When a musician and a vocalist get together — with the right flow of a dynamic relationship and energy — the songs that emanate from that connection can be magical. This is the case for Frank Maglio and his parrot friend, Tico. But the merging of talents was not always an easy transition. In fact, Tico hadn’t taken well to Frank to begin with. If a bite was in the mix of cards, Frank was the one to get the hand…bitten.

Tico, a male double yellow-headed parrot around 25 years old, was adopted by Frank and his wife more than 20 years ago. Tico was once in the care of a British woman and had an English accent that has since disappeared. During the Covid period, Frank began to pay more attention to his guitar than usual and noted that Tico would scream.

Frank Strums And Tico Soars

As Frank paid closer attention to Tico, he realized that Tico was interested in the guitar and wanted to be involved with the music. One day, Frank played “Stairway To Heaven” sitting next to Tico. Tico took over and surprised the family to the point that a video was recorded. From that point forward, the pair bonded, and Tico and the Man was born. From there, it has become something of a musical tour de force. If the guitar is playing, Tico is in full form as the vocalist. He chooses his tones, his style, and whether he whistles or vocalizes. Today, Tico and The Man are notable YouTube stars on the channel, Tico & The Man Frank Maglio, which has more than half a million subscribers. The page has a wealth of familiar songs that Tico was all too happy to accompany Frank on.

Frank alternates between 6- and 12-string acoustic guitars and sometimes goes electric with a Fender guitar and a 3-inch speaker setup. From where we are, it looks like there isn’t a song that Tico doesn’t like. His biggest video yet features his The Beatles’ “Here Comes The Sun” cover. This 46-second video has over 9.5 million views worldwide and has over 7,000 comments.

The YouTube channel features over 1,000 videos and shorts. Pick any video, and you will be immersed not only in brilliant renditions of songs but also in hundreds of comments from all around the world. With Frank being an accomplished guitarist, it is no problem for Tico to join in and make any number of songs his own.  But even a run in the car, with the radio going, or a commercial on the TV with music, Tico finds moments to add vocals and whistles to the mix.

With a well-trafficked channel, fame is not far behind. To date, Tico and The Man have been featured in various magazines, including Rolling Stone. Tico has been invited to several shows, especially the Got Talent brand. But with the travel and live audience distraction, Frank has declined those shows due to participation issues. However, Sweden’s Got Talent offered to allow a remote performance. Tico and the Man did not advance, but the audience loved it nonetheless. You can watch that here. We look forward to more music by Tico and The Man Frank Maglio.