Ross Jones (@rossjonz)
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The Colorado Music Hall of Fame just announced its latest inductee, Nathaniel Rateliff & the Night Sweats. The induction ceremony will happen live during the band’s twentieth-anniversary holiday show and album release concert at the Mission Ballroom on Thursday, December 11.
“Watching Nathaniel grow from a bashful indie songbird to a world-conquering rock star fronting the Night Sweats and sharing stages with giants of all eras and genres has been a hometown-hero story for the ages,” says Paul Epstein, CMHOF board co-chair and founder of Twist & Shout Records. “He’s one of our biggest, best and most deserving.”
Ross Jones (@rossjonz)
Nathaniel Rateliff & the Night Sweats have proliferated a distinct brand of Americana and blues since forming in Denver in 2013. Rateliff moved from rural Missouri to the Mile High City in the ’90s, and became a key part of the city’s music community, fronting indie-folk group Born in the Flood and then Nathaniel Rateliff & the Wheel before the Night Sweats. The band would perform everywere from festivals like the Westword Music Showcase and UMS to local venues such as the hi-dive.
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Ross Jones (@rossjonz)
It wasn’t long before Nathaniel Rateliff & the Night Sweats gained widespread fame, breaking out behind the hit single “S.O.B.” off the band’s self-titled debut album, which earned gold and platinum certifications. The group’s most recent album, South of Here, won album of the year at the 2025 Americana Awards. But Rateliff hasn’t forgotten the community that lifted him up, and maintains a major presence in Denver. In 2022, he became a local venue owner himself, purchasing the Skylark Lounge alongside Bob Ashby, with whom he had been friends since junior high.
Rateliff has been giving back to the community through his nonprofit, the Marigold Project. The band will also donate $1 for each ticket sold to the twentieth anniversary shows to Colorado Music Hall of Fame.
Ross Jones (@rossjonz)
The induction will occur at the second show of a two-night run by Nathaniel Rateliff & the Night Sweats at the Mission, December 10-11; Mavis Staples & Friends will also perform at both shows.
To celebrate the induction, the Hall is offering VIP-experience tickets ($300) and a meet-and-greet VIP package ($600) both nights (only the December 11 show includes the actual induction), available at cmhof.org, with proceeds supporting the Hall’s mission to promote the state’s music scene.
Evan Semón Photography
The Hall was established in 2011 and moved into the Colorado Convention Center earlier this year; its goals are to celebrate, support and promote Colorado’s music industry.
Over the years, it has inducted more than sixty musicians, music-industry professionals, venues and organizations:
2011: Inaugural Class: John Denver, Red Rocks Amphitheatre
2012: Setting the Stage: Barry Fey, Harry Tuft
2012: Rockin’ the ‘60s: The Astronauts, Flash Cadillac, KIMN Radio, Sugarloaf
2013: Colorado’s Folk Revival: Judy Collins, Chris Daniels, Bob Lind, Serendipity Singers
2014: Country Rock in the Rockies: Firefall, Manassas w/Stephen Stills, Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, Poco
2016: 20th Century Pioneers: Lannie Garrett, Glenn Miller, Max Morath, Billy Murray, Elizabeth Spencer, Paul Whiteman
2017: Rocky Mountain Way: Caribou Ranch, Dan Fogelberg, Bill Szymczyk, Joe Walsh & Barnstorm
2017: Jazz Masters & Beyond: Philip Bailey, Charles Burrell, Larry Dunn, Bill Frisell, Ron Miles, Dianne Reeves, Andrew Woolfolk
2018: Live & On the Air: John Hickenlooper, KBCO, Chuck Morris
2019: Old Folk, New Folk: Walt Conley, Mother Folkers, Swallow Hill Music, Dick Weissman
2019: Going Back to Colorado: Tommy Bolin, Freddi & Henchi, Wendy Kale, Tony Spicola, Otis Taylor, Zephyr
2021: A Virtual Induction: eTown
2021: The Flatirons Sessions: The Fox Theatre, Hot Rize, Leftover Salmon, String Cheese Incident, Yonder Mountain String Band
2023: Big Head Todd and The Monsters, Hazel Miller, George Morrison, Sr.
2024: Opera in the High Country: Central City Opera, Cynthia Lawrence, Keith Miller, John Moriarty
2024: Mile High Jazz Oasis: El Chapultepec & Jerry Krantz, Greg Gisbert, Eric Gunnison, KUVO & Carlos Lando, Ellyn Rucker, Ken Walker
2025: Jazz Aspen Snowmass & Jim Horowitz
2025: Nathaniel Rateliff & the Night Sweats
Find more shows on our Denver concert calendar.
