Avant-garde grasser extraordinaire Billy Strings is booked to perform Thursday, November 28, on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon. The show airs at 11:35 (eastern) on NBC affiliate stations.
So when you sit down to that late night turkey sandwich, with a bit of stuffing and some cranberry sauce on the side, tune in to catch this mainstream bluegrass sensation on your TV.
Billy is a legitimate touring phenomenon, selling out large venues across the US, on multiple consecutive days in larger cities. That isn’t notable on its own, as many popular artists do the same, but we are talking about an acoustic bluegrass show here. Guitar, banjo, fiddle, mandolin, and bass. Sure, they are plugged in, and the lighting and video are far more intense than you would see at many festivals, but they are playing bluegrass, and to a mostly younger and urban audience.
The irreducible element is Mr. Strings himself, born William Lee Apostol in 1992. Certain performers just have that “special something,” and Billy is surely one. His appeal to a generation who have grown up with glitzy, high-impact entertainment is unmistakable; they clearly see him as a star.
And did we mention that he can play? Billy Strings is a terrific bluegrass guitarist, well-versed in all that came before, and deeply respectful of the music that formed him. He writes and sings original music very much in that vein, and with a truly terrific band that can play contemporary and modern bluegrass with the best of them.
Musical artists typically appear in the final segment of the hour long program, though Fallon may have Billy on to talk about his latest album, Highway Prayers, in an earlier block.
If you are one of those bluegrass lovers who have been hearing all the talk about Billy Strings, but figured you wouldn’t like him, check it out for yourself on Thursday night from the comfort of your easy chair.
It’s the music we all love, just bigger, louder, and on a larger scale.
UPDATE 11/29: video from the show available here.
