American singer-songwriter Cory Wong has been around for more than 20 years making different kinds of music but after many experiments has found his own unique voice in the last few years. He shares, “A lot of years, I was just trying to be really great at my instruments and learn from the masters. In a lot of ways, I was also trying to sound like other people. However, over the last several years, I`ve been finding my own voice on the instrument. It has been huge for me because I feel I have my own unique sound and voice on the instrument.”
Finding his own unique voice
So, when he came to India for the very first time earlier this year, he showcased just that at Lollapalooza India 2025, produced by BookMyShow Live, in Mumbai with the likes of ‘Cosmic Sans’ and ‘Golden’ on his setlist. With an India visit being on his wish list for many years, he brought out his best with an infectious high-energy funk act with his 10-piece band that also included a horn section. It was just as peppy and a complete party that even new listeners could enjoy right from the first riff. “I`m so much more comfortable in my own skin and artistry. I`ve learned that it is not competing with another artist or guitar players. It is about having something to say in the way that only you can say it,” the guitarist shares.
Over the last 10 to 15 years, Wong says he has realised that everybody has something unique whether that be as a person or music. “I have discovered a lot of who I am and accepted who I am. It is interesting because as guitar players there are so many different ways we want to be perceived. A lot of times, I had to accept that a lot of things I bring to the table is the rhythm guitar realm. The others want to be lead guitar shredders, but rhythm guitar is where I shine the most and be unique.”
Being a band leader
Wong is known for his music with bands such as Vulfpeckand The Fearless Flyers as well as his own band with the namesake Cory Wong. It might look like a lot, but he manages to divide his time effortlessly between them. While he did start a band more than two decades ago, the American musician who brought his band to India says it is quite daunting to be a band leader even after all these years. “It requires a lot of emotional and mental bandwidth. It also takes a lot of resources to be able to do this. My touring party is 18 people. It is a lot to make it happen but it`s a beautiful thing when it does. I`ve learned a lot of lessons along the way. Being a band leader or conductor of my own band, I often got to be the band leader or hired for other bands and ensembles. When I`m doing it on my own, it just requires a different sort of attention to detail and diplomacy as well. It is fun. I love it so much,” he adds.
It is not only that but also the fact that the Grammy-nominated music producer says he doesn`t know a lot of bands or instrumental groups that have the rhythm guitar group leader/producer, that makes his band unique. The 40-year-old says, “When you think about an instrumental band that is led by a guitar player, history might suggest that it is all about one particular thing or the guitar and shredding the guitar. I am going to give you the guitar fireworks once in a while, with the riffs and leads but so much of what I’m passionate about is the rhythm guitar world and bringing it to the forefront and make it be a lot of the hooks, and that`s what makes it unique.” Wong says while playing the rhythm guitaris cool, there is more to him because he says an equal part of his artistry is in his writing, arranging and producing in the way Wong does as a band leader. When he isn’t touring with his other bands, the American musician is busy making music in his studio all the time, just like he is currently working on the next Fearless Fliers album.
With his first visit to India, ask him if he ever plans to experiment with Indian sounds, and the answer isn’t surprising, because Wong visibly has such a thirst for music that he would absolutely love to try it out in the future. “I am well-versed with a lot of Indian classical music. My friend from Varanasi tells me a lot about different ragas and instruments in India. When I was younger, one of the first things that I heard with Indian instruments was John McLaughlin`s Shakti, Pandit Ravi Shankar, Zakir Hussain and Anoushka Shankar. I also want to listen to different types of scales and melodies, and different rhythmic patterns, and different ways to learn about song form,’ concludes Wong, who reveals that he is busy writing music for his next Cory Wong album, that fans can expect soon.
