Kenny G: His career, his enemies and what he's doing now

Saxophonist Kenny G, famous for his curly hair and equally curly notes, saw the peak of his fame in the ‘80s and '90. Not only was he one of the most successful artists of the day, but one of the most successful pop music instrumentalists all time. But we haven't heard much about him recently. Here’s what he's been up to...

The man born Kenneth Gorelick in 1956 in Seattle remains one of the most recognized “jazz” musicians worldwide. He’s far from retired and still blesses the world with his sultry tunes, albeit lower-key than before.

His love affair with the saxophone began at age 10. As a teenager, he played alongside Barry White’s Love Unlimited Orchestra. He leaped into global stardom with the release of his fourth album ‘Duotones’ in 1986, particularly with his track ‘Songbird.’

‘Duotones’ alone sold no less than four million copies in the US, putting him in direct competition with the likes of Michael Jackson and Madonna at the top of that year’s charts.

Those numbers almost seem trivial compared to the 15 million copies sold worldwide of his sixth studio work ‘Breathless’ in 1992 — making it the best-selling instrumental album in history. One of its tracks, ‘Forever in Love’ even bagged him a Grammy for best musical composition.

Amid all this, his unforgettable contribution to the instrumental portion of the 1992 film ‘The Bodyguard’ soundtrack, accompanying Whitney Houston’s unmatched voice, stands out as a major career highlight.

Throughout his career, Kenny G has not only built the myth of being the most successful saxophonist ever but has also amassed a colossal fortune of around $100 million, according to Celebrity Net Worth.

Among Kenny G’s achievements is an impressive total of 17 Grammy Award nominations. Of those, he won one time. .

And here’s another quirky accomplishment: his name is in the Guinness Book of World Records for playing the longest note in history on a saxophone (an E flat), using circular breathing. The note lasted an astonishing 45 minutes and 47 seconds!

Throughout his career, he’s collaborated with numerous artists, laying down music for the voices of legends like Frank Sinatra, Aretha Franklin, Michael Bolton, Celine Dion, Andrea Bocelli, and even modern musicians like rapper and actor Will Smith.

After the 90s, Kenny G’s golden era, the curly-haired saxophonist known for his romantic melodies began to fade. He lost popularity, and his name gradually disappeared from the public sphere.

Since the turn of the 21st century, Kenny G has released four studio albums on top of the seven he already had. They were ‘Paradise’ (2002), ‘Rhythm and Romance’ (2008), ‘Heart and Soul’ (2010), and ‘Brazilian Nights’ (2015), as well as the live album (‘Best’, 2006), three greatest hits albums, three compilations, and two cover albums…

Recently, he has continued to perform concerts worldwide but stays away from massive tours. Now, he enjoys a quiet life in his Malibu home, much of which centers around the game of golf — another thing he’s not too shabby at.

In 2021, HBO Max premiered ‘Listening to Kenny G,’ a documentary directed by independent American filmmaker Penny Lane. The documentary paints an accurate picture of Kenny G, where he shares secrets about his life and why he’s as loved as he is hated. The New Yorker hailed it as “an ironic masterpiece.”

As Kenny G reveals in the documentary, he has not only a large following but also an army of detractors, including established jazz musicians who disrespect him, considering his music too “simple.”

An example is Pat Metheny, who called for a boycott against his music for overdubbing himself over a Louis Armstrong masterpiece. “Spewing his lame-as-, jive, pseudo bluesy, out-of-tune, noodling, wimped out playing all over one of the great Louis’s tracks, he did something that I would not have imagined possible. He, in one move, through his unbelievably pretentious and calloused musical decision to embark on this most cynical of musical paths, s— all over the graves of all the musicians past and present.”

We’ll never know if these criticisms were genuinely focused on style or in response to a successful career with lots of media attention. What’s clear is that Kenny G became a reference point, a global star that propelled the saxophone to new heights.

In the years following his golden age, he had some controversies, such as his attendance at a protest related to the so-called’ Umbrella Revolution’ in Hong Kong in 2014, which didn’t sit well with China. It was a big deal because Kenny G’s music is immensely popular in China. One of his songs, ‘Going Home,’ is often played in many public spaces, such as shopping malls and train stations, to signal the end of the day.

That’s because Kenny G tweeted: “in Hong Kong at the sight of the demonstration. I wish everyone a peaceful and positive conclusion to this situation,” with a pic of him flashing the peace sign. It prompted the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs to comment on Kenny G’s statement and urge caution from foreigners talking about the “illegal” protests.

Kenny G deleted the controversial tweet after it ruffled some important feathers in China.. In a statement to the BBC, he later said he didn’t support the protestors. “I don’t really know anything about the situation and my impromptu visit to the site was just part of an innocent walk around Hong Kong,” he later tweeted: “I only wanted to share my wish for peace for Hong Kong and for all of China as I feel close to and care about China very much.”

In 2012, two years prior, the saxophonist made headlines when he announced his divorce from Balynda Helene Benson-Gorelick. The pair had wed in 1992 and, after a 20-year marriage and one child together, their union ended.

The exclusive news of their divorce was shared by TMZ, which reported that both parties had cited “irreconcilable differences” and sought joint custody of their child. Kenny G, however, was not keen on paying spousal support to his former wife.

One of his few public appearances after the split was in April 2017, when US airline Delta Air Lines staged a live (and charitable) Kenny G concert mid-flight for its passengers. The condition was that passengers collectively donate $1,000 towards fighting cancer, with funds going to the American Cancer Society.

The initiative was driven by Jane Mitchell, a flight attendant and member of Gretchen’s Gazelles, a charitable organization made up of airline staff, aimed at raising funds through the American Cancer Society. The concert was held, and it successfully raised… $2,000!

In 2019, Kenny G was the talk of the town when rapper Kanye West enlisted his help and romantic musical talent to surprise his then-wife, Kim Kardashian, on Valentine’s Day by playing one of his melodies amid a sea of roses. The stunt was met with a mix of amusement and mockery on social media…

Later that same year, both artists ended up performing together at a religious event in Los Angeles to introduce songs from ‘Jesus is King,’ a Christian hip-hop album from Kanye’s weekly gospel group, ‘Sunday Service.’ Kenny G collaborated on the album with his smooth sax playing.

Something that not many people know about Kenny G is that he’s also an economic whizz. He earned a degree in accounting from the University of Washington and was one of the first investors in the coffeehouse chain Starbucks.

Starbucks originated in Kenny G’s hometown, Seattle, and the musician joined the project in 1992 after meeting Howard Schultz, the company’s CEO, through a relative and buying shares early on.

Since then, alongside his musical career, Kenny G has also become a savvy investor and trader, managing a portfolio of over 30 companies. In 2014, he told Reuters that he had earned about as much money from stock trading as he did from music.

Golf is another one of his passions. In a 2008 interview with Golf Digest, he likened mastering the sport to mastering the saxophone, stating: I’ve never really played golf. With the sax, I learned technique well enough so that it feels like part of my body, and I just express myself. That’s where I want to get in golf.”

In addition to his love for investments, golf, and of course, music, Kenny G is also passionate about planes, something he shows off on his social media. Of course, to go all the way, he became a pilot himself!

Photo: Instagram (@kennyg)

These days, his social media platforms offer the best way to keep up-to-date with all things Kenny G, both professionally and personally. He has over 274,000 followers on Instagram and almost 100,000 on Twitter, both under the handle @kennyg.

Kenny G’s global impact today might not be the same as it was in the 80s and 90s, but he remains a saxophone virtuoso, one of the greatest saxophonists in history, and a cornerstone of 20th-century music… whether you like it or not!

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