Margo Price got to see one of her wildest dreams realized when she was invited to be on the board of directors for Farm Aid.
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Formed in 1985 by Willie Nelson, Neil Young and John Mellencamp, Farm Aid was founded with the mission of raising awareness of the loss of family farms across America, in addition to providing resources for farmers and connecting them with consumers. Price has performed at the annual Farm Aid benefit concert since 2016 and has been a frequent guest at Nelson’s annual Fourth of July Picnic shows at his Luck Ranch in Texas.
“It is beyond my wildest dreams,” Price shares with American Songwriter and other media at Long Story Short: Willie Nelson 90 about getting to perform at Farm Aid, adding that she joined the board in April 2021 with Nelson’s wife and “good friend,” Annie Nelson. “It just happened so organically. “Everything that they stand for, everything that they do is just incredibly inspiring.”
The Farm Aid mission is a personal one for the native Midwesterner, who grew up in the rural town of Aledo, Illinois, on a family-owned farm. They suffered a devastating hit when the family lost the farm during the agriculture crisis in the 1980s, forcing her father to get a job outside of farming. She’s in an esteemed company, as the three founders, Dave Matthews and Paul English before his death in 2020 are also members of the board.
“It feels like a full circle moment because it was something that’s always affected my family so much, just that loss and seeing them out there doing that,” Price explains. “Then to be invited onto the board, it’s been a dream come true. I can’t believe it.”
Through the years, Price has become close with the Nelson family, including the singer’s late sister Bobbie Nelson and daughter Paula Nelson. Nelson has since gone from idol to friend for Price, as she and her family have spent time with him at his homes in Austin, Texas, and Hawaii, even joining them for Thanksgiving.
“Both of my kids have met him, my mom’s met him, we’ve been to their home,” she expresses. “I still have to pinch myself sometimes when I’m sitting there playing Dominoes with him.”
Photo Credit: Randall Michelson/Courtesy of Blackbird Productions
