Gem Kinley
Duration
Gem Kinley (she/her) is a recent graduate of BA (Hons) Contemporary Performance Practice from the RCS as part of the Transitions Programme, which looks to bring down barriers that may prevent people from accessing the arts. During her studies, she devised work that combined contemporary performance, music, writing, voice, and community.
Gem is a vocalist, and plays guitar and bass. She uses her voice to disrupt and release – walking the line between clashing and connection. She is inspired by styles like metal and hardcore, as well as indie, R&B and soul. She also performs poetry and monologues, with a passion for Scots language.
Gem’s performance and music are live in nature and use disruption and contradiction to explore themes of culture, memory, relationships, identity, and community. Gem often reflects from the positionality of a mentally ill working-class queer Scottish woman who grew up around Christianity, then transitioned into alternative subcultures.
In 2025, Counterflows and Cove Park devised a new partnership residency programme for Scottish and international musicians. Taking place before the Counterflows Festival in April 2025, Cove Park hosted Saigon and Hanoi-based musicians Vũ Hà Anh and Trần Uy Đức along with Scottish artists Inge Thomson and Sholto Dobie. In 2026, this partnership continues through Music Space, an alternative educational programme for young people who are based in Glasgow and interested in exploring sound and music. Music Space is produced by AC Projects alongside Counterflows festival.
Counterflows is an internationally acclaimed Glasgow-based contemporary music festival that celebrates challenging and thought provoking work in the context of what might be called experimental music; supporting marginal music practice within a wide array of different genres and approaches to music and sound. Taking place annually, the festival features artists from Scotland, UK and around the world, and celebrates and explores culture on a local and international scale.
This programme is supported by the British Council and Creative Scotland’s Extend Fund. Music Space is supported by The Scottish Government’s Youth Music Initiative (YMI).
