On Mandolin, Adam King

Adam King, age 16  plays the Mandolin and enjoys singing lead on several of their songs.  Adam became very interested in the mandolin by watching the progress and success of Cody Shuler.  Adam began taking mandolin lessons at Grandpas Music with his brother. Adam was surprised on his 14th birthday with a Doyle Lawson Mandolin by Pa Hoop and he takes great pride in making his fingers move on it. Adam is finding his passion in singing and he is working on harmony.  He can play the guitar, but has always had the passion to play the mandolin.   Adam enjoys hunting and fishing and he is one of the top shooters on the Shooting Team of Swain County.  Adam enjoys picking with his brother Alan and listening to new songs to learn.  He enjoys going to festivals and is proud to call himself a Chrisitan and especially loves Gospel Music.

LEAD VOCALIST, GUITAR, WILL HOWELL 

Will Howell is the Lead Singer and Lead Guitar player for the group.  Will is 15  years old and has been picking and singing since the age of 5.  He is proud to say that he took guitar lessons at the after school program offered by Swain County Schools .  He also took lessons from Larry Barnette in Bryson City.  Will has an outstanding and very strong voice.  He can draw a crowd within minutes when he begins singing and picking.  His guitar skills are incredible for his age.  Will began singing country music and has always loved performing in front of the crowd.  Will came over to the King boys home one evening to have a jam session and immediately became one of the group.  He loves to sing Bluegrass and Gospel music now, but he still can take an old country song and make it sound as good as the artist who wrote it.  Will encouraged all of The Rye Holler boys to start singing and before long they were all singing together.  Will enjoys hunting and fishing and playing golf.  He enjoys riding motorcycles and spending time at The Rye Holler with the boys.  He has always dreamed of being on The Grand Ole Opry and being in a band and he is happy to see his dreams coming true. Will also writes songs and has written three songs while being with The Rye Holler Boys, his latest song has immediately became a hit.  It is entitled “The Ole Gravel Road” and when finishing their latest CD, all four boys decided it was the best choice for the title track.  Will writes songs from his heart and you can easily tell that when explaining to the crowd where the idea came from.  Will is well on his way to writing more and more songs.  

On UPRIGHT BASS, CLAWHAMMER BANJO, FIDDLE  Jacob Jones

Jacob Jones, Age 15,  plays the upright bass and  is featured with a very unique talent of playing the Banjo, clawhammer style.  Jacob began taking guitar lessons and learned to play the mandolin and fiddle, but realized he loved to pick up the banjo and began learning a new way to play it.  He also is working on vocals.  Jacob attends Smoky Mountain High School and he enjoys farming,  being with family, and is very proud of his Mountain Heritage.  He also enjoys picking the older mountain ballads and is honored to say he took lessons from a pioneer of music, Mary Jane Queen, of the Queen Family.  Bobby Anderson from Blue RIdge Music, taught Jacob on the Banjo and was surprised to see that Jacob enjoyed the rare talent of clawhammer style.  He admires older artists such as Lester Flat and Earl Scruggs, Dr. Ralph Stanley and the newer groups such as The Fiddling Dill Sisters, and of course the Queen Family.  Jacob gets his audience’s attention quickly when he and Alan switch instruments and he begins to play songs such as “Whoa Mule” clawhammer style, and is featured on several clawhammer songs with the group. He also plays the Fiddle on several songs and has created a special version of Orange Blossom Special.    He has recorded his own CD, entitled “Mountain Reflections” which includes six of his favorite songs and he is featured on Bass, Banjo, Guitar and Mandolin.  

On Fiddle, Alana King

Alana King, age 5 is the future fiddle player for the Rye Holler Boys.  She is Alan and Adams little sister.   Alana takes suzuki fiddle lessons from Catherine Arps of Sylva.  The boys enjoy calling her up on stage to keep time with them.

On Banjo, Alan King

If you love to hear that old Banjo ring, then you will love to see Alan King performing on stage. Alan plays the banjo, guitar and dobro.  Alan is 17 years old and he began his music career playing the guitar, but he had a passion for the Banjo and was determined to learn to play.  He spent countless hours practicing and still does to become better and better.  Alan loves to listen to old time artists such as Doyle Lawson and Quick Silver.  He loves to hear The Inspirations too.  Alan began playing the banjo at age 12 and well he has did a great job taking lessons, but he mostly taught himself.  Since a very early age, Alan has always dreamed of being in a Bluegrass Band.  He has enjoyed watching his dream come true this past year.  He and his Brother Adam are very close in age and are happy to be playing together.  Alan is the speaker for The Rye Holler Boys and he takes pride in introducing the band members which are all like brothers to him.  Alan loves to hunt and fish and his favorite hobby is to find new songs for the  band to learn to sing.  He is helping his little sister learn to play the fiddle and he enjoys being at his home with his family.  He knows that God has been the one responsible for making his dream come true.   Alan’s inspiration has been his grandfather, Hubert Hicks, who helped him get started.  He took Alan and Adam to Bluegrass festivals since they were little boys.  He recalls “The first time I heard Sunny Side Of The Mountain” I knew bluegrass had to be in my blood.