Meet Bobbo: Music, Comedy, and Animals
Meet Bobbo and his band. I had the pleasure of interviewing Bobbo about the start of his musical endeavors, what it's like being in a local band, and how he incorporates comedy into his live performances. Looking for a good show to go to? Want to hear some jokes? Do animal facts peak your interest? If so, Bobbo is your guy. So, without further ado, let's enter the Bobbo world!
Photo taken by @kaitlynryanmedia (Kaitlyn Ryan) on IG
TELL ME MORE ABOUT YOUR STAGE NAME.
"The band name is just my nickname, Bobbo. My dad always called me it as a kid, and it caught on when I was super young and stayed since. Only my family calls me by my real name, Robert, at this point. Usually, it's when they're mad at me. I used the nickname since I started as a solo act, and I guess technically, it's still a solo act, just with a band? I don't like to look at it that way, considering how much they all add to the songs I write and live performances. I'm glad it's evolved into more of just a band at the end of the day."
HOW DID YOU ALL MEET?
"My drummer Owen and I have been best friends since kindergarten. He started playing music way before me when we were younger. Once I learned how to play guitar in the 8th grade, we would get together and play duo-based rock songs from bands like The Black Keys, The White Stripes, and pretty much anything else that would hold up with just a guitar and drums. In high school, we had a little band called Roode for a couple of years before things fizzled out with that. I decided to go into a solo career. I asked Owen if he'd still record and perform with me, to which he agreed."
"Santino, my guitarist and sax player, I've known for my whole life pretty much. We grew up together since our dads were good friends. But, for a long time, life had us part ways. I reached out to him once I was starting my solo career. I knew he was a great musician and could play almost anything- I'm happy he was open to being part of the band. After that, we were looking for a bass player, and he recommended a good friend named Joey to try out. Things went well from there, and we've all been playing together since then!"
Photo taken by @kaitlynryanmedia (Kaitlyn Ryan) on IG
WHAT MADE YOU WANT TO FORM A BAND TOGETHER?
"I had performed a couple of times completely by myself at the start of the solo act. I was about 17 at the time. The music I wanted to make then was VERY different from what it is now. I just remember being this kid among many pop singers and rappers on a lineup and almost being embarrassed about performing. My stuff was different from the rest. After performing those times by myself to more contemporary music-based crowds, I didn't feel like I belonged there. I wanted to perform to a rock audience again, and definitely with a full band this time around, so I decided to form a band with everyone."
WHAT IS YOUR CRAZIEST LIVE SHOW STORY?
"For me, it was when we brought our Animal Of The Day skit to our first show in Phoenix. I wasn't sure how it'd play out there or if they'd be into the half-music, half-comedy aspect of the show, but they loved it and were super cool with the whole thing! Once I did some crowd work asking about their favorite animals, they all responded so enthusiastically that it felt like a true and comfortable connection with them for the rest of the night. After the show, people came up to me just to talk about their favorite animals and spit some animal facts with me. I remember thinking how sweet that whole thing was that such a stupid little animal skit led to such nice interactions. That kind of showed me the unique impact our type of performance had on people and made me feel like we had something special to show people. They were also the most kind people in the world, so it was a pleasure to meet so many of them."
Bobbo mentions another story.
"Recently, on our headlining San Diego tour date, Owen had gotten sick on stage. At first, he had just said he was gonna go to the bathroom really quickly, which I didn't think much of. I just did some crowd work for a few minutes until he returned, then we continued the set. After the next song we played, he was straight up like, 'I gotta go throw up,' and we were like, 'Oh alright,' and I told the crowd to give Owen a round of applause for having to throw up real quick. At that point, I was panicking a bit. I was trying to do more crowd work but quickly ran out of ideas due to being unable to think straight. It was getting pretty bad. Then, my brother came up next to the stage and told me Owen wasn't coming back. So I said to the crowd, 'Does anybody play drums here?' and low and behold, Elise, who I had met before the show and who plays drums for a band called The Diz, said she did. So I asked her, 'Do you wanna come up and play the last two songs of the set with us?' She thankfully agreed! Santino led her through the changes and dynamics of the songs while we played, but I think she kinda got the feel of things on her own after a few and nailed everything f-ing perfectly! She literally saved the show that night and truly made it such a special show for us. We thanked her a million times, gave her a free shirt, and said we'd love to play with The Diz anytime they're available! The next day, Owen had said, 'Dude, while I was throwing up and I heard the songs being played exactly how I usually play them, I questioned if I was even in the bathroom throwing up or just hallucinating or something.'"
Photo taken by @kaitlynryanmedia (Kaitlyn Ryan) on IG
WHAT ARE SOME OF YOUR INFLUENCES?
"I take a lot of influence from artists like Prince Daddy and the Hyena, Jeff Rosenstock, Kero Kero Bonito, and, unfortunately, Weezer. Besides musicians who influence me, I like to make live performances more than just music. I feel like it can get stale after a bit, even from the most energetic performances. So, I blend my comedy into it to keep things interesting and interactive with the crowd. Bo Burnham's early performances were some of my favorite examples of this, and I always looked up to him when I was younger. I was fascinated by his ability to create engaging performances with a mix of music and comedy. He also aimed to make sure the audience knew that he was no better than they were just because he was on a stage, and I felt he brought a certain comfort and intimacy to his audiences. I aim to do the same because of him. I think comedians overall inspired and changed how I make music now and perform, aiming to use comedy and other similar interactions to create comfort with the crowd. I don't want to put on a concert, but a show. I don't aim to just perform for the people who are upfront or in a mosh pit, but also for the people in the back that are too shy to dance or are just there to see one of their siblings perform. I am one of those people in the back."
Photo taken by @kaitlynryanmedia (Kaitlyn Ryan) on IG
WHAT ARE SOME FUTURE ENDEAVORS WE CAN EXPECT FROM YOU?
"Hopefully, lots more shows. We're currently working on an album! I'm very picky about making it absolutely perfect, so that it might take some time, but it's on the way. In the meantime, we encourage people to come to the shows. Even if they don't like music, I do my best to make it entertaining for everyone."
Photo taken by @kaitlynryanmedia (Kaitlyn Ryan) on IG
