Andy McKee Bio
Andy McKee (born April 4, 1979, in Topeka, Kansas) is an American fingerstyle guitar player whose percussive technique and inventive use of alternate tunings have earned him a worldwide following. Active since 2001, he has built a catalog of six studio albums, multiple extended plays, and a live record, while his performance videos have collectively drawn hundreds of millions of views on YouTube. Beyond recording and touring, McKee has collaborated with notable artists including Don Ross and Michael Manring, contributed guitar parts to recordings by other musicians, and appeared on stage with Prince during the Welcome 2 Australia tour in 2012. He has also developed guitar workshops and online instruction, remaining an active figure in the acoustic guitar community.
Early Life and Background
Andy McKee was born on April 4, 1979, in Topeka, Kansas, where he spent his formative years. He played his first guitar, an Aria nylon-string instrument purchased by his father, at the age of 13. Although he initially found formal lessons uninspiring, he soon began teaching himself the instrument, working through shred guitar material by artists such as Metallica, Eric Johnson, and Joe Satriani.
His electric guitar-playing cousin became an early influence, taking him to a live clinic by fingerstyle guitarist Preston Reed for his sixteenth birthday. The experience redirected McKee’s interest toward acoustic playing, and he went on to study Reed’s techniques through an instructional videotape. Later that same year, with his mother’s permission, he obtained his GED in order to leave high school and devote more time to the guitar. He continued his self-directed study by drawing on the work of primarily acoustic players, including Michael Hedges, Billy McLaughlin, Pat Kirtley, and Don Ross.
Path to Fingerstyle Guitar
McKee’s early development combined heavy metal influences with the acoustic fingerstyle tradition he discovered through Preston Reed. He has described himself as a “metal freak” during childhood, even performing a Metallica song in his high school talent show, but the shift toward acoustic songwriters such as Don Ross and Michael Hedges shaped the direction of his career. Both streams of music continue to influence him, although he has remained committed to acoustic performance in his professional life.
Integral to McKee’s style is the use of alternate and open tunings, often combined with a regular capo or a banjo capo. He plays guitar, baritone guitar, and harp guitar, the last of which became a signature element after he purchased a Ron Spillers harp guitar from Stephen Bennett in 2002. These choices have helped define the percussive, melodic sound that later drew global attention to his playing.
Andy McKee Career
Early Career (2001-2005)
In 2001, McKee independently released his first album, Nocturne, a limited pressing of 1,000 copies that is now out of circulation. That same year, he placed third at the National Fingerstyle Guitar Competition in Winfield, Kansas, signaling his arrival on the instrumental guitar scene. In 2003, he toured Taiwan alongside Jacques Stotzem, Isato Nakagawa, and Masaaki Kishibe, and earned first place in the Miscellaneous Acoustic Instrument contest of the New Jersey State Fiddling and Picking Championships with his harp guitar.
McKee released his second album, Dreamcatcher, in 2004, featuring his cover of Toto’s “Africa” and a harp guitar tribute to Michael Hedges titled “The Friend I Never Met.” The title track helped him win the opportunity to perform with bassist Michael Manring, with whom he has since toured repeatedly, and he placed second at the Canadian Guitar Festival’s Fingerstyle Guitar Competition. His third album, Art of Motion, arrived on Candyrat Records in November 2005 and became the foundation of his early online exposure.
Breakthrough (2006-2010)
McKee’s career shifted dramatically when a Candyrat Records video of his song “Drifting” was promoted widely on Digg. For a period, three of his videos held the top three spots on YouTube, and he appeared by invitation on the programs Woodsongs and Last Call with Carson Daly. The exposure led to a guest guitar appearance on Josh Groban’s 2007 Christmas album, Noël, including the song “Little Drummer Boy,” and that record went on to become the best-selling CD of 2007 in the United States.
In 2007, McKee released his fourth album, The Gates of Gnomeria, which featured new songs, reissued material from Nocturne, and two cover songs. He followed it in 2008 with a collaborative album alongside Don Ross titled The Thing That Came From Somewhere, plus a split DVD with labelmate Antoine Dufour. In 2009, he released a digital Common Ground EP, and in 2010 he released the album Joyland, an album featuring a mix of original compositions and covers, including “Layover” by Michael Hedges and “Everybody Wants to Rule the World” by Tears for Fears, accompanied by a bonus DVD of documentary and performance material.
Continued Career (2012-2021)
In 2012, McKee played alongside Prince on the Welcome 2 Australia tour, performing songs including “Purple Rain,” “Sometimes It Snows in April,” and “Mountains” with Prince’s band. He also contributed to Lee Ritenour’s 2010 album 6 String Theory, a project that featured guitarists such as Steve Lukather, Slash, Neal Schon, Tal Wilkenfeld, and Mike Stern. On April 8, 2014, he released the four-song Mythmaker EP, which included his first solo piano composition, “June,” and the electric guitar piece “Lumine.”
After years of prolific international touring with artists such as Antoine Dufour, Trevor Gordon Hall, Stephen Bennett, Jon Gomm, Eric Johnson, Peppino D’Agostino, and Preston Reed, McKee released his first live album, Live Book, in March 2016. Beginning in 2020, with live touring halted during the COVID-19 pandemic, he launched weekly “McKee Mondays” livestreams on Facebook Live and offered instruction through TrueFire and private lessons. In 2021, he released Symbol, a six-track EP of cover songs led by a rendition of Michael Hedges’ “Ragamuffin,” marking his first new music since Mythmaker.
Notable Works and Milestones
McKee’s signature recordings include Nocturne (2001), Dreamcatcher (2004), Art of Motion (2005), The Gates of Gnomeria (2007), and Joyland (2010). His role on Josh Groban’s Grammy-nominated Noël helped bring fingerstyle guitar to mainstream audiences, while his viral YouTube videos redefined how independent acoustic guitarists could reach global listeners. The 2012 collaboration with Prince remains one of the most prominent live moments of his performing career.
Andy McKee Award Nominations
As an instrumental artist working primarily outside traditional award categories, Andy McKee’s most notable nomination connection is his guitar contribution to Josh Groban’s 2007 Christmas album, Noël, which received Grammy nominations. No comprehensive list of personal award nominations for McKee is verifiable from the available sources.
Andy McKee Awards Won
Andy McKee earned first place in the Miscellaneous Acoustic Instrument contest at the New Jersey State Fiddling and Picking Championships in 2003, performing on a Ron Spillers harp guitar. No additional personal award wins are verifiable from the available sources.
Personal Life
Andy McKee has been based in the United States throughout his career and has long identified with his hometown of Topeka, Kansas, which he has frequently referenced in interviews and song titles. The 2010 album Joyland was inspired in part by Topeka’s former Boyle’s Joyland amusement park. Beyond his dedication to guitar instruction through TrueFire, his workshop series “Andy McKee’s Musicarium,” and other educational projects, public details about his personal life remain limited.