John Driskell Hopkins (of Zac Brown Band) w/ Balsam Range and Chloe Agnew

Zac Brown Band founding member + multi-instrumentalist

Balsam Range is an internationally touring bluegrass and acoustic music band featuring Buddy Melton (fiddle, lead and tenor vocals), Darren Nicholson (mandolin, octave mandolin, lead vocals, baritone and low tenor vocals), Dr. Marc Pruett (banjo), Tim Surrett (bass, dobro, baritone and lead vocals), and Caleb Smith (guitar, lead & baritone vocals). The five original members are all acoustic musicians and singers from western North Carolina. They thoughtfully and respectfully adopted the name of a majestic range of mountains that surround part of their home county of Haywood, NC where the Great Smoky Mountains meet the Blue Ridge, the Great Balsam Range.

The members of Balsam Range are extremely proud of their home of Haywood County, NC and invite you all to come visit their beautiful part of the country!

The 2018 International Bluegrass Music Association’s Entertainer of the Year, Balsam Range, has become one of the genre’s most award-winning acts. Since forming in 2007, the group has garnered 13 IBMA awards on the heels of 8 critically-acclaimed albums. Balsam Range has left audiences spellbound while headlining major festivals from coast-to-coast, selling out venues across the nation and in multiple appearances at the Grand Ole Opry. The band collaborated with the Atlanta Pops Orchestra Ensemble to record 2 albums, the second of which, Mountain Overture, debuted on the Billboard Bluegrass Chart at #5 and the Classical Crossover Chart at #6. Their previous outing, Mountain Voodoo, debuted at #4 on the Billboard Bluegrass Albums Chart and remained on that chart for 45 weeks. Three singles from that album reached #1 on the Bluegrass Today Chart, including “Blue Collar Dreams,” which spent three consecutive months at the top. The band most recently claimed the #1 radio chart spot with their single “The Girl Who Invented The Wheel.” In addition to winning Entertainer of the Year, Balsam Range vocalist Buddy Melton won IBMA’s Male Vocalist of the Year and bass player Tim Surrett won IBMA’s Bass Player of the Year in 2018.

Chloë Agnew is a singer, songwriter and actress from Dublin, Ireland. Agnew gained fame for her integral part as one of the original (and youngest) members of the internationally acclaimed music group Celtic Woman from the age of 14.

Born to Irish entertainer Adéle "Twink" King and Irish oboist David Agnew, Chloë was practically born on the stage and made her first television appearance at just four weeks old.

Shortly after the success of her second album Walking in the Air, Chloë was approached to become part of a new PBS production, “Celtic Woman”. Ten years later, Chloë held the dual title of being both one of the original members and the youngest performer of the group. At the age of 24, she was already a musical veteran and after an illustrious career with the famous ensemble; she embarked on a solo career that has seen her perform all over the world.