Like many colorful things in life, the Shades of Bluegrass radio show started out with a dare. “Everyone can do one radio show, but I doubt you’ll make it past 10”, came the initial prod over chicken fried steak for breakfast at Willow Creek Cafe in Mason, TX. We were up for the challenge, and 312 shows later we’re still going strong. The 26,000 watt station Lonestar 102.5fm in Mason gives listeners a Texas take on country music, providing local talk and a few specialty shows for character.

We’re Kyle and Rachel Martin, weekly producers, researchers and hosts of Shades of Bluegrass, heard 7-9pm every Wednesday night by at least a few dozen people around the Texas hill country. Starting in 2014, we took a break from 2017 to 2020, but have been going strong since then. Weekly we sift through a growing collection of +25,000 bluegrass songs to keep the show engaging and up to date. We’ve rounded up enough loyal sponsors to pay for our music purchasing habit and, some years, even pay for the gas to drive to the Kerrville Folk Festival.

Over six years of doing the show, we’ve worked to bring fun, exciting and heartfelt bluegrass to folks who aren’t exactly familiar with the genre. The ultimate compliment is to hear a listener say “that was a great song! who was it?” To do this, we focus on musicians who are playing the major festivals around the country and try to attend at least one multi-day bluegrass festival per year – Telluride, Delfest, Rockygrass, and Old Settlers to name a few. This makes us aware of who is up-and-coming, how crowds feel about them, and how their live performances vary from their recordings.

Our show is two hours long with a gradient of bluegrass sounds and eight talking breaks to discuss who we just played and a little information about what’s coming up. The first hour is steeped in nostalgia, consisting of traditional and neo-traditional bluegrass, with the occasional folk, blues or string band thrown in to mix it up. The second hour is about the more contemporary sounds which are currently growing the genre, attracting listeners through folkgrass, punkgrass, jamgrass and anything that pushes the bluegrass envelope. When the envelope gets pushed too far and we feature a selection named after our biggest fan, the “Suzi Quasar Awkward Bluegrass Cover” – you’ll laugh, you’ll cringe, you’ll cry at the blasphemy.

We’re always seeking ways to grow the show into other opportunities. Due to licensing, we can’t really do a podcast. We’re currently setting up Spotify playlists with the exact show order, but lacking our colorful commentary. We’ve been in discussions with other small town Texas radio stations to syndicate our show. Currently, we’re producing/promoting live bluegrass concerts in and around Mason, TX with our eye on creating a full fledged bluegrass festival in the future.

Shades of Bluegrass is our weekly escape from the frustrations of life to the magical land of bluegrass, and we hope to be able to visit it for years to come.

We’re excited to announce our show is moving to KNEL 9.3fm in Brady,TX starting in January 2025.