Take a gentle ride through the Upper South with S.G. Goodman.
June 08, 2026
It started in a church in Hickman, Kentucky.
Shaina Goodman, better known as S.G., was born and raised in Western Kentucky. Her father was a farmer and their family would go to Southern Baptist church three times a week. Like many, the choir was her first opportunity to let her musical talent shine. And by the time S.G. was 15, she’d already picked up the rhythm guitar.
Who is The Savage Riley?
With the American South in her voice and her soul, S.G.founded The Savage Riley with punk drummer Stephen Montgomery. Their elastic and electric sound told honest stories, as she honed her signature warble and wail that seemed to bounce off the banks of the Mississippi River. In her debut album Kudzu, the sound wasn’t Nashville or throwback country. It was her own brand of rock that was proving the power of her homeland.
Two Kentuckian voices unite.
S.G. went solo for her next studio album called Old Time Feeling, with a little help from fellow Kentucky native and My Morning Jacket rocker Jim James. And while the industry was still trying to describe the sound with multi-hyphenates of Americana-folk-country-rock, James assured S.G. to just trust her instincts and define it herself.
The farmer’s daughter wins some hardware.
The industry was starting to take notice of S.G.’s sound. And after the release of here second solo album Teeth Marks in 2022, she took home the trophy for Emerging Artist of the Year in 2023 at the Americana Music Association Awards. She was gaining a larger stage to showcase her roots and the opportunity to do what every artist longs for: share their stories with the world.
Inspired by a cardboard box.
True story: when S.G. was making her latest studio album Planting By The Signs, her drummer Matt Pence was looking for a nice, soft percussive tone. And he found it with a cardboard box. What better welcome to the entire lineup of cardboard instruments, including the Echopark hollow body jazz acoustic, Wurlitzer keyboard, the Fender Strat and bass and the Masters of Maple drum kit. See how they accompany the honest and powerful voice of S.G. Enjoy!
Check her out on e+.
