Weary Ramblers took home the Duo of the Year award at the Josie Music Awards on Sunday evening in Nashville, TN. The awards were hosted at the Grand Ole Opry and Weary Ramblers members Chad Elliott and Kathryn Severing Fox were in attendance.

“It was like magic to be up there again. We know the magnitude of what it means to stand on the Opry stage and accept an award for Duo of the Year. It was indescribable,” said Severing Fox.

The Josie Music Awards is the largest independent music award organization in the world. Independent musicians, those who maintain their music careers outside of a major record label, also maintain creative freedom to express their own songwriting and recording. Josie Music Awards’ goal is to recognize excellence and outstanding talents in the industry.

“Weary Ramblers are very dedicated to writing original music, which fits no specific genre. We are unique and being independent artists allows us do this,” Elliott said
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In addition to winning Duo of the Year, Weary Ramblers were nominated for four other Josie Music Awards in 2026. They include a nomination for Entertainer of the Year in the duo/group category, Song of the Year in the bluegrass category for “Roll on Rose”, Song of the Year in the Americana category for “Driftwood” and Album of the year in the folk/Americana category.

“We are excited to be putting the state of Iowa on the map, so that the richness of the music community in the Midwest can be recognized world-wide,” Severing Fox said.
This isn’t Weary Ramblers’ first time standing on the Opry stage to receive a Josie Music Award. In 2025 they were awarded “Song of the Year” in the Americana category.

“It was very affirming to have a Josie Award two years in a row. Especially this year, instead of an award in a song category, we were awarded for who we are as artists. One of our goals is to sing on the Opry stage one day, so this gets us that much closer to our goal,” Elliott said.

The duo is having a banner year for awards. They began 2026 by winning the International Blues Challenge in Memphis, TN. They were also the Overall Grand Prize Winner of the International Acoustic Music Awards and the Intercontinental Music Awards winner in the Americana roots category. Plus, they were a Gold Medal Winner for Best Americana Album and Best Americana Duo of the European International Music Awards this year.

"I think each achievement allows for something different. They’ve pushed us forward in so many genres. When we submit to a festival, they can see our product is connected to success,” Severing Fox said.

Weary Ramblers is an Iowa-based duo. They began performing together in 2022 and released their first, self-titled album in 2024. In 2025 they released the “Driftwood” album. They tour nation-wide. Learn more about Weary Ramblers by visiting www.wearyramblers.com.
 
2026 Awards for Weary Ramblers:
2026 Josie Music Awards - Winner - Duo of the Year
2026 Josie Music Awards - Nomination - Entertainer of the Year - Duo/Group
2026 Josie Music Awards - Nomination - Song of the Year - Bluegrass - "Roll on Rose"
2026 Josie Music Awards - Nomination - Song of the Year - Americana - "Driftwood"
2026 Josie Music Awards - Nomination - Album of the Year - Folk/Americana - Duo/Group
2026 Unsigned Only Music Awards - Runner Up - Americana - "Memphis You & Me"
2026 Unsigned Only Music Awards - Semi Finalist - Folk/Singer-Songwriter - "Driftwood"
2026 European International Music Awards - Gold Medal Winner - Best Americana Album - "Driftwood"
2026 European International Music Awards - Gold Medal Winner - Best Americana Duo
2026 European International Music Awards - Gold Medal Winner - Best Americana Single - "Driftwood"
2026 European International Music Awards - Gold Medal Winner - Best Americana Single Lyrics - "Driftwood"
2026 Intercontinental Music Awards - Winner - American Roots - "Memphis You and Me"
2026 Intercontinental Music Awards - Finalist - Country - "Thousand Tears"
2026 Intercontinental Music Awards - Finalist - Folk - "Driftwood"
2026 World Songwriting Awards - Finalist - Best Folk Song - "Hang On"
2026 International Singer-Songwriter Association Awards - Nomination - Band of the Year
2026 International Singer-Songwriter Association Awards - Nomination - Band Single of the Year - "Memphis You and Me"
2026 International Singer-Songwriter Association Awards - Nomination - Vocal Duo of the Year
2026 International Blues Challenge - Solo/Duo 1st Place Winner
2026 International Blues Challenge "Best Guitarist" - Winner - Chad Elliott
2026 International Acoustic Music Awards - Overall Grand Prize Winner - "Kentucky Never Seemed So Blue"
2026 International Acoustic Music Awards - Best Country/Bluegrass Song - "Kentucky Never Seemed So Blue"
2026 Global Music Awards - Silver Medal - Americana
2026 Global Music Awards - Silver Medal - Duo

Weary Ramblers were awarded the winning spot for Best of North America in the American Roots category of the InterContinental Music Awards of 2026. The winning song was "Memphis, You & Me," which was co-written by Chad Elliott and Kathryn Severing Fox. The song is on Weary Ramblers' second album, "Driftwood." In addition to this win, their song "Driftwood" was a finalist in the folk category and "Thousand Tears" was a finalist in the country category.

Two of Chad Elliott's songs have been chosen as Semi-Finalists in the Unsigned Only Competition for 2026. The song "Untested Wings" was chosen in the Folk/Singer-Songwriter category and "Mystery of Love" was chosen in the Blues category. Elliott's music joins a long list of talented songwriters.

Check out all the Semi-Finalists here: ​​www.unsignedonly.com/winners .

 From Iowa Public Radio: "Iowans gathered on the lawn of the state Capitol Friday for the Des Moines Symphony’s 32nd Yankee Doodle Pops. The event featured spoken word poetry by Billy “B.Well” Weathers, music from The Weary Ramblers, local choral groups, patriotic music performed by the Des Moines Symphony and a fireworks display over downtown Des Moines." Photo above is Weary Ramblers performing live at Yankee Doodle Pops. Photo by Lucious Pham.

Cityview magazine featured Chad Elliott in an article titled, "The Year of Duchamp, and Chad Elliott." 

"In Iowa, 2026 is the year of Chad Elliott." - Cityview Magazine

Check out the full article here: www.dmcityview.com/art-news/2026/05/06/the-year-of-duchamp-and-chad-elliott/