Kansas
Kansas Biography
With a legendary career spanning five decades, KANSAS has firmly established itself as one of America’s iconic classic rock bands. This "garage band" from Topeka released their debut album in 1974 after being discovered by Wally Gold, who worked for Don Kirshner, and have gone on to sell more than 30 million albums worldwide.
Composing a catalogue that includes sixteen studio albums and five live albums, KANSAS has produced eight gold albums, three sextuple-Platinum albums (Leftoverture, Point of Know Return, Best of KANSAS), one platinum live album (Two for the Show), one quadruple-Platinum single ‘Carry On Wayward Son,’ and another triple-Platinum single ‘Dust in the Wind.’ KANSAS appeared on the Billboard charts for over 200 weeks throughout the ‘70's and ‘80's and played to sold-out arenas and stadiums throughout North America, Europe and Japan. ‘Carry On Wayward Son’ continues to be one of the top five most played songs on classic rock radio, and ‘Dust In the Wind’ has been played on the radio more than three million times!
The summer of 2020 marked the release of “The Absence of Presence,” KANSAS’s sixteenth studio album, which debuted at #10 on Billboard’s Top Current Albums chart. The wide-ranging progressive rock album, released by InsideOut Music, follows-up 2016’s “The Prelude Implicit,” which debuted at #14 on Billboard’s Top 200 Albums chart.
Throughout 2016-2022, the band celebrated the anniversaries of multi-Platinum breakout albums “Leftoverture” and “Point of Know Return” with anniversary tours for both albums. Both tours were commemorated with live album releases “Leftoverture Live & Beyond” (2017) & “Point of Know Return Live & Beyond” (2021).
The band is currently comprised of original drummer Phil Ehart, bassist/vocalist Billy Greer, vocalist/keyboardist Ronnie Platt, keyboardist/vocalist Tom Brislin, violinist/guitarist Joe Deninzon, and original guitarist Richard Williams. With no signs of slowing down, KANSAS continues to perform in front of large and enthusiastic audiences.
Along with constant touring, KANSAS continues to remain a fixture of Classic Rock radio and popular culture. The band continues to reach a whole new audience through their unmistakable presence in various commercials, live sports broadcasts, popular video games Rock Band, Guitar Hero, and Grand Theft Auto; the band’s documentary film “KANSAS: Miracles Out of Nowhere,” and a guest appearance on The CW’s television show ‘Walker.’ The band’s songs have also been included in various television shows such as ‘Supernatural,’ ‘Reacher,’ ‘All Elite Wrestling,’ ‘South Park,’ ‘The Office,’ and ‘The Simpsons;’ as well as blockbuster films including ‘Old School,’ ‘The Suicide Squad,’ ‘Anchorman,’ ‘Pitch Perfect,’ and ‘Happy Gilmore.'
