AmericanaFest 2026 brought musicians and music fans together across Nashville last week, but one conversation looked beyond the performances themselves.
Salt Lick Sessions brought its Songs of U.S. series to Nashville for a special AmericanaFest panel featuring Swamp Dogg, Raye Zaragoza and Farayi. The conversation explored the relationship between music, American identity, and the responsibility that can come with having a larger platform.
Moderated by Salt Lick Incubator Director of Programming and Media Nicole Izzo Mlynczak, the discussion also featured Salt Lick Incubator Co-Founder and Chairman Roger Brown. Panelists talked about using music to connect with audiences, leading with personal values and the ways a song can grow into something larger than its original performance.
The Nashville appearance was part of a larger Songs of U.S. series that has brought musicians from different backgrounds and genres together to consider what belongs in a modern American songbook. Throughout the series, artists have reinterpreted songs by writers including Woody Guthrie, Bob Dylan, Beyoncé, Bill Withers, Roberta Flack, and John Denver.
Salt Lick also brought the conversation to the red carpet at the Americana Music Honors & Awards, asking artists and other attendees which contemporary musician they would add to a new Great American Songbook. Margo Price, Amy Grant, Jesse Welles, Molly Tuttle, and Mon Rovîa were among those sharing their picks.
With its AmericanaFest stop, Songs of U.S. continued a summer-long exploration of how American music is shaped, reinterpreted, and carried forward by the artists making it today.
