Carré Callaway was discovered by Trent Reznor in his New Orleans studio. She first gained notoriety when she opened for Nine Inch Nails on the 2005 tour. At this time she was performing solo as a singer/songwriter and soon after moved to Los Angeles under the guidance of Trent Reznor. Callaway dropped out of the music scene for a couple of years and then reemerged in 2009, once again supporting Nine Inch Nails for the Nine Inch Nails "Wave Goodbye" tour this time as Queen Kwong. Carré released her debut LP, "Get a Witness", in September 2015. It was well received by critics. The 1st Five said, "This album is harsh, confrontational, noisy, dreamy, calming and jarring. It’s doing exactly what great music should do: stir you down to the core and depths of your heart and leave you a shallow husk of mixed emotions begging for more." It was listed in Kerrang!'s Top 50 Records of 2015. The album was regularly played on BBC Radio 1. In support of the record, Carré toured extensively in the UK and Europe playing festivals like Reading and Leeds Festivals. In April 2016, Queen Kwong's version of the Chris Isaak song "Baby Did a Bad Bad Thing" started being used as the music for the hit BBC tv show Peaky Blinders In April 2018, Callaway released a statement confirming that she had been diagnosed with cystic fibrosis. On April 13, 2018, Queen Kwong's sophomore record, "Love Me To Death" and tour dates were announced. The record received positive reviews, noting Callaway's ability to defy genres. Kerrang Magazine called the record "a study in dualities, at once confrontational and vulnerable, tender and brutal, with gossamer-fine melodies set against grinding synths and scarring punk guitars. It’s an immersive, eclectic, largely improvised set that repays repeated listening." The Independent said this of the record, "Love Me To Death has the same dangerous energy as Callaway’s debut; squalling, distorted guitars, snatches of muttered conversation in the background, sheer screams, ghostly chimes, menacing drum beats… but it’s much more refined. There’s an explicit message in each song...It’s just as brave and bold a statement."
Music and performance style
Queen Kwong's sound has been described as primal rock 'n' roll, drawing comparisons to bands such as Nirvana, Queens of the Stone Age, and Hole. In 2010, Queen Kwong released the self-produced digital EP Love Is a Bruiseconsisting of three demo songs: Pet, Eddie the Kid, and the ballad The Thin Line. The song Pet from Love Is a Bruise was featured as part of Levi's fall 2010 European ad campaign. In 2012, Queen Kwong released the single Long Gone which was co-written with Joe Cardamone, singer of the Indie rock band The Icarus Line. The single was digitally released via UK record label Smoky Carrot. Following the release, London's wrote "Queen Kwong may well be the saviour of rock'n'roll". The music video for the single "Long Gone" which was directed by Carre Callaway was featured on music magazine NME website. In March 2012, Queen Kwong was featured on the Subculture music section of the Fred Perry fashion website. In May 2012, Queen Kwong made her New York City debut by playing her first show in the city to a packed crowd at the Pianos music venue on the lower east side. The show was positively reviewed and Callaway's music and performance was described as "She snarls, screams, grinds away on her guitar, spits, sneers and thrashes her head around in a fury of emotion. Maybe the Queen is the King of the new L.A. rock set?" In June 11, 2013, Queen Kwong released the 5-track EP Bad Lieutenant off Instant Records. In August 2015, Queen Kwong played Reading and Leeds festival leading up to her debut LP release. In September 2015, Queen Kwong released her debut LP, "Get a Witness" to praise from outlets including Bust Magazine and The 1st Five. Kerrang magazine also named the title track one of the top 10 songs of 2016. Queen Kwong's sophomore album, "Love Me to Death" was released in April 2018 to critical acclaim.
