6 Country and Americana Artists to Know: September 22, 2026

The first Next Up watchlist starts with six names: Blue Ridge Band, Morgan Griffiths, Shawnee Kish, Ken Pomeroy, Boy Golden and Crowe Boys. Canadian country’s Top of the Country finale and Nashville’s AMERICANAFEST give this edition its starting points. Recent recordings give you a reason to keep exploring after the announcements leave the front page.

The connecting idea is discovery with somewhere to go. Every artist below has a documented reason to be here, an official first listen and a next step. These are Whiskey Twang editorial selections for the week of September 21, 2026. Some are reaching a broader audience; others are entering a new chapter after years of recording.

Blue Ridge Band: a competition win with a catalog behind it

Start with: One More Story. The Lévis, Quebec trio won SiriusXM’s 2026 Top of the Country competition, according to the organizers’ September 17 announcement. A national competition can introduce a band in a single evening, but the existing recordings make the introduction worth following. Blue Ridge Band already has the Down to Business EPs and the 2025 album High On You to explore.

Use the official competition performance as your entrance, then follow the Blue Ridge Band artist file to the album and the band’s own music links. Follow next: what the group releases and announces after this recognition.

Morgan Griffiths: follow the song behind the nominations

Start with: Bourbon. Griffiths was one of the two confirmed Top of the Country runners-up. The Abbotsford songwriter also appears on the 2026 CCMA ballot for Breakthrough Artist or Group, Fans’ Choice and Single of the Year for Bourbon. Those nominations and the competition result are separate signals pointing to the same artist.

Begin with the SiriusXM Bourbon performance, then look for the acoustic version through Griffiths’ official music routes. Follow next: the recordings beyond the song that put his name on the ballot.

Shawnee Kish: a developing country chapter

Start with: Ride at Dawn. Kish also finished as a Top of the Country runner-up. Her inclusion here comes with an important piece of context: she has earlier releases, and her biography places Chapter 1, released in 2025, within her move into country. The project is a 2026 CCMA Alternative Country Album nominee.

Try the official Ride at Dawn performance, then follow Kish’s artist file through Chapter 1 and her earlier discography. Follow next: how this country chapter develops within a longer body of work.

Ken Pomeroy: a new EP opens another door

Start with: Coyote, then Tonight’s News. Pomeroy appears on the 2026 Americana Emerging Act nominee list and the festival’s official showcase list. Her newest release supplies another reason to investigate: Tonight’s News arrived August 21, with six songs recorded at Chicago’s Wilco Loft with producer Tom Schick, according to Rounder’s notes.

Pair the songwriter’s own work with one of the songs she chose to reinterpret. Her official music page links the recordings; the Ken Pomeroy profile connects the new EP with Cruel Joke and her earlier catalog. Follow next: the writers, collaborators and recording choices behind those two starting points.

Boy Golden: a September single with an October follow-up

Start with: Pity. The Winnipeg artist is another 2026 Americana Emerging Act nominee and showcase selection. Six Shooter’s September 10 announcement brings the story forward: Pity is out, and Best of Our Possible Lives (Deluxe) is announced for October 16, 2026. That makes this a discovery you can revisit on a specific date.

Use the official Pity listening link, then explore the existing album through the Boy Golden artist file. Follow next: the deluxe release and the Canadian November shows announced by his label, with dates confirmed on the artist’s own site before making plans.

Crowe Boys: let a debut album make the introduction

Start with: Bootstraps. Louisiana brothers Ocie and Wes Crowe are also 2026 Emerging Act nominees and official AMERICANAFEST showcase selections. Their debut Made to Wander collects ten originals. Their biography links the songs to family experience and describes the acoustic-guitar-and-mandolin configuration behind the duo.

Start at the album’s opening through the official Crowe Boys site, then give the surrounding songs a turn. The Crowe Boys profile supplies the background. Follow next: where the duo takes that debut’s songs in subsequent recordings and official appearances.

Turn the watchlist into a listening habit

Choose two starting points: one name you encountered in the Canadian awards coverage and one from the Americana program. Save a song from each, then come back to the full project that interests you. A small queue leaves room to hear more than the first thirty seconds of a new name.

For the full context, read our Top of the Country finalists dispatch and post-AMERICANAFEST discovery guide. The Next Up section keeps the latest watchlist alongside artist stories and earlier editions, so you can follow a discovery beyond one week.