Michael Cleveland was awarded Fiddle Player of the Year by the Society for the Preservation of Bluegrass Music in America (SPBGMA) during their awards ceremony on Sunday, February 2nd. The event is held annually in Nashville, TN as part of a 4-day convention and festival. Upon learning of his win, Cleveland said, “I want to say a huge thank you to everyone for the support and encouragement that you have shown the band and I! It would not be possible to do what we do without you all! Also, thanks to Alison Brown and Garry West of Compass Records, Jim Roe of Roe Entertainment and Kimberly Williams of East Public Relations. Thanks to all the guys in Flamekeeper for all of the time, energy and hard work that they all put in to playing great music! Josh, Nathan, Glenn and Tyler, you guys are the best!”
Cleveland and his band, Flamekeeper performed on Friday and Saturday to a packed house and spent a good amount of time in the hallways jamming with fellow musicians.