BRISTOL, Tenn.-Va. (Oct. 7, 2025) – The Birthplace of Country Music Museum, in partnership with Songwriters of Highlands Appalachia, will host a Songwriters Circle Showcase, where regional songwriters take their turn in the spotlight to share their craft with the community. The Showcase will take place in the museum’s performance theater on Saturday, Oct. 11 at 2 p.m. ET. The event is free and open to the public, but donations to support future programs and the songwriters are appreciated.
Regional songwriters Gerald Sheppard, Mary Munsey, and Jennifer Gillenwater will perform their original songs in the round, sharing the inspiration and story behind each piece. Afterward, the songwriters will engage with the audience in a Q&A about their songs’ creation, structure, and emotional impact.
Northeast Tennessee native Gerald Sheppard is perhaps best-known for his work as a luthier. His high-end guitars are regarded as some of the finest in the world – one was even featured on the cover of the GRAMMY Award-winning album “Henry Mancini: Pink Guitar,” an instrumental guitar tribute to the legendary composer. Sheppard has actively played fingerstyle guitar since his teens, and is often spotted in local hotspots playing instrumental cocktail music or performing at special events. He began writing and composing his own songs in 2018, interested primarily in writing ballads and story songs that audiences find touching and heartwarming.
Mary Munsey, originally from Abingdon, Va., is a well-known multi-instrumentalist, educator, and founder of Songwriters of Highlands Appalachia. Munsey has been performing in the Tri-Cities region and nationally for decades, and has earned songwriting awards from the Woody Guthrie International Folk Songwriting Contest, Neuse River Songwriting Contest, and the Smoky Mountains Songwriting Competition.
Jennifer Gillenwater has been writing songs and performing with various bands in the Tri-Cities region for more than twenty years, including Family Ties, Turkey Tracks Trio, Nowhere Valley, the Playwrights, and more recently, Jen & Barb. The first song she ever wrote was inspired by the story of the reclusive hermit Nick Grindstaff upon encountering his memorial on a hiking trip along the Appalachian Trail. Gillenwater, along with Sheppard and Munsey, are proud contributors to the Songwriters of Highlands Appalachia collective.
The Songwriters Circle Showcase is held quarterly and serves as an extension of the museum’s monthly Songwriters Circle, a collaboration between the Birthplace of Country Music Museum and Songwriters of Highlands Appalachia. Each Showcase event features talented regional songwriters who are part of the monthly Songwriters Circle. The Songwriters Circle, held 2 – 5 p.m. every second Saturday, offers a supportive environment where participants share their songs, collaborate with peers, and enhance their songwriting skills. There is no fee to attend. The goal is to foster creative community, encourage storytelling through songwriting, and provide opportunities for artists to perform and network with others.
For more information about Songwriters of Highlands Appalachia, visit HighlandsAppalachia.org. For more information about the Songwriters Circle and the Songwriters Circle Showcase, visit the Events page at BirthplaceOfCountryMusic.org.