Kevin has been dancing and DJing since 1998, and playing music since 1994.

Jazz, Swing, and Blues Dance Instructor, Musician, DJ, and Entertainer.

Kevin Andrew Buster was born on September 24th, 1980 and grew up in Kent, Washington. When he was a baby his mother sang him "Summertime" to quiet his crying. In 5th grade there was a band show at the school he attended where children picked the instrument that they would play in elementary band. After seeing the upright bass, he was very taken by it and wanted to learn to play it. The family was impoverished and said "No, that is too expensive." Later that week his mother was sold a flute in the parking lot of a tavern and he was given this instead. "Do something with this," his father said. "If you do well, we'll see about getting you something better." Kevin worked hard with friend Robert Slater, and quickly rose to first chair.

Upon reaching junior high school, he was told that there was a jazz band but flutes were not allowed in it. Just about to quit the flute, he was told on his 14th birthday in front of the entire band class, to look in a brown paper bag. Inside was an alto saxophone. His father had bought it for him, fulfilling the promise that he would be given another instrument if he did something with the first one. He learned "Mary Had a Little Lamb" on the first day and decided then that he had been given a special gift for the instrument even if it wasn't apparent to the people around him yet. He studied and raced up to 1st chair with Dan Woeick and Sarah Finne. He also studied baritone saxophone and bass clarinet. Becoming totally obsessed with music, Kevin practiced for 6-8 hours a day most days. He was taught by Mr. Eugene Kolding who inspired Kevin to work hard and keep playing music. He even skipped some classes to work harder on his music and won several awards. At this time he started taking lessons from Jordan Ruwe who studied saxophone with Art Pepper, Roland Kirk, and most notably, Dexter Gordon.

Once in high school, he was fortunate to study under the direction of the famous Chuck Stowell. Several days the band was taught by Derrin Mottamidy and Charles Stowell Senior. Both were famous musicians in the Kent area. After that year Mark Fields took over. He brought in Floyd Standifer several times as a guest teacher as part of a grant from Earshot jazz. Kevin won awards in band class as well as winning an award for best solo with a jazz band at the Lionel Hampton Jazz Festival in 1999.

In 2000-2001, Kevin attended Bellevue College under the Direction of the famous Hal Sherman who had taken Kent Meridian High School to fame from the 50's to the mid 80's. He led the band to win many championships and competitions. Kevin followed the band on tour twice to Germany. He played for the Parliament of Berlin and Quasimodo's (at that time the biggest Jazz club in Germany). It was here he became friends with Eric Verlindi (Kevin Buster's Lunch Money). Kevin and Eric, along with several others, went to the Lionel Hampton festival in Moscow, Idaho; 5 members of the college brought home soloist awards. Kevin won Best College Baritone Saxophonist.

The next year he befriended Chip Defaa (wrote liner notes to many of Miles Davis cd's). Chip was working as a press agent and brought Kevin back stage to meet Lionel Hampton, Clark Terry, Benny Golson, and Russell Malone.

At the same time Kevin was attending Bellevue College he also played in the Music Works Northwest Big Band run by the late Mr. Roy Cummings (UW Jazz) and Daniel Barrie (Red Fish Blue Fish, The Jazz Police). This band included rising star (13 years old at the time) Aaron Parks (Blue Note recording star). He toured to Washington D.C. with this band and all over Washington state. When Roy passed in 2000, Paul Harshman took Kentrigde High School to the Duke Ellington festival and won many awards with them.

Kevin was frequenting many jam sessions and his favorite was one hosted by Floyd Standifer. One day he met a great vocalist named Makini Magee. They formed a band together called "Lunch Money" along with Eric Verlindi and D'vonne Lewis. Around this time he heard of a dance camp in Sweden called Herrang. He started playing music on the street to save up for the trip. After a little more than a year he went (in 2002).

In Herrang, Kevin trained with most of the great dancers in today's Lindy Hop scene. Frankie Manning, Norma Miller, Sugar Sullivan, Dawn Hampton, Steven Mitchel, Virginie Jensen, Ryan Francois, Jenny Thomas, Lennart Westerlund, Frida Segerdahl, Skye Humphries, Hanna Zetterman, Andy Reid, Asa Palm, Carla Heiney, Catrine Ljunggren, Mattias Lundmark, Chazz Young, Chester Whitmore, Daniel Heedman, Dax Hock, Eddie Jansson, Elliott Donnelley, Eva Lagerqvist Jansson, EWa Burak, Fatima Teffahi, Hasse Mattsson, Henric Stillman, Jenny Deurell, Jessica Lennartsson, Jo Hoffberg, Joseph Wiggan, Kevin St. Laurent, Peter Loggins, Lisa Ferguson, Ramona Staffeld, Sakarias Larsson, and more. This is the short list but is also the who's who doing training there for 6 years from 2002-2007.

One of those years Kevin met Malou Meyenhofer. She brought him to Switzerland twice to teach in Zurich.

Kevin has taught at colleges and swing events in California, Oregon, Washington, and Idaho.

Kevin has played music at Herrang Dance Camp from 2002-2007. In 2005, he played with Dawn Hampton in Herrang. He has also played at Swing Out New Hampshire, Century Ballroom in 2005-2007, Sonny Newman's Dance hall, The Russian Center Swing Dance, The Abbey Ballroom, Swing out Northwest, From Dawn Till Dusk, Lola's Room of the Crystal Ballroom, Portland Lindy Exchange, Seattle Lindy Exchange, Jeremy and Karissa Lindy Blues Exchange, The Kent Senior Center, and the Merrill Gardens of Kirkland and Queen Anne. He has Dj'd Herrang Dance Camp, the Crystal Ballroom, the Century Ballroom, The Bossa Nova, Friday Night Blues in San Fransisco, Sonny Newman's, The Russian Center, Waid's Burn Blue, The Tacoma Abbey Ballroom, Merrill Gardens, and Guinea, West Africa.

In 2004, Kevin picked up tap and has been practicing, performing, and using it to add to Lindy hop. He studied with Chazz Young, Fatimma Taffahi, Anthony Peters, Cheryl Johnson, and Lennart Westerlund.

Kevin attended Clover Park Technical College in 2007 achieving a Massage Studies Certificate. He studied extensively in Biology and Kinesiology.

In December of 2007, Kevin went to Guinea West Africa to study African dancing and to teach Lindy Hop. While there, he studied with Grand masters Yousoff Koumbassa and Sorel of the Ballet Africana. He also studied with many other great teachers.

The tap and African have given Kevin a unique method for teaching Lindy Hop and Blues. He bases it as a rhythm dance starting from the roots of the dance.

Kevin is still performing, teaching, Djing, composing, and practicing and learning music and tap dance.