Do you have experience with USX picking?

Billy strings is my nephew, so some of these comments I do take very personally. He is the most amazing thing to happen to Bluegrass in a long time. He’s genuine, talented, brilliant, and his playing, and his ability to play Bluegrass and transform into any genre Has never been mastered by anybody else that I know of! Not prejudiced, just real. I love my Billy.

Billy has rejuvenated bluegrass. Hands down.

You can’t really hate on the guy, dudes playing is flawless. I think he’s keeping old music from being forgotten & introducing it to a younger audience.

I don't understand how anyone could hate Billy. He's such a beautiful soul and one of the most talented artists I've ever heard. I've also been to so many concerts I couldn't even count and the two times I've seen Billy live was by far the best shows I've ever been to. Billy has inspired me so much and brought so much joy back into my life💜

Billy is good because he sat his ass down and worked on the minute and tedium to perfect his playing. No real secret here.

Billy isn’t the best nor the fastest. But he is the full package. Super accurate, perfect timing, great songwriting and that voice. If his voice wasn’t tailor made for bluegrass, I don’t know how it could be better.

Billy is best when he's in the traditional mode but not because he brings all those old-timers to a new audience, but because that's where his heart is.

Who can hate Billy? He’s awesome! I’ve been a fan of bluegrass forever and Billy is a breath of fresh air!

Ill never understand haters in music, especially other musicians… its so antithetical to what art is all about which is celebrating expression, individualism and honestly. If you want to hate on industry pop creations made only to make money go for it but folks who choose the artlife with honestly and integrity will always have my support, whether I dig the style or not. You can only stay in this kinda life if you absolutely love it and thats an admirable thing in a world that most do stuff they hate

Strings is analogous to Willie Nelson in Austin, back in the 70's. Willie brought the 'Hippies' to Country Music, Billy is doing much of the same, today.

I love Billy Strings and the boys. Amazing 3 day run this past weekend in Nashville. Especially The Ryman show. Straight traditional bluegrass every song.

Billy Strings fingers know every note by rote. And that he can sing and sound off the other members simultaneously is Mozart genius! Plus write. I don't believe he's introduced a new bluegrass genre but writes the current issues many have. But he can put both old and new together on a set and just the picking alone ..by all in the band blows our minds. And they do it humbly! ❤

How can not live Billy. He isn't the fastest, but he us the most fun, and his multi genre curiosity and humility shines through. I don't think that he's a very good electric guitar player, but that he would pick one up and do it is awesome. Music'd jobs is not to be perfect, but bring joy and escape and right now Billy is King on that score.

I never learned guitar by learning theory alone. I was unable to fall in love with playing that way. I learned by playing along with tunes and tablature. Eventually, that turned into moving shapes and keys up and down the neck. Ultimately leading to my own fusion of my favorite artists. Jazz, bluegrass, blues, soul…music is a gift to us all.

Billy is one of my very favourite artists and I love everything he does. That being said I also understand the pushback he gets and I actually appreciate it to an extent. I think gatekeepers play an important role in traditional forms of art such as Bluegrass because many of the elements that make them so special deserve to be respected and preserved. You can tell Billy has a deep respect for the musical traditions of Bluegrass and this is definitely in part because of the type of culture that pushes back on divergences. Good art has a healthy balance of new artists pushing and old trads pulling back, hopefully doing it in a respectful and healthy way.

How in the HELL could you hate Billy ??? Billy is the greatest !!

I’m not even a huge bluegrass fan, but I am thoroughly impressed with Billy. He’s a phenomenal guitar player.

Supination and pronation are two words I hadn't heard or given much thought to until I watch a few of your videos. Especially in terms of flat picking. Thanks Hayes

I love me some Billy Strings! Sittin' here with my Martin box just trying to keep up... I am a finger picker by nature, but am excited to get my flat pickin' chops up... Let's do this!!!

Billy is the most amazing picker I’ve seen in years.

Billy is a young man with an old soul. And like Hayes said he reveers the history and incorporates it in his playing and writing every chance he gets. Class act.

How could anyone hate Billy? They’ve obviously never been to a show. Best I’ve ever been to

I have been listening to Billy Strings and I myself am an amateur at best on guitar and also harmonica. I am 72 and really like that he is pulling many young people into this beautiful music. He is against hard drugs and more into pot. We will see how that plays out over time. I hope he has a bright future . He is a major force in bluegrass , especially in a young crowd who wants a certain genre of music to listen to and enjoy. A sense of identity and I can’t think of a better form of music to fill their needs

Troy is the GOAT!!!! SLANT picking was a tolat game changer to me!

he put in the work for the love of the music and it shows in his playing and live shows. wish him nothing but success.

If you think about it He is connecting with people outside of bluegrass just like the bluegrass artists of the 70s and 80s

Billy is awesome. Keeping the bluegrass tradition alive.

Thank you, Sir. Excellent lesson and demo!

Negative? People bash him? I would have never listened to ANY bluegrass had I not stumbled upon a video of him playing dust in a baggie. I’m 54, dont listen to country or bluegrass, would never have bothered listening to him a few months back. I now have a small catalogue of bluegrass music on iTunes. Billie is the reason I even bothered. Bringing more fans to bluegrass can’t be a bad thing.

Interesting term. I started guitar by learning flatpicking bluegrass and celtic tunes, and this technique is just something i've always done. Maybe b/c i learned mainly by watching vids of all the bluegrass guys like Tony Rice, Doc Watson, Brad Davis, etc. and i tried to mimic some of what i was seeing in their hands. I'm sure a lot of bluegrass pickers developed fluidity picking through this technique without putting much thought into it. Kinda of the path of least resistance when working on speed and legato . Awesome vid. Thx u!

I am super happy for him- I discovered Doc Watson thru him four years ago and haven't stopped playing bluegrass since. I don't love or hate anyone I don't personally know- somewhere left of dead and right of wrong I guess. Much Love to you and yours

One secret to fast and clear picking in any style, is to find a correct guitar pick (for you) for the style in question, especially when playing on an acoustic guitar. This is quite a neverending quest too, as there are so many different picks to choose from!

Wow. Amazing insight and analysis. I love this kind of stuff. Thank you for the time you spent putting together this video. I don’t see this level of player analysis anywhere else.

How can anyone hate him? Pure talent

Great video. I happened upon this, but I'm fascinated. Love to learn something new. And I love driving Bluegrass. XLNT.

I've also picked up on the resentment among some of the original bluegrass pickers, but also appreciation that the style is being preserved. I'm definitely in the second category!

An excellent introduction to core mechanics…fun to follow,too, and even…..reassuring 😊

Great video. I’m as impressed with your vocal delivery of the info. Such an eloquent and polished orator. I enjoyed hearing you speak. Good job.

🔥🔥🔥We Love Doc And Billy Here In Johnson City Tennessee🔥🔥🔥BET🫶🏼

Billy is a legend!

Is this not just efficient alternate picking? I love Billy's playing, he is absolutely phenomenal.

A lot of people in the metal community love the way Billy plays. With a lot of my students I actually teach them the picking technique. Helps them relax their picking hand and gain speed faster

Great video Hayes!

He's also an amazing vocal stylist who can get the feel of a singer like Doc without sounding like a mimic. His bandmates alone could have one of the best groups in bluegrass, but Billy is sort of out there beyond the stratosphere like if Jimi Hendrix decided to reincarnate as a bluegrass guy.

I had a feeling after watching one of your other lessons that youve seen troy gradys material on picking! Troy really has done incredible work on picking technique. I found that i was using these techniques early on all by feel from lots of playing you learn how to escape but without really knowing all the mechanics or how to describe it.

The king of acoustic guitar,I love that guy and his playing

Great video with clear & concise explanation. So this is basically alternate picking with 4 notes per string. As a long time rock player who's interested in bluegrass for something new to play, I like this. I'm so used to 3 note per string runs, it should be a fun "escape". 😉

Thanks for that tab too. I can finally see those notes that those guys use!

Nice to see the CtC ideas spreading outside the community!

Lemme answer the question the video was titled after in a short summary he does it with practice, lots and lots of practice

Hard to deny talent!

I saw billy and his amazing band on a whim in NC Oct '21. It reminded me so fondly of the music I had grown up around but somehow forgotten. My mom had passed around a year earlier. We had a tumultuous relationship, putting it mildly lol. But she was a loving and artistic, musical soul, and her soul was in bluegrass. I had grown up hearing Bill Monroe, Ralph Stanley, Doc Watson, and so many others that I had almost forgotten. You see, bluegrass wasn't "cool" growing up in NJ. After she died, while moving through grief, I devoured her old records (including recordings of her playing/singing). Seeing Billy on Halloween 2021, on a total whim, made me realize "Hey, this shit is fucking cool! I don't have to listen to my mom's music while alone/drunk/in a pit of grief - this man and his friends are legitimately making this music fucking cool again!" Not gonna lie, I cried a little hearing Ole Slew Foot in such a big arena (I turned to my bf and said This is Jim and Jesse OMG!), seeing thousands of people dancing and smiling to music I had secretly loved but outwardly shunned. And for all these moments of pure awe that this type of music is having a moment, I am forever grateful to Billy and his band. So much love and respect for all of them

Billy and the band just get better and better.

It's called dedication to the art of playing guitar. Billy lives guitar. If anybody reading this would put the same dedication into anything they do, they'd be proficient in whatever it is they're doing.

Great lesson! Thanks

Thanks!!!

Very helpful. Thank you.

Thank you much appreciated

How to do this stuff is different for differnt folk. I don't do a rest stroke or make contact on an adjecent lower string. You made a rad video. Crosspicking is well worth the thousands of hours to get solid.

Just found your videos. Excellent stuff! You've got a new subscriber

Billy Strings fn kicks ass dude

Hayes thanks for the video. What guitar are you playing? Beautiful dude

Awesome lesson Hayes

Who in the world hates billy??? Wtf dude?! This world I swear 🤦‍♂️

I got introduced to this style of music through a Norwegian folk-musician and comedian, Øystein Sunde. Always loved that guitar just having a field day with so many notes in a small span. I remember he did a cover of Black Mountain Rag which is titled "De Hebraiske Alper". I think I heard it on repeat for days on end trying to figure it out.

I haven't met anybody that hates Billy Strings. Billy is among many who play fast or slow lead bluegrass guitar. Billy does a nice job...Jack Baker NYC/NJ

Awesome!

Gotta hate a guy that kills it on guitar, writes amazing songs and is a charismatic performer. /s

And buy the way Billy strings is incredible. He's like the srv of bluegrass

The best thing about the Billy Strings band is their willingness to improvise and jam. Obviously, they’re all very talented musicians.

cool, well showed thanks.

I love Billy.

That rotating motion of the wrist comes easy if you can play slap bass among other things

Damn . Learning the secret made me feel even more helpless . And BMFS !

Part of his power comes from his impeccable mastery of guitar face

Billy is the Man !

Great lesson amigo

He plays fast because he has been doing it since a kid at a very high level !! I live Billy’s music he makes it fun

As primarily a rock and heavy metal guitarist I found this video interesting. I have played for about 45 years and always enjoy people that have mastered the guitar, no matter what genre that they play. I have no idea what this was called when I learned this technique. But I learned it within the first few years of playing. Many famous guitar players use this same technique, and so do many that you never heard of either. Billy is a gifted guitarist, and many will agree with this. But fast, is very debatable.....

He’s great

I can’t imagine anyone hating Billy Strings. I think it’s probably more that they’re envious of his skill!

Man can pick he can.

I do this a lot and didn't know it was a thing. Very interesting! I can't play fast (left hand skill issue), but it's still good in a slower context. For example, when I play Cardinals by The Wonder Years, I start on an up stroke so I can take advantage of this on the next three notes (two-note group as mentioned in the video and then the third note that skips a string--much easier for me if I've done it as an upstroke that I angle up "freeing" me from the strings).

Love the video man, Billy is such an amazing player! The hat you're wearing is gorgeous aswell, Is it a Homburg??

thanks for such a thorough breakdown.. I've been learning to flatpick and have a number of tunes down but just realized after a year of playing i'm moving the pick with my double jointed thumb and can't get any faster!

Id like to see this applied to mandolin. Is this something you could teach on a private mandolin lesson with exercises to walk away with?

Waittt..... Are there even people who hate Billy strings ??? What on earth would make anyone hate him?? Let the guy keep shredding dude... 😁😁😁

What a great Chanel! ❤

I know Billy and Molly want to do their own things. That said I think they should collaborate for the best success.

Practice, dedication & talent

In rock and metal playing, you can mix alternate picking, sweep picking, and legato. Different genres, but the same playing dynamics can be achieved. However you want to call it, it’s a great thing to practice.

I'll come back when U R done!

Good job on giving Troy is credit

Thanks Hayes! Great stuff in this lesson. I will for sure play around with this idea!

billy show s chops similar to the greats which are not genre specific. all the greats do what they want because they can technically. its all just music. i would personally like to hear billy do something besides bluegrass, just to see if my theory is accurate. shred billy shred! my very humble opinion

Getting that good takes a lot of love for music, and a good deal of OCD to practice practice practice.

"3-2-1-0" a simple chromatic scale which includes alternate picking. Useful for flash because it tends to throw most players off since they only use the typical 3 note per string Ionian or Blues runs.

Billy is like all the best pickers I have seen at fests over the last fifty years combined. He has parking lot cred and it is very easy to like.

nice video, this channel will blow up soon