PRESS RELEASE

For upcoming month August 2022, the definitive print media source for the bluegrass genre for five-plus decades, Bluegrass Unlimited, has debuted Dark Shadow Recording artist Laura Orshaw’s new album Solitary Diamond at No. 1 on their monthly National Bluegrass Survey Top 15 Albums Chart. The May 27, 2022 album is also Orshaw’s first full-length with the Dark Shadow label, based just north of Nashville, TN. The August albums chart also features global acoustic music powerhouses such as Billy Strings, Balsam Range, Molly Tuttle, The Grascals, and newcomer Jaelee Roberts (Mountain Home Music Company), who jumped into the #2 position from #13 last month.

A primary fiddler, Orshaw is a GRAMMY-nominated instrumentalist and vocalist, and additional multi-award recipient in 2020 with the International Bluegrass Music Association and in 2019 with Society for the Preservation of Bluegrass Music in America (Fiddle Performer of the Year). She is also currently a member of the wildly popular The Po’ Ramblin’ Boys, with previous stints with Danny Paisley and Southern Grass, Tennessee Mafia Jug Band, and Alan Bibey & Grasstowne. She signed a solo artist deal with Dark Shadow Recording in 2021, when she began releasing singles in support of the release of Solitary Diamond.

Speaking of singles, her debut Dark Shadow single, “Hank” (Feb. 4, 2022), is still charting five-plus months later. Up three spots to #11 on Bluegrass Unlimited‘s July singles chart (three months on the chart), up five spots to #39 on Roots Music Report‘s Bluegrass Song Top 50, and up three spots to #21 on Roots Music Report‘s Contemporary Bluegrass Song Top 50 chart (album track, “Band of Jesse James” also debuted at #32 on this chart). The album is also continuing to trend up at Roots Music Report, climbing to #5 in both the Bluegrass and Contemporary Bluegrass albums charts.

In other bluegrass/acoustic chart news, Syntax Creative clients continue to have a solid summer! Check out some of this week’s highlights:

Bluegrass Today:
Grassicana Weekly Chart: Aaron Burdett, “The Mountains You Carry” (Organic Records) jumps to #1 after debuting at #7 last week; Circus No. 9, “The Place that I Call Home” (Bonfire Recording Co.) debuts at #10; Travianna Records’ Summer & Bray and Mountain Home Music Company’s The Gina Furtado Project also appear
Weekly Airplay Chart: Mountain Home artists carry the #2 (Ashby Frank), #6 (Lonesome River Band), and #7 (Chris Jones & The Night Drivers) spots in the Top 10; Mountain Fever Records’ Volume Five rounds out the Top 10 with single, “What I Didn’t Say”
Gospel Weekly Airplay Chart: Pinecastle Records’ Williamson Branch and Bobby & Teddi Cyrus feat. Billy Ray Cyrus both make re-entries on the chart
Monthly Airplay Chart: Clients comprise half of July’s Top 10 on the chart—Chris Jones & The Night Drivers, “Everybody’s Got a Line” #3; Volume Five, “What I Didn’t Say” #6; Tim Raybon Band, “Sally Johnson” (Pinecastle) #7; Ashby Frank, “Midnight Highway” (Mountain Home) #8; The Grascals, “Maybelle” (Mountain Home) #10

Mountain Home Music Company’s Balsam Range tops the Bluegrass Unlimited’s singles chart for the second month in a row with, “Highway Side”—the track has been on the chart for an astounding eight months.

Roots Music Report:
Top 50 Bluegrass Albums: Rick Faris, The Next Mountain (Dark Shadow) #3; Chris Jones & The Night Drivers, Make Each Second Last #4; Jaelee Roberts, Something You Didn’t Count On #8
Top 50 Traditional Bluegrass Albums: Sideline, Ups Downs & N0 Name Towns (Mountain Home) #3; Balsam Range, Moxie & Mettle #4; Cedar Hill, New Chapter (Mountain Fever) #6
Top 50 Contemporary Bluegrass Albums: Rick Faris, The Next Mountain #3; Chris Jones & The Night Drivers, Make Each Second Last #4; Jaelee Roberts, Something You Didn’t Count On #7

Four artists take Top 10 spots in the July Singing News Bluegrass Chart: Lonesome River Band, “Standing on the Banks” #2; Mark Bishop, “All My Tears Be Washed Away” (Sonlite Records) #7; Rick Faris, “See You on the Other Side” #8; Tonja Rose, “Devil Give Up” (Mansion Entertainment) #9

Pinecastle’s Jim Hurst lands on the Folk Alliance International’s Top Artists of the Month Chart for June 2022.