Chords for Callum: Jon Stickley to lead powerhouse fundraising concert
Jon Stickley will play Asheville March 29.
File photo
Jon Stickley is a pillar of the Asheville and greater Western North Carolina music scenes. He’s also a nationally-renowned guitarist, one whose skillset and scope goes far beyond the ancient mountains of Southern Appalachia.
“I just love the guitar. One of my favorite things is that the guitar can kind of do it all,” Stickley said. “You can rip leads, but the guitar’s range is very close to the human voice, so there’s a vocal quality to it. I can crosspick it and sound like a banjo. I can also walk around the house singing Beatles songs to my kids, then hang it back up on the wall.”
A professional touring musician, Stickley is also a family man. Alongside his wife, Julianne, and two young children, the six-string virtuoso, Jon, like any kind and loving soul, views his household and those who inhabit it as anchor points, which is why his upcoming Asheville gig means so much.
Titled “Chords for Callum,” the second annual gathering, taking place at Highland Brewing on March 29, will serve as an awareness event and fundraiser for the STXBP1 Foundation. To note, Stickley’s five-year-old son, Callum, has STXBP1, a rare genetic condition that “causes physical and cognitive disabilities, autism and risk for seizures.”
“[The event will] raise funds for intensive therapy programs that Callum needed to thrive,” Stickley said. “Those [programs] resulted in him learning to walk last year, just after his fifth birthday, and beginning to use his AAC device to communicate intentionally.”
All proceeds from the performance and silent auction will go directly to the foundation, “which is funding critical research, advancing nearly 20 potential therapies currently in development, supporting clinical initiatives and providing resources and connection for families navigating this ultra-rare diagnosis.”
Related Items
Intricate influences: Carolina Detour to play Merlefest
Greening Up the Mountains
Farm Fresh 5K hits Haywood April 18
Partner Content: Appalachian True Heritage Festival Returns to Downtown Waynesville in 2026
“Because STXBP1 is so rare, research depends heavily on community-driven fundraising,” Stickley said. “Every dollar raised moves us closer to better treatments, greater understanding and real hope for children like Callum.”
Alongside Stickley will be a “who’s who” of musicians, including Lindsay Lou, Kyle Tuttle, Lyndsay Pruett and Fireside Trio (featuring Jesse Iaquinto, Tommy Maher and Carson White). The silent auction will feature a slew of items donated by Billy Strings, Trey Anastasio, Infamous Stringdusters, Leftover Salmon, Hulaween, Winter WonderGrass and more.
For the Stickley family, it’s been a rollercoaster of emotions in recent years. Mere months after Callum’s diagnosis, Stickley’s wife had a stroke and was hospitalized for four months. As a result, she permanently lost most of her vision and the ability to drive. With all of these hardships, Julianne is “an amazing partner and mother and is the driving force behind Team Callum.”
“It’s been a whirlwind, to say the least,” Stickley said. “Despite what we’ve been through, I’m ultimately just incredibly grateful for what we have and I’m able to look toward the future with hope.”
Even with everything, Stickley himself has been able to find solace.
“I’ve learned a lot and have been in therapy to help process everything,” Stickley said. “With a lot of support from friends and family, I’ve been able to keep performing and am looking forward to a full season of music this year.”
When he’s not taking care of his family, Stickley is on the road and on tour, clocking tens of thousands of miles each year in a constant pursuit of his tightly held dreams, all while being able to support his family with his finely tuned craft. It’s an existence that has Stickley feeling “like Stretch Armstrong, being pulled in four different directions at once.”
“It has inspired me to continue to be a part of [music] and keep contributing my good energy to it as long as I can, in whatever capacity that may be,” Stickley said. “I definitely feel the tension between traveling to make a living and being there to pull the weight at home. Thankfully, we have a great support system that allows me to travel for work most weekends.”
To note, Stickley’s acclaimed group, the Jon Stickley Trio, recently crossed over the 15-year mark. The anniversary is a moment to reflect and celebrate.
“Given that my initial goals were to have fun playing music, get paid to go to festivals, hang out with my heroes and make good records, I’d say we’ve been extremely successful,” Stickley said. “I’m so grateful to my bandmates for sticking with the project through all of the twists and turns in my life — more people are coming out to the shows than ever, so let’s make it to 20.”
And with acoustic music experiencing an unprecedented swell of popularity as of late — especially when it comes to jam-grass music — Stickley is seeing the fruits of his labors, whether at home in WNC or across the country on tour.
“My best guess is that there are few things more relatable than people playing acoustic instruments and singing with their heart and soul,” Stickley said of this current high-water mark. “Bluegrass and old-time was meant to connect with people [and] I think in an increasingly disconnected world, these communal aspects of music and humanity really stand out.”
Aside from his upcoming tour schedule, Stickley has been developing an instructional guitar website, which will launch in the next few months
“It focuses on mastering the basics and learning by ear, so players can advance their skills at their own pace,” Stickley said. “Creating this website has been very enlightening. Breaking things down to the most basic level has shown me elements of my own playing that I overlooked or didn’t pay enough attention to when I was getting started — I’m learning to actually take my own advice.”
Want to go?
Bringing awareness to STXBP1-related disorders, the annual “Chords for Callum” fundraising show will be held from 1-6 p.m. Sunday, March 29, at Highland Brewing Company in Asheville.
Featured performers will include Lindsay Lou, Kyle Tuttle, Jon Stickley and Lyndsay Pruett. Opening band Fireside Trio (featuring Jesse Iaquinto, Tommy Maher and Carson White) will hit the stage from 2-2:45 p.m. with the main act performing from 3-6 p.m.
Doors open at 1 p.m. There will be food trucks onsite and also a silent auction. Tickets are $50 for adults, $15 for students (ages 18 and under), with children (ages 5 and under) admitted free. Additional donations are also welcomed.
All proceeds (including donations) will go directly to the STXBP1 Foundation. For more information and/or to purchase tickets, visit tickettailor.com/events/chordsforcallum.
