Jim James is awesome, has a parrot.

It's hard not to love the Jim James for he is a lovely, lovely dude.

He's been touring in support of his first solo album, Regions of Light and Sound of God and if you haven't picked that goodness up, they are some highly recommended musics. He's also got this band called My Morning Jacket who are about to go on tour with Bob Dylan and Wilco.

Photos by Mallory Turner

There are many paths to success as an artist, but getting off the ground is undoubtedly the toughest part. At SXSW 2013, the always engaging and insightful Dez Dickerson (Pavilion Ent) led a discussion aimed at what it really takes to gain ground, leverage current success, and get the attention of people who make careers flourish (or bypass them completely). Joining Dez are social media wizard Katy Kirby (Thirty Tigers) and indie sales reporting guru Bram Bessoff (IndieHitmaker). Check out the full panel podcast below.

Emmylou Harris and Rodney Crowell at the Americana Music Association showcase at Antones on March 14th (Photo by Claudio Fox)

The first of our weekly shows kicks off today on the new SXSWfm: Americana World Headquarters, hosted by Kevin Connor. Americana describes the roots-oriented sound when folk, rock, country, and blues come together. This first show features some of the artists nominated for the Americana Music Association's annual awards, including Emmylou Harris and Rodney Crowell, Kelly Willis and Bruce Robison, John Fullbright, and Buddy Miller and Jim Lauderdale. And you don't have to be from America to be Americana. You'll hear Richard Thompson, Kathleen Edwards, Mumford & Sons, and the Dunwells, too. Hear Americana World Headquarters today at 12pm and 6pm Texas Time (CST) on SXSWfm.