Roots of Will Oldham

William Rahr Callahan is an American singer-songwriter, who has also recorded and performed under the band name Smog. Callahan began working in the lo-fi genre, with home-made tape-albums recorded on four-track tape recorders. Later he began releasing albums with the label Drag City, to which he remains signed today.

Hiss Golden Messenger is an American folk band originating from Durham, North Carolina, formed in 2007 and led by singer and songwriter MC Taylor.

Joanna Newsom is an American singer-songwriter, harpist and actress. After recording and self-releasing two EPs in 2002, Newsom signed to the independent label Drag City. Her debut album, The Milk-Eyed Mender, was released in 2004 to acclaim and garnered Newsom an underground following. She received wider exposure with Ys (2006), which reached number 134 on the Billboard 200 and was nominated for a 2007 Shortlist Music Prize. She continued releasing albums with Have One on Me in 2010 and Divers in 2015.

John Marshall Alexander Jr., known by the stage name Johnny Ace, was an American rhythm-and-blues singer. He had a string of hit singles in the mid-1950s. He emerged as a prominent figure in postwar R&B and gained fame with hits such as "My Song", "Cross My Heart", and "Pledging My Love". Ace's smooth vocal style and romantic ballads made him a popular artist, particularly on R&B radio stations and jukeboxes. At the height of his career, he toured extensively and was regarded as one of the most promising young stars in the genre.

American IV: The Man Comes Around is the 67th studio album by American country musician Johnny Cash, and the last to be released during his lifetime. It was released on November 5, 2002, through American and Universal Records. It is the fourth entry in Cash's American series of albums, considered by many critics to be his finest work towards the end of his life. The album was also included in the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die.

William Rahr Callahan is an American singer-songwriter, who has also recorded and performed under the band name Smog. Callahan began working in the lo-fi genre, with home-made tape-albums recorded on four-track tape recorders. Later he began releasing albums with the label Drag City, to which he remains signed today.

George Washington "Wash" Phillips was an American gospel and gospel blues singer and instrumentalist. The exact nature of the instrument or instruments he played is uncertain, being identified only as "novelty accompaniment" on the labels of the 78 rpm records released during his lifetime.

Everything That Happens Will Happen Today is the second collaborative studio album by musicians David Byrne and Brian Eno, released on August 18, 2008, by Todo Mundo. Marking Byrne's eighth studio effort overall and Byrne and Eno's first joint project in nearly 30 years, the album explores themes of humanity versus technology and optimism in spite of bleak circumstance through the blending of electronic and gospel music. Critical reception was largely positive and the album received awards for both the musical content as well as the packaging and technical production.