Along with his contemporaries, such as Paul Morley, Charles Shaar Murray, Paul Rambali and Danny Baker, Kent is widely considered one of the most important and influential UK music journalists of the 1970s. He wrote for the British music publication New Musical Express, moving to The Face later on in his career. Kent's writing predominantly covers the lives and music of rock-and-roll Musicians. His prose is laced with images of self-destruction and compassion, exploring the reality of being an Artist in the late twentieth century. Kent is the author of two books: The Dark Stuff, a collection of his journalism and Apathy for the Devil: A 1970's Memoir which is an autobiographical account of his life and experiences in the 1970s, published in March 2010.

Kent, the son of a former Abbey Road Studios sound Engineer, began his career as a Writer at age 21 in 1972, inspired by Jack Kerouac and Hunter S. Thompson.

In 1974, Kent began dating and moved in with Chrissie Hynde, later lead singer of the band The Pretenders, after she began working at NME. Throughout the 1970s, Kent was a heroin addict.

Kent's relationship with the punk scene was strained. Already a well-known music critic and a symbol of the music industry, he was assaulted by Sid Vicious with a motorcycle chain in the 100 Club. Kent relates the incident in Johnny Rogan's book on rock management, Starmakers & Svengalis; in The Filth and the Fury, Director Julien Temple's 2000 documentary of the Sex Pistols; in Jon Savage's book England's Dreaming; as well as in his own books, The Dark Stuff and Apathy for the Devil.