Tray Wellington

Tray Wellington
Wellington in 2026
Wellington in 2026
Background information
Born
Trajan Allen Wellington

1998 or 1999 (age 27–28)
Ashe County, North Carolina, US
GenreBluegrass
InstrumentBanjo
LabelMountain Home Records
PublisherMountain Music Home Company
Websitehttps://traywellington.com/

Trajan Allen "Tray" Wellington (born 1998 or 1999) is an American bluegrass banjoist from North Carolina. He received the International Bluegrass Music Momentum Award (IBMA) in 2019 for instrumentalist of the year and had been a finalist for the New Artist of the Year for two consecutive years, 2023–2024.

Early life

Wellington was born in Ashe County, North Carolina. During his childhood, he developed an interest in music and learned to play the electric guitar. Wellington cites his grandfather as having introduced him to classic country music. In middle school, he discovered banjo and began learning to play it. He subsequently went to East Tennessee State University where he majored in bluegrass music. During his time in the university, Wellington played alongside his band, Cane Mill Road which includes other East Tennessee State University grads. The band went on to win the IBMA award for the band of the year in 2019. The IMBA's Arnold Shultz Fund has supported Black musicians like Wellington.

Career

The Tray Wellington Band performs at the John C. Campbell Folk School

Wellington is known for being a part of the black reclamation of banjo music. His debut album, Black Banjo, recorded during the COVID-19 pandemic and released in 2022, infuses a modern jazz style into traditional bluegrass banjo music while maintaining an emphasis on showcasing the black roots of the music. In 2024, he released a seven song project, Detour to the Moon which also draws inspiration from jazz, hiphop and blues and includes a cover of Kid Cudi's Pursuit of Happiness sung in a bluegrass style. In the same year, Wellington received the Steve Martin Banjo Prize for his new approach to bluegrass music.

References

  1. ↑ "Crooked Mind". American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers. Retrieved May 16, 2026.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Nicholson, Jessica (July 9, 2024). "Tray Wellington Expands on His Progressive Bluegrass Sound With 'Detour to the Moon': 'I've Always Considered Myself an Explorer of the Banjo'". Billboard. Retrieved March 29, 2026.
  3. ↑ "Tray Wellington". Mountain Home Music Company. Retrieved March 29, 2026.
  4. 1 2 "Interview with Tray Wellington". Banjo Newsletter. October 27, 2019. Retrieved March 29, 2026.
  5. 1 2 "Tray Wellington nominated for IBMA's 2023 New Artist of the Year". Pinecone. July 26, 2023. Retrieved March 29, 2026.
  6. 1 2 3 4 "Influenced by Jazz, Tray Wellington Breaks Down Barriers on 'Black Banjo'". The Bluegrass Situation. May 25, 2022. Retrieved March 29, 2026.
  7. 1 2 "Jerron Paxton, Tray Wellington, and Yasmin Williams Reflect on Expanding the Boundaries of Black Country Music". Acoustic Guitar. December 22, 2024. Retrieved March 29, 2026.
  8. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Bradley, Adam; French, Justin (November 10, 2023). "Black Folk Musicians Are Reclaiming the Genre". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved March 29, 2026.
  9. ↑ Young, Robin; Hagan, Allison (September 27, 2022). "How Black bluegrass musician Arnold Shultz's forgotten legacy lives on in the genre today". www.wbur.org. Retrieved May 17, 2026.
  10. ↑ Johnson, Joe Z. (2025). "This Ain't Texas No More! Beyoncé and the Black Banjo Renaissance". Southern Cultures. 31 (4). The University of North Carolina Press: 54–75. ISSN 1534-1488. Retrieved March 29, 2026.
  11. ↑ Mazor, Barry (May 10, 2022). "Brennen Leigh, Lyle Lovett and Tray Wellington Reviews: Country Albums With a Twist". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved March 29, 2026.
  12. ↑ Léger, Devon (May 10, 2022). "Album Review: Tray Wellington, 'Black Banjo'". Folk Alley. Retrieved March 29, 2026.
  13. ↑ Léger, Devon (July 10, 2024). "Album Review: Tray Wellington, 'Detour to the Moon'". Folk Alley. Retrieved March 29, 2026.
  14. ↑ Hiltner, Justin (December 17, 2024). "Meet This Year's Steve Martin Banjo Prize Winners". The Bluegrass Situation. Retrieved March 29, 2026.