Kai Scott

Kai Scott is a 20 year old South African singer-songwriter based in Cape Town. While he has been writing music in various styles since he started playing the guitar at age 10 and the piano at 12, he now primarily writes and performs folk music. Emerging at open mics around Cape Town in late 2024, his unique songwriting style -influenced by figures like Bob Dylan, Paul Simon and Syd Barrett as well as composers like Hailu Mergia and John Fahey- has attracted the attention of those who have encountered it, resulting in his debut full-length performance at the House of Machines in January 2025, and subsequently an appearance at Up The Creek Festival in February 2025. Since then he has continued to play in various venues around Cape Town. Though he didn’t start performing publicly until late 2024, he has been recording and self-releasing music since he was 14, beginning to release some of his first folk singles in 2024. One of these singles, House Down By The Beach, has a music video and has seen radio play. His self-titled folk debut album is set to come out on 1 June 2025.

While Scott’s songwriting takes an old style of folk music, he brings it into the modern day with references to climate change and political tyranny. By combining this with the personal, his music tries to capture the dread of being a young person in the 2020s. Another key feature of his music is his storytelling. He balances the navigation of complex emotions in the modern day with a sardonic sense of humour to convey vivid narratives. With his live repertoire consisting of a combination of original music and his arrangements of 60s/70s folk songs, he hopes to participate in revitalising an interest in folk music and take the genre in new directions.