Rob Hinkal

Someone once told Rob Hinkal that what he does to his guitar is illegal in three states. They meant it as a compliment.

As a songwriter and performer, more official compliments have taken the form of honors from the Mid-Atlantic Song Contest(Gold, 2020), Kerrville Folk Festival (Grassy Hill New Folk Competition), the Falcon Ridge Folk Festival (Emerging Artist, Most-Wanted Artist), Washington Area Music Awards (multiple WAMMIES for “Best Contemporary Folk Group”) and others.

Rob spends his Life fronting his energetic brand of new-folk band ilyAIMY with Heather Aubrey Lloyd, Kristen Jones, Rowan Corbett, Sharif and Joey Jenkins.  Rob pushes hard to be the trouble that he’d like to see in the world, creating community and music within his band ilyAIMY’s fanbase and his award-winning, nationally-recognized open mics. He is the technical director of Institute of Musical Traditions, the executive director of FocusMusic, and a freelance audio and video engineer working closely with additional clients when and if he sees fit.

“With Rob’s uncanny vocals & distinctive annunciation & the unbelievable percussive playing style, there’s a lot to listen to…” ~ Shea Carver, Encore Magazine