Trey Hensley (born 1990) is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist. Hensley made his first public appearance on the

Grand Ole Opry The ''Grand Ole Opry'' is a weekly American country music stage concert in Nashville, Tennessee, founded on November 28, 1925, by George D. Hay as a one-hour radio "barn dance" on WSM. Currently owned and operated by Opry Entertainment (a divis ...

at age 11 with

Marty Stuart John Marty Stuart (born September 30, 1958) is an American country and bluegrass music singer, songwriter, and musician. Active since 1968, Stuart initially toured with Lester Flatt, and then in Johnny Cash's road band before beginning work as a ...

and

Earl Scruggs Earl Eugene Scruggs (January 6, 1924 – March 28, 2012) was an American musician noted for popularizing a three-finger banjo picking style, now called "Scruggs style", which is a defining characteristic of bluegrass music. His three-fin ...

. Hensley moved to Nashville in 2013 and formed a duo with dobro player

Rob Ickes Rob Ickes hymes with "bikes"is an American dobro (resonator guitar) player, born 1967 in San Francisco, California, United States. Ickes moved to Nashville in 1992 and joined the contemporary bluegrass band Blue Highway as a founding member in ...

. Hensley and Ickes released the GRAMMY-nominated album ''Before the Sun Goes Down'' (2015) on Compass Records label, ''The Country Blues'' (2016), and ''World Full of Blues'' (2019)''.'' Height: 5'8

Early career

Trey Hensley was born in Johnson City, Tennessee, and grew up in

Telford, Tennessee Telford is a census-designated place and unincorporated community in Washington County, Tennessee, United States, located between Jonesborough and Limestone. As of the 2010 census, it had a population of 921. The community is part of the Johnson ...

where he started out singing in a gospel group at 6 years old. His interest in bluegrass guitar developed after hearing Charlie Waller and

Jimmy Martin James Henry Martin (August 10, 1927 – May 14, 2005) was an American bluegrass musician, known as the "King of Bluegrass". Early years Martin was born in Sneedville, Tennessee, United States, and was raised in the hard farming life of rural ...

perform at a festival several years later. Just a few months after Hensley learned to play the guitar (11 years old), he was invited to perform ''Jimmy Brown the Newsboy'' on the

with

and

. Not long after his Opry debut, Hensley met

Johnny Cash John R. Cash (born J. R. Cash; February 26, 1932 – September 12, 2003) was an American country singer-songwriter. Much of Cash's music contained themes of sorrow, moral tribulation, and redemption, especially in the later stages of his ca ...

and June Carter Cash at the

Carter Family Fold The Carter Family Fold is a musical performance and concert venue located near Hiltons, Virginia. It is dedicated to the preservation and performance of old time country and bluegrass music. It is named in honor of the original Carter Family, ...

in Hiltons, VA where he performed with

and other members of the Carter Family. Hensley also performed at June Carter Cash's birthday party in June 2002.

introduced Hensley to

Tom T. Hall Thomas Hall (May 25, 1936 – August 20, 2021), known professionally as Tom T. Hall and informally nicknamed "the Storyteller," was an American country music singer-songwriter and short-story author. He wrote 12 No. 1 hit songs, with 26 more ...

who produced his first bluegrass album in 2003 titled ''First Time Out.'' Other bluegrass albums that Hensley recorded and produced with his bluegrass band Drivin' Force include ''Backin' to Birmingham'' on

Copper Creek Records Copper Creek Records is a record label based in Roanoke, Virginia specializing primarily in bluegrass and old-time music. History Spurred by his interest in the music of the Stanley Brothers, Gary B. Reid launched Copper Creek in October 1978. T ...

(October 19, 2004), ''Third Time Out'' and ''Songs of Faith'' on Hog Holler Records. Over the years Trey Hensley has performed with and opened shows for many artists such as Charlie Daniels, Steve Wariner,

The Oak Ridge Boys The Oak Ridge Boys are an American country and gospel vocal quartet originating in Oak Ridge, Tennessee. The group was founded in the 1940s as the Oak Ridge Quartet. They became popular in Southern gospel during the 1950s. Their name was change ...

, Ricky Skaggs, Blue Highway, J.D. Crowe,

Peter Frampton Peter Kenneth Frampton (born 22 April 1950) is an English musician and songwriter who was a member of the rock bands Humble Pie and the Herd. As a solo artist, he has released several albums, including his major breakthrough album, the live ...

, Randy Owen,

Sara Evans Sara Lynn Evans (; born February 5, 1971) is an American country music singer and songwriter. She is also credited as a record producer, actress, and author. She had five songs reach the number one spot on the '' Billboard'' country songs ch ...

and many others. In 2008, Hensley performed at the President's Dinner at the

White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. It is located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., and has been the residence of every U.S. president since John Adams in 1800. ...

for

George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Republican Party, Bush family, and son of the 41st president George H. W. Bush, he ...

and a private event for wounded soldiers at the Vice President's (

Dick Cheney Richard Bruce Cheney ( ; born January 30, 1941) is an American politician and businessman who served as the 46th vice president of the United States from 2001 to 2009 under President George W. Bush. He is currently the oldest living former U ...

) residence along with Charlie Daniels.

Recordings

World Full of Blues (2019)

''World Full of Blues'' is the third album released by Trey Hensley and duo partner,

. This album showcases a myriad of Hensley's influences from bluegrass and Americana to the blues. The album was produced by GRAMMY-winning producer Brent Maher and released on Compass Records label on October 4, 2019. The album features guest artists including

Vince Gill Vincent Grant Gill (born April 12, 1957) is an American country music singer, songwriter and musician. He has achieved commercial success and fame both as frontman of the country rock band Pure Prairie League in the 1970s and as a solo artist b ...

on the

Grateful Dead The Grateful Dead was an American rock music, rock band formed in 1965 in Palo Alto, California. The band is known for its eclectic style, which fused elements of rock, Folk music, folk, country music, country, jazz, bluegrass music, bluegrass, ...

's ''Brown-Eyed Women,'' and

Taj Mahal The Taj Mahal (; ) is an Islamic ivory-white marble mausoleum on the right bank of the river Yamuna in the Indian city of Agra. It was commissioned in 1631 by the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan () to house the tomb of his favourite wife, Mu ...

on the original title track ''World Full of Blues''. This album was also recorded live in the studio like Hensley's other projects, at the Blueroom in Nashville, Tennessee with minimal over-dubs.

The Country Blues (2016)

''The Country Blues'' is the second album released by Hensley and

. This album was co-produced by Hensley and recorded live at Compass Records with minimal over-dubs. In addition to Hensley and Ickes, ''The Country Blues'' featured guest vocals from

, Carl Jackson, John Randall Stewart, Robinella, and

Shawn Lane Shawn Lane (March 21, 1963 – September 26, 2003) was an American musician who released two studio albums and collaborated with a variety of musicians including Ringo Starr, Kris Kristofferson, Johnny Cash, Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings, Reg ...

and musicians including Mike Bub, John Alvey, and Ron Block.

Before the Sun Goes Down (2015)

''Before the Sun Goes Down'' was the debut album released by Trey Hensley and

on Compass Records. This album was co-produced by Hensley and recorded live at Compass Records with minimal over-dubs. The album featured artists including Ron Block, Mike Bub, Susanne Cox, John Gardner,

Aubrey Haynie Aubrey Haynie (born March 27, 1974) is an American bluegrass musician who plays the fiddle and mandolin. In his career, he has recorded three studio albums for the Sugar Hill Records label, all three of which contained mostly songs that he wr ...

, Andy Leftwich, John Randall Stewart,

Dan Tyminski Daniel John Tyminski (born June 20, 1967) is an American bluegrass composer, vocalist, and instrumentalist. He is a member of Alison Krauss's band Union Station, and has released three solo albums, ''Carry Me Across the Mountain'' (2000), on ...

, and Pete Wasner. ''Before the Sun Goes Down'' was nominated in 2016 for a

GRAMMY Award for Best Bluegrass Album The Grammy Award for Best Bluegrass Album is an award presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards, to recording artists for quality works (songs or albums) in the bluegrass mu ...

It Is What It Is (2009)

''It Is What It Is'' was Trey Hensley's sophomore Country album self-released by Kid In the Hat, LLC on November 1, 2009. This album featured musical guests including Janie Fricke, Steve Wariner, Terry Wariner, and

Duane Allen Duane David Allen (born April 29, 1943) is an American singer/songwriter who had formal training in both operatic and quartet singing before becoming a member of The Oak Ridge Boys in 1966. Allen is the lead singer for the quartet and is hear ...

, Joe Bonsall and Richard Sterban of the

Oak Ridge Boys The Oak Ridge Boys are an American country and gospel vocal quartet originating in Oak Ridge, Tennessee. The group was founded in the 1940s as the Oak Ridge Quartet. They became popular in Southern gospel during the 1950s. Their name was change ...

Looking at My Future (2008)

''Looking at My Future'' was Trey Hensley's debut Country album. The album was self-released by Kid In the Hat, LLC on November 24, 2008.

Awards and nominations

References

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hensley, Trey 1990 births Singer-songwriters from Tennessee American bluegrass guitarists American country guitarists Living people