The Avett Brothers began in North Carolina with real-life brothers Scott and Seth Avett. The two grew up playing music together; as they got older, the brothers formed separate bands, which later merged together to form one cohesive group. The Avetts were performing an eclectic mix of bluegrass, folk, country and rock, but when they began hosting weekly guitar pulls (which began drawing larger and larger crowds), they didn’t realize that they were starting what would later become a globally successful crossover group. The Avett Brothers released their self-titled debut EP in 2000, followed by their first full-length album, ‘Country Was’, two years later; a record deal with Ramseur Records followed, under which they released three more albums, including their critically acclaimed 2004 disc, ‘Mignonette’. For the release of ‘Emotionalism’, their final album with Ramseur, in 2007, the Avett Brothers added cellist Joe Kwon as a permanent band member (bassist Bob Crawford joined in 2001). In 2009, the Avett Brothers’ career really picked up steam with the release of ‘I and Love and You’, their first project produced by Rick Rubin, on American Recordings; that record, as well as 2013’s ‘Magpie and the Dandelion’ and 2016’s ‘True Sadness’ hit No. 1 on the Billboard Folk Albums chart (2012’s ‘The Carpenter’ and 2019's 'Closer Than Together' both reached No. 2). The band was inducted into the North Carolina Hall of Fame in 2016.