Biography
Born and raised North of Toronto by 30 minutes, Kevin Wong was first exposed to music at the age of 3 when his mother dragged him kicking and screaming down a Montessori hallway to his first violin lesson. His first major exposure to music that he loved without reserve was when he sat, wide-eyed, at the age of 6 in a packed Pantages Theatre in the second year of the Phantom of the Opera’s 10 year run in Toronto. Watching the divine soprano Rebecca Caine scale notes effortlessly, he was hooked.
He then proceeded to spend his childhood years practicing violin, irritating all those around him to no end by never shutting up, and fiddling around on the piano. Post-puberty-voice-break, his first performance was a rendition of Elton John’s “Candle in the Wind” (the Diana version), at a middle school recital. It was not good. He wrote his first song at 13, also not great. But as time progressed, his range of musical influences broadened and his music began to make its way toward a cohesive and unique sound. This took about twenty years.
Kevin attended the University of Western Ontario where he was heavily involved in theatre and music from 2002-2006, then obtained a law degree at the University of Windsor in 2009. Throughout, he has experimented with music in pop, classical, theatre, jazz, contemporary urban, and classic soul. His sound is reflective of that eclectic blend, sometimes calling up a hint of reference to Billy Joel, Elton John, Jamie Cullum, or Donny Hathaway, but never quite falling into any of those categories.
In 2006, Kevin released his debut LP Every Day is Beautifully Flawed which he wrote and completed with the help of Jason Chapman at Boreal Forest Music at the end of his time in London, Ontario. The CD was purchased by nearly 15 whole people, and still somehow managed to be bootlegged in the Bay Area. His lead single “The Best Thing That Never Happened” received positive reviews and the CD received airplay on Humber Radio, iRadio LA, the Upper Room with Joe Kelley, and other independent radio.
During his time in university, Kevin’s music began to reflect his own experiences, both as an Asian-Canadian in a fairly diverse community, then as a young man coming out following the advent of marriage equality reform in Canada. His later work also reflects his personal experiences with dating, love, loss, and sarcasm.
The Pink in the Grey is Kevin’s second studio LP and is his first venture into completely self-produced work. It will be available in early May of 2010. The first single “Falling Balloons” will be available for free in late February 2010.
Kevin has a B.Sc. in Biology/Philosophy from the University of Western Ontario and an LL.B. from the University of Windsor. He has, in the past, been President of the University of Windsor Out on Campus group, a co-founder of the Windsor Law OUTLaws, a volunteer at Windsor’s community legal clinic, a coordinator of the TheatreWestern student theatre program at the University of Western Ontario, and an advocate for human rights and law reform. He is terrible at team sports. Just terrible.
Notables
- Best Adult Contemporary Performance (“The Best Thing that Never Happened”), Gian Fiero’s 2006 Year End Best
- Top 20 Best of the Half Decade (“The Best Thing that Never Happened”), Gian Fiero, 2007
- Top 5 SingerUniverse Top Vocalist (“The Best Thing that Never Happened”), 2009
- Top 5 Great Lakes Songwriting Contest (“Beautifully Flawed”), 2008
- University of Western Ontario Western Idol Contest winner, 2006
- Humber Radio student feature, 2006
- Radioplay on iRadio LA (“Everyday”, “Falling Balloons”)
- RadioPlay on AF Radio – Specializing in Positive Music (“No Less (Acoustic)”), 2009
Affiliations
