Biography

Johnny has appeared on NBC's TODAY SHOW
PEOPLE MAGAZINE did a full page article on Johnny
Johnny appeared on the CBS EVENING NEWS (with Dan Rather)
Johnny has performed on the GRAND OLE OPRY Stage five times
CNN aired a taping of Johnny in March 2000
COUNTY MUSIC MAGAZINE did an article on Johnny

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Born and raised in West Virginia, Johnny Staats caught the bluegrass bug right from the start. With his mother playing piano, his father playing on the guitar, and his sister on the banjo, it seemed only natural that Johnny would get his first mandolin at the young age of seven.







Johnny began to play
at the age of 7. He is
shown here picking with
his father and sister.

"Just as I started to take mandolin lessons, my teacher passed away," Staats stated, "so I took matters in my own hands, and learned to play by ear from listening to records and 8 tracks of Bill Monroe, Country Gentleman, and many others. There were many nights I listened to those guys all night long."

Johnny joined his first band (Bluegrass Heritage) at age 9, and became a regular at competitions from age 13 on. Driven to succeed; Johnny devoted countless hours a day to practice. In fact he never entertained the thought of playing sports in school, because he was fearful he might injure his hands.






Left to Right: Johnny, John (his dad), Missy (his sister) and Uncle Glen