Kevin Elijah Burgess (born July 21, 1988), better known by his stage name KB, is an American Christian hip hop artist and music executive from St. Petersburg, Florida. He is the leader of the hip-hop group HGA (His Glory Alone). Burgess signed a solo artist contract with Reach Records in 2010. The label has released several projects, including the Who Is KB? mixtape in 2011, Weight & Glory, on July 17, 2012, 100 EP on March 4, 2014, Tomorrow We Live on April 21, 2015, and Today We Rebel on October 20, 2017. He was formerly a member of the label collective formerly 116 clique shortened to 116.
He left Reach Records in 2020 and signed with Essential Sound, releasing his fourth studio album, His Glory Alone in 2020 as well as its sequel His Glory Alone II in 2023.
Kevin Elijah Burgess was born in St. Petersburg, Florida, on July 21, 1988,[1] into a military family.[2] Shortly after his birth, his parents moved to Southern Illinois. When he was eight years old, his parents divorced, and he moved back with his mother to the south side of St. Petersburg, which, according to Burgess, is "probably one of the worst areas in the state."[2] Although he excelled at a good school and was offered a path to college through a program at St. Petersburg Collegiate High School, he struggled with severe depression. He experimented with various drugs in an attempt to find relief,[2] which negatively affected his performance at school and led him into a downward spiral, even contemplating suicide.[2][3]
After high school, Burgess enrolled in Bible college, where he befriended a group of Christian rappers. They formed a hip-hop group called HGA, short for His Glory Alone.[2][3] HGA eventually caught the interest of Lecrae, Ben Washer, and DJ Official,[3] and was featured alongside Tedashii on the track "Go" from DJ Official's album Intermission.[4][5] Burgess was invited onto the Acquire the Fire tour by Lecrae and was asked to join the Reach Records team just a few months later.[3]
Burgess signed with Reach Records in 2010 and appeared that year on Lecrae's album Rehab.[6] His mixtape Who Is KB? followed a year later, along with appearances with PRo and Tedashii.[6][7][8][9] Who Is KB? garnered 30,000 downloads by the following year.[6] His first single, "Hello," featuring Suzy Rock, was released in October 2011.[10] In January 2012, he released a second single, "Zone Out," featuring Chris Lee Cobbins.[11] Burgess also appeared with Andy Mineo on Trip Lee's album The Good Life.[6] In June 2012, he released a third single, "Go Off," featuring Tedashii and Andy Mineo.[12] Burgess's debut album, Weight & Glory, was released a month later and featured the song "Church Clap" featuring Lecrae, his only RIAA certified song.[13][14]
On May 30, 2013, Reach Records announced a four-part project entitled 1st and 16th. This project involved Burgess releasing a new song on the first and sixteenth of June and July. On June 1, Part 1, "HCB Freestyle," was released.[15] The songs "Ride" and "Be All Right" were also part of the 1st and 16th project.
On February 10, 2014, KB announced his new project, an EP titled 100, which was released on March 4, 2014.[16] Burgess also appeared in Family Force 5's music video for the song "BZRK," released on May 23, 2014, as a featured artist.[17]
On February 3, 2015, KB announced on social media his second studio album, Tomorrow We Live, including the cover and release date, which was set for April 21, 2015.[18] The first single from the album, "Sideways," featuring Lecrae, was released on February 23, 2015.[19] The second single, "Crowns & Thorns (Oceans)," was released on March 10, 2015.[20]
On October 20, 2017, KB released his third studio album, Today We Rebel.[21] The first single from the album, "Tempo," was released a year prior to the album's release.[22] The second single, "Monster," featuring Aha Gazelle, was released on September 15, 2017.[23]
In 2020, he announced that he would not be renewing his contract with Reach Records and instead signed with Essential Sound, a Sony Music imprint.[24]
KB released three singles—"Armies," "10K," and "Lil Boy"—from his fourth studio album, His Glory Alone. The album was released on September 25, 2020.[25]
On August 11, 2023, KB released his fifth studio album, His Glory Alone II. The album was preceded by five singles: "King Jesus" with nobigdyl., "Graves" with Brandon Lake, "EZ," "Glory 2 Glory," and "Danza." It was followed by a deluxe edition featuring five new tracks.
| Year | Title | Chart positions | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US [29] |
US Gospel [30] |
US Christ. [31] |
US Indie [32] |
US Rap [33] | ||
| 2012 | Weight & Glory
|
34 | 1 | 1 | 9 | 4 |
| 2015 | Tomorrow We Live
|
18 | — | 1 | 2 | 4 |
| 2017 | Today We Rebel
|
91 | — | 1 | 8 | — |
| 2020 | His Glory Alone
|
— | — | 4 | — | — |
| 2023 | His Glory Alone II
|
— | — | 4 | — | — |
| "—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory. | ||||||
| Note: Beginning in 2015, Billboard rendered most hip hop/rap songs ineligible for the Gospel charts | ||||||
| Year | Title | Chart positions | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| U.S. Gospel | U.S. Christ. | |||||||||||||
| 2011 | Man Up (with 116 Clique)
|
— | — | |||||||||||
| "—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory. | ||||||||||||||
| Year | Title | Chart positions | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US | US Gospel | US Christ. | US Ind. | US Rap | ||||||||||
| 2014 | 100
|
22 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 4 | ||||||||
| "—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory. | ||||||||||||||
| Year | Title |
|---|---|
| 2011 | Who Is KB?
|
| Year | Title | Publisher |
|---|---|---|
| 2013 | 1st & 16th | Reach |
| Year | Title | Chart positions | Album | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Christ.[35] |
US Gospel[35] | |||
| 2011 | "Hello" (featuring Suzy Rock) | — | — | Weight & Glory |
| 2012 | "Zone Out" (featuring Chris Lee Cobbins) | — | — | |
| "Go Off" (featuring Tedashii & Andy Mineo) | — | — | ||
| 2014 | "100" (featuring Andy Mineo) | 31 | 18 | 100 |
| 2015 | "Sideways" (featuring Lecrae) | 29 | — | Tomorrow We Live |
| "Crowns & Thorns (Oceans)" | 31 | — | ||
| "Ima Just Do It" (featuring Bubba Watson) | 37 | — | ||
| 2016 | "Tempo" | 48 | — | Today We Rebel |
| 2017 | "HomeTeam" (featuring Lecrae) | — | — | non-album single |
| "Monster" (featuring Aha Gazelle) | 39 | — | Today We Rebel | |
| 2018 | "No Chains" | 30 | — | non-album single |
| "Long Live the Champion" (featuring Yariel and GabrielRodriguezEMC) | — | — | ||
| "Die Rich" (featuring Ray Emmanuel) | — | — | ||
| 2019 | "DNOU2"[36] | — | — | |
| "Hold Me Back" | 29 | — | ||
| "Lincoln" | 43 | — | ||
| 2020 | "Armies" | 28 | — | His Glory Alone |
| "10K" | 30 | — | ||
| "Lil Boy" | 41 | — | ||
| 2021 | "Worship In The Moshpit" | — | — | non-album single |
| 2022 | "King Jesus" (featuring nobigdyl.) | — | — | His Glory Alone II |
| "Graves" | 33 | — | ||
| 2023 | "EZ" | 31 | — | |
| "Glory 2 Glory" | — | — | ||
| "Danza" (featuring Nico Eme, Cardec Drums.) | — | — | ||
| 2025 | "God Did" (with Rua Young) |
— | — | Non-album singles |
| "—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory. | ||||
| Note: Beginning in 2015, Billboard rendered most hip hop/rap songs ineligible for the Gospel charts | ||||
| Year | Title | Chart positions | Album | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hot Christian Songs [35] | ||||||||||||||
| 2011 | "116" (PRo featuring KB) |
— | non-album single | |||||||||||
| 2013 | "Passing" (Json featuring Serge and KB) |
— | Braille | |||||||||||
| 2013 | "All In" (Flame featuring KB) |
— | Royal Flush | |||||||||||
| 2014 | "BZRK"
(Family Force 5 featuring KB) |
34 | Time Stand Still | |||||||||||
| 2015 | "Northern Sky" (Capital Kings feat. KB) |
— | II | |||||||||||
| 2017 | "O God Forgive Us" (For King & Country featuring KB) |
14 | Run Wild. Live Free. Love Strong. | |||||||||||
| 2020 | "Smoke Free" (Bizzle) |
— | The Messenger 4 | |||||||||||
| 2021 | "Can't Tell It All (Remix)" (Hulvey feat. KB & Lecrae ) |
— | non-album single | |||||||||||
| "—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory. | ||||||||||||||
| Year | Title | Chart positions | Certifications | Album | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Christ. [35] |
US Gospel [35] | ||||||||||||||
| 2012 | "Church Clap" (featuring Lecrae) | — | — | Weight & Glory | |||||||||||
| 2013 | "The Saints" (Andy Mineo featuring KB & Trip Lee) | 44 | 18 | Heroes for Sale | |||||||||||
| 2014 | "Paganini" (Andy Mineo featuring KB & Canon) | 46 | 21 | Never Land | |||||||||||
| "Undefeated" (featuring Derek Minor) | 39 | 21 | 100 | ||||||||||||
| "Earthquake" (Tedashii featuring Dimitri McDowell & KB) | — | 22 | Below Paradise (Deluxe Edition) | ||||||||||||
| 2015 | "I Believe" (featuring Mattie) | 38 | — | Tomorrow We Live | |||||||||||
| 2017 | "DNOU" | 45 | — | Today We Rebel | |||||||||||
| "Not Today Satan" (featuring Andy Mineo) | 32 | — | |||||||||||||
| "—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory. | |||||||||||||||
| Title | Year | Other performer(s) | Album |
|---|---|---|---|
| "Used to Do It Too" | 2010 | Lecrae | Rehab |
| "Full Court Mess" | 2011 | Pro | Dying to Live |
| "Young" | Andy Mineo | Formerly Known | |
| "You Know What it Is" | Tedashii, PK | Blacklight | |
| "One Sixteen" | 2012 | Trip Lee, Andy Mineo | The Good Life |
| "Fuego" | Lecrae, Suzy Rock | Gravity (iTunes edition) | |
| "The Saints Remix" | Black Knight, Andy Mineo, Trip Lee | #ItsTheBlackKnight Beat Tape | |
| "King of the World" | 2014 | Flame, V.Rose, Mike Real, Nico Wells | Jesus or Nothing |
| "For Those Who Can't Speak" | Tenth Avenue North, Derek Minor | Cathedrals | |
| "I Wouldn't Know" | 2016 | Lecrae | Church Clothes 3 |
| "Prove It" | Crowder | American Prodigal | |
| "Back Soon" | 2021 | 1K Phew, Parris Chariz | What's Understood |
| "Blessed" | JStu, Hyper Fenton | Summer's Back |
| Title | Year | Director | Views |
|---|---|---|---|
| "Zone Out" (featuring Chris Lee Cobbins)[38] | 2012 | — | 3.1M |
| "HCB Freestyle"[39] | 2013 | Will Thomas | 576K |
| "Heart Song" (featuring Jasmine Leshea)[40] | — | 610K | |
| "100" (featuring Andy Mineo)[41] | 2014 | Squint | 5.9M |
| "Kamikaze" (featuring Prisca)[42] | — | 1.3M | |
| "Sideways" (featuring Lecrae)[43] | 2015 | Kyle Dettman | 8.7M |
| "Drowning"[44] | 2016 | Sam Brave | 2M |
| "Tempo"[45] | — | 2.6M | |
| "DNOU"[46] | 2017 | Sam Brave | 1.7M |
| "Not Today Satan" (featuring Andy Mineo)[47] | 2018 | Nathan Corrona | 3.2M |
| "No Chains"[48] | — | 16M | |
| "Long Live The Champions" (featuring Yariel, GabrielRodriguezEMC)[49] | Juan Garcia | 9.1M | |
| "Die Rich" (featuring Ray Emmanuel)[50] | — | 1.8M | |
| "Hold Me Back"[51] | 2019 | — | 5.2M |
| "10k"[52] | 2020 | Juan Garcia | 10M |
| "Lil Boy"[53] | — | 1.3M | |
| "Dark Skin" [54] | 2021 | — | 198K |
| "Libre" (featuring Tommy Royale)[55] | — | 1.8M | |
| "Masterpiece" [56] | — | 1M | |
| "This Is Life" [57] | — | 1.1M | |
| "Worship In The Moshpit"[58] | — | 1.4M | |
| "So Tired"[59] | — | 554K | |
| "King Jesus" (featuring nobigdyl)[60] | 2022 | — | 3.7M |
| "Graves" (featuring Brandon Lake)[61] | Joan Garcia | 1.9M | |
| "Graves - Acoustic" (featuring Brandon Lake)[62] | — | 523K | |
| "EZ" [63] | 2023 | — | 1M |
| "Glory 2 Glory" [64] | — | 1.9M | |
| "Danza" (featuring Nico Eme, Cardec Drums)[65] | — | 2.2M | |
| "Miracles" (featuring Lecrae)[66] | — | 3.4M | |
| "It Ain't Safe" [67] | 2024 | — | 328K |
| "Friends" (featuring Ty Brasel)[68] | — | 82K |
| Title | Year | Director |
|---|---|---|
| "Young" (Andy Mineo featuring KB) | 2012 | Kyle Dettman |
| "One Sixteen" (Trip Lee featuring KB and Andy Mineo) | 2012 | — |
| "BZRK"[17] (Family Force 5 featuring KB) | 2014 | Ryan Hamblin |
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| Artists | |
| Other | |
