New York musician and satirist Kyle Gordon has been a prominent figure in the city’s comedy landscape since 2014, starting his journey as an improv-oriented comedian on Brooklyn’s open mic scene. He quickly carved out his niche by merging stand-up with musical parody, performing original songs that humorously critique a variety of popular genres while establishing the character-driven approach that later contributed to his viral online fame. During the pandemic, he gained significant traction on social media by posting videos of his characters on TikTok, YouTube, and Instagram, where he now boasts a combined following of nearly five million.
His musical breakthrough occurred in the summer of 2023 with the character DJ Crazy Times in ‘Planet Of The Bass’—a track that humorously references 90s Eurodance hits like Aqua’s ‘Barbie Girl’ and has garnered tens of millions of views online. In true genre spirit, the promotional materials leading up to the single featured multiple videos with different actresses portraying the female vocalist Ms. Biljana Electronica, cleverly nodding to a popular trend of that era where original female vocalists were often replaced by random models in music videos.
Following the success of that track, his debut album ‘Kyle Gordon Is Great’ was released in March 2024. The record amusingly explores a variety of musical styles, ranging from early 2000s angsty pop punk and emo to the sultry, lounge-influenced sounds of mid-60s bossa nova. It highlights Gordon’s comedic talent and showcases his profound understanding of the musical conventions and nuances that characterize each genre. A year later, in April 2025, he further expanded his repertoire with his follow-up album, ‘Kyle Gordon Is Wonderful’, where each song is introduced with a whimsical nod to classic VH1 chart countdown segments.
Having recently taken this new project across the United States for the first time—accompanied by the band Mojohand, representing the Cosmic Americana genre—Kyle Gordon speaks with Clash via video call from his New York City home. Reflecting positively on the tour, he expresses, “This was my favorite tour ever. Everything went incredibly well, and the audiences were fantastic. I’ve previously toured with the band, but this was the first time, with the second album, that audiences knew all the lyrics and were excited to hear the songs.”
“The show has significantly evolved. I initially viewed it as a comedy show with music. Now I consider it a humorous concert. For instance, many of the shows during the last tour had seating, while now they are all standing. Audiences are jumping, dancing, and moshing as they would at any concert, even with all the songs being parodies.”
Despite his excitement, Gordon and his band opted to portray a very different narrative of the tour’s events on social media. One video depicts Gordon shirtless on stage, frantically shouting, “You people don’t respect me! Why am I here?!” while facing a booing crowd, ultimately being sheepishly escorted offstage by a bandmate.
Gordon elaborates, “At the start of the tour, we brainstormed a fun social media storyline. We decided to create a narrative where I gradually lose my mind and become a huge jerk, culminating in this exaggerated meltdown on stage.” He adds with humor, “I still have family members checking in on me, worried that I’ve completely lost it!”
Although accustomed to touring and performing as a comedian, Kyle Gordon found performing as a musician to be a completely new experience at age 32. He shares with Clash, “Even when it was just me with a guitar, my mindset was still fully in comedian mode, focusing on entertaining an audience seated in a comedy club.”
“The primary difference I’ve noticed while touring as a musician is that, in live comedy, the aim is to present a slew of new material that the audience hasn’t heard. The goal is to surprise them with fresh jokes, right? A comedian doesn’t typically ‘play hits’ or anything similar. However, with music, audiences are eager to hear their favorite songs, so the reverse is true.”
He adds, “The difference in performance style is quite binary in that aspect, so learning to strike that balance has taken some adjustment, but I believe I’ve found a comfortable middle ground.”
Prior to this, Gordon’s encounters with UK-based media have been few and far between, making it inevitable that the first song discussed would be ‘Selekta.’ Released in March as one of the album’s leading singles, the track sees Gordon taking on the persona of late 90s UK Garage MC Albie Wobble from the fictitious town of Wellington Upon-Trent. While the song is undoubtedly catchy, it may initially seem like an American imitating a British accent. However, a closer look reveals it is filled with quintessential British references, including shoutouts to establishments like Greggs and Toby Carvery—references likely unfamiliar to most Americans. “
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Musician and satirist Kyle Gordon, based in New York, has been a prominent presence in the city’s comedy scene since 2014, starting his career as an