Straddling folk and bluegrass, Cleveland, OH's Lost State of Franklin started when founding member J. Scott Franklin was laid off in 2004. Reinventing himself as a traveling solo artist, the singer and multi-instrumentalist was invited to play at the 2006 ~Cash Bash in Chicago. He accepted, but a few months before the scheduled gig Franklin saw guitarist Rob Franklin Muzick perform; when Franklin asked Muzick to join him at ~Cash Bash, Lost State of Franklin were born. After their Chicago performance, the duo began booking more gigs, prompting Muzick to suggest adding an upright bass player to the mix.