Steve Martin & Alison Brown Transform Lil Nas X’s “Old Town Road” Into A Bluegrass Ride

NASHVILLE, TN (October 8, 2026) - On the heels of the release of their 2025 album, Safe, Sensible and Sane, banjoists Steve Martin and Alison Brown continue their musical collaboration with a bluegrass reimagining of Lil Nas X's smash hit "Old Town Road." The new single, out today, features bluegrass legends Del McCoury and Dan Tyminski, alongside Ronnie McCoury (mandolin), Stuart Duncan (fiddle) and Garry West (bass).

Martin says: "I've always loved the idea of 'Old Town Road' as seen through bluegrass eyes." Brown was immediately intrigued by the idea, but she says, "It's such a well-known song that my challenge was to come up with an arrangement that would showcase our banjos without giving the song away too soon." Martin adds, "Fortunately, some of the best bluegrass musicians in the world agreed to join us, and here we are, ready to ride."

The end result is more than just a cover: Martin wrote new, 'grass-ified lyrics, layered with a healthy dose of his inimitable humor, and they traded the original's country trap influences for a banjo-forward bluegrass romp. The outcome is surprisingly natural and completely entertaining.

For Martin, whose career has famously crossed comedy, film, television, writing, and music, the banjo has long been a vehicle for both serious musicianship and irreverent fun. Brown, a GRAMMY-winning banjo innovator, composer, producer, and longtime champion of roots music, brings her deep knowledge of bluegrass and its traditions to the collaboration.

Martin and Brown continue their explorations of the musical possibilities for the banjo, delivering a performance that is unexpected and unmistakably bluegrass-with a little help from two legends who know their way down the old bluegrass road.

ABOUT STEVE MARTIN & ALISON BROWN

Over the course of their careers, Brown and Martin have each earned countless accolades for their contributions to the banjo. Brown made history as the first-ever female musician to win an instrumentalist of the year award from the International Bluegrass Music Association (she was named Banjo Player of the Year in 1991), while Martin received the IBMA's Entertainer of the Year award in 2011. Both Brown and Martin have received the Distinguished Achievement award from the IBMA. In 2010, Martin launched the Steve Martin Banjo Prize-an effort that has awarded more than $500,000 in funds to banjo players in any genre or style, with past recipients including Rhiannon Giddens and Jake Blount. A longtime co-chair for the Steve Martin Banjo Prize, Brown is also co-founder of the groundbreaking roots-music label Compass Records.

Their 2025 album, Safe Sensible and Sane, offers a captivating new turn in the evolution of banjo music with collaborations from luminaries including Jackson Browne, Vince Gill, Indigo Girls, Tim O'Brien, Aoife O'Donovan and Jason Mraz. The album received a total of 7 nominations from the International Bluegrass Music Association Awards. Billboard Magazine tapped their song "Dear Time," a collaboration with Jackson Browne from the album, as one of the 100 Best Songs of 2025 HERE . Watch the "Dear Time" music video HERE . Brown and Martin are currently featured in the Country Music Hall of Fame's American Currents exhibit. Over the past 3 years, their collaborations have yielded five #1 singles on the bluegrass radio charts and generated more than 80M views across social media platforms.