It's a long way from Laramie, Wyoming to Nashville, Tennesee. 1,238 miles, to be exact.

That's where Shelby Means lives these days, performing with the band Sally and George. Although she's been all over the world, the Cowboy State will always be her home.

Means moved to Laramie as a child, where she learned to play bass, banjo and mandolin from her father and brother.

After high school, Shelby and her stand-up bass Buddha left Wyoming, joined a bluegrass band, and toured across America, Europe and Asia.

In 2011, she settled in Boston and formed the group Della Mae. The all-female outfit released three full-length albums, including the critically acclaimed This World Oft Can Be, which was nominated for Best Bluegrass Album at the 2014 Grammy Awards.

In 2012, a chance meeting at a music festival in Tennesee would change her life forever. While signing autographs at a merchandise booth, Means befriended another musician, Joel Timmons, singer and guitarist for the band Sol Driven Train.

Two years later, they met again and, this time, fell madly in love. Eventually, both Means and Timmons left their respective bands and formed the duo Sally and George; named for her grandparents.

Earlier this year, Sally and George released their debut album Tip My Heart, which was recorded in Laramie, Charleston, South Carolina, and Nashville.

They recently embarked on a nationwide tour that will take them across the country this year. The most important date on the tour is coming up in August, when Means and Timmons will tie the knot at Curt Gowdy State Park, back home where it all began in Wyoming.

 

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