Sierra Hull: From Watching Crossroads on DVD to Performing on Its Stage

Grammy-nominated mandolinist, guitarist, singer-songwriter and bluegrass innovator Sierra Hull had a busy summer. Touring to promote her album A Tip Toe High Wire—as well as a bluegrass concerto, The Movements—she performed on shows that included Willie Nelson, The Avett Brothers, Stephen Wilson Jr., Don Was, Dave Matthews, Billy Strings and others.

But she still had one more episode of what she called her “festival energy” when Eric Clapton invited her to the 2026 Crossroads Guitar Festival in Austin, Texas.

"Coming here to Crossroads felt like the icing on the cake of what has been a really busy—but really fun—summer of collaboration," says Hull.

From Inspiration to Reality

“I was a bluegrass kid from Tennessee—playing the traditional music, going to bluegrass jams and things like that,” says Hull. “I always had an interest in other genres of music, but what brought me to purchase a DVD of the Crossroads Festival was that a couple of my bluegrass heroes—Jerry Douglas, Dan Tyminski and Ron Block—were playing on it. I remember thinking, ‘Oh, my gosh. These guys are on this festival with Eric Clapton and John Mayer and all these amazing people? What a cool event.’ So, when Clapton reached out to me about coming to Crossroads Los Angeles [2023], I was like, ‘How full circle is that to have been a kid watching the DVD growing up as a source of inspiration to actually playing the festival?’ I just had the best time getting to be here. The amount of talent here is just off the chart.”

Bluegrass Meets the Blues (and Rock, too)

“Growing up playing bluegrass music, it was obvious that blues was a huge influence in [bluegrass pioneer] Bill Monroe's world,” says Hull. “He learned from a fiddler named Arnold Schultz, who had a lot of Irish and Scottish old-time fiddle influences, and blues was a part of that, as well. So, it’s funny that the lines between bluegrass, blues and rock aren’t so far apart. They’re cousins of one another. Obviously, there’s a difference between the sound of an acoustic mandolin versus the sound of someone playing an electric guitar through a screaming guitar amp, but the language is still similar. There’s a natural fit in the meeting of those worlds during all the musical collaborations onstage.”

Anything Can Happen

“At Crossroads, it's just this unbelievable pool of talent,” says Hull, “and everybody shows up with an open heart and an open spirit. The whole gathering is so inspiring. Hardly any of us know what will happen with the various collaborations until the last minute. Anything can happen.”