Emily Johnson‑Erday – Songs, Stories, & Spells

banjo gate looking out

Emily Johnson‑Erday is a banjo player and songwriter deeply rooted in old‑time tradition—growing up “knee to knee” with North Carolina’s musical community. Now based in Brooklyn, she blends her Appalachian roots with a love for storytelling through her work in theater. As an arranger, music director, and multi‑instrumentalist, she’s toured the U.S. (with The Fantasy Tavern and Ramin Karimloo’s BroadGrass Band) and composed for acclaimed NYC productions, including SoldierGirls at Classic Stage Company and Slaughter City at A.R.T./NY.

Her folk songwriting draws on Appalachian balladry, folk-magic traditions, and reverence for the natural world. She performs on banjo with the neo-trad outfit Moonholler and the folk collective The Starlight Darlins. Her solo EP Druid Hymns explores the sacred in the secular, conjuring a richly symbolic landscape of flora and shifting meaning.

Emily plays an A‑scale Walnut Dobson banjo that she picked up at the 2023 Clifftop Festival in WV. She fell in love with its clear, sparkling voice and the lingering overtones that continue to sing long after your hand leaves the string.

Website: emilyjohnsonerday.com
Instagram: instagram.com/thebanjowitch
Facebook: facebook.com/EmilyJohnsonErday

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