Years before forming one of Nashville's most genre-bending bands, the members of Judah & the Lion grew up in separate corners of the U.S., listening to every type of music that came their way. They loved it all: the twang of folk, the beat of hip-hop, the drive of rock & roll, the punch of pop.

Later, after college brought all four musicians to Tennessee, it only made sense to combine those different backgrounds — and different sounds — together. The band has previously stated that their unique style stems from the fact that while they have the "grit" of bands like Run DMC or the Beastie Boys, they play their music on folk instruments.

Kids These Days, the band's debut record, climbed to number four on the Billboard Folk Chart and number two on the genre-wide Heatseekers chart after its release in September 2014. An independent band whose success has arrived not on the back of some big-budget major label, but through the band's own touring, Judah & the Lion have built a large, loyal fanbase on the road.

They played 150 shows in 2015 alone, stretching their gigs all across America and Scandinavia. Along the way, they shared stages with artists like Mat Kearney, Drew Holcomb and Ben Rector. Their second studio album, Folk Hop n' Roll, was released in March 2016.

They released a third album with 17 songs, titled Pep Talks, on May 3, 2019. The songs on Pep Talks explore difficult themes including divorce and alcoholism.