Jo Odom, Amanda Cook, Carolyne Van Lierop, Lorraine Jordan, Frances Mooney, Mindy Rakestraw,
Kati Penn-Williams and Crystal Owens at the Daughters of Bluegrass Festival (4/23/17)
Each year at the Daughters of Bluegrass festival in Guyton, GA, a new daughter is inducted into the ranks. The festival celebrates female-led bluegrass acts, including many who had performed on the various Daughters of Bluegrass albums over the years.
For 2017, the honor went to Carolyne VanLierop, banjo picker with Amanda Cook and Kennesaw Ridge. A Florida native, Carolyne has been playing the banjo since she was just a girl, inspired by a Lewis Family concert she saw at a Florida Sheriff’s Ranch show. Her grandfather, also a sheriff, brought her into his group, The Sheriff’s Posse, in 2002. She and her cousins then started their own band, The Rivertown Girls, who were popular throughout the deep south, appearing regularly at festivals in Florida, Georgia, and Alabama.
After six years with Rivertown Girls, Carolyne played with Big Bend Bluegrass and Big River Bluegrass Band before joining up with Cook and Kennesaw Ridge.
She was inducted into the Daughters of Bluegrass by Jo Odom, Mindy Rakestraw, Frances Mooney, and Lorraine Jordan who have been involved from the beginning.
Congratulations Carolyne!
Here’s video of her first performance as a Daughter.
