Volunteer gig led to new careers for musical duo
Not many people get to drink a beer with Fred Penner, or get “rushed” by Three Days Grace. But for Robyn Hardy and Lorraine Pond, otherwise known as Juno-nominated children’s entertainers Bobs and Lolo, it’s just another “day at the office.” Well, not quite, In an interview with The Herald, Pond said it was “surreal,” when recounting the pair’s encounter with Penner at the 2015 Juno Awards.
“We were literally backstage having a beer with Fred Penner and I just looked at Robyn and said “What is going on? It was pretty cool!”
It was at that same awards show where they were approached by a group of unlikely fans, who introduced themselves as the Canadian rock quartet Three Days Grace.
“It turns out their kids are big fans,” Pond laughed, adding that fans can find photos of similar encounters on their Instagram page.
The multi-talented female singing duo, who will be lighting up the Peters Bros. stage in Okanagan Lake Park Sunday afternoon following the Kiddies Day Parade, initially bonded over their mutual love of the natural world as children, and after university, began their careers in education.
Hardy, who has a background in teaching and linguistics, and Pond (whose stage name is Lolo) began her career as an environmental educator and kinesiology major. The friends/educators originally started writing educational songs for “fun,” using their love of the ocean they grew up near, as inspiration.
Their first song was called I Wish I was a Jelly-Fish.
“We actually stumbled into our first gig, by volunteering to entertain kids at a fundraiser for the BC Children’s Hospital,” said Pond.
“We had only written five songs, but we wanted to help out and we just told ourselves ‘We can do this, we can do this,’ so we sang the same five songs over and over for this three-hour event. So that was our very first gig,”
From there, they booked birthday parties and events, and began writing more songs while building their fan base.
“Word got out and four years after those first five songs and we were able to quit our jobs and go from there.”
Bobs and Lolo are known for earth-friendly songs, such as Recycle With Me and I Love Bugs, as well as the series Sing, Dance & Play, which ran on Treehouse TV from 2013-15. They have become beloved by children, educators and parents alike for their ability to connect their young audience to the natural world using a captivating combination of music, movement and make-believe.
Sunday's free concert at 12:30 p.m. will be their first performance in Penticton since the Okanagan Children’s Festival in 2012.
Peachfest continues daily until Sunday. The Kiddies Day Parade will be held on Main Street, starting at noon outside the City Centre Building in the 300 block of Main Street.
Tonight's musical entertainment will showcase country music with free performances at Okanagan Lake Park by Amanda Bentley, Cody Marquardt and Aaron Pritchett, beginning at 6:15 p.m.
On the net: www.bobsandlolo.com.