‘Greg, the redhead, bought a sousaphone so then we decided to make it an official band. People were loving it so then we kept going and started getting offers for gigs. We’re lucky now, we’ve got a bit of a following especially for the busking thing. We can start huge dance parties in the street. It’s awesome – we love it!’

What’s one of the best things that’s happened while you’ve been busking?

‘We were marching down Crown Street in Surry Hills. A lot of the pubs there are double story and people were throwing money off the top. We had our girlfriends there with buckets catching the money. A guy gave us a $100 note once too. That was pretty cool.’

‘My friends were surprised to hear me sing because they didn’t know I could sing really. I’ve been playing guitar for the past seven years – since I was seven. I only started singing just a few months ago though. I’d sung just a bit around the house because my dad plays bass and my mum plays guitar so we always play together. I’ve heard that it’s 90% confidence or something and I think if you can get past that, anyone can really sing.‘I’ve got a bunch of songs written and have recorded two of them so hopefully I’ll finish that off soon and release an EP. I’ve also uploaded one of my songs on Triple J Unearthed High. It’s called ‘But then you find life.’

‘The hardest part of breaking in to the industry is getting originals gigs rather than just playing covers. I had my first gig last week at a restaurant in Glebe. I’d be happy with any gig really – nothing too crazy.’

What do you love most about music?

‘Everyone plays it differently so it’s always going to be something unique.’

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‘When I was 15, a lady came to our school and spoke about exchange programs so I went and spent a year in Costa Rica. I did my year 10 in Costa Rica and learnt to speak Spanish and lived with a local family there. We lived in the mountains surrounded by coffee fields. Before I went, I didn’t speak Spanish or anything so I didn’t really know what was going on. It was a poor school – 3,000 students with just a couple of teachers and none of them would turn up. No one really cared.
‘There was one teacher; she was a biology teacher, and she really cared that I understood what was going on and that I actually learnt. She told me to go and buy some rope and some paint and she taught me to make a really thick rope – like macramé. She was teaching us about DNA so it looked like a DNA thing. So I made a really big one – she taught me how to make it – and she told me to paint this knot blue and this knot green and I did everything she said and at the end she was able to explain all the parts of the DNA. To this day, I still only know them in Spanish.
‘Then she told me to go buy some smaller string so I could make bracelets for my friends and family. This is the jewellery I make and sell now.’

What has been one of the happiest moments in your life?

‘When I met my dog Tuxedo. We met him as a puppy and pretty much decided that he needed to be in our lives.’

What’s one thing that has surprised you about him?

‘That he suddenly decided to pee outside!’

‘I’ve been studying music at the Conservatorium. I’ve actually got my graduation this afternoon.’

If you could describe the trumpet as a human, how would you describe it?

‘Like a drunken boxer – it feels like getting punched in the face a bit. It’s like mashing a piece of plumbing in to one of the softest bits of my body.’

Have you ever been punched in the face?

‘Yeah… It’s got its comparisons.’