Photo by Sharp Images
“The Queen of Bluegrass,” Rhonda Vincent never slows down. Despite her hectic schedule – including a jam-packed national tour schedule and multiple new DVD and album releases on the horizon – the award-winning singer maintains, “I love performing.” Stopping at the Beacon Theatre on Nov. 12, Rhonda Vincent and her band, The Rage, will perform songs from their newest DVD release, “Rhonda Vincent & The Rage in Concert Volume One: All The Rage,” available Nov. 11. We caught up with the bluegrass star in advance of her appearance in Hopewell to chat about her upcoming Richmond-area show, her passion for the stage and her newest projects.
Richmond magazine: What can fans expect to hear when you come to the Richmond area?
Vincent: It’s traditional bluegrass along with songs like [the one] we had [that became] a No. 4 video on CMT, “You Can’t Take it With you When you Go.” So there are country ballads, there’s gospel music, there’s pretty much something for everyone. It’s a family show; bluegrass is pretty much for families, but we try to mix everything from these incredible musicians. Everyone is featured on instrumentals displaying their talents, their individuality that they bring to the group. … We mix it up so we just hope everyone comes to the show and has a good time with us.
RM: What songs should people expect to hear?
Vincent: We are getting ready to release a live DVD; Nov. 11 is the official release date. So this [show] will be the day after the DVD is released so we will be presenting songs from that. I felt like my goal had been to put together the ultimate group, the ultimate band of great people, great musicians, and I feel like it was important to document and to showcase these musicians. I think it’s a historical moment for The Rage, so this DVD, it’s called “All The Rage, Volume One,” and that’s exactly what it is.
RM: Is it all new music on the DVD?
Vincent: It’s not all new music per se; some of the songs we’ve produced and recorded, some we haven’t. A lot of the songs from the DVD we maybe performed on stage, but we hadn’t recorded them or presented them on a recording, so there’s a mixture of both. If you come to the shows, these are probably a lot of the favorites people really love.
RM: Can fans purchase the new DVD at the show?
Vincent: We’ll have the DVD and the CD, “All The Rage.” We also have a Christmas album that came out last year called “Christmas Time.” … In November, we will definitely be doing some songs from the Christmas CD, too.
RM: Do you have any extra surprises or special guests planned for the show?
Vincent: My daughter’s actually been our special guest for the last year. She’s been traveling with us, so I would expect that she will be there with us, too. Her name is Sally Berry. She’s actually married to the fiddle player, so I actually travel with two of my son-in-laws; that’s usually a big surprise for a lot of people.
RM: You have a packed tour schedule for 2016 through 2017, so is there a particular reason for so many stops?
Vincent: Well, because we love touring. We tour 11 months out of the year. Normally we take off the entire month of December, but this year we’re doing two very special shows, but that’s something that’s very rare — we haven’t worked in December for many years now. … I love the road, I love performing.
RM: How does this tour differ from others you have been on previously?
Vincent: I’m working on eight different projects and I’ve never done that in my lifetime, so it’s a little more difficult I guess. … It’s been different because Sally has been with us; she brings a different dynamic and people love her. I can’t believe how people go, “Oh my goodness, I love that you have your daughter,” and we sing duets together and she’s such an incredible singer. She’s a vocal instructor over at East Tennessee State University where she graduated, so she brings in new elements. So we just never know and we try to tailor each show [because some] areas seem to like an instrument more than maybe [others]. We’ll go to North Carolina, and because Earl Scruggs is from North Carolina, they’ll love the banjo, so we try to tailor that. So wherever we go, every show is different. We’re not coming in doing a “cookie cutter,” the same show, the same jokes; what we do is different. We don’t use a set list, so you just never know what we’re going to do. If someone yells out a song, we’ll usually go into that, and with Facebook now, people will send requests and we just try to roll with the flow and adapt to wherever we are. … I think that’s why we have a lot of people who travel long distances [to see us]. If they knew we did the same show, every show, then I don’t think they would do that.
RM: So, considering you’re working on eight different projects, is there more new music in the works?
Vincent: Yes, with the eight different projects, there’s new music, there’s these incredible DVDs — I mean, I’ve only done one DVD in my lifetime, [and now] just by accident [we] have three that we’re working on. We did a performance at the Ryman Auditorium [in Nashville] on July 14 of this year with Legends of Bluegrass — Bobby Osborne, who is 84; Jesse McReynolds, who just turned 87; and Mac Wiseman, who is 91. [The performance] was filmed, and so that’s why it’s so special that we have this DVD coming out.
RM: Why did you release a single earlier this year of the Merle Haggard song, “Mama Tried?”
Vincent: Because I’m part of Country’s Family Reunion [with other country performers]. … I researched before we did this Country’s Family Reunion. [I was told to pick a Merle Haggard song for the tribute.] No one had picked “Mama Tried,” and that was his No. 1 most popular song. I was thrilled that I got to be the one to sing it.
Catch Rhonda Vincent & The Rage Nov. 12 at the Beacon Theatre in Hopewell. 6:30 p.m. $25 to $80. 446-3457 or thebeacontheatreva.com.
