How a flatpicking prodigy from northern California outplayed the old guard on their own instrument, won the genre's top awards, and built a Grammy-winning band that made bluegrass feel wide open and new again.
The Short Version
Who Is She?
Molly Tuttle (born in 1993 and raised in the San Francisco Bay Area) is one of the most gifted acoustic guitarists of her generation and the leader of the band Molly Tuttle & Golden Highway. She learned flatpicking from her guitar-teacher father as a small child, studied at Berklee, and became the first woman ever named Guitar Player of the Year by the International Bluegrass Music Association.
Two things make her stand out. First, the playing: a fast, clean, deeply musical flatpicking style that put her in the front rank of pickers regardless of gender. Second, the vision: she uses that traditional technique to write songs that feel modern, personal, and welcoming, pulling new listeners toward bluegrass rather than gatekeeping it.
Her 2022 album Crooked Tree won the Grammy for Best Bluegrass Album, and she has kept touring and recording since. To hear where acoustic string music is headed, you start here.
The flat-top acoustic and the flatpick, the tools at the center of Tuttle's music.From A California Kitchen to a Grammy Stage
The Story
Tuttle's path runs from childhood jam sessions in the Bay Area bluegrass scene to Nashville bandleader, one steady rise built on relentless practice and an open, curious ear.
California roots and a road east to Nashville, the geography behind the music.
1990s
A Bay Area bluegrass childhood
Tuttle grew up immersed in northern California's bluegrass community, learning guitar from her father, a music teacher, and playing in family bands before she reached her teens.
2010s
Berklee and the move to Nashville
She studied at the Berklee College of Music, sharpened her writing and her picking, and eventually settled in Nashville, becoming a fixture of the acoustic scene.
2017–2018
The IBMA breakthrough
The International Bluegrass Music Association named her Guitar Player of the Year, the first woman ever to win the award, and she took it again the following year, confirming her as a genuine instrumental force.
2019–2020
First solo albums
Her debut When You're Ready and the covers set ...but i'd rather be with you stretched beyond strict bluegrass into songwriter territory, showing range and ambition.
2022
Crooked Tree and the band
With her new band Golden Highway she made Crooked Tree, a full-hearted return to bluegrass produced with Jerry Douglas. It won the Grammy for Best Bluegrass Album.
2023
City of Gold
The follow-up City of Gold deepened the band sound, drew on her California upbringing, and earned another Grammy for Best Bluegrass Album, cementing Golden Highway as one of the music's best live outfits.
Four Songs, One Education
Start Here
Tuttle's catalog rewards patience, but these four tracks are the fastest way to hear the whole picture, from blazing flatpick to warm, hooky songwriting. Watch in order.
01 · The Calling Card
"She'll Change" (2022)
A driving, hook-filled single from Crooked Tree that shows the Golden Highway sound in full: tight harmonies, propulsive rhythm, and Tuttle's flatpicking front and center. The best single entry point.
02 · The Title Track
"Crooked Tree" (2022)
The song that gives the Grammy-winning album its name and its spirit: a gentle, generous anthem about difference and belonging. Bluegrass as an open invitation rather than a closed club.
03 · The California Song
"El Dorado" (2023)
From City of Gold, a bright, rolling number rooted in the myth and pull of the Golden State. Proof of how much personal history Tuttle folds into the band's second record.
04 · The Barn Burner
"Nashville Mess Around" (2022)
A fast, joyful romp that turns the band loose and lets the picking fly. This is the sound of a bluegrass group having the time of its life, and the clearest look at Tuttle's instrumental chops.
The Landmark Records
The Albums 4 to start with
Tuttle's discography is still young but already deep. These four records trace the arc from solo songwriter to Grammy-winning bandleader. The green-topped cards are the best place to begin.
2019
When You're Ready
Her full-length solo debut, reaching past strict bluegrass into polished singer-songwriter territory. A confident first statement that showcases her voice and writing alongside the picking.
A covers record made during lockdown, reworking songs from across pop and rock in her own acoustic voice. A revealing look at her taste and her instincts as an interpreter.
The turning point, and a perfect place to start. Her first record with Golden Highway and a full return to bluegrass, produced with Jerry Douglas. It won the Grammy for Best Bluegrass Album.
The band's second album, drawing on Tuttle's California childhood and pushing the group sound further. It won a second consecutive Grammy for Best Bluegrass Album.
Two YouTube Music playlists: a First Listen of the signature songs to bring you in, and a Deep Cuts set of the pickers' favorites and quieter moments for when you want to sink in. (Ideally, though, hear these albums whole.) Hit the button on either card to play it.
Golden Highway is a band of first-call pickers, each a bandleader-caliber player in their own right, and the group's chemistry is a big part of why the records land the way they do.
Fiddle, mandolin, banjo, and bass around the microphones, the classic bluegrass front line.
Molly TuttleGuitar / vocalsBandleader, songwriter, and lead flatpicker, the first woman named IBMA Guitar Player of the Year
Bronwyn Keith-HynesFiddleAn award-winning fiddler and IBMA Fiddle Player of the Year whose lines are woven through the band's sound
Dominick LeslieMandolinA versatile, widely respected mandolinist who anchors the group's chop and adds melodic drive
Kyle TuttleBanjoA powerhouse banjo player (no relation) who brings speed and fire to the front line
Shelby MeansBass / vocalsA seasoned bassist and singer, formerly of Della Mae, who holds down the low end and the harmonies
Jerry DouglasProducer / dobroThe legendary resonator-guitar master produced Crooked Tree and City of Gold, shaping the band's studio sound
The Roots of the Sound
Influences
Tuttle's music grows from the deep tradition of American flatpicking and bluegrass songwriting: the great pickers who defined the guitar's role, and the women who widened what the music could say. Here is where it started.
Flatpicking
Tony Rice
The most influential flatpicker in bluegrass history and a clear touchstone for Tuttle's tone and phrasing. His album Manzanita is a benchmark for the whole tradition.
Tuttle is a thoughtful, generous talker about craft, tradition, and making bluegrass welcoming. Her conversations are worth seeking out.
Interview · On the Music
Molly Tuttle, In Conversation
Across podcasts, festival features, and label sessions, Tuttle talks about learning guitar from her father, finding her voice, and building Golden Highway.
Interview · Behind the Records
Making Crooked Tree and City of Gold
The stories behind the two Grammy-winning albums, from the sessions with Jerry Douglas to the California memories woven through the songs. Search YouTube for the behind-the-scenes clips.
Once the two Golden Highway albums have you, Tuttle's wider world opens into collaborations, live sets, and the broader new-bluegrass scene she belongs to.
The deluxe editions. the expanded versions of Crooked Tree add guest-filled bonus tracks and alternate takes that deepen the record.
Live in concert. Golden Highway is a formidable stage band, and their televised sets and festival appearances show the picking at full flight.
The collaborations. Tuttle's guest spots and duets, including work with pickers like Tommy Emmanuel, show her range beyond her own records.
The wider scene. explore fellow travelers in modern bluegrass and newgrass, from Billy Strings to the players who orbit the same festivals and stages.
The Way to Listen
Do yourself one favor: put on Crooked Tree from start to finish, then City of Gold. Listen for the guitar, then listen again for the songs. Tuttle is a picker and a writer in equal measure, and both halves repay the attention.
