Kayla Kent is a blistering lead guitarist who shares her talent on YouTube. Over the last year, her performance videos of Pantera guitar solos originally played by the influential metal band's late Dimebag Darrell have captured headbangers' attention.
That's because her renditions are so accurate she's received praise from fellow musicians for their precision. After having uploaded only 14 videos since December 2020, as of this posting, she's currently approaching 10,000 YouTube subscribers.
See some of Kent's videos near the bottom of this post.
The impetus for the guitarist's Pantera covers, as reported by Guitar World, is Kent felt there weren't enough "quality Dimebag covers on YouTube. Particularly for some of their deep cuts and glam-era records. That's the stuff I genuinely enjoy playing."
She continued, "I genuinely adore his playing and Pantera's songwriting. I learned a ton of Pantera songs by ear, and I wonder if maybe that is more accurate to picking up Dime's nuances."
Kent said her subsequent internet popularity caught her by surprise. "When my 'Message in Blood' solo got 100,000-plus views, that was so heartwarming," she remarked. "Honestly, because that's a solo I feel hasn't been done much on YouTube."
She adds, "I put my frickin' heart and soul into learning it and getting some of those licks and the tone and everything right on that one. To see a deep cut from [Pantera's 1990 album] Cowboys From Hell get that kind of appreciation is really, really heartwarming. Because I think every song off that album is just gold. It is my favorite album of all time."
Not all Pantera guitar parts were composed by Dimebag, however. Last month, former Pantera vocalist Philip Anselmo explained that he actually wrote the main riff in the band's "Mouth for War."
Last year, the club where Dimebag was killed during a 2004 show by his post-Pantera band, Damageplan, was demolished. The site will now have affordable apartments. Pantera drummer Vinnie Paul, Dimebag's brother, died of heart failure in 2018. Their joint gravesite is in their home state of Texas.
An official Pantera tribute or quasi-reunion with Anselmo and surviving bassist Rex Brown has been previously discussed by the vocalist. In 2021, Brown declined an earlier notion that guitarist Zakk Wylde might replace Dime. A year prior, the bassist voiced his support for a reunion with Anselmo.
Hear more of Kent's Pantera guitar solos here.
Kayla Kent, "Shattered" Solo (Pantera Cover)
Kayla Kent, "Walk" Solo
Kayla Kent, "A New Level" Solo
Kayla Kent, "Cowboys From Hell" Solo
Kayla Kent, "This Love" Solo
