Julia Weber
Assistant Editor
Wynonna Judd and Melissa Etheridge are no strangers to Chautauqua Institution. In years past, both artists have delivered performances on the Amphitheater stage, accompanied on occasion by other formative artists such as the Indigo Girls and Pat Benatar. But they’ve never played Chautauqua together — that is, until now.
At 6:30 p.m. Saturday in the Amphitheater, Wynonna Judd and Melissa Etheridge will kick off the 2026 Summer Season with a co-headlining performance as part of the “Raised on Radio” tour, paying homage to the waves that paved the way for both artists’ careers.
The two Grammy Award-winning artists are widely known for their contributions to contemporary rock, country and folk music, having released music for decades.
Wynonna Judd first entered the music industry in mother-daughter country duo The Judds, then later embarked on a successful solo career marked by releases such as “No One Else On Earth,” “Tell Me Why” and “Burnin’ Love.” Around the same time, Melissa Etheridge was gaining traction for her self-titled debut album. Best known for songs like “I’m The Only One,” “Come To My Window” and “Bring Me Some Water,” Etheridge has since developed a substantial catalog of releases.
Although both artists have decades-long careers in the music industry, they’ve never embarked on a tour together before this one, Etheridge explained. To her, it was a natural pairing because both she and Judd came into the industry in the peak era of radio. Thus, “Raised on Radio” was born.
“We were so excited to finally — after all these years — tour together. We never have,” she said. “We feel like our strength is in how our hits were out in the 90s. Radio was where you found everything, and we were raised in the 70s and 80s on so much great music that was flying out of the radio.”
Ahead of the double-bill performance, Etheridge shared her excitement about returning to the grounds and taking in the “unique” and “historic” place that is Chautauqua. She said she appreciates not only the beauty of the grounds, but the community’s support of live music.
“I have such a great time there, and I’m so excited I’m already coming back.”
For Etheridge, the experience of live music is unbeatable. She said she and Judd are seasoned performers who love playing live, and that translates in the live experience. She said her performance aims to make listeners “feel those feelings that only a live experience with thousands of other people through music” can provide.
What Etheridge loves most about playing shows is connecting with the audience. To her, that experience is paramount.
“There’s nothing like starting ‘I’m The Only One’ or ‘I Want To Come Over’ or ‘Come To My Window.’ My dream was always, ‘Someday, I want to start a song with the first three notes and people know what it is.’ I get to live that every night — I get to live that experience.”
Etheridge said she hopes attendees will take some time to listen to her newer work — which she described as being “hopeful,” “passionate” and “a call to rise” — and familiarize themselves with it in addition to her most well-known songs.
“It’s very much like my earlier work; it is very much concentrated on the songs,” she said. “If you liked anything that I’ve ever done, you’re going to like this album. I would really hope that you’d give it a listen before you came.”
