Kirk Kelly

Kirk P. Kelly (born circa 1960) is a folk singer, songwriter and labor activist from New York City. In the mid-1980s Kelly and a group of like-minded musicians started calling themselves "anti-folk" and started a small but intense movement. Kelly's music has been infrequently recorded over the years. His work has often included topical songs. Some of Kelly's early songs dealt with the labor movement and were based upon his own work experience. A decade or so after starting his musical career Kelly was accepted to and attended an AFL-CIO organizer's training school and began working throughout the United States as a union organizer.

Biography

Kelly was born on Long Island circa 1960 and grew up listening to (among other things) Irish musicians such as the Clancy Brothers. In the early 1980s he began performing music that was influenced by both the folk revival artists and punk bands such as the Ramones and the Clash. In the mid-80s Kelly found that the old guard of the Greenwich Village folk scene were unwilling accept this combination as legitimate folk music. One night Kelly was banned from the open mics at Gerde's Folk City for handing out flyers for a performance at an East Village venue.