I approached the other Old Crows and said, ‘I really want to start a show that’s a cross between the Grand Ole Opry and Pee-wee’s Playhouse.’

—Ketch Secor

In early 2020, right before the world shut down, Old Crow Medicine Show purchased an empty warehouse in East Nashville. This building, renamed Hartland Studios and now housing both a recording studio and sound stage, provided an invaluable space to be creative during the global pandemic. Out of this clubhouse grew the infamous Hartland Hootenanny, a variety show which the Old Crows produced and live streamed on a weekly basis for 30 weeks.

I’ve taken it on as a personal commitment to be optimistic, and to have my optimism be outward. There’s just been lots of opportunities to show it, and I believe in the butterfly effect; that one little ripple in the pond can create the wave.

—Ketch Secor

Hartland Hootenanny is best described as a rollicking old-time all-American barn dance overflowing with heart, humor, and the glitterati of roots music. Each of the 30 episodes was written and hosted by Ketch Secor with bandmates collaborating both behind-the-scenes and on camera. Throughout the series Secor masterfully weaves together zany storytelling, joyful nostalgia, and heartwarming tributes - all while cleverly addressing the difficult realities of 2020. Regular segments include “All My Tales Are Tall” monologues (which run the emotional gamut from roll-on-the-floor funny to piercingly thought-provoking); hilarious green-screen skits; authentic letters from viewers (“Pan American Mailbag”); the fiddle-driven “Socially Distanced Square Dance;” and, of course, lots of music from both Old Crow Medicine Show and an impressive list of twenty-nine special guests. During a time when isolation and loneliness were prevalent themes, Hartland Hootenanny provided much needed optimism, levity and sense of connectivity.

It’s not preachy in terms of a particular ideology, but I really like that the show is thematically oriented toward, ‘Hey, let’s all laugh about the fact that we’re trapped in this together,’ and ‘Hey, let’s make a bunch of funny jokes about the topical stuff that’s going on.’

—Ketch Secor

Special guests on the Hootenanny include Amythyst Kiah, Billy Strings, BJ Barham from American Aquarium, Dom Flemmons, Marty Stuart, Molly Tuttle, Sierra Hull, The War & Treaty, and many more.  All 30 episodes of the Hartland Hootenanny are currently archived on the band’s YouTube channel and can be found HERE.