Kirin J. Callinan

Kieran John Callinan (born 21 January 1986), known by his stage name Kirin J. Callinan, is an Australian singer, songwriter, and guitarist.

He is also a founding member of Mercy Arms and has played with the Night Game, Jack Ladder and the Dreamlanders, Mark Ronson and Genesis Owusu.

Referred to as the enfant terrible of Australia's underground rock music scene, Callinan is known for his flamboyant public persona, confrontational live shows, and diverse musical output in which, according to Spin, "the distinctions between talent, irony, and genuine bad taste bleed together until they’re indistinguishable."

Callinan said that his primary motivation as a musician is to "excite and confuse, ... But you can't do that for any length of time without having sincerity."

Callinan has collaborated with a wide range of musicians, including Mark Ronson, Jimmy Barnes, James Chance, Alex Cameron, Connan Mockasin, Caroline Polachek, Weyes Blood, Pond, Mac DeMarco, Ariel Pink, Hubert Lenoir, Julian Casablancas, Genesis Owusu, whistler Molly Lewis and brothers Neil and Tim Finn.

In 2005, he formed indie rock band Mercy Arms with fellow guitarist and vocalist Thom Moore, bassist Ash Moss, and drummer Julian Sudek.

Callinan and Sudek had lived in the same area: "We played soccer against each other and with each other as kids, so we go back to when we were fourteen years old or so."

In 2008, Callinan self-released his debut solo album, Am I a Woman, Yet?.

Mercy Arms broke up in 2009, on stage at the Perth Big Day Out.

Kirin was also an early member of Sydney post punk band The Valentinos, their first ep produced by later Kirin J collaborator and Embracism producer Kim Moyes of The Presets.

Since 2009 he has been an original touring member of Jack Ladder & The Dreamlanders, contributing guitars on the 2009 live ep "Counterfeits" as well as full length albums "Hurtsville" (2011), "Playmates" (2014), "Blue Poles" (2018) and 2021’s "Hijack!".

He also played guitars on Mark Ronson’s Grammy Award winning album "Uptown Special", performing songs from the album including lead singles "Uptown Funk" and "Leaving Los Feliz" live alongside Ronson and Tame Impala’s Kevin Parker.

His second album, Embracism, was released by American record label Terrible Records and London based XL Recordings in 2013.

Barnes, Cameron and Lewis feature in Callinan's 2017 single "Big Enough"; Barnes' distinctive screaming cameo became an internet meme.

Kieran John Callinan was born and raised in Sydney.

His father is Brendan Callinan, former keyboardist with Australian pub rock band The Radiators.

In 2017, Callinan released Bravado.

It reached No. 5 on the ARIA Hitseekers Albums Chart.

His track, "S.A.D.", was provided with a music video directed by Danny Cohen, which was nominated for Best Video at the ARIA Music Awards of 2017.

He lifted his kilt on the red carpet at the ARIA Music Awards of 2017, briefly exposing his genitals to press photographers.

In 2017, Callinan was cast by Jane Campion in the second season of Top of the Lake.

"Kirin was a joy to work with because he was imaginative, playful and exploring," said Campion.

"He seems somehow to push the limits of human being in the biggest sense, like he might have been raised by unicorns."

Current

Former

The Australian Independent Record Awards (commonly known informally as AIR Awards) is an annual awards night to recognise, promote and celebrate the success of Australia's Independent Music sector.

The ARIA Music Awards is an annual awards ceremony that recognises excellence, innovation, and achievement across all genres of Australian music.

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The Australian Music Prize (the AMP) is an annual award of $30,000 given to an Australian band or solo artist in recognition of the merit of an album released during the year of award.

In February 2018, Callinan received a 12-month good-behaviour bond after being charged with willful and obscene exposure in a public place.

Following the incident, Callinan was dropped from the 2018 lineup of Laneway Music Festival.

In 2019, Callinan released Return to Center.

Writing for the Sydney Morning Herald, music journalist Michael Dwyer declared "Kirin J Callinan has just purloined the concept album of the century".

Callinan has contributed & collaborated both live and on record with a number of other artists.

2019 saw Callinan co-writing & producing songs in a production duo alongside Mac DeMarco, producing Julian Casablancas & The Voidz singles "Did My Best" and "The Eternal Tao 2.0" and working on Hubert Lenoir’s second LP "PICTURA DE IPSE : Musique Direct" among others.

Back in Australia, Callinan also begun working alongside Australian / Ghanaian rapper Genesis Owusu, co-writing 2021’s "Smiling With No Teeth" album, contributing vocals and guitar.

Smiling With No Teeth would go on to win Album of the Year, Best Hip Hop Release, and Best Independent Release at the 2021 ARIA Awards as well as the J Award for Australian Album of the Year and, in March 2022, the Australian Music Prize.

In 2021, Callinan launched his own record label - Worse Records - a subsidiary of US label Terrible Records, releasing French Canadian artist Hubert Lenoir’s 2022 Polaris Prize shortlisted sophomore album PICTURA DE IPSE : Musique Direct as well as one off single "New Music Friday", by his own manufactured conceptual boy band "Seconds Flat" and Jack Ladder & The Dreamlanders lead single "Astronaut" from the album "Hijack!".

On Valentine’s Day, 14 February 2022, Kirin released the first single "…in ABSOLUTES" and its accompanying music video co-directed with Kiwi director Oscar Keys, apparently shot in Kirin’s New Zealand residence.

In October 2023, Callinan released "Eternally Hateful" and announced his fifth studio album If I Could Sing.