HUMBOLDT — One of the grandsons of a famous music legend is continuing his grandfather's legacy.
Tre Twitty, the grandson of Conway Twitty, will perform his grandfather's music at the Uniplex on Oct. 11.
“It's not an impersonation. It's a celebration of his life and what he did,” he said.
"I'm just myself. I tell the stories about him and I sing his songs. I try to tell why certain songs were recorded or why he wrote a certain song."
Twitty started playing tribute shows to his grandfather with his father in the early 2000s. He then quit and took up photography on a full-time basis for a few years.
Then, almost two years ago, Twitty met Tayla Lynn, the granddaughter of Loretta Lynn, who Conway had played with.
“Tayla and I knew there was a big audience for our grandparents’ music and I thought it would be neat to talk about them for our perspective,” he said.
“We went out and did a couple of shows and people just, for one, they loved the music so much, they liked Loretta and Conway so much, and two, they love all the stories about them.”
Twitty and Lynn also clicked personally.
"We're gonna start doing original music as well as doing this show," Twitty said, adding later that it wasn’t something that they planned when they met originally, but something that came about organically.
The duo will be aiming for a 1970s retro vibe.
“We're going to take it song by song,” Twitty said. It's gotten to the point in the music business where albums don't really matter anymore.”
Lynn won’t be performing in Humboldt due to other commitments.
Twitty said his grandfather’s music is timeless because was always the kind of artist that never got bogged down into one particular style of music.
“Conway was always changing with the times instead of the coming stagnant in one particular sound, so that's why he was able to last 35 years in the business, which is unheard of for most artists.”
Twitty said people should come to the performance in Humboldt because it’s the best way to learn more about his grandfather – pointing out there’s no documentaries or biographies of the man. He added that it’s the show is a trip down memory lane for some, while it’s a history lesson on American music for others.
“This is the place to come learn about the man,” he said.
The musician said many attending his show are fans of his grandfather and like hearing the stories, like hearing what made Conway tick as an artist.
“It’s like a family reunion out there, really. It’s just a big, heartfelt night.”
Tre Twitty will be at the Humboldt Uniplex on Oct. 11. Doors open at 6:30 p.m.
