“My parents thought I was a stillborn baby –– like I wasn’t moving. Then they went to the club and walked by the speaker, and my mom said it was like ‘Aliens,’” explained Korey Kingston, drummer for political punk rockers Gogol Bordello, to the AmNews –– gesticulating towards his stomach as he sipped red wine from a Solo cup side stage at the Lena Horne Bandshell in Prospect Park. “They were like, ‘we knew then you were going to be a drummer.’”
Kingston, who cut his teeth touring with Southern California Ska outfits like The Aggrolites and Hepcat, has banged the skins for Gogol Bordello since 2021. The San Diego native was a long way from home on Aug. 2 as he geared up to play with Gogol Bordello at BRIC Celebrates Brooklyn, an annual summer festival that offers community and cultural connection through their diverse programming. “I don’t feel like I ever learned to play drums,” he told AmNews. “I just always did.”
Kingston cites his parents as major influences, exposing him to a diverse array of music at a young age. His father, Kim Horn, was a singer. “When I was a toddler, he was in a metal band,” said Kingston. “Lars [Ulrich, from Metallica] was the drummer, if you can believe it!” Horn, who was influenced by his own father’s taste in music and has recorded with his son, primarily settled into singing jazz after playing in pop and rock based wedding bands. “He would sing us these songs that his dad would sing to him,” said Kingston. “Nat King Cole, Eddie Jefferson, Lou Rawls.” However, his mother’s Puerto Rican heritage introduced Kingston to the Afro-Latino rhythms present in Salsa and other Hispanic music. “We’d go to grandpa’s house on Sundays and listen to Joe Cuba, and El Gran Combo,” he said. “I had really good culture and music around me.”
Eventually, Kingston gravitated towards ska and reggae, an interest sparked by his uncles who were “heavy” into rude-boy culture which originated on the streets of Jamaica. “When I was a teenager my uncle took me to my first ska show,” said Kingston, recalling the lineup that included So-Cal groups the Skeletones, the Specks, and Meal Ticket. “The rest is history.”
Kingston found a sense of acceptance and unity in the ska scene that was present in his Southern California social life. “I just couldn’t believe there were people there who looked like me,” he recalled. “There were Black kids, and white kids, and Hispanic kids, and I just fit right in.” Kingston dove head first into the ska scene, riding the third wave of the genre which eventually led him to punk rock. “I grew up in the suburbs of Riverside, San Diego, and because I was into ska, because I was into skateboarding, and because I was this Black Puerto Rican kid who didn’t really fit in, I hung out with the punks.”
“I hated racism because I dealt with it so much. I felt like I could just be me.”
In addition to playing with Gogol Bordello, Kingston heads The Drum Brigade, an educational community which boasts “camaraderie over competition.” Inspired by pioneering skateboard crew Bones Brigade, Drum Brigade offers a range of programming and resources including mentorship, lessons, and workshops, using positivity and inclusivity as central themes to propel the operation. “If you play drums, you are one of us,” he explained
With Gogol Bordello, Kingston plays a unique blend of punk, ska, and world music that serves as a backdrop for political resistance. At BRIC Celebrates Brooklyn, Kingston performed alongside his bandmates to hundreds of screaming fans in front of a literal political backdrop — expressing “Solidaritine,” and donning the colors of the Ukrainian flag amidst the ongoing conflict there. The NYC based group is composed of members with diverse cultural backgrounds, including players from Ecuador, Brazil and Ukraine. The diversity on stage mirrors the landscape of New York, and is reflected in the music that twists and turns through traditional European folk, Jamaican ska/dub, and New York punk rock with a dose of Latin influenced percussion. “In this band I felt immediately accepted and like what I bring to the table is what is needed here” Kingston told AmNews. “My reggae chops, my jazz chops, my funk chops, my punk chops –– that’s what this band is.
The ethos of punk rock, which is rooted in unity and acceptance, has become a prevalent part of Kingston’s work. When fans leave a Gogol Bordello performance, or students finish a session at Drum Brigade, Kingston has one goal in mind. “I want people to feel completely accepted,” he said. “I don’t want anything to hold you back from what you are trying to accomplish.”
For more info, visit drumbrigade.com