American roots are taking over the generalization of Americana sound and redefining what it means to have homegrown music.
The Rhythm N’ Blooms festival, a three-day musical event birthed to Knoxville in 2010, prides itself in moving from an Americana festival to an American roots festival. Welcoming local sound from the different corners of the region, the festival allows bands to come and share their Knoxville impacted music.
Partnered with Dogwood Arts Festival and sponsored largely by Samuel Adams for the events in April, Rhythm N’ Blooms promotes the opportunity to come out and learn Knoxville’s role in music history.
Chyna Brackeen, president of Attack Monkey Productions and Co-Producer of Rhythm N’ Blooms, explained the original call for the festival.
“The festival began to showcase East Tennessee’s role in showcasing roots music,” Brackeen said, “and there is an emphasis on having bands with ties to Knoxville.”
Brackeen is carefully specific in choosing who will headline and perform, as the 2015 lineup will include Knoxville band The Dirty Guv’nahs, The Decemberists and Delta Spirit. She explained that there are two sticking points for her decision: the artists have to be able to play their instruments and be able to create and write their own music.
“I wanted to be able to say our bands can play right there next to this band from California that’s heard on the radio all the time, and our bands are going to kick ass just as much,” Brackeen said.
Besides wanting festival-goers to walk home with new favorite bands they have never heard of, Brackeen has worked on locating the entire festival in the Old City. She is hoping to give a beautifying experience to the current rebirth happening in the Old City as well as provide people a reason to be in the area at three in the afternoon, having a great time.
The venues stretch from the gritty setup of Pilot Light to an intimate setting in Lox Salon, even utilizing the space at The Standard and on the Old City streets for building exclusive Rhythm N’ Blooms venues.
James Trimble, lead singer of The Dirty Guv’nahs, is ready to be home playing in the city that shaped the Guv’nahs’ sound. Barley’s, a restaurant venue in the 2015 lineup, was home to some of the Guv’nahs’ beginning shows, including the parking lot beside the restaurant that debuted the locally grown band for their first performance.
“Every time we play at home it is by far the most enjoyable time,” Trimble said.
The Dirty Guv’nahs are happy to share this new, personal experience with the Rhythm N’ Blooms crowd, as well as several new songs.
Along with the music scene and local vendors setting up in the streets of the Old City, Brackeen is excited to announce another year of musician’s workshops happening on Saturday during the festival. The workshops are free to the public and have discussions on topics such as lyric writing and honing personal instrument skills. Any musician playing at the festival may help instruct the workshop, providing an opportunity for an educational meet-n-greet for fans and attendees.
Rounding out the schedule, the Dogwood Arts Festival also supports art in local schools with a student-only competition involving hand painted guitars. Art students from Knox County Schools are chosen to enter the competition and paint their own ideas on the face of a guitar. The guitars are then displayed during the entire festival and put up for auction. All proceeds go towards the Rhythm N’ Blooms festival and supporting art in local schools.
Brackeen, alongside the Dogwood Arts Festival, has continually made an extensive effort to create a unique to Knoxville experience for locals and travelers. Ultimately wanting to contribute to extending the American Root sound, Rhythm N’ Blooms strives to play a role in growing local Knoxville bands. Each year, new artists come out of the woodwork and are welcomed into the region’s sound.
Evan Ford, member of Cereus Bright, recalled their performance in the 2014 Rhythm N’ Blooms festival as one of the band’s most memorable weekends. Recently making their first headlining debut at the Bijou Theater, the festival served as a milestone for the group. Ford explained how each musician brings their personal adaptation to the American roots sound.
“We can say that this festival is growing, maybe because of us,” Ford said. “Its very encouraging for Knoxville as a music city.”
Rhythm N’ Blooms begins the weekend of music and art on Friday, April 10 and concludes with performances on the Main Stage on Sunday, April 12. Tickets are available online and are $60 for a three-day pass.
