From an early age, Kory Burns was poised for great things, at the hand of legendary blues icon Betty Wright.
With other influences ranging from Trina to TLC, Burns catalog has strong elements of dance and R&B, with a sprinkling of South Florida magic. This artist might have taken the stage with Grammy winners like DJ Tracy Young for Miami Pride in the past, but his brand-new remix to “All Night Long” is one of his most revealing and personal releases yet. I sat down to chat with Burns about his music, his biggest musical influences, and why openly discussing his bisexuality is one of his biggest superpowers.
Right off the bat, it’s a stroke of brilliance that the dynamic and legendary Betty Wright discovered you. Tell me about that.
I was working at my uncle’s Christmas tree lot down in Miami and it was my Junior year and I did not want to be there, I wanted to be out partying with all of my friends. My mom said, “You never know is going to come true” and I knew that was the biggest thing; the tree lot was going to be where somebody found me. I made sure that I was dressed to the nines and little did I know, Betty Wright comes walking in. My uncle said, “Betty Wright’s here” and my mother instantly said, “Where is she?” My mother went over and they said hi, Betty had known my mother since she was 7 and Betty knew the family, but I didn’t know anything about her. Betty went ahead and agreed to take a listen of me for my mother and then she started training me and released my first single on her record label, and we started working from there.
What is one thing that you learned from a legend like Betty Wright about the music industry while working with her?
Nothing is as it seems. And it takes a lot of work, it is not what everyone thinks, and there are a lot of behind the scenes parts that one must do to get to wherever they want to be.
Your new music is very bold and has a great message, tell me about “All Night Long.”
“All Night Long” is definitely very different, I have always used gender-neutral language throughout all of my songs. I always wanted everything to be universal and everyone could sing my songs. Growing up, all the songs were either “boy this” or “girl that” so we went a different route with mine. With this song, I needed to do something different, I was so bored with everything I was hearing in music. Everyone is all about everyone being authentic, so “All Night Long” is the song that came to me. I had to get into the studio, write this song and see what happens.
When you finished “All Night Long” officially, were you able to exhale officially, or were you still nervous about the vulnerability you showed on the record?
For me, I never really talked about it because I always knew that I would do it through music, I didn’t want to just do it for people to just start talking. When I bought it to the studio and I brought it to my producers and writers, there was not even a blink. I was ready for kickback of some sort, but they jumped right on board. They helped me with all of my music and they came from Betty’s class with me also, we were all in a writing school together. They’ve had multiple number one hits and a Grammy nomination, so for them to be on board with me without even blinking, was the validation that I didn’t even know that I needed. To have it, that was it. My family and the close people around me, the knew my truth.
I didn’t really care what everybody was going to say, I just knew that this was something that I needed to do for me and I was excited to see what it was going to prosper into.
We don’t hear a great deal about bisexuality with musical artists. What is it like for you putting your own sexuality out in front and what has the response been?
Anyone who has ever met me or heard this song has said, “Well, that makes sense.” I was a club promoter and the question was always “Is Kory this or that?” Now that it’s “this” and it’s bisexuality, that makes sense. I can go up to the guy and girls and dance and not feel any type of way or worry about anyone writing or saying anything, and if you don’t like it, oh well.
What is it like dating as a bisexual person in today’s America?
I’m very picky, I don’t have a type, but I am very picky in life with everything. It’s just long as you find someone who can understand it and it doesn’t freak them out and you can give them the reassurance that you don’t have to worry about them cheating on you with anyone. I think [it’s important] that someone can make me happy and understand where I am coming from.
You grew up and discovered musical style in Florida. How has being a native Floridian informed you as an artist?
My biggest musical inspiration was the nineties, and the biggest thing was Mariah [Carey]. Being down here in South Florida, I got into R&B and hip hop music really young, and we have some of the greatest rappers and hip hop music down here and I was so influenced by that. I think the early ‘90s singers in Atlanta, the TLC, the Usher, those kinds of people mixed with Miami style and being brought up by Betty Wright, it all kind of coincided and came together as one. I think if you listen to my music, you can hear aspects of this or that artist and the influences.
As a member of the LGBTQ community, you are in a unique space being in Florida, which is politically polarizing right now. What is that like for you?
It is definitely different (laughs). I feel like I am a chameleon in so many different ways and no matter where I go, I figure out how I am supposed to fit in and I think that works for me.
When you are letting loose in Florida and hitting the nightlife, where will you go?
Sometimes I’ll go to Miami, I was a big club promoter in West Palm Beach. I did that for quite some time and had a lot of fun. When West Palm was really popping up in the last eight years before COVID, it was a whole different entity. We would go to Miami at three or four in the morning and go to E11EVEN or go to Space and we had tons of friends that worked at those places. Going out in West Palm and Delray, it just is different vibes and it depends on your mood and the type of people you want to be around and what you want to be around.
What artists that have influenced you are some of the bigger influences on your career?
Obviously, Mariah and the TLC. For rappers would be Miami rapper Trina, who I don’t think gets enough credit. Trina, Trick Daddy, Juvenile, those three right there were so big when I was growing up. I remember buying their first albums and it was incredible being 10 or 11 blasting those kinds of songs, but something was so empowering with those artists. It helped shape me an artist, I think it was the realness and the rawness. I think it was because they came from the same area my family came from and grew up in, the same exact neighborhood, actually. To hear how they came up and got out of it, to watch them work and watch their careers, for me at such a young age, it caught my attention.
What does summer look like for you?
I have a new remix coming out, being in South Florida love dance music as well. We have all these dance clubs and incorporating that is going to be a lot of fun. Wherever I can get on stage, I am going to. I love to do dance remixes for all of my songs so now I have a bigger show and a bigger message. I think it’s going to be fun to get out there and perform.
It would be amazing to see you partner up with some really amazing remixers out there.
Tracy Young actually did a remix to my last song, “Sex in Miami!” She did a great remix for me and I got to perform it with her at Miami Pride, it was my biggest show yet! It was incredible. Tracy does not work with a lot of men, so to perform with her on stage was incredible. It was so much fun!
Speaking of men in dance music as a whole, what do you think it takes for a male artist to break through in dance music?
I think natural raw talent. I think being able to sing, even if you use filters and auto-tune, to just have the gift of being able to hit a note. I think having good music and writing, that is what these remixers want to look for.
Follow Kory Burns on Instagram @koryburns
