John Elefante

John Elefante (born March 18, 1958) is an American singer-songwriter, instrumentalist, and record producer. From 1981-1984, he was lead vocalist of the rock group Kansas and is currently touring with several groups that have featured members from classic rock bands. His credits include writing and singing lead vocals on three multi-platinum albums. He produced albums that have earned numerous GMA Dove Awards, four Grammy Awards (most recently in 2000), and ten Grammy nominations. He has maintained a close working relationship with his brother, Dino, co-writer of several Kansas songs. He was born in Levittown, New York, and his family soon moved to Long Beach, California. He sang and played drums for his family band, The Brotherhood. In late 1981, Elefante auditioned for his second band position, as the new lead singer and keyboardist for Kansas, after the departure of its co-founder Steve Walsh. The previous year, Kansas was one of the top-grossing concert acts in the world. Several of the top vocalists of the time applied for the job, including Sammy Hagar, Doug Pinnick, and Jim Stafford.