Based in Central Virginia and with family roots in South Texas, Ramona and the Holy Smokes represent a new generation of honky tonk music. With powerful female vocals that cover an emotional range from determined to comic to vulnerable, and a talented backing band steeped in classic country and western styles of the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s, the band’s repertoire includes lush emotional ballads, quintessential two-step dance numbers, gritty country-rockers, and a unique blend of honky tonk and traditional Mexican styles that the group describes as “Mexi-tonk.” Drawing on the Mexican-American heritage of lead singer and songwriter Ramona Martinez, recognized by Wide Open Country as one of the “15 Latino Artists Shaping Country Music,” Ramona and the Holy Smokes are simultaneously rooted in the traditional sounds of country music but unafraid of pushing boundaries and highlighting the connections across border cultures. Their self-titled debut LP offers the group the opportunity to explore this diversity of sounds, leaning into an authenticity and resiliency in songs that chart life’s ups and downs from the perspective of a female voice seeking to maintain a sensitivity and sense of wonder in a twenty-first century world filled with emotional highs and lows.
Formed in 2022, Ramona and the Holy Smokes have seen their star rise in the region and beyond. The band–which includes Kyle Kilduff (electric guitar), Brooks Hefner (pedal steel), Jay Ouypron (bass), and Porter Bralley (drums)–had built a rapport playing together before joining Ramona, and in their time together have brought their talents to Ramona’s songs and song ideas, shaping and arranging these for a signature honky tonk sound. The band has performed regularly in the region, appearing at several Americana festivals including Red Wing Roots (2024), Rooster Walk (2025), and Bristol Rhythm & Roots (2025), and has opened for touring artists like Margo Cilker, Colby Acuff, Willi Carlisle, Redd Volkaert, Joshua Hedley, Donna the Buffalo, and Kashus Culpepper.
Born in Guam and raised in Virginia, Rebecca Porter writes unflinchingly personal songs that challenge the boundaries of genre and amplify voices often left out of the country canon. With commanding live performances and a cinematic debut album, Porter’s work invites listeners into stories of identity, resilience, and acceptance. Her 2023 EP Queen of the Local and 2025 debut album Roll With the Punches have earned national and international recognition, including features on NPR’s Mountain Stage, No Depression, The Bluegrass Situation, KEXP, and Lonesome Highway.
