Traversing intimate acoustic venues, major festival stages, and popular rural gatherings, Billy King performs with a lightness, dynamism, and sincerity.
Catchy folk/rock, searing blues, direct and thoughtful lyrics. This is original music from an original life, fully accomplished yet humble, and most of all, real.
Bio
As a seasoned performer, songwriter, and recording artist, Billy King's presence in the independent music scene brings an original blend of rootsy folk/pop with an occasional touch of country swing.
In the early 1990s, Billy led his two-member band, the preteen King Brothers, to local fame in the Ann Arbor area, performing regularly and releasing five albums of mostly original material. Still living and working on the family farm, Billy has continued writing and recording, and, with his brother, started Holler Fest, a three-day music festival featuring Michigan artists.
Billy’s versatility as a multi-genre singer-songwriter is matched by his ability on a wide range of instruments from guitar and banjo to keyboards and accordion. An engaging solo and duo performer, Billy also delivers a high-energy set with his full band, which includes some of the area’s top musicians. Traversing intimate acoustic venues, major festival stages, and popular rural gatherings, he performs with lightness, dynamism, and sincerity.
Within the songwriting community, he is well-known for his musicianship and originality. In 2007, his composition, "I Don't Write Love Songs," was awarded the Grand Prize in the Great Lakes Songwriting Contest, and his band headlined the annual showcase for contest winners at the distinguished Trinity House Theatre in Livonia, Michigan.
Influenced by master songwriters such as Bob Dylan, Joni Mitchell and Paul Simon, Billy crafts melodically compelling songs that maintain a sense of the timeless and classic. Sometimes catchy folk/rock, sometimes searing blues, but always direct and thoughtful lyrics - this is original music from an original life, fully accomplished yet humble, and most of all real.
Performance Highlights
Wheatland Music Festival - Remus, MI
The Ark - Ann Arbor, MI
Ann Abor Summer Festival - Ann Arbor, MI
Blissfest - Harbor Springs, MI
Riverfolk Music Festival - Manchester, MI
Harvest Gathering - Lake City, MI
Detroit Art's beat & Eats - Royal Oak, MI
Blind Pig - Ann Arbor, MI
Trinity House Theatre - Livonia, MI
Holler Fest - Brooklyn, MI
Shubas - Chicago, IL
Wise Fools Pub - Chicago, IL
The End - Nashville, TN
Paycheck's Lounge - Hamtramck, MI
Johnny's Speakeasy - Ann Arbor, MI
Rumpus Room - Chelsea, MI
The Inn at Stonecliffe - Mackinaw Island, MI
