Kevin Burt
Ep. 22 — An Iowa musician battles a lifetime of blues and gets his groove back on the international blues stage / Kevin Burt, Singer, Songwriter, blues heritage educator. Raised by a single mom on $5,000 a year in food stamps, Kevin Burt spent most of his life in chronic “survival mode” in the school of hard knocks. That meant a chronically anxious and overworked state of mind and body: “You're so worried about the basics of day to day that there's no way to think about tomorrow, there's no way to think about not a day from now, not a week from now, not a year from now,” says Burt. “You can't make future plans if you're not okay. You're just surviving. That hustle turns into the worst kind of a loop to be in.” So caught was Burt in a punishing work cycle of 300 or more shows a year that when his friends urged him to sign up for the prestigious International Blues Challenge in Memphis, Tennessee last year, he said he was too busy. But his friends prevailed. Burt decided to jump into the Challenge, albeit grudgingly. It would prove to be the best decision of his life. Burt swept the contest in three categories, best harmonica, guitar, and solo/duo — the first performer to accomplish that little hat trick in the competition’s thirty-five-year history. His massive success, borne of a lifetime of hard work and resilience, has skyrocketed Burt into a surreal new matrix, both on the international blues soundstage and in his personal headspace. He says it’s a development that he’s “wholly unprepared for.” But he’s getting there quickly, one step at a time. Burt’s life is rapidly changing. But there’s one thing that will remain constant: His commitment to his role as a blues heritage educator and a proud narrator of Iowa’s forgotten important role in the evolution of the American blues scene. Tanscript Download the PDF Chitra Ragavan: Born and raised in Waterloo, Iowa blues artist, Kevin Burt, had a tough childhood that put him in chronic survival mode for most of his life, forcing him to make a bunch of career and personal sacrifices to support his family. Chitra Ragavan: Then last year, Burt made a decision that changed everything. Hello. Everyone, I'm Chitra Ragavan and this is When It Mattered. This episode is brought to you by Goodstory, an advisory firm helping technology startups find their narrative. I'm joined today by Kevin Burt, who after more than two decades on the local and national blues circuits is well on his way to becoming a recording artist of international merit. Kevin, welcome to the podcast. Kevin Burt: Thank you for having me, appreciate it. Chitra Ragavan: You told me recently that your survival mindset began at age five when your parents were separated. What was your life like after that moment? Kevin Burt: It's just one of those things where you know that every day it's about making sure that you make it to the next one. It wasn't so much that it was out of danger. It's just out of not knowing. It's the knowing that your mom's doing the best she can and you've got siblings and you're watching them do the best that they can. Your responsibility was to do the best you could too. It was a collective mindset versus just being a kid. Chitra Ragavan: Your mother had to raise ... How many kids on a very limited income? Kevin Burt: There were four of us. My parents separated, they never divorced. My dad was always there but not, and so he was ... Chitra Ragavan: But not there. Kevin Burt: Yeah, yeah. He was living his best life. I don't fault him for that. It was his choice to make. Mom raised four of us, three boys, one girl. All three of us boys ended up being all American football players and our sister was the best athlete in the family. Chitra Ragavan: This was on food stamps? Kevin Burt: $5,000 a year in food stamps. Fixed income is just that. The one thing that it taught me is that I knew that I didn't want my kids to ev...