They say no one is really from Los Angeles. Instead, the City of Angels is the product of all the places its pilgrims have left behind, and the sum of all the ghosts who’ve come along for the ride. In a Mecca of dreams made manifest, and the dreamers who bring them to life, it is precisely this amalgamation of individual and collective histories and cultures that gives birth to the city’s unique tapestry of art and music.

It is fitting, then, that like Jim Morrison and countless others before him, Venice is the adopted home and creative backdrop for singer-songwriter Joe Con. A native of central Kentucky, Con blends soulful Southern swagger, sun-drenched, sandy ocean blues, and street savvy hip hop to create a potent brew of musical flavors. His songs range from raucous to reflective, sincere to sardonic. Acoustic and electric guitars interwoven with raw beats move seamlessly beneath waves of melodic poetry, like amplified lullabies sung by the lovechild of Leonard Cohen and Mos Def.

Citing influences as diverse as Woody Guthrie and Wu Tang Clan, the young balladeer draws as much artistic inspiration from Kerouac and Rimbaud as he does from Hendrix and Howling Wolf. Mr. Con is a 21st century troubadour in the truest sense.  Painting with rich sounds and words his trials and tribulations, Joe Con welcomes his listeners into a bright, visceral world filled with the fresh promise of triumph over tragedy, all the while reinventing the blues to the beat of LA.

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