I Could Not Believe It: The 1979 Diaries of Sean DeLear

Brontez Purnell chats to Kid Congo about the punk pioneer and L.A. born wild child.

When Sean DeLear died prematurely in 2017, the artist, intercontinental scenester, and punk pioneer left behind a horny teenage diary packed full of bowling alley crushes, hunks with feathered hair, a bitchen earthquake, schemes involving potential blackmail, and shoplifting gay porn.

The year is 1979, Donna Summer is in the air, and Sean is a Black teen growing up in a white Los Angeles suburb, their daily accounts pulsing with mischief, verve, and an abundance of joy.

Published by Semiotext(e) this past spring, I Could Not Believe It: The 1979 Diaries of Sean DeLear, edited by the late artist’s friends Michael Bullock and Cesar Padilla, is an instant classic about queer coming of age.

To get to the heart of what this important book adds to Sean DeLear’s legacy, interdisciplinary luminary Brontez Purnell called up punk legend Kid Congo to talk about their friend.