Worsham, a singer, guitar and banjo player, has also been announced as the recipient of the 2006 Billboard Endowed Scholarship at Berklee, presented each year by the seminal musical industry publication to the single most promising student at the college.

Worsham is the first country musician ever to win the award in its 11 year history.

Berklee selects one student each year to receive the Billboard award based upon their outstanding musicianship and strong academic record at the school as well as the probability of success in their pursuit of a performance and recording career.

The Billboard Endowed Scholarship Fund was established at Berklee in 1995 with a major gift from Billboard Magazine.

Worsham began his musical career with piano lessons in kindergarten.

By the second grade, he had taken on the banjo and bluegrass music. When he was ten he performed alongside bluegrass legend Jimmy Martin at the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville.

It was two years later that Worsham performed at the Grand Ole Opry with Opry member Mike Snider.

At Grenada High School, Charlie played guitar and sang in various blues and rock bands. He began studying at Berklee in the fall of 2004 and since then established himself as a songwriter and vocalist. He has performed with legends like B.B. King, Earl Scruggs, Bela Fleck, Gillian Welch, Emmylou Harris, and Marty Stuart.

Worsham will graduate from Berklee in December with a degree in Music Production and Engineering.

A CD released by Berklee Label Heavy Rotation Records Label and CD was featured in Sunday's New York Times. Worsham is included on Dorm Sessions Volume 3, a compilation CD released by Berklee College of Music's student-run label Heavy Rotation Records, featuring nine artists from around the U.S.

His band, the Free State of Tallahatchie, will also perform at the SXSW music festival and conference in Austin