Kayla Kent is an American guitarist and YouTuber known for her covers of Dimebag Darrell guitar solos. She first came to wider attention after being featured in Guitar World in early 2022, and is predominantly associated with her Kramer JK8000 and Kapybara model guitars.[1][2][3]
Kayla Kent | |
|---|---|
 Kayla in 2022 | |
| Background information | |
| Genres | groove metal, thrash metal |
| Occupations | Musician, songwriter, YouTuber |
| Instruments | Guitar, bass |
| Years active | 2020–present |
| Website | kaylakent |
Following her rise in popularity, she was revealed to have been considered as a potential replacement guitarist for Pantera following the death of Dimebag Darrell, with Phil Anselmo disclosing this to her at a Pantera concert in Austin, TX in 2023.[4][5][6][7]
Kent maintains a YouTube channel under her own name, where she began posting videos in late 2020.
Influences
editWhile Kent is well known to accredit Dimebag Darrell as her single biggest guitar influence, she lists Ty Tabor, Joe Satriani, and Alex Lifeson as her biggest secondary influences.[8]
She is known to cover a select few other guitar players on her channel other than Dimebag Darrell - such as leads from Eddie Van Halen and Jake E Lee.[9]
Discography
editEven though Kent is known for her Heavy Metal playing style, she has released several singles under her own name which she described as "more indie rock than metal" to Guitar World.[8]
| Year | Band | Title | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | Kayla Kent | Silly Insults | Single |
| 2019 | Kayla Kent | All For Nothing | Single |
| 2021 | Kayla Kent | a (cute) stress disorder | Single |
| 2021 | Kayla Kent | cauliflower crust | Single |
| 2021 | Kayla Kent | Halloween | Single |
| 2021 | Kayla Kent | Fractured Soul | Single |
| 2021 | Kayla Kent | How Nice | Single |
| 2022 | Kayla Kent | Chaos Reigns | Single |
| 2023 | Otu | Believe (In the style of Pantera) (feat. Kayla Kent) | Otu album featuring her solo on this track. |
| 2025 | Kayla Kent | Smoke This | Single |
| 2025 | Kayla Kent | Lost and Found | Single |
Gear
edit
Kent is only known to play her Kramer JK8000, as it is the only Kramer Guitars model that has ever been officially made with a star body and a reverse hockey stick headstock.[8][10] She has gone on record of turning down several other guitar manufacturers that offered her free guitars and exclusivity clauses, in order to keep playing her JK8000.[10]
After explaining this to a forum dedicated to Kramer Guitars, the forum collectively decided to build her a backup guitar identical to her JK8000. She named the guitar the Kramer Kapybara.[10]
Kent has only ever been seen using a Johnson Millenium amplifier. She credits receiving a USB audio interface for Christmas 2019 from her father for enabling her to practice more and learn Dimebag Darrell solos.[8]
New Band
editIn February of 2025, Kent released a video on her YouTube channel featuring a demo she had recorded with her band. The demo was entitled "Big Groovy". Guitar World reported her intent behind releasing the demo prematurely without vocals was to seek a singer.[11][9]
The Demo was met with favorable reception, with Guitar World stating:
"It sounds like an unreleased cut from Reinventing The Steel [Pantera], full of sleek turns, chunky power chord riffs, and squealing licks." - Phil Weller Guitar World, February 2025[11]
Kent stated that she was looking for an aggressive male vocalist who "fits the same vibe that we do". While also stating that she isn't looking to tour right away with only gigs here and there.[11]
References
edit- ↑ Roche, Sam (20 January 2022). "Meet Kayla Kent, the YouTuber channeling the spirit of Dimebag Darrell with her eerily accurate Pantera covers". guitarworld.
- ↑ Weller, Phil (30 September 2024). ""If the company won't step up, the forums will": After she was revealed as a potential Pantera guitarist, Kramer offered Kayla Kent a guitar – but when it turned down her ideas, a Kramer fan group built it instead". guitarworld.
- ↑ Trapp, Philip (2 March 2022). "Guitarist's Scary Accurate Pantera Solos Are Taking YouTube to a New Level". Loudwire.
- ↑ Owen, Matt (29 August 2023). "She started out posting scary-accurate Pantera covers that saw her hailed as the guitar reincarnation of Dimebag Darrell – then Kayla Kent found herself in the running to be the band's new guitarist". guitarworld.
- ↑ Keenan, Hesher (30 August 2023). "Phil Anselmo Told YouTuber Kayla Kent She Was Considered as Potential Pantera Guitarist". MetalSucks.
- ↑ Kennelty, Greg (30 August 2023). "PANTERA Considered YouTuber KAYLA KENT As Their New Guitarist". Metal Injection.
- ↑ Childers, Chad (30 August 2023). "YouTube Star Was 'On the List' for Potential Pantera Guitarist". Loudwire.
- 1 2 3 4 Roche, Sam (20 January 2022). "Meet Kayla Kent, the YouTuber channeling the spirit of Dimebag Darrell with her eerily accurate Pantera covers". guitarworld.
- 1 2 Weller, Phil (7 April 2025). """I think Pantera might've talked about this in Hot and Heavy": Kayla Kent nails Eddie Van Halen's Ice Cream Man solo in the style of Dimebag Darrell". guitarworld.
- 1 2 3 Weller, Phil (30 September 2024). ""If the company won't step up, the forums will": After she was revealed as a potential Pantera guitarist, Kramer offered Kayla Kent a guitar – but when it turned down her ideas, a Kramer fan group built it instead". guitarworld.
- 1 2 3 Weller, Phil (11 February 2025). ""I really don't want to do this this way, but I pretty much have no choice now": The jury's out on new Pantera material, but Dimebag Darrell-channeling shredder Kayla Kent is making the next-best thing – all she needs is a singer". guitarworld.