their country flair into the material more masterfully than ever before. There are shades of Leann Rimes to the groovy, swaying “Lonely Night”, a track determined to push any listener out of their solo funk: “A little taste of the high life/ Cause I don’t need another lonely night.” The heartbeat-ballad “Want Me Back”, meanwhile, took inspiration from Lady A and finds the trio hoping that an ex might be regretting the breakup. “I went into our recording session thinking the song would end up straight country, and Quinn and Georgia thought it would be straight pop,” Jones explains. “Our bassist worked some doo-wop into the mix, and we found something really special to lean into.”
Across 12 remarkable tracks, Growing Pains stares down all the weight of its title, a trio of strong, independent women facing the threats of loneliness, broken hearts, loss, and more, and converting it into transformative, uplifting music. And as the album closes on the dazzling “Last Bloom”, Trousdale basks in the light at the end of every tunnel. “What it was will grow into something new,” they sing, radiating at the end of the journey. “It's a reminder that even in the coldest moments, renewal is always possible,” D’Andrea explains. “The song was inspired by Lauren trimming her houseplants, and I was inspired by the idea that letting go of what no longer serves us can help something new take root.”
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Hiss Golden Messenger is the long-running musical project led by North Carolina-based singer, songwriter, and producer M.C. Taylor. The project has evolved over the last decade into one of the most respected and celebrated in contemporary Americana, blending folk, country, soul and gospel influences with deeply introspective, poetic, and conscious songwriting.
Across multiple critically acclaimed, Grammy nominated albums, Hiss Golden Messenger has become known for its warmth and emotional clarity, as well as Taylor’s ability to connect the personal and poetic with the political without losing intimacy or musical grace.
The forthcoming I’m People continues this trajectory, offering a reflective collection of songs that speaks to resilience, community, radical hopefulness, and the quiet human moments that animate and illuminate the everyday. It is among Taylor’s greatest and most profound work.
Hiss Golden Messenger sits naturally alongside artists and releases that value craft, storytelling, and authenticity, and aligns well with audiences attuned to indie, folk, Americana, roots, and contemporary country music.
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With the arrival of their debut EP Life and Life Only, The Heavy Heavy immediately filled a longtime void in the musical landscape, delivering a soulful breed of rock & roll untouched by modern artifice. As audiences across the globe grew enchanted with their era-bending sound, the UK-based band began selling out headline shows in major cities like New York and Chicago, opening for the likes of Black Pumas and Band of Horses, and earning critical comparisons to Jefferson Airplane, The Band, The Mamas & The Papas, and more—all with only a handful of songs to their name, including the AAA radio top five singles “Miles and Miles” and “Go Down River.” After spending the past two years on the road and in the studio, The Heavy Heavy now draw listeners even deeper into their dreamworld with their long-awaited debut album One Of A Kind.
Written entirely by co-founders Georgie Fuller and William Turner and mostly recorded at Turner’s studio in Brighton, One Of A Kind maintains the self-contained approach of Life and Life Only—a seven-song project acclaimed by outlets like NME (who named them an essential emerging artist for 2023) and The Guardian (who noted that The Heavy Heavy “write and play music with that lick of madness that makes early Fleetwood Mac and peak Stones so thrilling”). To that end, Turner produced, engineered, and mixed every track and handled most of the LP’s lavish instrumentation (including guitar, bass, piano, organ, Mellotron, and more), with The Heavy Heavy’s live band lending their explosive energy to the album. But in a departure from the EP, One Of A Kind leans away from Laurel Canyon-esque folk-rock and fully embraces their British roots, finding a particularly crucial inspiration in the gritty and groove-heavy hedonism of the Rolling Stones’ Goats Head Soup. “A lot of our EP was very bright and pretty, so we wanted to smash the door down like we do in the live show,” says Turner. “Because we were creating an entire album, there was so much more space to explore and expand,” Fuller adds. “It’s still undoubtedly that Heavy Heavy sound, but now we have all these other rooms to play around in.”
For One Of A Kind’s lead single, The Heavy Heavy chose a sun-drenched and sing-along-ready number that serves as an auspicious bridge to the band’s new era. The last song written for the album, “Happiness” bends toward the lush psych-pop of Life and Life Only while introducing a new level of visceral intensity. “We felt we needed a song that had that summery, flowery feel of the EP, and somehow at the last minute we were able to pull magic out of thin air,” Fuller recalls. A fast fan favorite at their live shows, “Happiness” channels a bold determination to break free from loneliness and stagnation, ultimately providing an automatic mood lift thanks to The Heavy Heavy’s resplendent melodies and signature multi-part harmonies.
Kicking off with a majestic bang, One Of A Kind opens on the rolling drumbeats and walloping riffs of its title track—a feverishly chanted anthem whose lyrics transform the listener into the protagonist of their own impossibly glamorous movie (e.g., “You’re getting down/You’re keeping on/You look the best/You’re all night howling”). Graced with a breathtaking vocal performance from Fuller (a classically trained singer), “One Of A Kind” quickly set the tone for the album’s larger-than-life vitality. “Something about the primal nature of that song inspired us to keep making songs that feel quite big and powerful,” says Turner. Later, on “Because You’re Mine,” The Heavy Heavy sustain that feel-good spirit and share a carefree love song lit up in slinky grooves and hallucinatory lyrics depicting what Fuller refers to as “the psychedelic daydream of a wandering nomad type—someone who goes wherever the wind takes them.”
As One Of A Kind floats along, The Heavy Heavy endlessly push into previously uncharted sonic terrain, tapping into such unexpected influences as mid-’90s big beat on the bass-driven and gorgeously hazy “Miracle Sun.” “It’s a song with a lot of attitude to it—sort of our way of telling the world, ‘We’re living the way we want to live, and it doesn’t matter if you don’t understand,’” says Turner. Meanwhile, on “Feel,” the band merges the mesmerizing grooves of Madchester-era Britpop with a bit of idiosyncratic poetry (“I am a freeloader love junkie/A real heavy cannonball and I’m hungry…I stand between the sun, between the stone/I feel it in my fingers, feel it in my bones”). And on “Wild Emotion,” One Of A Kind offers up a country-infused serenade laced with galloping rhythms and twangy guitar tones partly inspired by the work of Dire Straits frontman Mark Knopfler. “That’s probably the most emotional song on the album,” Turner points out. “It’s meant to have a reassuring message, but at its center is the story of a woman who’s gone through a heartbreak and can’t find her way out of feeling hopeless and distraught.”
After journeying through a whirlwind of sounds and textures—the hypnotic Mellotron of “Lemonade,” the frenetic psych-rock organ and skyscraping vocals of “Dirt,” the earthy acoustic guitar and sweetly playful harmonies of “Lovestruck”—One Of A Kind lands at the reverb-soaked splendor of its closing track, “Salina.” Named for a sparsely populated volcanic island off the coast of Sicily (an otherworldly spot Fuller and Turner visited on vacation), the slow-building epic unfolds in so many exquisitely strange sonic details: moody cello lines, thundering percussion, a spellbinding pedal-steel part simultaneously played by two separate guest musicians. “‘Salina’ was one of those moments where we let ourselves get experimental with the production and create a whole ocean of sound,” says Fuller. “We knew we had to put it at the end and let the reverb ring out in those final seconds—almost as if we’re leaving the album hanging in the air.”
Formed in 2019, The Heavy Heavy emerged from a potent alchemy of their eclectic sensibilities. Hailing from the small town of Malvern (a stretch of the English countryside he describes as “a beautiful place full of hippies and longhaired people”), Turner took up guitar in his early teens and later played in a series of psychedelic/surf-rock bands, while Fuller’s extensive background includes performing at Montreux Jazz Festival as a teenager and acting in the London theater. As they moved forward with a mission of “making music that sounds like our favorite records ever” (including everything from Peter Green-era Fleetwood Mac to folk-blues act Delaney & Bonnie to Fleet Foxes), the duo dreamed up a batch of songs in a London flat and self-released an early version of Life and Life Only in late 2020, eventually catching the attention of ATO Records and signing with the U.S.-based label in 2022. Fueled in part by the breakout success of “Miles and Miles” (their ATO debut single), The Heavy Heavy’s five-piece live band soon began playing bigger and bigger venues and taking the stage at leading festivals like Bonnaroo, Boston Calling, and Newport Folk Festival, in addition to performing on “Jimmy Kimmel Live!,” “The Late Show With Stephen Colbert,” and “CBS Saturday Morning” and scoring major syncs with the likes of Nissan and Netflix’s “Outer Banks.”
Because of the rapturous response to their debut EP, The Heavy Heavy found themselves in an unfamiliar headspace when it came to the creation of One Of A Kind. “With the EP we were making songs as a way to soundtrack our own lives, but now it’s a different beast—it’s no longer theoretical, which gives everything more weight,” says Turner. But in the end, the band discovered an essential touchstone in the connection they’ve forged with their fans over the last two years. “Not too long ago, a woman came up to us at a show and told us she was getting a tattoo of one of our lyrics to remind herself to keep pushing on and keep chasing her dreams,” Fuller says. “Moments like that always remind us that as long as we keep making what feels good, chances are it’s going to make other people feel good too. I hope this album feels like a great big party to everyone, and I hope it inspires them to live their lives however they want.”
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The 502s are a beach folk band from Florida often called "the happiest band on Earth," formed by a group of friends from Maitland. They got their name from Louisville’s area code 502 and started out practicing at Ed’s grandpa’s house before growing into a touring act with sold-out shows and new albums.
The 502s began as a small group of friends in Maitland, Florida, just messing around and playing music together. The name comes from Louisville’s area code 502, which the band has embraced as part of their identity. Early on, their goal was as simple as getting a slot at a local open mic, and they’ve since built a reputation for upbeat, sing-along shows that feel like sunshine you can dance to.
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Vincent Neil Emerson has become a staple among folk and country music fans nationwide, celebrated for his honest tales of life on the road, heartbreak, and struggles of all sorts. His first LP, Fried Chicken & Evil Women, from 2019, established him as a refreshing voice in the modern country music landscape. The songs from that first album were charming and playful songs, but didn't reveal the entirety of Emerson's story.
On his brilliant new album, The Golden Crystal Kingdom, Emerson transcends the role of a honky-tonk country singer and becomes a chronicler of his history. The album is a bold continuation of the story he tells on Vincent Neil Emerson, with songs like the title track exploring the feelings he was left with after his days spent playing in Texas honky-tonks and dancehalls, and the track "The Time of The Rambler," inspired by the early days of living in his car and busking on the streets.
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From a source deep, abundant, and pure the river flows. It’s there on the map, marking place and time. Yet, the river changes as it remains a constant, carving away at the edges, making new pathways, gaining strength as it progresses forward. The Travelin’ McCourys are that river.
The McCoury brothers—Ronnie (mandolin) and Rob (banjo)—were born into the bluegrass tradition. Talk about a source abundant and pure: their father, Del, is among the most influential and successful musicians in the history of the genre. Years on the road with Dad in the Del McCoury Band honed their knife-edge chops and encouraged the duo to imagine how traditional bluegrass could cut innovative pathways into 21st century music.
“If you put your mind, your skills, and your ability to it, I think you can make just about anything work on bluegrass instruments,” says Ronnie. “That’s a really fun part of this—figuring the new stuff out and surprising the audience.”
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Wyatt Waddell is known for his complex melodies, exuberant presence, and powerful yet versatile vocal range, which moves seamlessly between the raspy timbre of James Brown to the melodic whimsy of Paul McCartney. Wyatt has been bubbling at the edges of the Chicago underground and is now set to bring his infectious mix of R&B, Americana, and funk into the music world.
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Bombargo is a Canadian band of brothers known for their infectious blend of funk, soul, rock & roll, unforgettable live performances, and their mission of delivering "The Goodtime Guarantee™" wherever they go. From surfing on crowds (literally), hanging from the ceiling, or planting seeds of gratitude, there’s only one thing a Bombargo show can guarantee, and that’s a Goodtime.
Fronted by Nathan Thoen and brother Anthony Thoen (guitar) alongside Spencer Chilliak (guitar), Sammy Lee Folkersen (bass), and Niall Cubbon (drums), Bombargo has built a reputation as one of Canada's most energetic and engaging live acts, combining sing-along anthems, rich harmonies, and groove-driven musicianship into a show that leaves audiences dancing long after the final encore.
The band's journey began when Nathan and Spencer embarked on a spontaneous 16-hour road trip to Sasquatch Music Festival. Inspired by the experience, they wrote their first song, "Let It Grow," which has since surpassed 8 million streams on Spotify alone and helped launch their debut EP, Back on Main. They followed with their first full-length album, We Are Bombargo, establishing the vibrant, feel-good sound that would become their trademark.
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The Gnarbuckles have been patching Americana, folk, and bluegrass tunes together with liquid nails and sounds from the future since 2020.
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The original music of Jake Salter & a unique group of talented musicians comes together in Tru Phonic. Sounds of Jam, Funk, Blues, Rock, Soul, Jazz, and Hip-Hop & more can be heard when seeing the band Live or on their Studio Albums. Established in 2017, Tru Phonic includes Multiple veterans in the Central Florida music scene who have worked with many other great bands and musicians in the area. The group has an ever-changing, high-energy live show that makes you wanna MOVE! Tru Phonic's original sound is characterized by high skill-level shown on each instrument, talented vocal harmonies, powerful lyrics, expanding grooves, unique guitar playing & a tight horn section.
In just a few years of touring Tru Phonic has made quite an impression everywhere they go, establishing fanbases & regular listeners in cities allover the Southeast U.S. & Booking Music Festivals Like Suwannee Hulaween 2023, Farm to Grass, Whippersnap Music & arts Fest, Sunshine Hootenany, Everglades Roots Fest, No Resolutions, Fort20 Fest & more.
The band also has a strong online presence & following with their original music accumulating steady numbers in just over 6 years;
Jake Salter is first a self-taught guitar player who then gained experience with multiple live bands of all kinds while continuing to study many aspects of music like recording, music theory, piano & keyboards, Voice, Guitar technique, and many different genres of music. The Band is made of of Multiple veterans in the Central Florida music scene who have played for and worked with many other great bands and musicians in the area. When seeing Tru Phonic Live, you will love the high skill-level shown on each instrument, as well as talented Vocal Harmonies and Powerful Lyrics. Jake Salter and the guys are very appreciative of the fans who support their music and find ways to relate to the music in their own lives. Tru Phonic was built on the idea that music should be created honestly and without tricks, gimmicks, or trends to follow. When seeing Tru Phonic live, you can easily sense the positivity, fun, and Tru Love of the arts shared by the musicians and fans alike.
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Slap Dragon is the brain-child of bassist Scott Mulvahill and vocalist Laura Berens who met and began writing songs together in the summer of 2023. Soul vocals and acoustic instruments (played by some of Nashville's heaviest session musicians) combine for a fresh, funky irresistibly joyful sound that is equal parts bluegrass, disco, and RnB. Slap Dragon played their first show on June 1st, 2024 to an enthusiastic crowd in Nashville, followed by a set at Bonnaroo. Slap Dragon has begun gaining traction online — including a recent Instagram clip of “Already Won” surpassing 260k views. Following their successful Kickstarter campaign in October 2025, Slap Dragon released their anticipated debut album, Mission Statement on May 22, 2026.
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Steeln' Peaches pays homage to the music that brought together generations of freewheeling spirits. Hear exciting young Florida artists channel the founding fathers of Southern rock in this Allman Brothers Band revue project.
A band that faithfully executes and creates rock & roll interpretations of the Allman Brothers Band’s all-time classics and deep cuts, Steeln’ Peaches combines Florida music royalty (and festival mainstays) Thomas Wynn & the Believers and The Groove Orient, showing off a natural chemistry and dedication to the Allman Brothers Band’s legendary discography.
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Jordan Foley is a singer-songwriter who packs a punch with his growling voice and heavy-hand rhythm guitar. Jordan doesn't shy away from the stage and loves to put on a show that emphasizes on great songwriting and some laughs along the way.
He has an Americana band called The Wheelhouse that travels all over and writes/records music with him. Jordan also plays as a duo with his bandmate Tyler Hood.
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Remedy Tree is a Florida-based Americana band rooted in bluegrass, old-time, and folk traditions. Founded in 2015 by Gabriel and Abigail Acevedo, the group blends Gabriel’s unique perspective—born in Puerto Rico and raised in rural Florida—with Abigail’s deep old-time background. Together with Nathan Beaumont on mandolin and Isaac Taylor on banjo they create original music that feels both timeless and fresh. Since signing with Mountain Fever Records in 2024, Remedy Tree has performed at Ireland, England, and all over the Eastern US sharing stages with notable acts such as Peter Rowan, The Infamous Stringdusters, Sister Sadie, Ricky Skaggs, and The Steeldrivers. Their 2025 album Beyond What I Can See continues to gain momentum as they headline The Forest Tour in the Summer of 2026. A growing force in Americana music—deep roots, new ground.