Chicagoan Francesca Folinazzo (Frank) founded Roots Music Rambler as a music and travel blog in a pre-pandemic world. COVID killed events and travel plus her desire to play her banjo. Falls texted her in 2023 and said, 'Let's bring it back as a podcast!' He was raised on John Prine, babysat on Waylon Jennings and taught to drink and cuss the proper, mountain way. He hails from Pikeville, Ky., the birthplace of Dwight Yoakum, whose annual festival is Hillbilly Days.

Francesca Folinazzo picks her Newcomer of the Year for 2024

We recapped 2024 on this week’s episode of Roots Music Rambler. Both Frank and Falls shared their top albums and songs for 2024, plus gave their thoughts on Artist, Group and Newcomer of the Year.

Francesca saw her pick for Newcomer of the Year at the Evanston Folk Festival and he left quite an impact. (Congrats Jon Muq!)

Hear the full episode to get the rest of the picks and subscribe at rootsmusicrambler.com or listen wherever you get your podcasts!

#johnmuq #2024inreview #2024yearinreview #2024inmusic #americanamusic #countrymusic #rootsmusic #musicpodcast #music

2024 Was a Banner Year in Americana Music albums

The Roots Music Rambler 2024 Year-in-Review episode drops tomorrow. Frank and Falls share their top songs, albums and artists for the year, plus update folks on where previous guests are in their journeys.

Falls noted that 2024 left us with a lot to talk about. There were just so many great albums, artists and collaborations in 2024. So definitely download and listen to the full episode for our take, then share yours!

Get the episode at rootsmusicrambler.com or wherever you get your podcasts. Subscribe and join us for a fantastic 2025 to come.

#2024inreview #2024inmusic #americanamusic #countrymusic #rootsmusic #musicpodcast #musicinterview

How we knew The Red Clay Strays were breaking big

The Roots Music Rambler Year-in-Review episode drops Friday! Join us as we recap 2024 and look ahead to music in 2025.

One group that came up in our conversation for 2024 was The Red Clay Strays. Frank knew they’d made it big when her students started adding their songs to the classroom playlist.

Listen to the episode and subscribe at RootsMusicRambler.com or wherever you get your podcasts!

#redclaystrays #2024inreview #2024inmusic #topalbums2024 #topsongs2024 #americanamusic #rootsmusic #countrymusic #musicpodcast #music #2024recap

What’s next for Margo Cilker in 2025?

The latest episode of Roots Music Ramber is live. The talented Margo Cilker joined Frank and Falls to talk about her amazing run of success through her first two albums, the inspiration for her music and much more.

In this clip, we asked the question, “What’s in store for us in 2025!”

Also on this episode, Falls shares his thoughts on Dwight Yoakam’s new album and his favorite TikTok/Instagram channel for music lovers (5440652b-0f20-44c7-a50b-36417490df8f).

Download, listen and subscribe at rootsmusicrambler.com or wherever you get your podcasts.

#margocilker #rootsmusic #americanamusic #countrymusic #singersongwriter #musicinterview #musicpodcast #folkmusic