Here’s how this Columbia musician is preparing for the Grammys

When Columbia musician Molly Ledford found out she had been nominated for a Grammy, she was halfway out the door for her first day working at the Cayce-West Columbia Branch Library. Her husband, Jay Barry, showed her the news on his phone, leaving her to fill out orientation paperwork with stunned excitement.

“I try to hide my ID photo that was taken that day, because I look freaked out,” Ledford said. “The whole time I was thinking, ‘I got nominated for a Grammy!’”

Ledford – who also sings in the indie children’s band Lunch Money – and singer-songwriter Billy Kelly of Lewisburg, Pa., were nominated for Best Children’s Album for their debut collaboration, “Trees.” Like the title suggests, the album is all about trees.

Tuesday, Ledford stood in friend Jessica Bornick’s studio in Earlewood getting fitted for the dress she will wear on the Grammy red carpet at Monday’s awards ceremony.

The vintage-inspired, tea-length gown was almost complete. The gray dupioni silk cinched at Ledford’s waist and strips of electric blue fabric peeked out from under the sleeves and skirt. Bornick carefully stuck pins in the back of the fabric.

After the nomination, Ledford immediately asked Bornick, the designer behind the children’s and accessory line Owlette, to make her dress.

“The fashion side of it seemed terrifying, and to have a friend that is super skilled, I knew I’d be able to go to the Grammys and feel like I was wearing a hug from home,” Ledford said.

She is bringing Barry, her daughter Lucy, 9, and son Henry, 12, to L.A. for the awards ceremony. The Best Children’s Album category will be announced and streamed prior to the prime time show, Ledford said. “Trees” is competing with José-Luis Orozco’s “¡Come Bien! Eat Right!, ” Gustafer Yellowgold’s “Dark Pie Concerns,” Tim Kubart’s “Home” and Lori Henriques’ “How Great Can This Day Be.”

Then Ledford will get to walk down the red carpet and, hopefully, rub elbows with some celebrities. Adele, Alabama Shakes and Taylor Swift are just a few of the artists scheduled to perform.

“If we happened to cross paths with Ariana Grande, that would be awesome,” Ledford said.

The idea for “Trees” came from Kelly, who said he was inspired by a huge maple tree in his backyard. “I started singing about it and realized you don't hear too many songs about trees,” he said. “I thought it would be fun to do a whole record about them.”

Ledford had been friends with Kelly after buying some of his music years earlier. Once she heard about the tree idea, she sent him a song and he asked her to partner on the project.

The two wrote songs separately and then came together to record. The result is two very different angles on the ubiquitous woody plants. Tracks that Ledford sings on have a dreamier quality, while tracks that Kelly sings on have a quirkier, humorous edge.

“I really got into my feelings from thinking about trees,” Ledford said. “My songs are more somber, but they’re balanced by Billy’s, which are funny and rocking.”

On “Count Your Rings” Ledford sings about a dead tree; “We will miss you, tree/ There's no mystery to your age / Now we can see.”

On “Just A Dumb Ol’ Stick,” Kelly chirps, “Take as many of them as you please/ as a matter of fact, they do grow on trees/ It's just a stick.”

Further into the project, Kelly said he tried doing a somber song. The result was “Here Come the Trees.”

The slow march recalls the origin of trees as “the world’s first seeds.” The chorus goes, “Here come the trees/ they come to to take over the world.”

Maybe not the world, but perhaps the Grammys.

This story was originally published February 12, 2016 at 6:00 AM with the headline "Here’s how this Columbia musician is preparing for the Grammys."