Cory Wong Brings Headlining Fall Tour to Kings Theatre in Brooklyn

Kings Theatre is excited to welcome Grammy-nominated guitarist Cory Wong on Thursday, November 7th, as part of his exclusive headlining tour this fall.

Tickets are available for pre-sale now HERE and will be on-sale to the general public starting this Friday, May 17th at 10am ET.

The tour will include featured guest guitarist Mark Lettieri of the jazz-fusion ensemble Snarky Puppy and funk group Fearless Flyers (that also features Wong). Boston outfit Couch will open all dates with their signature high energy indie-funk.

He will be hitting the road beginning on October 29th at The Pageant in St. Louis. Other notable stops on the tour include Ryman Auditorium in Nashville (October 30 & 31), The Anthem in Washington D.C. (November 6), The Met in Philadelphia (November 8), and The Salt Shed in Chicago (November 22) before concluding with a pair of shows in Wong’s hometown of Minneapolis at The Palace Theatre during the Thanksgiving holiday weekend (November 23 & 24).

In the meantime, Cory Wong is preparing for a busy summer of festivals, worldwide touring, and hosting a summer camp for musicians. In early June, Wong and his band will embark on a tour of Asia that includes a stop at the Seoul Jazz Festival in South Korea, followed by a sold-out tour of Japan and two shows in China. He’ll return to North America on June 15 for an appearance at Red Rocks in Colorado with Umphrey’s McGee.

Later in the summer, Wong will appear at Newport Jazz Festival in Newport, Rhode Island. In early August he’ll host Cory Wong’s Syncopated Summer Camp - a sold out 4-day retreat for beginner and intermediate musicians to hone their skills in groove, rhythm and pocket with a bevy of notable guests.

Wong and his band will wrap up their summer by opening for Dave Matthews Band at their annual Labor Day weekend celebration at the Gorge Amphitheater in Washington State on August 31st.

About Cory Wong:

Music motivates at the most primal level.

You instinctually hum a tune in order to get pumped up in the morning, for fuel on the treadmill, to soundtrack your commute, or as the pre-game to a big night out. As much as he treasures his roles as a guitarist, composer, and producer, Cory Wong fashions himself “a hype man,” first and foremost. Living up to this classification, he slings a Stratocaster and hurls “dad jokes” from the stage with the same panache, poise, and power.

 “For me, it’s all about the listener’s experience,” he explains. “I want them to have a visceral response like: ‘I feel better,’ ‘That was really fun,’ or ‘I got to escape for an hour.’ You’ll hear my voice through the guitar, but I’m just a hype man. To uplift audiences with instrumental music that has no singing or lyrics is a fun challenge. I’m trying to solve the riddle. If I can get one person to feel good this way, it’s a success.

Straight out of Minneapolis, Cory positioned himself as music’s answer to motivational speakers like Tony Robbins since emerging in 2011. Head-spinning rhythm guitar wizardry, technical ebullience, laugh-out-loud jokes, and radiance on stage established him as both a sought-after collaborator and celebrated solo artist alike. He lent his talents to television programs such as The Voice at the dawn of his career. After an impromptu meeting at the weekly jam hosted by Prince’s rhythm section (where the Purple One often either performed or watched), he crossed paths with Vulfpeck who welcomed him as a frequent collaborator and member of the band. Solidifying a fruitful partnership, the group named their most popular instrumental track “Cory Wong,” in tribute. Lighting up the stage in the band everywhere from Red Rocks Amphitheatre to Madison Square Garden, he remains a cornerstone of Vulfpeck’s storied gigs.

“I try to feature the guitar, but I don’t force myself into being the star of every song,” he says. “The instrument plays an appropriate role. It’s not all flash. I’m bringing rhythm to the forefront where it’s not so shreddy. I refer to it as ‘Covert chops.’ I’m doing things that are sneakily hard, but they lay in the cut. I allow the song to breathe and present myself as more of a composer rather than a guitar player.”

In the end, Cory transmits joy in its purest form through the guitar.

“The guiding light is to impart a feeling of joy,” he leaves off. “I want people to experience instrumental music in a different way. This is hype. It’s more than just guitar.”

About Kings Theatre:

The historic Kings Theatre reopened in 2015 as one of New York’s premier performing arts venues. Providing a destination for large-scale popular entertainment and serving as a resource for local arts groups and community organizations, Kings is a cultural and economic cornerstone of the Flatbush community and a major fixture to Brooklyn’s vibrant cultural landscape. The classic 20th-century movie palace was inspired by the French Renaissance Revival style of the Palace of Versailles and the Paris Opera House. With over 3,000 seats—the largest of its kind in Brooklyn, the restoration revived the historic structure’s original splendor and transformed the theatre into a state-of-the-art facility. Kings Theatre is operated by Ambassador Theatre Group. Learn more at www.kingstheatre.com

Photo credit: Galen Higgins

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