Formed in 2013, Rock Hearts brings together five veteran musicians from Southern New England who love to sing and pick bluegrass, old country tunes, and seek out newer tunes from other genres to “bluegrass-ify.” Since the release of their well-received debut in 2020, “Starry Southern Nights,” they have experienced tremendous success on the national bluegrass charts and were selected as one of 20 Official Showcase Bands at the 2021 IBMA World of Bluegrass in Raleigh, NC. Their videos have amassed 250k views and the band has been featured in magazines including Bluegrass Unlimited, Bluegrass Today and the Bluegrass Situation. 2023 saw the CD release of “Wanderlust” – their debut project with The 615 Hideaway Record Label, and since its release in Octobe, “Unfinished Bridges,” has experienced tremendous success with the full album and several singles debuting in the Top 10 on national charts, including (5) #1 positions. Joe Deetz’s career on banjo spans over 40 years. A New England Bluegrass Boy with Joe Val, Joe has also worked with Back Eddy and many others. Alex MacLeod grew up in bluegrass. With a classic leading voice and rock-solid rhythm guitar, Alex has served as front man for several bands in the region including Northern Lights and Southern Rhode. Billy “BT” Thibodeau boasts an undeniable bluegrass pedigree and he brings his high tenor and lead vocals, along with his rock solid mandolin and guitar playing to Rock Hearts. He cut his teeth with his dad, Sam Tidwell and Uncle Bob in the Kennebec Valley Boys. Rick Brodsky is a multi-instrumentalist and a regular on the CT / New York bluegrass scene. Austin Scelzo created the Bluegrass Coffeehouse, and launched the Connecticut Bluegrass Music Association. Austin is nominated for the 2024 IBMA Momentum Awards: Industry Involvement. Billy was recently inducted into the Maine Country Music Hall of Fame and named as a Saga Music Instruments Mandolin Artist.
