Kevin Allred

Kevin Allred sings sad gay songs for the end of the world. Stories of hard-won truths tempered with necessary hope—guaranteed to make you cry, undermine the system, fight the power.  

A one-man-band whirlwind of unconventional intensity, Kevin belts intimate confession like he’s exorcising demons; he pounds on the acoustic guitar as if trying to jumpstart his own heart. 

Born in small-town Utah, Kevin started writing songs after hearing Tori Amos’s Boys For Pele in high school. Then, stumbling upon Ani DiFranco’s Imperfectly at a local record store, he taught himself to play guitar. Awakened by unapologetic female singer/songwriters, he found the courage to push against the conformity of his religious upbringing, came out as gay, and was excommunicated from the Mormon church (at his own request). 

Kevin founded gutter folk records in 2000 to release his debut album Sick Today and remains fiercely independent/DIY. His disparate influences span Lilith Fair, 90s alternative, punk rock, outlaw country, and traditional folk & bluegrass, alongside Black feminist and anticapitalist literature.

In another life, Kevin taught college for years and wrote a book about Beyoncé called Ain’t I A Diva? (published by the Feminist Press at CUNY in 2019). 

Kevin lives in Brooklyn with his boyfriend and Marshall, their demonic senior chihuahua. He’s working on lots of new music…