Mr Bongolicious

The cowbells are tingling, percussion is soothing, the bongo’s are beating and the djembe is pounding like a bass driven heartbeat penetrating each and every one of your sound buds. Put the delicious rhythmic sounds, with a pinch of live element, all thrown into a melodious music blender, and there you have the perfect house accompanying cocktail of the man they call Mr Bongolicious.

The infectious sounds generated by the lighting fast hands of Mr Bongolicious tapping away at his instruments, are to put it simply, too good to resist, and he does it with such ease. It makes you wonder, how can a musician of just four years play with such perfection? The answer is simple. “Music is my everything”, he quotes, with eyes wide open like a child drawn to candy. Music has always been a part of the maestro’s life. Growing up in inner Sydney, the young Mr Bongolicious was exposed to a cocktail of multicultural, as well as various genres of music. It was his ability to combine these different elements of each genre which made Mr Bongolicious so unique, and it didn’t go unnoticed.

After dominating the Australian club scene with flawless performances at Allumbra (Melbourne), Dragonfly, Sapphire Suite, Gold Fish, The Eastern, as well as a list so long it would fill a phone directory ten times over, it was time for the Mr of the bongos to take global centre stage. But was the world ready for him? Apparently so! In 2009, so early in his career, Mr Bongolicious was asked to play at the world famous Buddha Bar New York, where his DJ idol Miguel Migs and his percussion god Chovelly had also featured. Strutting through the crowd, djembe (African Drum) strapped to him like a time drum ready to explode, he let loose! This triggered a string of side performances spanning from the U.S. to the famous party destinations of the Greek Islands.

“To play overseas was such a buzz, I mean after playing the Budda Bar gig, the sideshows and the gig at Club Paridiso Mykonos, I know I was ready to take it up that extra notch, here in Australia.”, he smirks, and we do not doubt that for one moment. 2010 is shaping to be the biggest year yet for the bongo maestro with a string of live performances, both national and international on the cards, as well as dedicated studio time. Currently in negotiations to play at the 2010 Miami Music Conference, as well as a debut E.P. alongside Sydney producer I Am Sam, you know that Mr Bongolicious is here to stay. When he states his favourite quote “I’m addicted to success”, you can see in his bright brown eyes that he means business, and to put it quite simply, his addiction to success allows him the ability to go hand in hand with music. You begin to wonder, a world with Gin and no tonic, cookies with no cream, a Big Mac with no fries and well… music with no Mr Bongolicious? Mmmmm… ‘I’ll have fries with that!’