Written by Billy Barner of King Kom Beaux
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Dear friends and fans,
After eleven fantastic years of great music, King Kom Beaux has reached the end of the road. It’s been a phenomenal ride! Saturday, July 19th, 2025, was the final performance of this truly unique, talented, and crowd-pleasing band. Originally formed in 2014 by Billy Barner and designed around the Louisiana Bayou guitar stylings and superb guitar playing of Louisiana native Doug Kearney, King Kom Beaux has now disbanded in July 2025.
Billy’s first goal with King Kom Beaux was to enter and win the trip to Memphis, Tennessee to the International Blues Challenge through the SSBA competition. As it turned out, one of the four original members could not compete due to the onset of illness. In spite of this, King Kom Beaux entered and won the SSBA competition as a trio. With one man short, the first King Kom Beaux goal was achieved by winning the July 4th, 2015, SSBA Back to Beale Street competition and 2015 IBC. The 2015 IBC was scheduled for January 2016. King Kom Beaux Trio competed at the International Blues Challenge advancing into the Semifinals while competing against 288 of the Best Blues Band Competitors from around the world.
King Kom Beaux went through several personnel changes over these past eleven years. Each person that played in King Kom Beaux was masterfully entertaining at performing and top notch at playing their instruments. At nearly every performance (regardless of the size) we heard people say, “King Kom Beaux should be touring on the concert circuit… You’re too good to be playing small local clubs.” We were flattered by these comments, and we would have loved to have been doing that, but every club, large or small, local or away, was considered a great opportunity for us to bring our music to the friends and fans we love.
This was a more than amicable disbanding. Our lives take each of us in unforeseen directions, and that’s a good thing if it’s looked at the right way, in a positive light. Each member of King Kom Beaux loved this band and each other totally right up to the end. That love was shared every time we played our music together and when we were just hanging out together. It’s often said, “For every door that closes, other doors open.” I believe that and I truly believe that all the original, interim and final members of King Kom Beaux are destined to take full advantage of all the opportunities awaiting us beyond those doors. And we are inspired to do even greater and more rewarding endeavors in our lives as we continue to set new goals in life.
Thank you all, from the bottom of my (our) heart (s), for your loyalty, love and support these past eleven years. God bless each and every one of you. See you again somewhere on down the music paved path of this life. God’s blessing and our love always. |
Billy Barner