Amythyst Kiah at the Blue Ridge Music Center

Amythyst Kiah brings her powerful performance to the Music Center at 7 p.m., Saturday, August 8, along with Shay Martin Lovette.

Born in Chattanooga, Tennessee, and based in Johnson City, Amythyst Kiah has a commanding stage presence, matched by her raw and powerful vocals. Playing banjo and guitar, her eclectic range of influences spans decades, finding inspiration in old-time, alternative rock, folk, country, and blues. Kiah has recently collaborated with Rhiannon Giddens, Leyla McCalla, and Allison Russell to record Our Native Daughters on Smithsonian Folkways. Written and performed by Kiah, the opening track, “Black Myself,” won the 2019 Song of the Year award at the Folk Alliance International Conference, and was nominated for a Grammy for Best American Roots Song.

Shay Martin Lovette is a singer-songwriter hailing from the Appalachian foothills of North Carolina. He has placed in nationally recognized songwriting competitions like MerleFest’s Chris Austin Songwriting Competition and Telluride’s Troubadour Songwriting Competition. He has performed at music festivals such as Bristol Rhythm and Roots Reunion and Carolina in the Fall.

Tickets are $20. Children 12 and younger are admitted free. 

Learn more

This concert is part of the Women in Bluegrass and American Roots Music Series. The series is in celebration of the centennial of the 19th Amendment granting women the right to vote, made possible with support from the National Endowment for the Arts and the National Park Foundation.

Since 2013, the Blue Ridge Parkway Foundation has supported musical programming at the Blue Ridge Music Center to help preserve the cultural heritage of the mountains.