For many decades, Kansas has had a vibrant country and bluegrass scene. The Country Stampede Music Festival – one of the largest music festivals in the country – and the bluegrass Walnut Valley Festival are testament to the continued popularity of these music genres. Among current country artists, Martina McBride and Chely Wright are natives of the state. The United States is home to a wide array of regional styles and scenes. ... Alaska is a state of the United States. ... Alabama has played a central role in the development of both blues and country music. ... Arkansas is a Southern state of the United States. ... The Samoas are a Polynesian island chain, currently divided between the independent state of Samoa (formerly Western Samoa) and an American territory called American Samoa. ... Arizonas musical history has been heavily influenced by Mexican immigrants. ... In the United States, California is commonly associated with the film, music, and arts industries; there are numerous world-famous Californian musicians. ... Colorado is a state of the United States, and has a notable reputation for music. ... Connecticut is a state of the United States in the New England region. ... The music of Washington D.C. is known for two primary scenes, hardcore and associated derivatives and a hip hop-dance music hybrid called go go. ... Delaware is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. ... Floridas ethnic diversity has led to a myriad of musical styles from punk rock to salsa and heavy metal being popular in various parts of the state. ... Georgias musical output includes Southern rap groups like Outkast and Goodie Mob, as well as a wide variety of rock, pop and country artists. ... Guam is an unincorporated territory of the United States. ... The music of Hawaii includes an array of traditional and popular styles, ranging from native Hawaiian folk music to modern rock and hip hop. ... The music of Iowa includes such notable musicians as Slipknot, Stallions Versus Unicorns, Bix Beiderbecke and Greg Brown, as well as Meredith Willson, composer of The Music Man, and Alice Ettinger who was renowned enough to perform in Europe in the 1890s. ... Idaho has produced a number of musicians, including pop star Paul Revere and Doug Martsch of Built to Spill. ... Illinois, which includes Chicago, the third-largest city in the United States, has a wide musical heritage. ... The music of Indiana was strongly influenced by a large number of German and Irish immigrants who arrived in the 1830s. ... The Music of Kentucky is heavily centered on Appalachian folk music and its descendants, especially in eastern Kentucky. ... This article or section is in need of attention from an expert on the subject. ... New England Conservatory of Music in Boston Massachusetts is a U.S. state in New England. ... Famous musicians from Maryland include Francis Scott Key, who wrote The Star-Spangled Banner and pop punksters Good Charlotte, from Waldorf. ... Maine is a state of the United States, located in New England. ... In Michigan, the city of Detroit has remained the capital of musical innovation for many years. ... The music of Minnesota has played a role in the historical and cultural development of Minnesota. ... St. ... The Northern Mariana Islands are an island chain dependency of the United States. ... Mississippi is best-known as the home of the blues, which developed among the freed African Americans in the latter half of the 19th century. ... Montana is a state of the United States. ... North Carolina is known particularly for its tradition of old-time music, and many recordings were made in the early 20th century by folk song collector Bascom Lamar Lunsford. ... The Music of North Dakota has followed general American trends over much of its history, beginning with ragtime and folk music, moving into big band and jazz. ... The state of Nebraska has spawned few big-name musicians, but has its own musical heritage. ... New Hampshire is a state of the United States, located in the New England region. ... New Mexico is a state of the Southwest United States. ... For most outsiders, Nevadan music is probably most closely associated with lounge singers like Wayne Newton playing in Las Vegas. ... One of the most renowned musicians from New Jersey is probably Bruce Springsteen, who became a 1980s icon with complex lyrical stories about teens growing up in Freehold and other economically depressed areas of New Jersey. ... In the United States, New York City has long been a musical hub and, in some ways, the musical capital of the country. ... The most famous musicians from Ohio are probably Marilyn Manson, Dean Martin and Chrissie Hynde of The Pretenders; the 19th century composer Daniel Emmett, born in Ohio to a Virginian family, wrote many of the most popular songs in his era, including some that remain well-known. ... While the music of Oklahoma is relatively young, Oklahoma having been a state for less than a hundred years, it has a rich history and many fine and influential musicians. ... Oregons music scene is most active in Portland and the college town of Eugene. ... The most famous musical innovaters to come out of Pennsylvania are perhaps the Philly sound in 1970s soul music, Gamble & Huff, The OJays, Teddy Pendergrass, Harold Melvin and The Delphonics, as well as jazz legends like Nina Simone and John Coltrane. ... The music of Puerto Rico has been influenced by African and European (especially Spanish) forms, and has become popular across the Caribbean and in some communities worldwide. ... Rhode Island is a state of the United States, located in the New England region. ... South Carolina is one of the Southern United States, and has produced a number of renowned performers of country, bluegrass and other styles. ... The United States state of South Dakota has an official state song, Hail! South Dakota, written by DeeCort Hammitt. ... The story of Tennessees contribution to American music is essentially the story of three cities: Nashville, Memphis, and Bristol. ... Texas has long been a center for musical innovation. ... Utah music has long been dominated culturally by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (the Mormons), although other groups have also played an important role. ... Virginias musical contribution to American culture has been diverse, and includes Piedmont blues musicians and later rock and roll bands, many centered at such college towns as Blacksburg, Charlottesville (home of Dave Matthews Band) and Richmond. ... The music of the Virgin Islands reflects long-standing cultural ties to the island nations to the south as well as to various European colonialists. ... Vermont is a state in the United States. ... The U.S. state of Washington includes several major hotbeds of musical innovation. ... Perhaps the most influential musical output of Wisconsin came from Port Washington, Ozaukee County during the 1920s, when Paramount Records released a series of blues and jazz recordings. ... West Virginias folk heritage is a part of the Appalachian folk music tradition, and includes styles of fiddling and other techniques reminiscent of Scotch-Irish music. ... The first music of Wyoming was played by various Native Americans tribes in the present-day U.S. state of Wyoming. ... Official language(s) English[2] Capital Topeka Largest city Wichita Area  Ranked 15th  - Total 82,277 sq mi (213,096 km²)  - Width 211 miles (340 km)  - Length 417 miles (645 km)  - % water 0. ... This article includes a list of works cited but its sources remain unclear because it lacks in-text citations. ... Bluegrass music is a form of American roots music which has its own roots in Irish, Scottish and English traditional music. ... The Country Stampede Music Festival is an outdoor country music and camping festival held at Tuttle Creek Lake State Park, north of Manhattan, Kansas. ... The Walnut Valley Festival (generally referred to as Winfield by non-residents) is a well-known acoustic music festival, held annually in Winfield, Kansas. ... Martina McBride (born Martina Mariea Schiff, July 29, 1966 in Sharon, Kansas) is an American Grammy nominated country music singer-songwriter. ... Chely Wright (born Richel Renee Wright October 25, 1970 in Kansas City, Missouri), is an American Country Music singer, who released her debut album in 1994. ...

The state has also fostered some rock acts. The one that is most associated with the state is almost certainly the band called Kansas. Melissa Etheridge and Katrina Leskanich, lead singer for Katrina and the Waves, are also native Kansans. Shooting Star, notable for being the first American act signed by Virgin Records, hailed from Overland Park. Gene Clark, founding member of The Byrds, attended high school in Bonner Springs, Kansas and began performing in the state. Rock and roll (also spelled Rock n Roll, especially in its first decade), also called rock, is a form of popular music, usually featuring vocals (often with vocal harmony), electric guitars and a strong back beat; other instruments, such as the saxophone, are common in some styles. ... For other uses, see Kansas (disambiguation). ... Melissa Lou Etheridge (born May 29, 1961 in Leavenworth, Kansas) is a Grammy- and Academy Award-winning American rock musician. ... Katrina Leskanich (born April 10, 1960, Topeka, Kansas, United States) is an American singer and musician. ... Katrina and the Waves were a pop rock band of the 1980s, best known for their smash hit Walking on Sunshine and their 1997 Eurovision Song Contest victory. ... Shooting Star is a rock band from Kansas City. ... Virgin Records was a British recording label founded by English entrepreneur Richard Branson, and Nik Powell in 1972. ... For other uses, see Gene Clark (disambiguation). ... The Byrds (formed in Los Angeles, California, in 1964) were an American rock band. ... Bonner Springs is a city located in Wyandotte and Johnson counties in Kansas and is part of the Unified Government which contains Kansas City, Kansas, Bonner Springs, Kansas and Edwardsville, Kansas. ...

Some famous jazz musicians also have roots in Kansas, including Coleman Hawkins and Stan Kenton. For other uses, see Jazz (disambiguation). ... Coleman Hawkins Coleman Randolph Hawkins, nicknamed Hawk and sometimes Bean, (November 21, 1901 or 1904 - May 19, 1969) was a prominent jazz tenor saxophone musician. ... Stanley Newcomb Kenton (December 15, 1911 – August 25, 1979) led a highly innovative, influential, and often controversial American jazz orchestra. ...

1960s: Rock and roll

In the 1960s, blue-eyed soul, R&B and garage rock bands became popular with acts such as the Fabulous Flippers, The Blue Things, the Red Dogs, the Serfs and Mike Finnigan traveling the midwest and releasing regional singles. This article needs additional references or sources for verification. ... Garage rock is a raw form of rock and roll that enjoyed its original period of wide success in the United States and Canada, from 1963 to 1967. ... The Blue Things (also known as The Bluethings) were a folk-rock and, later, psychedelic band from Hays, Kansas that existed from 1964 to 1968, recording one LP and several singles for RCA Records in 66 and 67. ... Mike Finnigan is an American keyboard player. ...

1980s: Punk rock

In the early 1980s, Topeka and Lawrence, together with Kansas City, Missouri had a significant hardcore punk scene, centered at Lawrence's University of Kansas campus, and later at the Outhouse. Among the most popular bands were The Embarrassment, Mortal Micronotz, Exploding Rodents, The Slabs, Near Death Experience, Orange Doughnuts (The OD's) and Tunnel Dogs, featuring Archer Prewitt, then a student at the Kansas City Art Institute, on drums. The Mortal Micronotz were probably the most famous outside of the area. Punk rock is an anti-establishment music movement beginning around 1976 (although precursors can be found several years earlier), exemplified and popularised by The Ramones, the Sex Pistols, The Clash and The Damned. ... This article is about the state capital of Kansas. ... Lawrence is a river city in Douglas County, Kansas, United States, 41 miles (66 km) west of Kansas City, along the banks of both the Kansas (Kaw) and Wakarusa Rivers. ... Nickname: Location in Jackson, Clay, Platte, and Cass Counties in the state of Missouri. ... This article needs additional references or sources for verification. ... The University of Kansas (often referred to as KU) is an institution of higher learning in Lawrence, Kansas. ... The Outhouse was a hardcore punk music venue that was approximately 4. ... Image:Mini-death-front. ... This page meets Wikipedias criteria for speedy deletion. ... Archer Prewitt is a musician and visual artist associated with the independent music scene in Chicago, Illinois. ... Mineral Hall at Kansas City Art Institute The Kansas City Art Institute (KCAI) is a private, independent, four-year college of fine arts and design founded in 1885 that has taught Walt Disney and other artists in Kansas City, Missouri. ...

1990s: Alternative rock

In the 1990s, Kansas produced some bands that found regional and national success taking the predominant Grunge aesthetic and adding a Rockabilly or Country Music twang, a style sometimes grouped into Alternative country. Alternative rock (also called alternative music or simply alternative; known primarily in the UK as indie) is a genre of rock music that emerged in the 1980s and became widely popular in the 1990s. ... Grunge music (sometimes also referred to as the Seattle Sound) is an independent-rooted music genre that became a commercially successful offshoot of hardcore punk, thrash metal, and alternative rock in the late 1980s and early 1990s. ... Rockabilly is one of the earliest styles of rock and roll music to emerge during the 1950s. ... This article includes a list of works cited but its sources remain unclear because it lacks in-text citations. ... Matt Hillyer of Texas-based Eleven Hundred Springs Alternative country is a term applied to various subgenres of country music. ...

Paw, out of Lawrence, Kansas became the most well-known of these bands following the 1993 release of their major-label album Dragline. Truck Stop Love, out of Manhattan, Kansas, had a somewhat similar sound and was also signed to a national label, Scotti Brothers Records, with the well-received What I did on My Summer Vacation being an appropriate swan song.^[1] Finally, Kill Creek, a Lawrence band since the 1980s period was signed by Mammoth Recordings and achieved critical national attention with two full LPs and an EP.^[2] The sound of these bands was comparable to some Neil Young and their out-of-state contemporaries Uncle Tupelo, Dinosaur Jr. (circa 1993), The Jayhawks, and Mule. Other bands from Kanas signed during the same period included Shiner, Season to Risk, and Arthur Dodge and the Horsefeathers. // History Paw formed in 1991 in Lawrence, Kansas alongside Stick and Kill Creek. ... Lawrence is a river city in Douglas County, Kansas, United States, 41 miles (66 km) west of Kansas City, along the banks of both the Kansas (Kaw) and Wakarusa Rivers. ... Year 1993 (MCMXCIII) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display full 1993 Gregorian calendar). ... Riley County Courthouse, Manhattan Manhattan is a town located in northeastern Kansas at the junction of the Kansas River and Big Blue River. ... Scotti Brothers Records was a California-based record label founded by Tony and Ben Scotti. ... Kill Creek is an unincorporated community and a township in Osborne County, Kansas, United States. ... This article is about the musician. ... Uncle Tupelo was an alternative country music group from Belleville, Illinois, active between 1987 and 1994. ... Dinosaur Jr is an American indie rock band. ... Tomorrow the Green Grass, the second major label studio album recorded by The Jayhawks, released in 1995 The Jayhawks are an American rock band, sometimes described as Alt-country, or more often today, Americana. ... P.W. Long (born Preston Cleveland and aka P Bone) is the lead singer and guitar player for the bands Wig, Mule and Reelfoot (also known as P.W. Longs Reelfoot). ...

Late contemporaries included Grither, Zoom, Vitreous Humor, Believe it or Nots, Stick, and Puddle of Mudd.

Early contemporaries included The Pedaljets, a band fronted by Mike Allmayer who later formed Grither. The Pedaljets put out two LPs, "Today Today" (Twilight), "The Pedaljets" (Communion), and one 45 (Throbbing Lobster). Both albums received critical national attention. The Pedaljets toured the US extensively from 1984-1990, often opening for Husker Du, The Flaming Lips, Soul Asylum, The Replacements, the Meat Puppets, and other well known alternative bands of the 1980s.

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