A Bright Star in Bluegrass Performing and Instruction

A shed in the shadow of Black Mountain near Brevard, N.C., is not only the studio where an acclaimed banjoist creates albums, does session work, and scores shows such as the television series Poker Face. It’s also where an entrepreneurial educator devises innovative new online music instruction methods.

It’s not that two individuals are sharing this space. It’s just that Bennett Sullivan wears many hats.

“I've never looked at performing as my sole way of making an income,” says Sullivan. “I really enjoy the diversification of being a musician. That could include my banjo playing on The Greatest Showman or on Poker Face. I also want to find different ways to share my teaching message with a lot of people. And so that's why I have gravitated towards technology and websites and subscriptions and YouTube.”

Sullivan grew up in Greensboro, N.C., under the influence of his guitar-playing father. He started on the guitar but gravitated to the banjo around age 12.

“I remember putting on this recording of Ron Block playing the Alison Krauss version of “Cluck Old Hen,” and I started picking out the notes. At that point, the light bulb went off, and I was like, Oh, I can do this myself. I can listen to recordings and figure it out.”

But Sullivan’s musical interests were—and continue to be—wide-ranging.

“I love John Coltrane, I love Dexter Gordon. Oscar Peterson. All those jazz guys. And now I'm obsessed with pedal steel. So, I've been learning a lot of pedal steel music. I've always liked a lot of different music, not just bluegrass.”

Though Sullivan studied music for a few semesters in college, he gained vital experience performing with cruise ship bands. While he was hired to play guitar in the shows, off the clock, he was woodshedding on the banjo.

“I would lock myself on the bandstand late at night and just work out solos and practice,” Sullivan recalls. “I give credit to playing and being immersed in music on a cruise ship and being around really good musicians. That's kind of my education.”

Back on land, Sullivan followed the woman he would marry to New York, where he studied jazz guitar for a semester at the New School. “I tried to switch over to banjo. They weren't really into that, and I ended up dropping out and working a retail job.”

But an acquaintanceship with banjo player Noam Pikelny led to an introduction to Steve Martin—yes, THAT Steve Martin—who was developing the musical Bright Star along with Edie Brickell. After a tryout, Sullivan was hired as the show's banjo player, built around bluegrass and roots music.

“It was not a Broadway thing at the beginning,” Sullivan says. “We workshopped it in San Diego first, and then, we eventually took it to the Kennedy Center and then to Broadway.”

The original five-piece bluegrass band grew into a larger orchestra. Sullivan's experiences and musical chops, which he developed playing on cruises, proved invaluable.

“In a musical, you have to take into account all of the other things that are going on, like what's the next song? How fast do I have to be ready to play the next song? And what key is the next song in? Am I moving around the stage? Do I have to switch instruments? Because I was playing two banjos and one guitar. It is nerve-wracking because it's not just getting up on stage and playing a bluegrass gig. You're waiting for cues. You’ve got to be focused.”

Bright Star played for four months, and after doing eight shows a week during the run, Sullivan was ready for a change. Brevard, N.C., would be the new home for Sullivan, his wife, and his young son. (The family has since grown to include a daughter.) In addition to the music he creates in the studio he built, Sullivan plays with prominent groups including Zoe & Cloyd, Woody Platt and Shannon Whitworth, and Woodbox Heroes, with whom he recently played the Grand Ole Opry. He’s also a prolific online instructor whose projects range from the Pocket Lick phone app to banjolicks.com, his website that uses short licks as the basic building block for banjo knowledge.

“I just like the simplicity of a small two-bar or four-bar phrase,” he explains. “You don't have to put the pressure on yourself to learn an entire piece of music by ear. I'm all about practicing slowly to really dial in the timing. So, the licks are super slow on the examples. You can play along and dial it in at a really slow pace and then start to speed it up on your own with a metronome or a backing track.”

In the early months of 2026, Sullivan wants to create more of his own music, following up on his eclectic and introspective Eager to Break album. In March, he’ll present his second annual online Lick Fest to subscribers, where he’ll work with 16 artists over a couple of days to develop basic licks into useful variations and themes.

“My primary goal with the Banjo Licks site is to help people become better foundational players with better timing, better ears, and increased creativity. It's going to be a good year for Banjo Licks, but also for me as an artist. I'm pumped about it.”