Willi Carlisle - The Universal Bubba Tour

Willi Carlisle brings his Universal Bubba Tour to Union Stage on November 12, 2026, with Sparrow Smith & the Resonant Rogues in support. The show celebrates Carlisle’s first career double album, *The Universal Bubba*, which marks his sixth release and features first-time producer Tyler Childers. Recorded over two weeks in a makeshift home studio in New Orleans’ Bywater District, the album’s 17 tracks stretch across funk, Americana, Cajun, oldtime, and experimental music, including synthesizers, double electric guitars, and 19th-century fretless banjo. Carlisle has described the record as reaching “outer space” and as universal folk music meant for all kinds of weirdos, balancing humor, hope, and the everyday struggles of everyday people.

The event page highlights several songs from the album. “Gas Station” is a driving, sing-along ode to life on the road and Carlisle’s only co-write with Childers, created on the fly during the sessions. “The Master’s Hammer” is an anarchist anthem built on harmonica, banjo, and three-part harmonies that Carlisle said was his attempt to boil his ideology into something he could sing for friends. The sprawling two-part title track praises do-it-yourself culture, small-town hellraisers, booty-shaking rock and rollers, and unofficial mayors everywhere.

When: Thursday, November 12, 2026.

Venue: Union Stage, 740 Water Street SW, Washington, DC 20024.

Tickets: Free.

Lineup: Willi Carlisle, with Sparrow Smith & the Resonant Rogues opening.

About the album: *The Universal Bubba* is Carlisle’s first double album and first collaboration with producer Tyler Childers, recorded with Childers’ band in New Orleans over two weeks.

Run time: Not specified on the event page.

Ages: Not specified on the event page.

Note: This show is presented by Union Stage; the same presenting group also operates Jammin Java, Pearl Street Warehouse, The Howard Theatre, The Miracle Theatre, The Theatre at Capital Turnaround, and Nationals Park, but this particular performance takes place at Union Stage.