The Best Folk Music Artists You Need to Know About

In need of a little musical inspiration? Check out our list of the best folk music artists you need to know about. From Bob Dylan to Sufjan Stevens, these musicians will get your creative juices flowing.

Joan Baez

Joan Baez is a legendary folk singer, songwriter, and activist who has been making music for over 60 years. Her music is deeply personal and often deals with social and political issues. She is a master of the acoustic guitar and her voice is both powerful and haunting. She has influenced a generation of musicians and continues to be an inspiration to many.

Biography

Joan Baez was born on Staten Island, New York, on January 9, 1941. Her father, Albert Baez, was a physicist who had fled from Spain during the Spanish Civil War; her mother, Joan Bridge Baez, was a English teacher. When she was two years old the family moved to Boston where they remained for several years before moving again to California. As a child Baez displayed a talent for music and learning languages; she learned to play both the piano and guitar and by the age of 13 was fluent in English, French, Spanish and Welsh.

Baez’s musical career began in clubs around Cambridge, Massachusetts, while she was still a teenager. In 1958 she released her first album – Joan Baez – on Vanguard Records. The album featured traditional songs as well as two of her own compositions and quickly established her as one of the leading figures in the American folk music scene.

Over the course of her career Baez has released more than 30 albums and toured extensively both in America and internationally. In addition to her music career she is also an outspoken activist for a range of social causes including civil rights, human rights and environmental justice.

Musical Style

Joan Baez’s musical style is a unique blend of folk, pop, and country. She was one of the first performers to experiment with different genres, and her music has influenced many artists since. Her most popular songs include “The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down,” “Farewell, Angelina,” and ” Diamonds & Rust.”

Why She’s Important

Joan Baez is an important figure in the history of folk music. She played a significant role in popularizing the genre, and her music has had a lasting impact on American culture.

Baez was born in 1941 in New York City. Her father, Albert Baez, was a physicist of Puerto Rican descent, and her mother, JoanBridge, was a Scottish-born woman of English and Welsh descent. Baez began playing the guitar at a young age and quickly developed a passion for music. She began performing in coffeehouses and clubs in the early 1960s, and soon garnered attention for her powerful voice and distinctive style of guitar playing.

Baez’s debut album, Joan Baez, was released in 1960 and featured traditional folk songs such as “House of the Rising Sun” and “Matty Groves.” The album reached No. 3 on the Billboard 200 chart and established Baez as one of the most promising young folk musicians of her generation. Over the next few years, she released a string of successful albums, including Joan Baez in Concert (1962), Joan Baez/5 (1964), Farewell Angelina (1965), and No Man’s Land (1968). These albums helped to further popularize folk music and cemented Baez’s reputation as one of the genre’s foremost performers.

In addition to her musical career, Baez has also been active in various political causes throughout her life. She was a vocal opponent of the Vietnam War, and she participated in civil rights demonstrations alongside Martin Luther King Jr. In recent years, she has spoken out against gun violence and fracking.

Baez’s influence on American culture is undeniable. She helped to bring folk music to a wider audience, and her socially conscious lyrics continue to inspire people all over the world.

Bob Dylan

American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan has been a major figure in popular music for more than five decades. Much of his most celebrated work dates from the 1960s, when songs such as “Blowin’ in the Wind” and “The Times They Are a-Changin'” became anthems of the civil rights and anti-war movements. His most recent album, “Rough and Rowdy Ways,” was released in 2020.

Biography

Bob Dylan was born Robert Zimmerman on May 24, 1941 in Duluth, Minnesota. He began playing guitar and piano as a teenager, and his early musical influences included Woody Guthrie, Lead Belly, and Hank Williams. Dylan made his first major public appearance at the 1959 Newport Folk Festival, where he was discovered by Columbia Records producer John Hammond. He released his self-titled debut album in 1962, which featured the now-classic songs “Blowin’ in the Wind” and “A Hard Rain’s A-Gonna Fall.”

Dylan’s next two albums, The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan (1963) and The Times They Are A-Changin’ (1964), cemented his reputation as one of the most important and influential songwriters of his generation. His lyrics often addressed social and political issues of the day, and he quickly became an icon of the burgeoning anti-war and civil rights movements. In 1965, Dylan went electric with the release of Bringing It All Back Home, which featured such classics as “Like a Rolling Stone” and “Subterranean Homesick Blues.”

Over the next few years, Dylan continued to push the boundaries of folk music with a series of groundbreaking albums including Highway 61 Revisited (1965), Blonde on Blonde (1966), John Wesley Harding (1967), and Nashville Skyline (1969). In the early 1970s, he temporarily retired from touring after a motorcycle accident near Woodstock, New York. During this period, he released a series of critically acclaimed albums including Blood on the Tracks (1975) and Slow Train Coming (1979).

In the 1980s and 1990s, Dylan continued to tour extensively and release new music at a prolific rate. He was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 1988 and won multiple Grammy Awards, including an honorary Lifetime Achievement Award in 1991. In 2000, he was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Literature “for having created new poetic expressions within the great American song tradition.” In 2016, he was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature “for having created new poetic expressions within the great American song tradition.”

Musical Style

Bob Dylan’s musical style has been described as an amalgamation of early rock and roll, makes itself evident in songs like “Subterranean Homesick Blues” and “Like a Rolling Stone”, blues, and folk. This unique blend of genres led to Dylan’s success in the 1960s as he became an informal chronicler and a reluctant figurehead of social unrest. Critics have also noted the influence of Scottish and Irish folk music in Dylan’s works.

Why He’s Important

Bob Dylan is one of the most iconic and influential figures in popular music. His songs have been covered by everyone from Jimi Hendrix to Adele, and his lyricism has been praised by the likes of President Obama and former Beatle Paul McCartney. But despite his widespread impact, Dylan remains a somewhat enigmatic figure, shunning the spotlight and refusing to conform to others’ expectations. Here are 10 things you should know about Bob Dylan.

1. He was born Robert Zimmerman, but changed his last name to Dylan after seeing the Welsh poet Dylan Thomas in a New York City bookstore.

2. He began his musical career as a teenaged Folk singer in coffeehouses around Greenwich Village.

3. In 1963, he released his second album, The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan, which featured the now-classic tracks “Blowin’ in the Wind” and “A Hard Rain’s A-Gonna Fall.”

4. Dylan’s topical songs about social injustice, nuclear war, and other pressing issues of the day made him an important voice of protest during the Civil Rights Movement and anti-war movement of the 1960s.

5. In 1965, he “went electric” at the Newport Folk Festival, shocking many of his Folk fans with his new sound. The move alienated some adherents of the Folk scene, but won Dylan a whole new audience of Rock fans.

6. His 1967 album John Wesley Harding marked a return to a more stripped-down sound after the complex arrangements of 1966’s Blonde on Blonde. The album included such classic Dylan tracks as “All Along the Watchtower” and “I’ll Be Your Baby Tonight.”

7. In 1974, he released Blood on the Tracks, widely considered to be one of his finest albums. The deeply personal record was rumored to be based on Dylan’s own failed marriage, though he has never confirmed this speculation.

8. In 1979, he released Slow Train Coming, a Gospel album that won him a Grammy for Best Male Rock Vocal Performance (for the song “Gotta Serve Somebody”). Despite its commercial success, Slow Train Coming was highly controversial due to its explicit Christian themes; some radio stations even refused to play it.

9 .In 1997, Dylan was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature “for having created new poetic expressions within the great American song tradition.” He is only the second musician ever to receive this honor (the other being singer/songwriter George Bernard Shaw).
10 .Dylan remains an active touring musician today; he has played over 3,000 concerts since 1989 alone!

Woody Guthrie

Woody Guthrie was an American folk singer-songwriter and musician who was a prominent figure in the mid-20th century. His music depicted the realities of rural America and the problems of the working class. He is best known for his song “This Land Is Your Land.”

Biography

Woodrow Wilson Guthrie was an American singer-songwriter and musician who was a prominent figure in the folk music scene during the 1940s. He is perhaps best known for his song “This Land is Your Land,” which became an anthem for the American labor movement. Born in Oklahoma, Guthrie grew up surrounded by music and was exposed to a wide range of musical styles, including folk, blues, and country. He began playing guitar and writing songs as a teenager, and soon became known for his politically charged lyrics and social commentary. In 1940, he moved to New York City, where he found success as a performer in the city’s burgeoning folk music scene. He also became involved in various political and social causes, including the labor movement and the fight against fascism. Guthrie’s health began to decline in the 1950s, and he died of Huntington’s disease in 1967.

Musical Style

Woody Guthrie’s musical style is often described as Americana, but his influences ran much deeper than that. He grew up listening to the music of migrant workers, cowboys, and Native Americans. He was also exposed to the music of blues and jazz artists from an early age. All of these influences can be heard in his work.

Why He’s Important

Woodrow Wilson “Woody” Guthrie was an American singer-songwriter and folk musician Woody Guthrie’s musical repertoire consisted of original songs about topics including economics, folklore, and religion. He frequently performed with the slogan This machine kills fascists displayed on his guitar. His best-known song is “This Land Is Your Land”, which has become one of the most recognizable songs in the United States. Many of his recorded songs are archived in the Library of Congress. Throughout his life, Guthrie was associated with many left-wing causes, such as trade unions and civil rights.

Pete Seeger

Pete Seeger was an American folk singer, political activist, and one of the most important folk music artists of the 20th century. Seeger was a key figure in the American folk music revival and was known for his work with the Weavers, as well as his solo career. He was also a prolific songwriter, with songs like “Where Have All the Flowers Gone?” and “Turn! Turn! Turn!” becoming folk standards.

Biography

Pete Seeger was an American singer, songwriter, and social activist. A central figure in the American folk music revival, he was also a key proponent of the protest song and was blacklisted during the McCarthy Era. A prolific songwriter, his best-known works include “Where Have All the Flowers Gone?” (with Joe Hickerson) and “Turn! Turn! Turn! (To Everything There Is a Season)” (adapted from the Book of Ecclesiastes). He recorded more than 100 albums over his career and his songs have been recorded by many other artists. In addition to his music, Seeger was an outspoken political activist throughout his life; he supported causes including labor rights, civil rights, anti-war protests, and environmentalism.

Musical Style

Pete Seeger was a highly influential figure in the American folk music revival of the 1950s and 1960s. He is perhaps best known as the composer of “Where Have All the Flowers Gone?” and “Turn! Turn! Turn! (To Everything There Is a Season),” both of which were hits for The Byrds in the 1960s. Seeger was also a member of The Weavers, a seminal folk music group that had several hit records in the 1950s. His career spanned more than seven decades, and he was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

Why He’s Important

Pete Seeger was one of the most influential folk music artists of the 20th century. He is credited with popularizing folk music and helping to revive interest in traditional songs and folk styles. He was also a social activist who used his music to promote political and social causes, including the civil rights movement, environmentalism, and international peace.

Odetta

Odetta is one of the most influential folk music artists of all time. Her career spanned over six decades, and she was a prominent figure in the American Civil Rights Movement. Odetta’s music was deeply influenced by her experience as a sharecropper’s daughter and her travels around the world. She is best known for her interpretations of traditional folk songs, which she often performed with her distinctive guitar style.

Biography

Odetta Holmes (December 31, 1930 – December 2, 2008), known as Odetta, was an American singer, songwriter, actress, guitarist, and a civil and human rights activist, often referred to as “The Voice of the Civil Rights Movement”. Her musical repertoire consisted largely of American folk music, blues, jazz, and spirituals. An important figure in the American folk music revival of the 1950s and 1960s, she was inspired by such musicians as Lead Belly and Huddie Ledbetter.

A classically trained singer with a powerful contralto voice, Odetta’s performances vibrantly communicated the sufferings and triumphs of African Americans during the early civil rights years. Hailed as “The Queen of American Folk Music”, she was awarded the National Medal of Arts in 1994. She is notable for her rendition of traditional blues songs like “Mule Skinner Blues” and “Midnight Special”, as well as her spectacular interpretations of compositions by lead Belly and Woody Guthrie.

Musical Style

Odetta’s musical style was a unique blend of blues, jazz, folk, and gospel that enthralled audiences andCritics alike. She was often compared to Billie Holiday and Mahalia Jackson, but she had a sound and style all her own. Her voice was described as “honeyed” and “mellifluous,” and she had a knack for delivering emotionally charged performances that moved her listeners. Odetta was a master of interpretation, and her repertoire included traditional folk songs, spirituals, blues standards, protest songs, and even some show tunes. She was equally at home singing a cappella or accompanied by a guitar, piano, or full orchestra. No matter what she sang, Odetta’s music always came from the heart.

Why She’s Important

Odetta Holmes, professionally known as Odetta, was an American singer, songwriter, actress, guitarist, and a civil and human rights activist. She is often referred to as “The Queen of American Folk Music” and influenced many of the seminal folk musicians of the 1960s and 1970s, including Bob Dylan and Joan Baez. In addition to her solo work, Odetta recorded with Larry Mohr (with whom she had a long-term relationship), The Weavers, Harry Belafonte, Mahalia Jackson, and Pete Seeger.

Odetta’s status as a folk music icon was cemented by her performances at the 1957 Newport Folk Festival and 1959 Angkor Wat International Peace Conference. In 1961, she released Odetta Sings Ballads and Blues, which went on to become one of the most influential albums in the genre. Her 1963 live album At Carnegie Hall was similarly successful, helping to bring folk music into the mainstream.

Throughout her career, Odetta used her platform to support various social justice causes. In 1963 she marched alongside Martin Luther King Jr. during the civil rights protests in Birmingham, Alabama; in 1965 she was one of the first major performers to play at Selma’s newly integrated high school; and in 1967 she performed at an anti-Vietnam War rally in New York City’s Central Park.

Odetta’s impact on both folk music and social justice activism make her one of the most important figures in 20th century American music.