Meet Bob Bonnen | Music Man (singer, guitarist, harmonica)

We had the good fortune of connecting with Bob Bonnen and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Bob, can you walk us through the thought-process of starting your business?
Becoming a musician was a happy accident of sorts. I was going through a divorce and depressed. i only knew a handful of songs at the time. I heard of an audition for a strolling guitarist at Kaleidoscope restaurant in Coconut Grove. I was terrified at the thought of performing in public, but thought being scared might be a step up from being depressed, so I went to the audition not intending to get the job. I was the only one who showed, which was even scarier, and after playing one song they hired me. My depression morphed into a daily fear that I would be fired for being a fraud. I practiced, learned new songs and got better. Depression cured, new career.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I have a unique voice with good tone and pitch in the baritone range (think James Taylor, Cat Stevens), I play guitar, and harmonica well and have and excellent repertoire of fun, beautiful, and popular songs as a result of taking requests over the years. So my uniqueness comes from bringing these things together and interpreting them with my personality and taste. Also it’s easy and risk free to hire or recommend me because I make a point of being punctual, professional and easy to deal with. For the first 10 years or so of my musical career I was a single parent with two kids. That was not easy or even possibly advisable, but I loved the kids and I loved the music so I did it. People would say how hard that must be but if you love something enough you don’t think of it like that.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Kayaking out of Bill Baggs Sate Park Key Biscayne to Stiltsville Walk, run, or bike ride in the Grove or Key Biscayne
Paddleboarding anywhere we can get on the water
Paddling, kayaking or hiking in Everglades National Park or Big Cypress

Sunset at the Cleat at Boaters Grill on Key Biscayne

Ceviche Bar by Mixture restauranton Ke Biscayne
Casita Tejas mexican restaurant on Krome in Homestead
Bombay Darbar, Lokal burgers, and Meraki Greek restaurant in the Grove

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
Since I am a self taught solo performer, the credit for whatever success I have has to go first to the audience. It’s so gratifying and encouraging to be able to bring some small enjoyment to people in a world that can be difficult at times. I have a thank you page on my website for all the people that hire or refer me including caterers, meeting planners, conference service people and booking agents. The first few years were difficult and friends encouraged me not to quit. Recently I’ve had very good marketing help and advice from Bruce Turkel and Will Ezell.

Website: https://bestmusicman.com