2026 ·Jun 03, 2026

Authentic Unlimited

AUTHENTIC UNLIMITED

bluegrass
Eastern Tennessee

Authentic Unlimited may be a new star in the bluegrass firmament, but they carry on a storied legacy. The ensemble was founded by banjo player Eli Johnston, fiddler Stephen Burwell, and bassist Jerry Cole, three of the core members of the celebrated band Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver after the legendary bandleader announced his retirement in 2021. “We didn’t have to think about if we wanted to continue on, we just knew we had a good team and relationship with each other, so that’s what we’d do,” says Burwell. They chose the name Authentic Unlimited, pitched to the group by Lawson as an apt descriptor of their deep catalog of original songs; the moniker also speaks to their dedication to keeping traditional bluegrass vital into the future.

Bluegrass music emerged in the 1940s when musicians like Bill Monroe and the Blue Grass Boys stepped up to the microphone on the commercial radio jamborees to pioneer a new genre which combined old Appalachian traditional songs, ballads, and rural string band dance music with elements of blues and jazz, electrified and set at a sometimes blistering speed. Many masters of the genre also marry the distinctive sounds of bluegrass Saturday nights with the clear gospel of Sunday morning, and Authentic Unlimited combines these styles effortlessly, applying their reverent musicianship to sacred sounds as well.

Johnston, Burwell, and Cole knew finding a new mandolin player would be no easy task, so the trio reached out to a musician they “knew would be a perfect fit,” three-time IBMA Mandolin Player of the Year, Jesse Brock. The recent addition of up-and-coming guitarist and singer Colton Baker, formerly of IIIrd Tyme Out, only adds to the momentum of the hard-driving quintet. The group has also stayed incredibly busy since their inception with five albums, one Grammy nomination, and IBMA awards for Song of the Year, Best New Artist of the Year, best Music Video of the Year, and three consecutive awards of Vocal Group of the Year starting in 2023.

Each member grew up playing music within their families and has been steeped in bluegrass and gospel for most of their lives. “When my dad would need to practice … if he needed to practice singing lead, I’d sing harmony, if he needed to practice singing harmony, I’d sing lead,” recounts Jerry Cole. Alongside their deep knowledge and reverence for the bluegrass greats of past and present, Authentic Unlimited brings heart, soul, and passion to every performance. Audiences will experience the unlimited authenticity of this brilliant quintet as they bring their tight harmonies and red-hot picking to the Lowell Folk Festival.