Kristin Scott Benson is a banjo player from Union, South Carolina. She joined the Grascals in 2008 and won IBMA Banjo Player of the Year that year, then three more years in a row, then again in 2019, 2023, and 2025. She won the Steve Martin Prize in 2018 and entered the American Banjo Hall of Fame in 2024. She also teaches banjo.
Why Benson matters
Benson has won IBMA Banjo Player of the Year across three decades, from 2008 to 2025. Her lessons on building solos from chord shapes give students a method, not just licks.
Life and career
Benson grew up in Union, South Carolina. She started mandolin at five and banjo at 13. From 1995 to 1999, while a student at Belmont University, she played banjo with the Larry Stephenson Band. In 2000 she joined Sally Jones and the Sidewinders. Her first solo album of banjo instrumentals, Straight Paths, came out on Pinecastle in 2002. She then played with Honi Deaton and Dream and, from 2004, with Larry Cordle and Lonesome Standard Time. In 2006 she went back to Larry Stephenson.
In 2008 she joined the Grascals and released Second Season. She won IBMA Banjo Player of the Year in 2008, 2009, 2010, and 2011. Stringworks followed on Mountain Home in 2016. She won the Steve Martin Prize in 2018 and IBMA Banjo Player of the Year again in 2019 and 2023. With her husband, mandolinist Wayne Benson, she formed the duo Benson in 2022. In 2024 she entered the American Banjo Hall of Fame. In 2025 she won IBMA Banjo Player of the Year once more, and her Ralph’s Banjo Special with Gena Britt and Alison Brown won Instrumental Recording of the Year.
Playing style
Benson plays Scruggs-based banjo. In her teaching she shows how to build a solo by rolling through chord shapes, so a player can make a break for any song.
Influences and legacy
Benson came up through traditional bands led by Larry Stephenson and Larry Cordle. She plays beside her husband Wayne, of IIIrd Tyme Out. Her 2025 tribute to Ralph Stanley’s Ralph’s Banjo Special honors one of her roots. She teaches through Deering and Banjo Ben Clark lessons.
Signature tunes and songs
Ralph’s Banjo Special Pike County Breakdown Blackberry Blossom.
Essential recordings
Straight Paths (Pinecastle, 2002) Second Season (Pinecastle, 2008) Stringworks (Mountain Home, 2016) Ralph’s Banjo Special, with Gena Britt and Alison Brown (2025)
Awards and honors
IBMA Banjo Player of the Year (2008, 2009, 2010, 2011) Steve Martin Prize for Excellence in Banjo and Bluegrass (2018) IBMA Banjo Player of the Year (2019) IBMA Banjo Player of the Year (2023) American Banjo Hall of Fame (2024) IBMA Banjo Player of the Year (2025) IBMA Instrumental Recording of the Year, Ralph’s Banjo Special (2025)
Watch and listen
Benson, Gena Britt, and Alison Brown play Ralph’s Banjo Special.
In this lesson she shows how to build solos by rolling over chords.
What to learn from Benson
Watch her chord-rolling lesson, then build a break for a song you sing at jams. Find the chord shapes, roll through them, and put the melody notes on top. The technique to steal is solos from chords. It means you can make a decent break for any song on the spot.
Sources
Benson, Kristin Scott, BluegrassBios.com International Bluegrass Music Awards, Wikipedia Radio Ramblers and singing sisters enjoy breakthrough wins at IBMA Awards, WMOT
Related players
See the banjo players hub and the bluegrass banjo guide for more pickers. Benson recorded Ralph’s Banjo Special with Gena Britt and Alison Brown, honoring Ralph Stanley.