Five-time West Virginia Liars Contest champion Bil Lepp will be the emcee for an evening of traditional music by West Virginia’s own Born Old and Jim O’Dell.

Born Old is Paul Gartner (banjo, guitar & vocals) and Doug Van Gundy (fiddle, guitar, banjo-mandolin & vocals). The duo was recently featured on Mountain Stage and plays traditional old-time music from West Virginia, as well as early country classics from the great artists of the 78 rpm era, including The Carter Family, Charlie Poole, Uncle Dave Macon, and others. Gartner and Van Gundy have been making music together for 14 years, giving performances that are both traditional and informative without sacrificing a very high energy, raucous fun factor.

Sharing the Opry Night stage will be Jim O’Dell. The West Virginia-born singer-songwriter has worked as a coal miner, surveyor, forester, farmer, logger, and champion competitive axe-thrower. These varied experiences—and the people and animals that have made his acquaintance over the years—have shaped his songwriting, earning him a description from one reviewer as “a writer of songs of life, love and dogs.”

Woven among the music of Opry Night will be the side-splitting stories and observations of humorist, author and recording artist Bil Lepp. Growing up in a family where it was always the responsibility of the listener to decide whether or not a story was true, Lepp became adept at spinning tales and exaggerating circumstances at an early age. Audiences across the country have been delighted by Lepp’s hilarious tales and insights into everyday life. Be it a plunger, a hunting trip, or a funeral, Lepp can find the humor in any situation. A champion and veteran of the West Virginia Liars’ contest, Lepp explains that while his stories may not be completely true, they are always honest.