Nu-Blu Brings 20 Years of Bluegrass to Rapid City
The North Carolina quartet brings its Music, Miles and Memories tour to the Historic Theater on Oct. 27, mixing longtime favorites, newer material and bluegrass takes on familiar songs.
Nu-Blu has spent more than two decades on the road, and the North Carolina bluegrass band will bring that long-running catalog to Rapid City Tuesday, Oct. 27.
The quartet performs at 7 p.m. in the Historic Theater at the Performing Arts Center of Rapid City as part of the Rapid City Concert Association’s 90th season. Doors open at 6:30 p.m.
Formed in 2003, Nu-Blu is built around husband-and-wife duo Carolyn and Daniel Routh. Carolyn handles lead vocals and bass, while Daniel plays guitar and sings. Austin Hefflefinger adds banjo, guitar and vocals, with Justin Harrison on mandolin, fiddle and percussion.
Over the years, the band has developed a sound that sits between traditional bluegrass and contemporary Americana, pairing acoustic picking with songs that lean heavily on storytelling.
Their most recent album, Where You’ve Been, was released in 2024 as Nu-Blu marked roughly 20 years together. The record looks back at choices, relationships and the stretches of life that accumulate over time, while bringing in a few notable guests along the way.
Ricky Skaggs and Sharon White appear on “The Will,” a song about a family gathering to hear a farmer’s last wishes. The accompanying video earned Nu-Blu a 2025 Josie Award for Music Video of the Year in the performance-focused duo/group category.
Elsewhere on the album, Jim Peterik, known for his work with Survivor and as a co-writer of “Eye of the Tiger,” joins the band on “Trains,” while Jody McBrayer appears on “Jesus Loves You.”
Those collaborations are part of a longer pattern for Nu-Blu. The group previously worked with Sam Moore of Sam & Dave on “Jesus and Jones,” their tribute to George Jones, and has released five albums that reached the Billboard Top 10 in bluegrass.
The Rapid City appearance comes during another extended stretch of touring for the band, with dates across the Upper Midwest this fall.
For the Historic Theater show, audiences can expect a mix of Nu-Blu originals alongside the band’s bluegrass treatments of familiar songs. Material promoted for the current program includes Hank Williams’ “You Win Again,” Bob Dylan’s “Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door” and John Prine’s “Angel From Montgomery.”