From Bonnaroo to Coachella to Woodstock, the cultural phenomenon of music has, over the course of history, drawn people together in the form of music festivals to celebrate the communal art form.

Over the last 12 years, however, WinterWonderGrass has transformed into more than just a music festival — it has become a movement. 

This year’s event, which begins Friday and runs through Sunday, will be hosted by Bonfire Entertainment in the Knoll parking lot at the Steamboat Resort. 

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The annual pilgrimage has become a space where community, authenticity and tradition take center stage for musicians and fans alike. At the heart of it all is the event’s organizer and founder, Scotty Stoughton, whose vision led to the creation of an event where bluegrass, and the communities that surround it, have thrived.

For Stoughton, WinterWonderGrass isn’t just about what’s being played, it’s also about the people who are listening. “Real music,” as he called it, played by authentic musicians, has fostered a deeper sense of community both at the event and beyond. 

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“It’s about community, history, culture and family,” Stoughton said. “If we can inspire that to be more present in our modern society … I think that’s the most important part of bluegrass.” 

Rooted in the historically-inspired style of artists like Bill Monroe, the genre has more recently been infused with the influence of jam bands like the Grateful Dead and Phish. In turn, a modern “explosion,” as Stoughton called it, led to the rise of youthful artists like Billy Strings and many others. The result has been an evolution that honors the past while welcoming the future.

“That’s the main movement of bluegrass right now,” Stoughton said. “It’s this amalgamation of traditional, highly skilled musicians delivering a high-octane precision performance inspired by a loose improvisational subtexture.”

For many of the bands who attend WinterWonderGrass, especially the younger ones, the festival has become somewhat of a “bucket list” event. Some have even told Stoughton that playing the series is a “dream.”

However, the festival’s impact has reverberated far beyond the artists in the lineup and the fans in the audience. It has also influenced and fueled the micro-movements that continue to shape and transform the bluegrass community, including what Stoughton called one of the most unique aspects of bluegrass: its culture of collaboration.

“This genre has brought all of these different people in because they get to share the stage with their favorite artists. They’re invited to sit in. And that’s how I’ve seen the scene really develop,” explained Stoughton. 

This spirit of inclusivity, where emerging musicians are welcomed and lifted by their seasoned peers, is what continues to breathe life into WWG. As a platform where up-and-coming bands get to play and improvise alongside their idols, it presents a true sense of music-based collaboration in real time. 

“It really holds space for everyone to be heard, seen and supported,” Stoughton said.

Stoughton noted that another unique aspect of bluegrass is that there is less competition between artists when compared to other genres. This has resulted in a creative space where there are fewer negative impacts of camaraderie and collaboration. 

But as bluegrass rises in popularity toward what some might consider pop culture, is there a threat to the authentic and organic nature of its roots? 

Stoughton doesn’t think so.

As a matter of fact, he thinks it can add a depth of diversity by inspiring other artists to join the mix themselves. 

“If we can bring an art form toward the mainstream … that can inspire followers to be willing and interested to pick up a guitar or to understand the fiddle,” he said. “So, I don’t think in the case of bluegrass that the pop culture influence hurts it. I think it can only help.”

As WinterWonderGrass celebrates another year, and as it becomes a mecca in the travels of bluegrass fans and artists alike, Stoughton has begun to reflect on the lasting legacy of what the musicians, organizers and community have collectively created. 

As organizer and founder, Stoughton feels as if WinterWonderGrass has transcended its status as a music festival and has evolved into a living, breathing entity.

“I try to be really careful not to acknowledge … the great work we’re doing from an egoic place, because that’s not what it is,” said Stoughton. 

Stoughton’s philosophy behind organizing and promoting the event has revolved around a holistic dedication to create culture, and then to sit back and let that culture grow organically from within. It is an ethos that has guided the festival’s steady growth for more than a decade, and one which will continue to shape its future, even after Stoughton decides to step back.

“I look forward to the day that I just come into the festival and emcee it with a really long beard, no hair, and fully wrinkled with a cane. And I’m stoked on that,” he joked. “I think that’s going to be a beautiful evolution. And the people that are going to take it over one day, I know that they will do it justice.”

However, the true measure of success for Stoughton is not in the growth of the festival or its reach. It exists in the moments of pure joy and the moments where, in his words, “everything just makes sense” for those playing and listening.

“The most important part about doing all of this, for all of my team, is the feeling we get when we see the absolute pure joy and bliss that’s obvious in an individual who has worked all year, who maybe had a tough year and scraped together money to get here … who gets a ticket, get into the concert, and gets to see their favorite band while the snow’s falling, or the sun’s shining,” Stoughton said. “That is the reason we all do it.”

In those moments, WinterWonderGrass isn’t about any one person. It isn’t about Stoughton. It isn’t about the hype of headliners. 

It is about love, the community and the connection that comes with the existence of the festival. It is about something that, long after Stoughton has handed over the reins, will still be there as a place to come home to as a continuing reunion of music, belonging and community.

For more information on WinterWonderGrass in Steamboat, visit WinterWonderGrass.com/steamboat.