Kelly Pettit

I have a great sounding board and speakers and know how to use them properly. As a solo act, I play along with MIDI files (backing tracks) which sounds like a full band. The advantage of this is you can get a full band sound with just paying for one person. It's also beneficial for small rooms. I also do a number of acoustic songs too where I can capture the intimacy of a place.

People tell me I sound like a cross between Blue Rodeo's Jim Cuddy, Paul Simon and Brian Adams.

I enjoy playing popular songs from the 60's upwards to even some current hits. More importantly, I have learned that my job isn't to just play music but to entertain the audience. I want to make sure they are having a great time which means doing things in between the songs and crowd participation (if that opportunity presents itself).

How does this west coast Canada born musician wind up in Japan doing national shows, festivals, theme parks and shows for the Canadian Embassy? Kelly Pettit's life as a musician has taken him to over 4 countries. On his 6th and latest album titled “Every Sunrise”, Kelly showcases exactly what makes him so alluring.

Dual citizenship with Australia, Kelly started busking there at age 19 to support him on his backpack travels and realized that it was a fantastic way to hon his skills and showcase his talent.

Later while attending college in Vancouver Canada, his 3 piece band got one of 15 licenses to legally busk at BC transit stations where transients would gather around the trio watching their show, often missing their rides to continue listening. From there, Kelly's trio picked up a heap of gigs from passer-by's including political functions, TV series parties, venues and more. It also led to a free trip to Japan where Kelly fell in love with the country and has spent over 20 years performing there.

So suddenly 30 years creeps up and surprisingly Kelly has been busy performing almost every weekend at a wide variety of events in many parts of the world. Most of the time he has performed solo with backing music. This has enabled him to accept more gigs and play smaller venues. While there is something special about having a full band, sometimes a room or a budget doesn't allow for it. With a lifetime of experience Kelly has learned to play a wide variety of popular music and share a good story or two to keep everyone in the room entertained. Kelly's father once told him that it's important to be talented but it's more important to be entertaining. Kelly really believes that the gigs are for the audience. It's his priority to make sure they are having a great time.

I prefer to have time for a proper set up and sound check. It's hard to monitor room sound when you're stuck between the speakers so I always appreciate someone telling me if vocals are too soft or guitar is too loud and so on. My gear works best in small to average size venues. Anything too large and I'll probably need to rent more.