Billy Failing

When bluegrass underwent its modern revival, few ensembles sat at the center of the movement like the Billy Strings band, and Billy Failing has been its five-string banjo anchor through the pivotal stretch of that rise. He joined the group for Strings’ debut solo studio album, ‘Turmoil & Tinfoil’, released on September 22, 2017, contributing banjo alongside Brad Tucker on upright bass and Drew Matulich on mandolin. The record climbed to number three on the Billboard Bluegrass Albums chart and held that position for seven consecutive weeks, also reaching number eighteen on the Billboard Heatseekers chart.

Failing’s role in the band deepened as the lineup evolved. By July 3, 2022, when frequent guest fiddler Alex Hargreaves was made a permanent member during a show in Baltimore, the group had grown from a quartet to a five-piece: Failing on banjo, Royal Masat on bass, Jarrod Walker on mandolin, and Hargreaves on fiddle. That configuration became the touring engine behind Strings’ back-to-back Entertainer of the Year wins at the 2022 International Bluegrass Music Awards, where ‘Red Daisy’ also took Song of the Year.

His studio and stage contributions carry through to the ensemble’s most decorated work. On ‘Live Vol. 1’, released July 12, 2024, Failing is credited on banjo and vocals alongside Strings, Hargreaves, Masat, and Walker. The album, compiled from eight live recordings made in 2023 and 2024, went on to win the Grammy Award for Best Bluegrass Album at the 67th Annual Grammy Awards — placing Failing’s banjo work at the heart of a Grammy-winning recording.

From a debut album that topped bluegrass charts to a Grammy-winning live record, Failing has built his reputation as a steady, versatile banjo player and vocalist within one of contemporary bluegrass’s most celebrated touring bands.