Where are the Cotton Pickin Kids / Cipollari from?

We're based in the city of Cullman, Alabama — right in the heart of bluegrass and gospel country. A lot of our earliest videos were filmed right there, often outdoors with nothing but Alabama foliage and a couple of microphones. That small-town, front-porch feel has stuck with us even as the band has grown well beyond Alabama.

Who's in the band, and what does everyone play?

The core lineup has always been six of us siblings:

• Savio — mandolin (that's me); sings harmony sometimes too
• Therese — lead fiddle; sings lead vocals most of the time
• Cecilia — acoustic guitar; sings harmony, and takes a turn on lead
• Rosalinda — bass; sings harmony, and takes a turn on lead
• Gianluca — banjo
• Giovanni — dobro

And that's just the front line. Behind us are the other five siblings, learning and coming up through the ranks the same way we did:

• Analuiza — mandolin
• Elisabetta — bass
• Francesco — guitar
• Luciano — fiddle
• Lucetta — banjolin, and loves to sing

What religion are the Cotton Pickin Kids / the Cipollari family?

Long before we ever picked up a microphone, we were already singing — sitting together in the pew, as a family, raising our voices for God. That's really where all of this started. We're Traditional Catholics, and we attend the Traditional Latin Mass together, and that time in church is still the foundation everything else is built on.

There's a quote from St. Dominic Savio our family holds close: "I am not capable of doing big things, but I want to do everything, even the smallest things, for the greater glory of God." That's how we try to treat everything, whether it's schoolwork, playing outside, or picking up an instrument. Music just happens to be the way we get to live that out the most visibly.

That's a big part of why our "Ave Maria" cover means so much to us. It's instrumental, no words at all, but that's exactly the point — even without a single lyric, we wanted our instruments themselves to become the prayer, offered to God and to His mother. We honor Mary because of who Jesus made her to be for all of us: as He was dying on the cross, He looked at His mother and at John, and gave them to each other — "Woman, behold your son," and to John, "Behold your mother" (John 19:26-27). Catholics have always understood that in that moment, Mary became a mother to every one of us, too. So when we play for her, it's not separate from playing for Jesus — it's part of how we get closer to Him. If you haven't seen it, we'd love for you to watch: Ave Maria — Cotton Pickin Kids

Where did the name "Cotton Pickin Kids" come from?

It wasn't planned out — just a random thought. We were at a bluegrass festival, at registration, and got asked what our band name was. We didn't have one yet, and Dad had to think fast. Something like "the Little Rascals" flashed through his head for a second, and what came out instead was "those cotton pickin kids." It just stuck from there, through festivals, our first YouTube videos, and everything since. Learn the whole story here

So why did you change the name to Cipollari?

We didn't leave anything behind — Cipollari is just our real family name, and it felt like time to play under it. New name, same six of us, same sound. Learn the whole story here

What songs are the Cotton Pickin Kids / Cipollari known for?

A lot of people first found us through our covers — songs like "I'll Fly Away," "Rocky Top," and "Foggy Mountain Breakdown" are the ones that have racked up the views and introduced us to most of our audience.

But our real following knows us for our originals. Therese writes and sings her own songs, and three of hers have become fan favorites: "Gumball Machine," "Best at Hurting Me," and "God Chose You" — a song she wrote as a tribute to our music teacher, who has since passed away. Savio writes original instrumentals, and his have built just as much of a following: "Slemish Mountain," "Alabama Tornado," and his most recent release, "Northern Lights," which a lot of listeners have called an instrumental masterpiece. New music and videos go up on our YouTube channel first, so that's the best place to hear what we're working on next.

Are the Cotton Pickin Kids / Cipollari signed to a record label?

No, we're not currently signed to a record label.

Who records and produces the Cotton Pickin Kids / Cipollari music and videos?

We do it all ourselves, in-house. Savio taught himself audio engineering and production, and we now have our own home studio where every CD gets recorded, mixed, and mastered — no outside studio, no outside engineer. Everything we release, we release independently, start to finish.

Savio also handles the visual side: he's the band's photographer and videographer, shoots and edits every video himself, and runs our marketing. He built the Cipollari website too. Pretty much everything you see from us, someone in the family made.

Where can you catch the Cotton Pickin Kids / Cipollari — live?

We've played everywhere from small-town auditoriums to festival main stages — including Dollywood, the IBMA Youth Stage, Bluegrass First Class, the Tennessee State Fair, and the WoodSongs Old-Time Radio Hour — and we're still out there. Most recently, we performed alongside the Hillbilly Thomists at the Birmingham Lyric Theatre. The best way to know where we'll be next is to follow us directly — our tour dates, new releases, and behind-the-scenes life all show up first for the people who are actually part of our world, not just watching from the outside.

Where can you follow the Cotton Pickin Kids / Cipollari online?

You can find us on YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok, where we post new videos, behind-the-scenes clips, and updates on where we'll be next. But if you want the earliest access to new music, videos, and what's really going on with the family day to day, that's what our Patreon is for.

Why this matters to us — and why we're asking you to join us

Here's the thing about growing up on camera, in front of an audience, as a family: the applause is nice, but it's not what keeps a band like ours going. What keeps us going is the people who show up for us on the ordinary days — not just the viral clip, but the whole story. The rehearsals that don't make it to video. The little ones learning their first song. The long drives to festivals in a van that's a little too small for eleven kids.

That's exactly what our Patreon is for. For as little as $1 a month — our "Front Porch Friend" tier — you're not just a fan watching from a distance. You're one of the people who actually helped us keep doing this: recording new music, upgrading gear, getting the next generation of Cipollari kids on stage the way our older siblings once were. It's the difference between watching a family band online and actually being part of the reason that family band gets to keep playing.

We changed our name, but we didn't change who we are or why we started. If any part of this story — the name, the family, the music — meant something to you, we'd love to have you with us for the next chapter.

Join the family