Born and raised deep in the black diamond hills of southwestern Virginia, K.T. Vandyke is a unique and gripping song-smith, who wields folk songs and prose that weave a curious and unique life story. His songs tell the story of growing up in the coalfields of Buchanan County, Virginia and the trials and victories of those who came before. A collector of song and story alike, Vandyke parallels his own songs and delivery to that of Appalachian greats such as Merle Travis, Doc Watson, Ola Belle Reed, Tim O’Brien and Tony Rice. A student of traditional Appalachian folk music, Vandyke presents a captivating contemporary narrative  through his banter and songwriting. On July 26 he will be releasing his new single “Texas (Walking on Ashes)” which was cut at Classic Recording in Bristol, Virginia and produced by renowned cellist Dave Eggar and Phil Faconti.
 
     Currently stationed in Bristol, Virginia, he has been performing in the greater Appalachian region and neighboring metropolitan areas for more than a decade. A seasoned performer and multi-instrumentalist, Vandyke can be found performing as a solo songwriter or as one-half of the country swing duo Virginia West. Throughout the last several years he has been affiliated with Johnson City indie-rock acts Pocket Sand and Floyd Strange.

In 2015 he graduated from East Tennessee State University, where he studied Appalachian Studies, with a specialization in Bluegrass, Old-Time, Celtic and Country Music.  During his time there he performed regularly with numerous bands most notably the university acclaimed ETSU Country Pride Band.
 
     In 2012 Vandyke took home 1st place in the Richard Leigh Songwriters Competition with his song "Huck Finn", and was a featured performer in the festival the following years. In 2014 he was a finalist in the Visit Music City Songwriting Competition, as well as being named a Telluride Troubadour, a nationally renowned songwriting competition held by Planet Bluegrass at the Telluride Bluegrass Festival held in Telluride, Colorado. In 2019 he was selected as a finalist in the Tennessee Dept. of Tourism Songwriting contest. 

Amidst his musical tenure he has performed throughout the U.S. and extensively throughout the mid-east Atlantic states. He has performed as a featured opener for Jason Isbell (Telluride Bluegrass Festival), Pokey LaFarge (Thursday Jams Abingdon, Virginia), Blackberry Smoke (Buchanan County Fair), Town Mountain, (Abingdon Summer Concert series), Larry Keel and Natural Bridge (Catawba Music Festival), Sam Lewis (Thursday Jams), Devon Allman Band, as well as performing at Bristol Rhythm and Roots Reunion 2015, 2019, 2020.

Sat for 20 minutes thinking of what to put here. Just do shit that makes you happy or whatever.

Kris Witt is following