Citizen Mundi
www.citizenmundi.com
Representing five nations across the globe, Citizen Mundi was formed in Tulsa, Oklahoma during fall of 2004. 'Mundi' (moon-dee), etymologically speaking meant 'world' to the native peoples of ancient Rome, and now it defines us all as citizens of one world - "Citizen Mundi"
Jean-Michel Balaguer, Eric Bass, Erick Donis, and Sergio D'Alonzo had been acquainted through their membership in various musical organizations searching to find their own unique sound. Jean-Michel left on a month-long sabbatical to Brazil, he returned inspired with many thoughts and sounds from his roots in Rio. Reunited with his colleagues, new ideas were shared which inevitably led to the creation of a world musical concept. The four original members, fore mentioned, immediately began auditioning various musicians, and quickly came to a group decision. Now three new “MUNDI’S” were inducted into the band; Michael Drummond and Ryan Tedder on horns, Wilfredo Nanita on keys. Citizen Mundi finds their sound in March of 2005.
“When we arrived in Stillwater OK for one of our first show at Oklahoma State Univ. last year (note that the school’s logo is OSU Cowboys), we were slightly concerned about the gig we were about to play. The club is called “Roosters” and if that doesn’t tell you it’s a country/western bar I don’t know what does! When we entered the joint, sure enough all we saw was belt buckles and cowboy hats. We sort of looked at each other and thought… They’ll either LOVE us or KILL us. We got a couple of drinks to calm our nerves before we went on and did our pre show ritual. BANG! By the fourth song every F'in cowboy and cowgirl were dancing their asses off to Mundi music… After that gig we thought, if we can move that crowd we can play anywhere in the world!!!”
2006 has been a great year for Citizen Mundi. As the project continues to grow so has the fan base. Although the music is sung in four different languages, English, Spanish, Portuguese and French, this hasn’t discouraged audiences of all demographics from enjoying an evening with the Mundi’s. In fact, Mundi music has created a new awareness for those who have never been exposed to a world sound before, and for those who have, it has reminded them of why it is such a special and unique feeling.
The 20th century is over and the turn of a new millennium has opened doors to artists from all over the world. This is due to the innovative ways of trading information based on the Internet. With this access, citizens from all regions of our planet are now in communication with one another and are updated every minute with current events. Because of this, Citizen Mundi’s web site ‘www.citizenmundi.com’ has generated a tremendous amount of traffic since published on the World Wide Web.
Winners of both the Waka Winter Classic Regional Showcase (Tulsa) and the WWC Online Competition, coupled with the release of their first album ‘No Translation’ in March of 2007, this certainly is a very exciting time for Citizen Mundi!
