Trey Hensley on the Grand Ole Opry – photo © Chris Hollo, courtesy of the Grand Ole Opry
Though he’s graced the stage of the Grand Ole Opry dozens of times during his musical career, flatpicker and vocalist Trey Hensley made his official Opry debut as a solo artist earlier this week.
Trey was invited to perform on the Tuesday night Opry show on June 24, and brought along his bass player Will Potts and drummer John Alvey to supplement the Opry staff band, who provided fiddle, steel, and piano.
Bluegrass fans know Trey from his hot licks duo with Rob Ickes, but he is also a country music artist with a singing voice to rival anyone in the industry.
He tells us that he did three of his original songs on Tuesday night, and one Conway and Loretta cover.
“I played 3 of my songs – Going and Gone (which I recently recorded with Molly Tuttle and will be one of the first singles coming out from my upcoming solo album), You’re Still Gone, and Can’t Outrun the Blues. These are all unreleased tunes that I’ll have out soon. I also played After the Fire is Gone with Mae Estes.”
Here’s a look at how it went down.
For Hensley, this was a special night.
“It was such an honor to play the Opry under my own name…although I did technically debut as an 11 year old, I was a guest of Marty Stuart’s. I’ve played it a ton with Rob, I’ve also played it multiple times with other artists (including a few times with the great Bobby Osborne).
The Opry is the most special venue to me – I grew up watching the Opry every Saturday night, and I’m honored to be able to stand on that stage. This time was especially cool, because I got to play my original material with my own name and band behind it, and even got a standing ovation, which was the coolest.
I get chills every time I walk in that building and last night was a lifetime highlight for me.”
Many congratulations to Trey Hensley, and we’ll keep our eyes open for his new single with Molly Tuttle!
