As a child Hannah Melby listened to the stories told by her mother and grandmother about her fiddle playing great-granddaddy, and was captivated, “He used to play the fiddle in one of those family string bands back in Mississippi,” the now 23 year old explains, “One of those where you would take the furniture out of the house and have a square dance. I never met him, but the stories sparked an interest. I’d never really seen anything like that.”

Hannah grew up in a musical household, “My dad plays the harmonica. My mom is a music teacher; she plays the piano and sings. My sister Caroline, (future band mate) Daniel and I all had her for a music teacher in the 4th and 5th grade - that was kind of funny.”

By the time Hannah was ten years old, the makings of what is now the band Nash Street had begun, “My mom got me started taking fiddle lessons. My teacher was Norman Mellin who was from Pennsylvania; he came down to really research the old time fiddlers. He didn’t want that information to die so he got us together as a real string band, bluegrass.” Daniel Hare was also a student of Mr. Mellin’s, “He was just starting to teach us instruments, and kind of put us together as a band,” says Hannah. “We were playing square dances for just $25.00 a show.. I was in fourth grade and I was thinking $25.00 is so awesome. From there it has just evolved.”

With Hannah on fiddle and vocals, and Daniel, 21, playing the upright bass, they were soon joined by Caroline, 19, on the mandolin. Three years ago, Jason Graham, 24, came on board playing the guitar. The newest member Clay Lezon, 24, joined Nash Street bringing the sound of another guitar into the mix.

“Everyone brings something different, from a little bit of blues, to a little bit of bluegrass and country, a little bit of rock and jazz and it blends to make what we call grassroots country.” Hannah says.

In 2004 Nash Street was brought to the attention of Tim McGraw’s manager, Robert Allen. Nash Street was one of only two unknown bands invited to open for him and his wife Faith Hill at Tim’s concert called Swampstock, an annual benefit for his hometown of Rayville, Louisiana. They were invited to open the show two years in a row. “It’s a cool, cool thing. You are standing up there and there are 30,000 people out there and you’re like, ‘Man, this is what it’s all about!’ To see that many people listening to our music was unreal.”

In 2008, Nash Street won the title of Best New Act in Country Music when they won the prestigious Colgate Country Showdown. “It was just the most amazing experience we’ve had in our lives. We met so many great people. We got there and people were asking us, ‘Are you excited about possibly winning?’ We were saying, ‘We’re just excited to be here!’ To be able to step onto the Ryman Auditorium stage was just a win itself, in our eyes.”

Nash Street is a breath of fresh air, blending their youthful exuberance with their respectful appreciation of a by-gone era, making them a welcome force in today’s musical landscape.