# Billy Strings & East Nash Grass Lead 2026 IBMA Awards Winners

- URL: https://talkfuse.com/story/billy-strings-east-nash-grass-lead-2026-ibma-awards-winners/
- Published: 2026-10-23T17:03:19+00:00
- Updated: 2026-10-23T17:09:37+00:00
- Original publisher: Billboard
- Original article: https://www.billboard.com/music/awards/2026-ibma-awards-winners-list-billy-strings-east-nash-grass-1236367230/
- Topics: Entertainment, Music

## Key points

- Billy Strings won entertainer of the year for the fifth time.
- East Nash Grass took album and instrumental group awards.
- Sierra Hull earned her eighth mandolin player accolade.

## Summary

Billy Strings was named entertainer of the year at the 2026 International Bluegrass Music Association Awards, held in Chattanooga on 22 October. It was his fifth win, underscoring his continued prominence in bluegrass; East Nash Grass also had a major night, taking two awards.

East Nash Grass won album of the year for *All God’s Children* and instrumental group of the year, while Trey Hensley received song of the year for “Can’t Outrun the Blues”. Sierra Hull won mandolin player of the year for the eighth time, and the video for “The Devil Went Down to Deep Gap”, by Billy Strings and Bryan Sutton, was honoured. Four acts and figures joined the Bluegrass Hall of Fame: Byron Berline, The Nashville Bluegrass Band, The Lost & Found and Sugar Hill Records co-founder Barry Poss.

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Summarised by TalkFuse (https://talkfuse.com/). Quote the original publisher for the reporting and link this page for the summary and discussion.