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Cordovas’ ‘Strange Roots Radio’

Joins the Sonic Planet’s Weekend Schedule

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - The Sonic Planet is welcoming Nashville’s Cordovas to its weekend lineup, adding the psychedelic country-rock band’s “Strange Roots Radio” show to the Americana station’s schedule.

The two-hour program will be heard Friday and Saturday’s at 8 p.m. EST Listen anywhere, anytime on the free Google, Apple, Audacy or LIVE365 app as well as any home internet connected listening devices like Alexa and online at www.thesonicplanet.com.

“We are excited to be airing this groundbreaking programming for our audience, Coast to Coast, in all 50 states, Canada, UK and Mexico,” noted The Sonic Planet Program Director Mike Bonts.

“Strange Roots Radio” is a deep-cutting exploration from the American South and beyond, exploring the fringe of the Americana canon’s fabric, according to Cordovas’ frontman Joe Firstman, who’s also the show’s voice.

Cordovas, whose music American Songwriter magazine calls “timeless … with lyrics that are indefinite but at the same time emotionally specific,” formed in 2011.

“Like the mud-covered stilts holding up the grand American music billboard, Strange Roots Radio digs deep to uncover the sometimes-forgotten essence of roots music: pure American weirdness,” Cordovas’ band member and show producer Lucca Soria added. “Join us as we spin everything from New Orleans queens to California hippie heroes, plus poetry, interviews and more.”

Cordovas are Joe Firstman and Lucca Soria along with a cast of weirdos who split their time between Nashville, TN and Todos Santos, MX.

ABOUT THE SONIC PLANET

It's all about the music. The Sonic Planet is a web-based Americana radio station that offers hosted live-streaming roots music. It is produced by Creative Public Media and is available 24 hours a day. Hear a mix of musical roots: rock, folk, soul and blues from a diversity of legendary, local and emerging artists. Visit www.thesonicplanet.com.

Celebrate Florida’s Culture at the 73rd Annual Florida Folk Festival

If you’re looking for the perfect Memorial Day Weekend adventure, why settle for just one experience? Whether you’re craving music, dance, art, food, or even a nature escape, savvy festivalgoers know there’s one place where you can do it all - White Springs, Florida, along the scenic Suwannee River.

Each year, the Stephen Foster Folk Culture Center State Park hosts the Florida Folk Festival, a nationally recognized celebration of Florida’s rich cultural heritage. Now in its 73rd year, the festival continues to spotlight the state’s diverse traditions, music, food, and art.

Del Suggs of Saltwater Music captures the spirit of the event perfectly: "We often think of America as a 'melting pot' where we all blend together, but I think of the Florida Folk Festival as a 'salad bowl.' All the different cultures come together here, but they retain their original flavor. Each culture contributes to the whole and adds a completeness that would be missing otherwise. It's those individual flavors that make Florida so unique."

A Feast for the Senses Since 1953, folk artists and cultural ambassadors have gathered by the river to share stories, music, and crafts that reflect generations of Florida life. From Irish fiddle tunes to frozen key lime pie, and from bluegrass to Caribbean rhythms, the Florida Folk Festival invites visitors to immerse themselves in the unique flavors of the Sunshine State.

With 13 stages and more than 300 live performances, there’s no shortage of entertainment. This year’s impressive lineup features a variety of genres—folk, blues, gospel, country, Latin, jazz, bluegrass, Caribbean, and zydeco—guaranteed to get your toes tapping.

A few of the 2025 Performers Include: • The Lee Boys • Walter Parks • The Firewater Tent Revival • Mean Mary • Lili Forbes & the Funky ‘Taters • Cortadito • Remedy Tree • Sinkhole Serenaders • The Currys • Jeanie Fitchen • The Little Mercies • Papaloko and Loray Mistik • Jim Stafford …and many more!

One of this year’s highlights is the return of the Sacred Steel Summit, featuring steel guitar legends from across the country. This soulful, high-energy showcase is a can’t-miss event for music lovers. Something for Everyone Feeling inspired? Join a jam session, take a dance lesson, or explore the Florida Trail along the Suwannee River. Prefer to sit back and soak it all in? Grab a seat at the Heritage Stage and watch the region’s best dancers show off their moves.

For families, the Children’s Area offers special performances, games, crafts, and activities tailored just for kids. A shaded playground provides the perfect spot for little ones to burn off extra energy. Come Hungry Food lovers will find plenty to savor—from Southern comfort food like collard greens to international delights like Greek gyros.

Quench your thirst with a local craft beer, fresh squeezed lemonade, or a classic root beer float while enjoying performances at the Amphitheater Stage. Honor & Celebrate This Memorial Day Weekend, the Florida Folk Festival offers a special opportunity to honor those who have served while celebrating the culture and spirit of Florida. Whether you’re dancing under the stars, learning a new craft, or simply relaxing by the river, the Florida Folk Festival is an unforgettable experience for the whole family. For tickets and more information, visit www.FloridaFolkFestival.com.

ABOUT THE SONIC PLANET
It's all about the music. Florida has been home to many influential musicians across genres, the perfect launching pad for the Sonic Planet. Listener powered and independent Americana roots radio where you hear a mix of musical roots: rock, folk, soul and blues from a diversity of legendary, local and emerging artists. As a nonprofit organization, our mission is to enrich the lives of music lovers, champion roots music, live local music and connect our community to one-of-a-kind programming, experiences and with one another. Our goal is to uplift and promote artists whose music may fall outside cultural norms and not often heard. www.thesonicplanet.com.

Full List of American Roots Music Winners at the 2025 GRAMMY Awards

The 67th Annual GRAMMY Awards show was held in Los Angeles, handing out dozens of awards across the primetime broadcast and premiere ceremony while highlighting the city’s ongoing response to last month’s extreme wildfires, which displaced hundreds of musicians, artists, industry professionals, and creatives. The marquee event was kicked off by Dawes – whose sibling frontmen, Taylor and Griffin Goldsmith, had homes, their studio, and countless instruments and equipment destroyed in the blazes. They performed a moving rendition of “I Love L.A.” with a host of special guests.

Throughout the show, audience members were encouraged to support MusiCares Fire Relief, a collaborative fundraiser launched by the Recording Academy and MusiCares in partnership with Direct Relief, the California Community Foundation, and the Pasadena Community Foundation to help expand wildfire relief efforts across the broader Los Angeles community. Despite the somber shadow cast by the disaster over LA and its creative community, the show was convivial, joyous, and restorative – and included more than a few show-stopping and jaw-dropping moments.

As usual, the crème de la crème of roots musicians could be found across both the pre-telecast and primetime awards, scooping up golden gramophones in seemingly endless varieties of categories. The evening’s big winners in the Country & American Roots Music categories included superstar Beyoncé, who finally picked up her first Album of the Year win, as well as becoming the first Black woman to ever win Best Country Album. She also won the trophy for Best Country Duo Performance with Miley Cyrus for “II Most Wanted,” bringing her GRAMMY Awards totals to 99 nominations and 35 wins – the most wins of any recipient in the history of the awards.

Sierra Ferrell, a West Virginia native and firebrand bluegrass and country starlet quickly on the rise these past handful of years, was indisputably the day’s other big winner, scoring in each of the four categories in which she was nominated. She quickly followed her very first GRAMMY win with three more, landing awards for Best Americana Album, Best American Roots Performance, Best Americana Performance, and Best American Roots Song – an honor she shares with her co-writer, musician, songwriter, and vocalist Melody Walker (Front Country, BERTHA: Grateful Drag).

The award for Best Bluegrass Album was yet again snatched by the world’s premier flatpicker, Billy Strings, for Live Vol. 1, logging his second win at the GRAMMYs after seven nominations over the last five years.

Pop phenom Chappell Roan won Best New Artist, Kacey Musgraves took home Best Country Song for “The Architect,” Chris Stapleton racked up his 11th GRAMMY win for Best Country Solo Performance, and Woodland, the latest album by Gillian Welch & David Rawlings, was recognized as Best Folk Album. Chick Corea won a posthumous award – Best Jazz Instrumental Album – for Remembrance, a duo project helmed by banjoist Béla Fleck that was released in honor of his hero, friend, and collaborator.

The GRAMMYs yet again demonstrate that the impact of bluegrass, folk, Americana, and country on the mainstream music industry cannot be overstated. Congratulations to all of the winners and nominees for the 67th GRAMMY Awards!

Give now to support MusiCares Fire Relief here and find out many more ways to support LA as it recovers from the devastating wildfires here. Find the full list of Country & American Roots Music winners below, including several additional related categories boasting roots music nominees and winners.

(Winners denoted in BOLD)

Best Country Solo Performance

“16 CARRIAGES” – Beyoncé
“I Am Not Okay” – Jelly Roll
“The Architect” – Kacey Musgraves
“A Bar Song (Tipsy)” – Shaboozey
“It Takes A Woman” – Chris Stapleton

Best Country Duo/Group Performance

“Cowboys Cry Too” – Kelsea Ballerini with Noah Kahan
“II MOST WANTED” – Beyoncé featuring Miley Cyrus
“Break Mine” – Brothers Osborne
“Bigger Houses” – Dan + Shay
“I Had Some Help” – Post Malone featuring Morgan Wallen

Best Country Song

“The Architect” – Shane McAnally, Kacey Musgraves & Josh Osborne, songwriters (Kacey Musgraves)
“A Bar Song (Tipsy)” – Sean Cook, Jerrel Jones, Joe Kent, Chibueze Collins Obinna, Nevin Sastry & Mark Williams, songwriters (Shaboozey)
“I Am Not Okay” – Casey Brown, Jason DeFord, Ashley Gorley & Taylor Phillips, songwriters (Jelly Roll)
“I Had Some Help” – Louis Bell, Ashley Gorley, Hoskins, Austin Post, Ernest Smith, Ryan Vojtesak, Morgan Wallen & Chandler Paul Walters, songwriters (Post Malone Featuring Morgan Wallen)
“TEXAS HOLD ‘EM”– Brian Bates, Beyoncé, Elizabeth Lowell Boland, Megan Bülow, Nate Ferraro & Raphael Saadiq, songwriters (Beyoncé)

Best Country Album

COWBOY CARTER – Beyoncé
F-1 Trillion – Post Malone
Deeper Well – Kacey Musgraves
Higher – Chris Stapleton
Whirlwind – Lainey Wilson

Best American Roots Performance

“Blame It On Eve” – Shemekia Copeland
“Nothing In Rambling” – The Fabulous Thunderbirds featuring Bonnie Raitt, Keb’ Mo’, Taj Mahal, & Mick Fleetwood
“Lighthouse” – Sierra Ferrell
“The Ballad Of Sally Anne” – Rhiannon Giddens

Best Americana Performance

“YA YA” – Beyoncé
“Subtitles” – Madison Cunningham
“Don’t Do Me Good” – Madi Diaz featuring Kacey Musgraves
“American Dreaming” – Sierra Ferrell
“Runaway Train” – Sarah Jarosz
“Empty Trainload Of Sky” – Gillian Welch & David Rawlings

Best American Roots Song

“Ahead Of The Game” – Mark Knopfler, songwriter (Mark Knopfler)
“All In Good Time” – Sam Beam, songwriter (Iron & Wine featuring Fiona Apple)
“All My Friends” – Aoife O’Donovan, songwriter (Aoife O’Donovan)
“American Dreaming” – Sierra Ferrell & Melody Walker, songwriters (Sierra Ferrell)
“Blame It On Eve” – John Hahn & Will Kimbrough, songwriters (Shemekia Copeland)

Best Americana Album

The Other Side – T Bone Burnett
$10 Cowboy – Charley Crockett
Trail Of Flowers – Sierra Ferrell
Polaroid Lovers – Sarah Jarosz
No One Gets Out Alive – Maggie Rose
Tigers Blood – Waxahatchee

Best Bluegrass Album

I Built A World – Bronwyn Keith-Hynes
Songs Of Love And Life – The Del McCoury Band
No Fear – Sister Sadie
Live Vol. 1 – Billy Strings
Earl Jam – Tony Trischka
Dan Tyminski: Live From The Ryman – Dan Tyminski

Best Traditional Blues Album

Hill Country Love – Cedric Burnside
Struck Down – The Fabulous Thunderbirds
One Guitar Woman – Sue Foley
Sam’s Place – Little Feat
Swingin’ Live At The Church In Tulsa – The Taj Mahal Sextet

Best Contemporary Blues Album

Blues Deluxe Vol. 2 – Joe Bonamassa
Blame It On Eve – Shemekia Copeland
Friendlytown – Steve Cropper & The Midnight Hour
Mileage – Ruthie Foster
The Fury – Antonio Vergara

Best Folk Album

American Patchwork Quartet – American Patchwork Quartet
Weird Faith – Madi Diaz
Bright Future – Adrianne Lenker
All My Friends – Aoife O’Donovan
Woodland – Gillian Welch & David Rawlings

Best Regional Roots Music Album

25 Back To My Roots – Sean Ardoin And Kreole Rock And Soul
Live At The 2024 New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival – Big Chief Monk Boudreaux & The Golden Eagles featuring J’Wan Boudreaux
Live At The 2024 New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival – New Breed Brass Band featuring Trombone Shorty
Kuini – Kalani Pe’a
Stories From The Battlefield – The Rumble Featuring Chief Joseph Boudreaux Jr.

Best Roots Gospel Album

The Gospel Sessions, Vol 2 – Authentic Unlimited
The Gospel According To Mark – Mark D. Conklin
Rhapsody – The Harlem Gospel Travelers
Church – Cory Henry
Loving You – The Nelons

Best Jazz Performance

“Walk With Me, Lord (SOUND | SPIRIT)” – The Baylor Project
“Phoenix Reimagined (Live)” – Lakecia Benjamin featuring Randy Brecker, Jeff “Tain” Watts & John Scofield
“Juno” – Chick Corea & Béla Fleck
“Twinkle Twinkle Little Me” – Samara Joy featuring Sullivan Fortner
“Little Fears” – Dan Pugach Big Band featuring Nicole Zuraitis & Troy Roberts

Best Jazz Instrumental Album

Owl Song – Ambrose Akinmusire featuring Bill Frisell & Herlin Riley
Beyond This Place – Kenny Barron featuring Kiyoshi Kitagawa, Johnathan Blake, Immanuel Wilkins & Steve Nelson
Phoenix Reimagined (Live) – Lakecia Benjamin
Remembrance – Chick Corea & Béla Fleck
Solo Game – Sullivan Fortner

Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album

À Fleur De Peau – Cyrille Aimée
Visions – Norah Jones
Good Together – Lake Street Dive
Impossible Dream – Aaron Lazar
Christmas Wish – Gregory Porter

Best Contemporary Instrumental Album

Plot Armor – Taylor Eigsti
Rhapsody In Blue – Béla Fleck
Orchestras (Live) – Bill Frisell featuring Alexander Hanson, Brussels Philharmonic, Rudy Royston & Thomas Morgan
Mark – Mark Guiliana
Speak To Me – Julian Lage

Best Instrumental Composition

“At Last” – Shelton G. Berg, composer (Shelly Berg)
“Communion” – Christopher Zuar, composer (Christopher Zuar Orchestra)
“I Swear, I Really Wanted To Make A “Rap” Album But
This Is Literally The Way The Wind Blew Me This Time” – André 3000, Surya Botofasina, Nate Mercereau & Carlos Niño, composers (André 3000)
“Remembrance” – Chick Corea, composer (Chick Corea & Béla Fleck)
“Strands” – Pascal Le Boeuf, composer (Akropolis Reed Quintet, Pascal Le Boeuf & Christian Euman)

Best Arrangement, Instrumental or A Cappella

“Baby Elephant Walk” – Encore, Michael League, arranger (Snarky Puppy)
“Bridge Over Troubled Water” – Jacob Collier, Tori Kelly & John Legend, arrangers (Jacob Collier Featuring John Legend & Tori Kelly)
“Rhapsody In Blue(Grass)” – Béla Fleck & Ferde Grofé, arrangers (Béla Fleck featuring Michael Cleveland, Sierra Hull, Justin Moses, Mark Schatz & Bryan Sutton)
“Rose Without The Thorns” – Erin Bentlage, Alexander Lloyd Blake, Scott Hoying, A.J. Sealy & Amanda Taylor, arrangers (Scott Hoying featuring säje & Tonality)
“Silent Night” – Erin Bentlage, Sara Gazarek, Johnaye Kendrick & Amanda Taylor, arrangers (säje)

Notable General Field Categories:

Record Of The Year

“Now And Then” – The Beatles
“TEXAS HOLD ‘EM” – Beyoncé
“Espresso” – Sabrina Carpenter
“360” – Charli XCX
“BIRDS OF A FEATHER” – Billie Eilish
“Not Like Us” – Kendrick Lamar
“Good Luck, Babe!” – Chappell Roan
“Fortnight” – Taylor Swift featuring Post Malone

Album Of The Year

New Blue Sun – André 3000
COWBOY CARTER – Beyoncé
Short n’ Sweet – Sabrina Carpenter
BRAT – Charli XCX
Djesse Vol. 4 – Jacob Collier
HIT ME HARD AND SOFT – Billie Eilish
Chappell Roan The Rise And Fall Of A Midwest Princess – Chappell Roan
THE TORTURED POETS DEPARTMENT – Taylor Swift

Song Of The Year

“A Bar Song (Tipsy)” – Sean Cook, Jerrel Jones, Joe Kent, Chibueze Collins Obinna, Nevin Sastry & Mark Williams, songwriters (Shaboozey)
“BIRDS OF A FEATHER” – Billie Eilish O’Connell & FINNEAS, songwriters (Billie Eilish)
“Die With A Smile” – Dernst Emile II, James Fauntleroy, Lady Gaga, Bruno Mars & Andrew Watt, songwriters (Lady Gaga & Bruno Mars)
“Fortnight” – Jack Antonoff, Austin Post & Taylor Swift, songwriters (Taylor Swift Featuring Post Malone)
“Good Luck, Babe!” – Kayleigh Rose Amstutz, Daniel Nigro & Justin Tranter, songwriters (Chappell Roan)
“Not Like Us” – Kendrick Lamar, songwriter (Kendrick Lamar)
“Please Please Please” – Amy Allen, Jack Antonoff & Sabrina Carpenter, songwriters (Sabrina Carpenter)
“TEXAS HOLD ‘EM” – Brian Bates, Beyoncé, Elizabeth Lowell Boland, Megan Bülow, Nate Ferraro & Raphael Saadiq, songwriters (Beyoncé)

Best New Artist

Benson Boone
Sabrina Carpenter
Doechii
Khruangbin
RAYE
Chappell Roan
Shaboozey
Teddy Swims