Sierra Ferrell Cleaned Up at the 2025 Grammys. Here’s Why You Should Know Her

At last night’s Grammy Awards, Kendrick Lamar took home the most trophies of the night – five in total. But it wasn’t a pop superstar like Sabrina Carpenter or Taylor Swift who came in right behind him. It was Sierra Ferrell, the West Virginia-born 36-year-old, winning four: Best Americana Album for Trail of Flowers, Best American Roots Song for “American Dreaming,” Best Americana Performance for “American Dreaming” and Best American Roots Performance for “Lighthouse.” Here’s all you need to know about the breakout Americana singer-songwriter, whom Rolling Stone profiled early last year.

Primarily self-taught, Sierra Ferrell started her career busking on the streets of New Orleans.

Raised by a single mom, Ferrell spent most of her free time outside and listening to music while singing along — sometimes commercial jingles, sometimes Nineties rock radio, sometimes Shania Twain. Ferrell took a couple of semesters of guitar training in high school, but she still considers herself “more of a vocal shredder than an instrument shredder.” In her twenties she headed out across the country, traveling by train. Her travels took her to New Orleans and Seattle, where she played in several bands and various busking duos and trios. Eventually she released two albums on Bandcamp, but it was her live shows that caught the attention of labels in Nashville. She was signed to Rounder Records in 2018.

Trail of Flowers is Ferrell’s second album for the label. It was Rolling Stone’s pick for Best Country Album of 2024.

Ferrell’s first album, Long Time Coming, came out in 2021 to wide critical acclaim. Trail of Flowers takes her style of blending country, bluegrass, jazz, pop, old-time, and ragtime and makes way for drums, Beatles-influenced kiss-offs, and fiddle-heavy love laments, with her mystical, magnificent vocals at the center. It’s an album that wants to connect us to the land, to our history, and to one another.

Ferrell plays the fiddle, too.

Her performance of “I Can Drive You Crazy” for a Garden & Gun session was popular on TikTok, and showcased her fiddle skills (and penchant for a good floral headdress).

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She loves country music, but doesn’t worry about genre walls, either.

Last year, Ferrell was even working on her rap skills. “I want to let other people know, younger generations coming up, that you can do whatever you want,” she told Rolling Stone. “Don’t think you only have to be one way. You can be it all.”

Sierra Ferrell is probably your favorite artist’s favorite artist, if your favorite artist loves country music.

Ferrell has collaborated with Post Malone (who has worn her shirt onstage numerous times), Zach Bryan, Lana Del Rey, Nikki Lane, and Margo Price, and worked with both Diplo and Roc Nation. Bluegrass star Billy Strings is a fan, as is Kelly Clarkson, who covered one of her songs on her talk show.

Her live show is stellar. And her dates sell out fast.

Visually, Ferrell is always pushing the limits of what an artist can do onstage. For her annual New Year’s Eve show at Nashville’s Brooklyn Bowl, she recruited circus performers to wield lassos and swallow swords. She’s also known for her intricate and whimsical costumes – like the pearly concoction she wore to the Grammys, complete with a matching wand and headdress. Her tours sell out quickly, and she’s embarking on her own Shoot for the Moon tour this year, as well as joining the Big Ass Stadium Tour with Post Malone and Jelly Roll.

She hopes to be a member of the Grand Ole Opry someday.

Ferrell made her Opry debut in 2022, and plays any chance she gets. “I eventually want to be a member,” she said.

Ferrell is very open when it comes to talking about mental health, and isn’t afraid to cancel a show if she needs to focus on her wellbeing.

“We’re all just people, and we’re all going through a lot of pain,” she told Rolling Stone. “Mental health is super important, and therapy. Try it all. What’s the worst that happens? You get healed?”