Blending virtuosic instrumental acrobatics with riveting lyrical craftsmanship, The Lil Smokies have earned a reputation as one of the most electrifying acts in modern American roots music thanks to their exhilarating live show and critically acclaimed studio output. Since forming on the streets of Missoula, Montana, where the group got its start busking back in 2009, the band has performed everywhere from Red Rocks to The Rialto and captivated festival audiences at Telluride, High Sierra, LOCKN’, Freshgrass, FloydFest and countless more. Their latest album, 2020’s Tornillo, showcases the hard touring four-piece at its most adventurous, teaming up with producer Bill Reynolds (The Avett Brothers, Band Of Horses) for a genre-bending joyride from the hills of Laurel Canyon to the wide-open deserts of West Texas.

The Lil Smokies are:
Andy Dunnigan on dobro and vocals; Matthew Rieger on guitar and vocals; Jake Simpson on fiddle and vocals; Jean-Luc Davis on upright bass; Sam Zickefoose-Armstrong on banjo

Jack Broadbent is no ordinary singer songwriter. He can break your heart and then turn around and set the world on fire. Combining elements of Blues, Folk, Rock n Roll and Jazz, Broadbent carries a lineage of true artistry into the 2000s that sets him apart from the rest.

His initial rise to fame was for his unique and explosive slide guitar playing. This notoriety was quickly solidified by his superb songwriting. Broadbent went from busking the streets of Europe to smashing the world stage alongside some of the biggest names in rock n roll.

In 2018, Broadbent performed as a guest at the launch party for the Rolling Stones curated blues compilation, “Confessin’ the Blues” in London. This lead to a tour opening for Ronnie Wood across the UK, with Wood crediting Broadbent with “keeping the flag flying”.

Legendary southern rockers Lynyrd Skynyrd simply call him “badass” after he wowed audiences across America on a full stadium tour.

His most recent shows opening for Peter Frampton on his farewell tour in Europe were met with rave reviews. Frampton himself praising Broadbent as “a wonderful player”.

Broadbent has single handedly thrilled audiences on the international festival circuit, including Montreux Jazz Festival where he was hailed as “the new master of the slide guitar”.

After six album releases Broadbent’s range is impressive. Stylistically, it’s a perfect blend of raw emotion and yet controlled chaos, best described by Bill Payne of Little Feat and The Doobie Brothers following a recent tour:

“Jack is a true artist. He is fearless, his horizons are endless. What he shares is reflective of a someone who cares deeply, not afraid to question things, not afraid to reexamine if the situation calls for it. In short, he is sharing his life with us. I love his voice. His playing is superb, showing an almost reckless abandon when he gets revved up, he is performing on the edge, and if he falls so be it.

The pieces will not break. Jack Broadbent can whisper or shout in equal order with the power and sensitivity that speak volumes. Embrace his music, his life’s work. You will be amply awarded.”

Xiye Bastida is a 21-year-old climate justice activist from the Otomi-Toltec Indigenous community in Central Mexico. She is an organizer, author, speaker, and student who is driven to make the climate movement more inclusive and diverse.

Xiye grew up in a small town called San Pedro Tultepec. She moved to New York City in 2015 when her parents got a job at the Center for Earth Ethics.

Once in New York, Xiye became heavily involved with the existing climate movement. She was on the Administration Committee of the People’s Climate Movement, where she organized a two-month-long Activism Training Program. She attended her first United Nations climate conference in February of 2017, in which she was able to bring Indigenous knowledge into decision-making spaces. Her participation led her to win the Spirit of the UN award in 2018.

In April 2020, Xiye co-founded Re-Earth Initiative— an international youth-led organization that focuses on highlighting the intersectionality of the climate crisis.

Her notable participations include COP25, COP26, COP27, and COP28. Xiye was invited as the only youth speaker at the Biden Climate Summit in 2021, where she spoke to 40 heads of state.

She is the opening essayist in the anthology All We Can Save, and has written numerous op-eds. She has spoken alongside Leonardo DiCaprio, Jane Fonda, Al Gore, Christiana Figueres, Greta Thunberg, Mary Robinson, Ayana Elizabeth Johnson, Malala, Jane Goodall, Bill McKibben, and others.

She graduated from the University of Pennsylvania with a degree in Environmental Studies with a concentration in Policy.