When Michael Winslow the Sound Effects Guy took a golf cart around Bonnaroo to prank festival goers, they were absolutely not ready for what he was about to serve up! The American comedian is known as The Man of 10,000 Sound Effects, and when The Music Man readers watch the viral Bonnaroo video, it’ll become real clear as to how he got that name.
Winslow brandishes a megaphone as he beatboxes, sings and creates various noises, ranging from animal sounds to impressions of officials, children, and more. At times, he orders bemused festival-goers around, then meows like a cat, then creates some phat beatboxing tunes for people to groove to. At first, people are confused, but when some of the crowd recognize him, Winslow gets a cheering reception like he’s a rock star!
Bonnaroo organizers uploaded the video on the festival’s official YouTube channel, where it gained 3.8 million views. If you need a pick-me-up, then this is for sure one video you want to tune into, as you can’t help but smile when watching Winslow’s antics and punters’ reactions to his bizarre sound effects.
Fans gave a whole lotta love to Winslow below the video, adding comments such as “Michael is the best. Who can dislike this man? He is super funny and talented” and “He’s more than just the sound effects guy – he’s a comedy legend.” Winslow has created many viral videos on YouTube, with another one of his classics being a jaw-dropping cover of Led Zeppelin’s “Whole Lotta Love.” In this performance he beatboxes and does a spot-on impression of Zeppelin frontman Robert Plant.
Michael Leslie Winslow was born on September 6, 1958, and the Spokane, Washington native is now 66 years old. The Music Man readers may be interested to hear his origin story, as his skills with sound effects started very early in his life. Winslow had few friends growing up, and to pass the time he learned to imitate the sounds of machines, animals, and anything that took his fancy.
After completing his education, Winslow began performing in clubs and theatres with his sound imitation act. From these performances, he was able to save up and take his act to Hollywood, where he became a fixture on television and movies. Some of his most notable roles included playing Larvell Jones in the Police Academy movies and the radio operator in the 1987 comedy Spaceballs.
If you would like to hear more from Michael Winslow, you can follow him on Facebook and Instagram for more incredible content.