R.D. King is an award-winning fingerstyle guitarist, composer, and music educator. Following a tumultuous childhood, King confronts the anxiety and alienation of modern life by seeking deeper meaning, beauty, and connection through instrumental music.

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His compositional prowess has earned him numerous awards and accolades, including back-to-back Outstanding Achievement in Songwriting Awards in the 2023 and 2024 Great American Songwriting Contest, placing as a finalist in the 2023 International Acoustic Music Awards, and winning the 2018 Walnut Valley Festival's NewSong Showcase (Instrumental Category). 

 

A captivating and energetic performer, King blends guitar pyrotechnics with cinematic and evocative music. King is a TEDx Cambridge performer, the winner of the 2017 Canadian Guitar Festival’s International Fingerstyle Guitar Competition, and a finalist of the 2019 Walnut Valley Festival's International Fingerstyle Guitar Competition. He has opened for Grammy-nominated Ari Hest, Andy McKee, Liz Longley, and many others.

 

Inspired by literature, philosophy, art, and meditation, King’s pursuit of music is his deepest source of personal growth. He hopes to inspire listeners in their own journeys towards empathy, love, and self-actualization. 

R.D. King resides in Boston, MA, where he performs, is an associate lecturer at UMass Boston, and explores the evolution of consciousness through sound.