Yola announced that her Walk Through Fire World Tour returns to North America in early 2020 for two months of shows. The newly announced run begins in Cambridge on January 7 and includes shows in DC, Philadelphia, Toronto, Atlanta, Dallas, Seattle, and more. The shows follow a busy autumn of US headline shows and festival sets, a performance with Kacey Musgraves at The Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, and a tour of the UK and Europe. Additionally, the Grammy Museum in Los Angeles will host a special conversation and performance with Yola on October 16. 

Kudos to Rhiannon Giddens, Yola, and Punch Brothers guitarist Chris "Critter" Eldridge on a wonderful night of music and words at the Americana Honors & Awards ceremony at the Ryman in Nashville last night. Giddens received the inaugural Legacy of Americana Award, made a beautiful speech honoring posthumous recipient Frank Johnson, and gave a haunting performance of "Wayfaring Stranger" with Francesco Turrisi. Yola, introduced by Dan Auerbach, brought the house down singing "Faraway Look." And Eldridge took home the award for Instrumentalist of the Year. Tune in to a special episode of Austin City Limits on November 23 with performance highlights from the evening.

Yola begins an eight-concert North American tour as special guest of Kacey Musgraves with shows in Kansas City, St. Louis, Cleveland, Toronto, and Vienna, VA; two nights in New Orleans; and a culminating concert at Nashville's Bridgestone Arena. Yola also has several US headline shows and festival sets ahead—including Farm Aid, Hardly Strictly Bluegrass, and Austin City Limits—then returns to the UK and Europe to tour. She will perform at the Americana Honors & Awards in Nashville on September 11; Yola is up for Emerging Act of the Year and Album of the Year. 

The line-up for Hardly Strictly Bluegrass has been announced, and among the performers are several artists familiar to readers of the Nonesuch Journal: Emmylou Harris, Kronos Quartet, Robert Plant, Punch Brothers, Chris Thile, and Yola. The free, annual outdoor music festival returns for the nineteenth year to San Francisco's Golden Gate Park, October 4–6, 2019. You can hear songs from all these artists in a playlist here.

Yola has joined The Highwomen—Amanda Shires, Brandi Carlile, Natalie Hemby, and Maren Morris—on the just-released self-titled track to the group's eponymous upcoming album, as does Sheryl Crow. Shires and Carlile wrote the song with Jimmy Webb, who had penned the 1985 tune "Highwayman" for the supergroup by that name featuring Willie Nelson, Kris Kristofferson, Waylon Jennings, and Johnny Cash. Hear it here. Rolling Stone called The Highwomen's recent Newport Folk Festival set with Yola "a triumph" and dubbed her "the single most sought-after voice at this year’s festival."

Yola has released the video for her song "Shady Grove," from her album Walk Through Fire. The video, directed by Jessie Craig, includes footage from Yola's appearance at this year's Glastonbury Festival. The video "explores something equally untouched by most of music: the beauty and fashion routine of a Black woman," says Refinery 29, which premiered the video. "The moments the camera catches her psyching herself up before she steps out feels like an intimate look into what it takes to keep Yola going." Watch it here.

Yola visited Relix in New York City to perform three songs from her debut album, Walk Through Fire: "Ride Out in the Country," "Still Gone," and "Shady Grove." You can watch the set here. Yola performs at the Newport Folk Festival this Friday.

Yola performed at the Glastonbury Festival, showcasing songs from her debut album, Walk Through Fire. "She has the most phenomenal voice and amazing, great songs as well ... Fabulous," said BBC Radio 2's Jo Whiley introducing the set live on air. You can watch Yola's Glastonbury performance of the album track "Shady Grove" here, and see her on tour in the US.

Yola was a guest on NPR's World Cafe. She spoke with host Talia Schlanger about her life and music and performed three songs from her Dan Auerbach-produced debut album, Walk Through Fire from Auerbach's Easy Eye Studio. The songs on the album "ring out with the triumphant air of someone who has withstood the flames and the heat en route to achieving their dreams," says Schlanger. You can hear the conversation and performance here.

Congratulations to Yola, Rhiannon Giddens, and Punch Brothers guitarist Chris Eldridge on their Americana Honors & Awards nominations. Yola has been nominated as Emerging Act of the Year, and her Dan Auerbach-produced debut album, Walk Through Fire, has been nominated for Album of the Year. Rhiannon Giddens has been nominated for Artist of the Year, and her group Our Native Daughters has been nominated for Duo/Group of the Year. Chris "Critter" Eldridge has been nominated as Instrumentalist of the Year. Winners will be announced during the Americana Honors & Awards at the Ryman Auditorium in September.

The lineup for the 2019 Lincoln Center Out of Doors festival has been announced, and featuring among the performers taking the stage of the Damrosch Park Bandshell for the free series this summer are Rhiannon Giddens and Yola. Rhiannon Giddens will take part in NPR Music’s multi-artist Turning the Tables Live: The Motherlode on Wednesday, July 31, and Yola will help close out the season in The Roots of American Music Weekend: Americanafest NYC, performing on Saturday, August 10, ahead of Patty Griffin.

Yola begins a three-week UK tour in Glasgow tonight. The tour, which features music from her debut album, Walk Through Fire, continues in Perth, Aberdeen, Gateshead, Shipley, Manchester, Nottingham, Birmingham, London, and Brighton, culminating in her hometown of Bristol on June 1. She also announces new autumn tour dates in Europe, in Berlin, Hamburg, Milan, and Paris, and a return to Dublin, Glasgow, Manchester, and London.