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February 10, 2017Don’t deny the rain, but always bring an umbrella just in case
February 14, 2017
John Rodrigue is in for the biggest night of his career.
Rodrigue, a Houma native, will be playing drums in front of thousands of people with his band Maradeen tonight as they open up for legendary rock band Bon Jovi at Philips Arena in Atlanta.
The group won the opportunity to open for Bon Jovi through a contest with Live Nation, an events company. Bands submitted videos to Live Nation, which then passed their 10 favorites onto Bon Jovi, who then chose the seven winners from the shortlist. Rodrigue said he expects the crowd at Philips (capacity: 17,700) to be the biggest Maradeen has seen yet.
“We’re going to be playing in front of some folks, that’s for sure. As a band, you look at the platform that we’re going to be on, it’s by far the biggest show,” Rodrigue said.
Rodrigue said Maradeen went through their 20-minute set for the show four times in preparation for the gig. However, that kind of preparation is what the band does for its shows no matter the size.
“Obviously, this is not any other show by any means – we’re opening up for one of the biggest rock bands in the world, playing in front of the biggest crowd. But part of it is treating it like any other show,” Rodrigue said.
Rodrigue said he has been based in Nashville since graduating from Berklee College of Music in 2009. That’s where he hooked up with Maradeen in August 2015. Rodrigue said he was the band’s ninth drummer, as the group had been using hired guns before he came along. He said after his first time playing with the band, he knew it was the group he had been looking for.
“It was an instant chemistry there, a lot of the same interests. We’re all around the same age, which is a big plus, and we’re all into the same music, old and new,” Rodrigue said. “We’re all kind of on the same page there and are introducing each other to new stuff all the time.”
Rodrigue said he hopes he can turn on some listeners to Maradeen’s sound and earn some new fans. However, the Houma boy whose love for percussion started when he was a 10-year-old playing snare drum for Broadmoor Elementary won’t have the folks from Terrebonne far from his mind.
“My one wish would be that I could take along everybody who had a positive influence on me growing up, I wish I could take them all and have them all at Philips Arena,” Rodrigue said.
Houma native John Rodrigue (right) will be playing drums tonight as his band Maradeen opens up for Bon Jovi in Philips Arena.
