December 2009 meetings with renowned physician Mark Kerner ENT in Northridge California showed slight damage to the right vocal cord from years of performing and living hard.  Plain and simple, I wasn’t taking great care of myself.  Additionally, he spotted tonsil inflammation and recommended a course of treatment involving medication and a change in diet.  A second opinion in June 2010 with Jerry Josen, ENT in Scottsdale Arizona revealed that the tonsils have become larger and more inflamed in recent months and that the vocal chords are still red and irritated. Surgery seems to be the best course of action at this point, so we scheduled to have them removed on Wednesday, June 23^rd 2010. 

What will this mean for the music?  Plans to release the new album (Working Title:  The Ivory Coast) are still on point for early fall.  It will be a 12-song full length album featuring and exploring love in all of its splendor.  Fans can expect the music to still be based on real and inspired stories.  We’ve taken up a new producer on the album in wunderkid Chris Doucet and the tracks are still being recorded in Salt Lake City, Utah. 

Voice-wise, it’s hard to know how I might be affected.  When I sing the final tracks in August it will be interesting to note if not-having-a-stone-in-the-back-of-my-throat affects my range, timbre, or sound – regardless, I am confident that whatever changes may occur, I have the inner make-up to roll with them and make them work for me and the fans of my music. 

Wish me luck and thanks so much for your concern and continued support!

This Wednesday I had the pleasure to entertain and inspire several hundred Arizona youth and their families in both a day show and an evening show – the proceeds of which went to the Dempsey Burdick Memorial Foundation (www.babyheadstones.org) and Coronado Elementery School in Gilbert, AZ.  The red carpet was rolled out for me at the Higley Center for the Performing Arts as I played on the very piano that Ronnie Milsap played on just a few days prior.  I definitely felt to Ronnie Milsap energy flowing through me as I had a couple near mistake-free shows.

Day Show.  Following the mid-day show for the youth, I went out to sign autographs.  I was nearly eaten alive by young students who viewed me as some kind of Justin Timberlake with sideburns. Many of the kids informed me that they loved my rendition of Lady Gaga’s “Paparazzi” while other’s begged me to sign their foreheads.  Hoping the parents would forgive me (I didn’t sign any foreheads), I went ahead and signed hands, shirts, shoes, books, papers, tickets, arms, and shorts at the show.  It felt good to be appreciated and the show organizers commented that during the show ”this was the best they’d ever seen those kids behave.”  Glad I could have been a catalyst for that.

Night Show.  The night show for local families was slightly more serious, with me getting into some of the extremely sad stories of the families we’d helped at the foundation.  I did break up the tears, however, with my super-medley rendition of Tiny Dancer, Cheers, Facts of Life, Charles in Charge, Greatest American Hero, and Laverne and Shirley.  After the night show I mingled in the foyer with many old friends and new fans, signed autographs, and took photos.  Many thanks to all of those that came out, supported, and donated to the foundation – as well as those who bought t-shirts, CDs, and posters – the support was hugely appreciated.

Thank Yous.  Big thanks to Jared Platt for his intro and photography (I’ll be posting those next week), Jennifer DeTemple and Shayla Taylor along with Coronado Elementary for being their awesome selfs as the show organizers, Aaron “Chives” Chavez for coming out from Los Angeles to play amazing percussion with me, Senior Cody McCormick for his “Roadiness” and his excellent handling of Merch Sales, and the staff at the Higley Center for the Performing Arts for being so accomodating and easy to work with.  It was a great day that I won’t soon forget!!

Photos of the show:

For those of you who may not know, I have been a chronic psoriasis sufferer since I was 15 years old.  It has been a huge source of frustration to me as I work through physical pain, social stigmas, and in general just feeling uncomfortable in my own skin.  When the new ground-breaking medication ‘Stelara’ was introduced late last year, I was sure it would be a long time until I would ever be able to try it.  At $5000 per shot and several shots per year, the annual medication can be well over $20,000 – not to mention it must be administered and monitored by a licensed dermatologist.

So this week I was thrilled to discover that Johnson & Johnson would be providing me with the medication at no charge throughout 2010.  I’ll blog about my progress with the medication, on occasion, and post updates and possibly before-n-after photos (if I can find some that I don’t feel are gross). 

Stelara works on a brand new principle, utilizing the latest in psoriasis research; each injection blocks a specific set of proteins that (and this is my non-doctor explanation) somehow confuse my immune system and result in psoriasis.  Friday, April 2nd, will be my first injection.

If you suffer from psoriasis and want to find out more about Stelara, go to:  http://www.stelarainfo.com/

During the wedding ceremony I played some pretty background piano music that I improvised entirely – mostly variations of church hymns - as Amanda and Jessica and their wedding procession walked to the front of the standing-room only chapel.  Jessica’s only instruction to me was “you can play anything but the wedding march.”  So I took some liberties, even adding some simple light Jazz to the mix.  Later that night, during the evening reception at the Museum of Art, I played a brand new love song off of my new album called “God Made You Just For Me” as well as my rendition of “It’s a Wonderful World.”  The brides danced with each other and then danced with their fathers as I sang.

All and all, it was a beautiful snow-covered day and the two girls looked both elegant and ecstatically happy.  The biggest thing I got out of the experience was a simple reminder that no matter if we are gay or straight, black or white, or tall or short, we are all God’s children and we all deserve to have love and be loved.  Everyone deserves happiness.  Thank you Jessica and Amanda for reminding me of that and for allowing me to take part in your important day.  Congratulations!!

Curious about the happy couple?  Check out their blog:  http://lesbianmomma.wordpress.com/

Dear White Blood Cells,
Yo, it’s your boss Kevin (You know, owner of the body you live in and are hired to protect).  Yeah, what’s up?  Hey,  here’s a naked photo of me - you see that semi-tanned layer of soft flesh with cool tattoos and a bit of hair in all of the right places?  Yeah, that’s called “skin” you idiots!!  So when you get done playing X-box, or whatever it is you do everyday, maybe you could stop screwing around inside my body and instead focus on the flu that’s going around or making sure I don’t get some kind of STD.  I’m definitely keeping your damage deposit and may have to evict you if you guys don’t get your act together.  You are officially on f*#$ing notice – my skin is off-limits!  Hugs and Kisses.
Love, Kevin

Each October, which includes World Psoriasis Day on October 29th, I try and create some additional awareness for the disease and this year I’ve decided to do something a little radical.  For the last 2 weeks I have pulled myself off of all my psoriasis medication, medication which was managing the disease moderately well - yep, right now I’m allowing the psoriasis to ravage my body.  Don’t worry, I’ve not gone completely crazy and there is a method to this madness.  Later this week I’m participating in a drug trial for an experimental new medication called AIN457 by Novartis, some cutting edge stuff which probably won’t be FDA approved for at least a couple years.  Hey, someone’s gotta test it and if it kills me at least I die for a good cause.  Regardless of the results, I’ll be tracking my progress including photos, ideas, funny anecdotes, and whatever else comes to mind.  Hopefully you won’t mind the break from the usual music posts for a few weeks as I work through this process. 

Thanks for sticking with me and supporting me.  If want to learn more about psoriasis, it’s research, treatments, or anything else, check out:  http://www.psoriasis.org/

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Check out the Memorial Edition of The Bedroom Sessions by clicking on this link:  The Bedroom Sessions LIVE

For those who missed it, here’s a little peek at what you missed:

Register For:  The Bedroom Sessions with Kevin Burdick
Next Show:  Episode 2, Tuesday, June 16th @ 6 PM PST

And for those of you that missed it.

Sneak Preview:  The Bedroom Sessions with Kevin Burdick
Next Show:  Tuesday, June 9th @ 4 PM PST

The Viper Room, originally started by a group headlined by Johnny Depp, is an icon on the Sunset Strip.  Adding your name to the list of artists that have performed there is a right of passage for any musician.  Hope to see you there before 11 PM on June 25th when I take the stage and add my name to that list!!

Print the flyer below to save money at the door: 

Note:  ….Hollowbody LA presents acoustic Thursdays at the Green Room, the downstairs lounge at the Viper Room. 21+, $8 w/ flyer. Guests will have access to the entire venue. The Green Room bar offers serious drink specials for its guests. Makers Mark, Tanqueray Gin, all flavors of Sky Vodka, Wine and many other premium brands are only $5. Pabst cans are only $4. Free street parking is easy for the early shows. Yellow, loading zones are safe parking after 6pm, as are any green curbs. Otherwise there’s a pay lot on property, which is only $5 after 11pm.  8852 W. Sunset Blvd. West Hollywood, CA 90069