Kevin Bloody Wilson (born Dennis Bryant; 13 February 1947) is an Australian musical comedian who performs comical songs with his heavy Australian accent and often including sexual themes. He has won one ARIA Music Award.
Early career Bryant was born in Bathurst, although he identifies with Kalgoorlie, Western Australia, where he was an electrician in the gold mines.
In the 1970s, Bryant fronted his own band called 'Bryan Dennis and the Country Club'. He also used the name 'Bryan Dennis' when he hosted a country music show on radio 6KG in Kalgoorlie from 1973 to 1980, before he was thrown off air for playing the parody song, "I'm Heaving on a Jet Plane".
He moved to Perth and began playing bawdy songs as a hobby, singing at pubs and Australian rules football clubs. He had adopted the name Kevin Bloody Wilson by 1984, when he put together a cassette of his songs called Your Average Australian Yobbo, which he sold at gigs and by mail order. He managed to sell 22,000 copies of the cassette before it was eventually transferred to LP, where it went on to sell many thousands more.
He is one of Perth's most famous comedians. His humour is regarded by media commentators as politically incorrect. As one of Australia's most successful comedians, he continues to tour and performs an average of 120 concerts worldwide each year.
Wilson is married and his wife Betty comes on tour with him. She sells merchandise at shows and has appeared on guest vocals in a few of his songs, including "Dick'taphone".
Wilson appeared on the popular television show Enough Rope with Andrew Denton in October 2008. On the show, he told of how he met his wife Betty, who was originally from Kalgoorlie, but lived in Perth at the time they met. She had returned to the town to visit friends and her brother who still lived there and they met when she attended one of his shows. Betty, who was in the studio audience, told Denton that Wilson was a romantic who regularly bought her flowers.
"The Genie in the Bottle", a country song which Wilson co-wrote with Adam Harvey, reaching the number one video spot on the Country Music Television Channel in 2008.
Discography Studio albums YearAlbumPeak positionsCertifications AUSPeaks on the ARIA Charts from 1988: All except noted: Let Loose Live Back Home and 20 Years of Kev: 1984Your Average Australian Yobbo Released: 1984 Label: Both Barrels Music, CBS (SBP 8174) Format: LP, cassette20 1985Kev's Back (The Return of the Yobbo) Released: 1985 Label: Both Barrels Music, CBS (SBP 8215) Format: LP, cassette, CD (BBCD 100797R)8 ARIA: 4× Platinum1987Born Again Piss Tank Released: October 1987 Label: Both Barrels Music, CBS (460432 1) Format: LP, cassette16 ARIA: 2× Platinum1989My Australian Roots Released: May 1989 Label: Both Barrels Music, CBS (465428 1) Format: LP, cassette, CD25 1991Let's Call Him ... Kev! Released: November 1991 Label: Both Barrels Music, CBS (469188 2) Format: CD, cassette50 1993Nashville Trash Released: 1993 Label: Both Barrels Music (BB01) Format: CD—1994Backout from the Outback Released: 1994 Label: Both Barrels Music (BB05) Format: CD—1996Santa's Kummin': Kev's Kristmas Album Released: November 1996 Label: Both Barrels Music (BBCD 60896) Format: CD—1998Kalgoorlie Love Songs Released: November 1998 Label: Both Barrels Music (BBCD 160798) Format: CD—2001The Second Kummin' of Kev Released: 2001 Label: Both Barrels Music (BBCD 08) Format: CD—2006DILLIGAF Released: 2006 Label: Both Barrels Music, Sony Music Australia (BBCD 011006) Format: CD—2009Excess All Areas Released: September 2009 Label: Both Barrels Music, Sony Music Australia Format: CD—2013Wrong! Wrong! Wrong! Released: September 2013 Label: Both Barrels Music (BBCD011113) Format: CD, Digital download—2016Rides Again Released: 14 October 2016 Label: Both Barrels Music (BBCD010916) Format: CD, Digital download—2018Kev's Krissmas Vol 2 Released: August 2018 Label: Kevin Bloody Wilson Format: CD, Digital download—2023International DILLIGAF Day Released: April 2023 Label: Kevin Bloody Wilson Format: CD, Digital download—
Live albums YearAlbumPeak positions AUS1995Let Loose Live in London Released: 1995 Label: Both Barrels Music (BBCD2894) Format: CD—2003Let Loose Live in the Outback Released: 2003 Label: Both Barrels Music (BBCD10) Format: CD—2007Let Loose Back Home Released: 2007 Label: Both Barrels Music (BBDVD011107) Format: CD/DVD, download95
Compilation albums YearAlbumPeak positionsCertifications AUS1990The Loveable Larrikin Released: 1990 Label: X Rated, Both Barrels Music Format: LP, CD—1990Far-Canal Released: 1990 Label: Both Barrels Music Format: LP, CD—1992The Worst of Kevin Bloody Wilson Released: 1992 Label: Sony Music (472317 2) Format: CD— ARIA: Gold200420 Years Of Kev Released: August 2004 Label: Both Barrels Music (BBCD 160704) Format: CD64 ARIA: Gold2011Klassic Kev Released: December 2011 Label: Kevin Bloody Wilson Format: CD, Digital Download—201935 Years of Kevin Bloody Wilson Released: 26 July 2019 Label: Sony Music Australia (19075979242) Format: Digital Download, CD, streaming—
His songs generally consist of irreverent humour and plenty of swearing with eclectic musical backing.
ARIA Awards He has been nominated five times for the ARIA Award for Best Comedy Release at the ARIA Music Awards:
|rowspan="2" | 1987 |rowspan="2" | Kev's Back | Best Comedy Release
| Highest Selling Album
| 1990 | My Australian Roots |rowspan="4" | Best Comedy Release
| 1992 | Let's Call Him Kev
| 1995 | Let Loose Live in London
| 2002 | The Second Kummin' of Kev
Website Wilson was the first Australian performing artist to have a website which a friend set up for him in 1993, which has since been a major source of album and product sales. He also runs an internet radio station kevfm.com, which was the first 24-hour adult comedy radio station.
Daughter Tammy Jo "Jenny Talia" Bryant has followed in her father's footsteps singing similarly bawdy songs, some of them being reworded Kev songs, but done from a female perspective.
References
Further reading Britton, David (1985) Perth comic warned on language. The West Australian, 1 November 1985, p. 14. Nicholson, Brendan (1986) It's no joke for Kevin. Daily News, 4 January 1986, p. 4. Cornish, Patrick (1996) The Kalgoorlie kid comes home. West Australian, 12 October 1996, p. 4, (West Magazine). Chris Thomas (1996) Kevin's bloody well back home. Sunday Times, 13 October 1996, (Rock On). (1997) Wilson curse threat case. The West Australian, 20 February 1997, p. 40. Jansen, Ara (2004) Kevin Bloody Wilson Esquire West Australian, 10 April 2004, p. 10–13, (West Magazine).
External links Official Website