Here at ICMP we are proud to support our community and always look forward to sharing their successes.
Each Tuesday, we present a student or graduate music project, making it our #ICMPSpotlight of the week.
This time we've chosen to shine a light on Pete & Vinnie Play, a guitar-focused YouTube channel by BMus students Pete and Vinnie.
ICMP SPOTLIGHT: 28th JANUARY 2020
Pete & Vinnie Play, a YouTube channel by guitarists Peter Napper and Vinnie Minotto
Back in August 2019, Peter Napper and Vinnie Minotto, two of our BMus Popular Music Performance students and talented guitarists set up a YouTube channel together.
The pair met in their first year of the BMus course and instantly became friends due to their similar backgrounds in rock and metal music and shared passion for guitars. Hailing from 2 different corners of the world - Vinnie from Brazil and Pete from the United States - they both moved to London to pursue a career in music.
The two guitarists had the initial inspiration for the channel after playing the final showcase gig of their second year on the course. At the event, they performed the song ‘Technical Difficulties’ by the band Racer X, pioneered by legendary guitarist Paul Gilbert. The feedback Pete & Vinnie received from tutors and classmates on their performance of the track made it clear to them; starting a channel was the right thing to do.
The channel itself consists of Pete & Vinnie playing duo guitar covers of songs and bands that they love, songs that channel their individual personalities – fast, heavy, passionate, and ambitious - and that have shaped them into the players they are today. The high-quality videos are professional yet entertaining as they capture a live vibe of enjoyment, shared experience, and personality.
On the channel, you can also find a special vlog of Vinnie and Pete spending a day at the last UK Guitar Show in Islington, London. On the day, the two had a great time and managed to meet with 'the master himself' - as they call him - Paul Gilbert. The American hard rock and heavy metal guitarist is best known for being in the bands Mr. Big and Racer X, as well as for being one of the fastest guitarists of all time.
"Paul Gilbert is probably our biggest inspiration and definitely the main reason we started the channel."
Pete and Vinnie's YouTube account now includes guitar covers of tracks by Pink Floyd, Slipknot and Metallica. Their plans for future channel content include more vlogs, tutorials, collaboration with other channels, and more.
Their channel also received praise from progressive metal guitarist and ICMP tutor, Martin Goulding. He referred to them as 'two of his most dedicated students'.
We wish Pete & Vinnie all the best with their YouTube venture. Follow their channel to see what they're up to next.
Let us know what you're up to!
If you're an ICMP student, alumn or tutor and have new music coming out anytime soon, please send everything over to us!
We are always happy to support you and share your new releases and career news with the rest of the ICMP community.