Kevin Johansen
Born in Alaska to an Argentine mother and an American father, Kevin Johansen writes songs that move between English and Spanish, and between folk, cumbia, rock and tango, often inside the same song. He calls the result "de genre-ate."
- Born
- 21 June 1964, Fairbanks, Alaska
- Grew up
- Phoenix, San Francisco, then Buenos Aires and Montevideo as a teenager
- Band
- The Nada (debut album 2000)
- Breakthrough
- Sur o no Sur (2002), three Grammy nominations
- Lives in
- Buenos Aires
From CBGB to Buenos Aires
Johansen started playing guitar and writing lyrics at 14. After moving to New York in 1990, he caught the attention of Hilly Kristal, founder of CBGB, who invited him to play the club regularly. That New York decade gave him an audience for songs that didn't fit one scene.
He formed The Nada, whose self-titled debut came out in 2000. Sur o no Sur followed in 2002 and earned three Grammy nominations, making him a major name across Latin America.
A style that switches languages
Johansen's songs switch between English and Spanish, and from cumbia to rock, without warning. That mix is why writers have described him as a "continental" or "post-folk" songwriter: the songs carry folk storytelling but refuse to stay inside one tradition.
Music and drawing: the Liniers years
For about 15 years Johansen toured with Argentine cartoonist Ricardo Siri, known as Liniers, who drew live on stage while the band played. The shows turned concerts into a kind of illustrated storytelling. In 2024 Johansen also appeared in the film Underground Orange. He lives in Buenos Aires and still tours internationally.
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