Learn more about Kyle Dillingham & Horseshoe Road: www.KyleDillingham.com.
History was made in 2019 at the Grand Ole Opry with an unprecedented debut performance by Kyle Dillingham on a Dolly Parton skateboard!
"Kyle Dillingham has made Opry history. His debut tonight, and the first ever to enter and exit on a skateboard. It is my thought that the fiddler blew the roof off the Grand Ole Opry house tonight!" - Bill Cody, Grand Ole Opry Announcer/Host.
"Proud of you brother...you play violin/fiddle with more passion than anyone in history...and the skateboard? Wow!!!" -The Oak Ridge Boys.
"I've never seen anything like this before!" -Roy Clark.
"Hell of a musician, that's for sure." -Charley Pride.
"Ken Burns and I travel all over the United States. After hearing your performance, we turned to each other and agreed that we had witnessed something amazing." -Paula Kerger, President of PBS.
"Dillingham can bewitch and conjure a range of emotions from his violin..." -The Bangkok Post.
2020 and 2011 International Acoustic Music Award Winner.
"Freedom Bells", Dillingham's newest fiddle tune, is a 2021 International Songwriting Competition winner (“The songwriting competition to take note of…” —New York Times). This puts his music in the top (less than 1%) of over 21,000 entries worldwide and 1 of 13 entries in the Instrumental Category with only two finalists from the United States.
Dillingham's song, "Four in the Morning", hit #1 three weeks in a row on The Radio Cafe’s Top 10 Countdown live from Hollywood. "I receive over 20,000 song submissions a year from all around the world, so just making it onto my show is hard enough. Reaching #1 is even harder!" said Emmy Award winning host and producer, Christopher Ewing. "Way to go! Keep making great music! You are, truly, one of the best indie artists in the world!"
Presented by the Oklahoma Hall of Fame, Dillingham was awarded with the prestigious honor of Oklahoma Ambassador of Goodwill in 2020. Previously honored Ambassadors of Goodwill include Toby Keith, Kristin Chenoweth, Roger Miller, Reba McEntire, Jimmy Webb, and Hank Thompson, to name a few.
Spring 2019, Kyle Dillingham & Horseshoe Road participated in the 2018-2019 American Music Abroad season, organized by The U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, and The Association of American Voices, with a tour through Kosovo and Kuwait. They were chosen as one of fifteen ensembles, standing out in an applicant pool of nearly 300 bands.
In 2018, they were one of the featured performers at the National Endowment for the Arts National Heritage Fellows Concert in Washington, DC, to honor their good friend and Fellow recipient, Manuel Cuevas. Cuevas has been attributed as being the man who put Johnny Cash in black.
"Manuel has been such an inspiration to me, so I wrote a song for him, 'You Inspire The World: A Song for Manuel,'" said Dillingham, who has performed his magic in 41 countries. "It was the highlight of my career to perform the song at this prestigious event to honor my good friend. The host of the event, Grammy-winner Martha Gonzalez, and everyone in attendance were blown away by our tribute!”
Cuevas has also outfitted such legends as Elvis, Rolling Stones and Bob Dylan and Kyle, Peter and Brent are honored to be added to his client list.
“We were also selected for a coveted performance at the 2018 CMA Fest in Nashville, which was another highlight of our career”, Dillingham said. “After our performance, we had the chance to play for Charley Pride in his dressing room at the Grand Ole Opry and hang out with Blake Shelton and others backstage! What an incredible experience."
That same year, they completed their third Silk Road and the Fiddle Tour through China representing Oklahoma and the United States with a musical celebration of cultural relations and performances.
Also that year, they opened for Grammy Award-winner, Lee Greenwood, at the renowned Neewollah Festival in Independence, Kansas.
Their 2008 Thailand tour commemorated the 175th anniversary of relations between the U.S. and the Kingdom of Thailand, and their 2013 tour of Korea celebrated the 60th anniversary of Partnership and Shared Prosperity between Korea and the U.S.
With an eclectic musical style ranging from Blues to Bluegrass, Gypsy Jazz to Western Swing, Country, Rock and Gospel, Kyle Dillingham & Horseshoe Road blend them into an earthy genre of music they call Heartland Americana.
"From Bob Wills to our original Americana-flavored new songs, get ready for a high energy, uplifting musical experience," said Dillingham.
Kyle Dillingham & Horseshoe Road have also taken the stage with The Charlie Daniels Band, The Oak Ridge Boys, Roy Clark, Hank Thompson, Lisa Ling, Vince Gill, Jimmy Webb, Toby Keith, Hanson, Leona Mitchell and Thailand’s Pop Superstar, Tik Shiro, and have performed with the Taipei Symphony Orchestra, China’s Lanzhou Symphony Orchestra and the Amici New York Symphony Orchestra, among others.
Dillingham picked up the violin when he was nine, and eight years later, he gave two featured performances at the Grand Ole Opry. He is now managed by legendary impresario, Jim Halsey, who has represented 29 Hall of Famers including Roy Clark, The Oak Ridge Boys and James Brown.
As a Creativity Ambassador, Dillingham performed as a part of the Creativity World Forum in November 2010, where he received a medal of honor and took the stage with Hanson, Leona Mitchell and other Oklahoma natives.
2018 & 2017: Voted "Best Local Band" in Oklahoma Magazine’s Best of the Best.
2017: 405 Magazine's Best of OKC Award - "Best Musician" and "Best Ambassador who makes you proud to be an Oklahoman".
2016: 405 Magazine's Best of OKC - "Best Local Musician" and "Best Local Band". Oklahoma Gazette Music Awards - "Best Americana/Folk Band".
2014 & 2013: Slice Magazine's Best of the City - "Best Performing Artist".
