The actor Kevin Bacon is also known as an accomplished singer and musician, but can he rap?
It does not seem that Kevin Bacon is able to rap, although he does sing as part of the successful music duo The Bacon Brothers. Despite not being able to rap himself, Bacon is referenced in a number of rap songs and other pop culture sources.
Read more about Bacon’s music career and pop culture references.
Kevin Bacon’s music career
Kevin Bacon grew up with five older siblings in a very creative household. In an interview with WGN News, Kevin’s older brother, Michael, explained that their parents “valued creativity above everything else” and encouraged the Bacon children to take up hobbies in the arts.
Kevin Bacon revealed in an interview with the San Diego Union-Tribune that he was very interested in music as a child and played percussion in a number of bands, one of which was coincidentally named Footloose. However, he explained “it was kind of assumed that, since Michael was a musician, I should probably do something else”.
Although Kevin Bacon eventually chose to pursue a career in acting rather than in music, he and his brother, Michael, have performed as the musical duo The Bacon Brothers since 1995.
The Bacon Brothers first performed at a one-off charity event at the Theatre of Living Arts in their hometown of Philadelphia. Initially, they had no plans to continue performing together after this event, but have since performed an average of over 50 times a year.
The pair describe their genre of music as a mix of folk, rock, soul and country. This description inspired the name of their first album, Forosoco, which was released in 1997.
In total, The Bacon Brothers have released seven studio albums. They have also performed on countless radio, TV and web programs and have embarked on a number of North American and European tours.
Watch Kevin and Michael Bacon talk about The Bacon Brothers in the below YouTube Video.
Kevin Bacon in Pop Culture
Having appeared in over 70 films and 20 television shows, it is safe to say that Kevin Bacon is a household name. This has resulted in him being referenced repeatedly in pop culture sources including films, songs and even games.
In 2012, the rapper Jarren Benton released a mixtape entitled “Freebasing with Kevin Bacon”. In the first track, “Freebasing”, Benton raps “My favorite actor? Oh that’s easy, Kevin Bacon, obviously. His best movie is, probably a tie… between all of ’em!”
In 2018, the rapper Future released the track “My Peak” in collaboration with Chance the Rapper and King Louie. The lyrics of this track, “Been dancing round the town like I was Kevin Bacon”, reference Bacon’s role in the iconic film Footloose.
Kevin Bacon’s role in Footloose is also referenced multiple times in the Guardians of the Galaxy films by the character Peter Quill. He was abducted from earth as a child in 1988, only four years after the release of Footloose.
The popular game “Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon” was created based on the idea that any Hollywood actor can be linked via their film roles to Kevin Bacon in six steps or less, given Bacon’s prolific acting career.
Bacon has revealed that he initially hated the game, saying “I wasn’t in the headspace to take it as flattery,” and “I kind of felt like it was a joke at my expense, you know”. However, the game seems to have grown on him over time and he now thinks “It’s a beautiful concept that we are connected.”
Kevin Wrapping
Although Kevin Bacon appears to prefer singing to rapping, he does enjoy a spot of wrapping, which you can see in the below YouTube video as part of AOL’s You’ve Got campaign.