One man and his little bird are doing their part to put smiles on the faces of thousands in an unexpected way.
“Tico and the Man Frank Maglio” are the most unlikely duo— a young parakeet and an old man with a guitar. The two of them together make up a YouTube channel with over 205,000 subscribers.
The channel releases videos almost daily, with a similar subject matter every time: Maglio’s fluid guitar playing, and Tico’s random but expressive voice.
Maglio chooses a popular song of the day and jams out on one of his many guitars, both acoustic and electric.
Maglio and Tico have fun with their renditions, Maglio sometimes inviting a friend to also play while Tico hops along tables and countertops, enjoying the songs of Maglio’s choosing.
The group’s most popular video managed to amass over 4 million views and was Tico’s own rendition of “Here Comes the Sun’ by The Beatles.
Tico never really sings the song, but rather does his own thing, hopping gleefully and chirping to the tune of Maglio’s strumming in his own improvised manner. Even though it’s not the original song, it comes right from Tico’s own heart.
The YouTube channel that has captivated thousands started in April of 2020, amidst the lockdown of the pandemic.
Their very first video was a rendition of “Stairway to Heaven” and features Maglio playing his acoustic guitar next to little Tico’s cage.
Almost a year and a half later, and the channel regularly gets views of about 50,000, sometimes jumping up to viral status with over 1 million views.
Maglio and Tico often choose classic rock songs to play, with a discography covering the likes of REM, The Beatles, Aerosmith, and Van Halen.
That’s not to say they don’t ever deviate from the genre, as during the winter months the two have been known to do cover many Christmas favorites such as “Grandma Got Ran Over by a Reindeer” and “Feliz Navidad”.
Tico and Maglio have been filling the hearts of many for almost two years, and their fans hope that they will be doing it for many more.
Check out their one of their most popular videos below.