The ET Boys are a two-man duo comprised of brothers “Tacboy” and “Sharkeyes.” Born in Chicago, but hailing from Miami, their musical influences range from the guitar of Flamenco, to the drums of the Doors, to classical piano music. A well-rounded education eventually sent the two boys in different directions, with full rides for their university degrees — Tacboy studying Bio Med Engineering at Tulane in New Orleans, and Sharkeyes studying Chemistry in Chicago at Loyola.
In spite of their serious educations, the name “ET Boys” actually originates from their father, who called them “idiot boys” as children, but in a thick Spanish accent.
“Instead of calling us ‘idiots,’ he would call us ‘ETs,'” shares Tacboy in his Stripjoints interview.
During the course of their studies, really separated for the first time, the two closed the distance with music. Sharkeyes began to share beats which Tacboy sang over, and two brothers, who had never made music growing up, quickly amassed over 30 songs.
Both admit that they wouldn’t be as interested in composing music without the other.
“Without my brother’s vocals, these are just random beats,” shares Sharkeyes in his Stripjoints interview.
The dynamic duo — of which Tacboy, a signed IMG model with a presence likened to Jim Morrison, fronts, while his brother, Sharkeyes, dons a mysterious mask — garnered instant attention, and within two years, ET Boys signed with the record label, Wake Up! Music. With Wake Up!, they began to work with mega producer, musician and composer, Sahaj Ticotin, and undeniably developed into an international interest.
Now, with stream counts in the millions and the #3 position on the global DRT Independent Chart, the ET Boys have made a name for themselves as a genre-bending sound which defies quick classification, a sound you might call “nu,” or not yet defined.
ExoticDancer.com had the opportunity to speak with Tacboy and Sharkeyes, the brothers behind ET Boys, courtesy of Bob Chiappardi and StripJointsMusic.com, about brotherhood, “Bong Bong,” the origins behind their individual monikers and losing it at the strip club.
(Note: The interview was conducted by Ilan Fong, Danny Meyers and Bob Chiappardi, with questions courtesy of ED Publications.)
ED: Are you two actually biologically brothers? What does “brotherhood” mean to you?
Tacboy: Yes. No doubt we are.
Brotherhood means having a lifelong teammate that, in my case, I can always turn to — my big brother. He has always been there for me, as long as I can remember.
Sharkeyes: No, we’re not. I just met this guy the other month actually. (Joke.) Brotherhood to me is the Mario movie — check it out if you haven’t.
ED: Did you make music together growing up? How did you start working together?
Tacboy: No, we didn’t make music growing up, but we both played our own respective instruments. We played in school Christmas and talent shows. I played guitar, and he played piano and drums. We only started making music together around 2018/2019, and it all started when I sent my brother a freestyle with some random YouTube beat I found. He sent me his first beat the following weekend, and I recorded on a shitty webcam, and then we had our first song.
Sharkeyes: Growing up, we never made any music together. It wasn’t until my brother was in college that we started messing around. It was pretty natural… He had freestyled on some YouTube beats with his friends in college and sent me some stuff. I thought it sounded pretty good and figured I could make some beats for him, and then we started going back and forth until we had our first songs.
ED: How do your two personal projects in music come together to make ET Boys? And how does working together differ from working alone?
Tacboy: I think they come together quite nicely as he does the production and the music, and I do the singing. It really is just too easy. I wouldn’t know what it’s like working alone. I’ve never done it and I don’t see myself ever doing it.
Sharkeyes: I don’t have a personal project. I’ve only ever been a part of ET boys. I only work with my brother. Maybe I’ll do some personal stuff in the future, but for now, I’m all in on this. Without my brother’s vocals, these are just random beats.
ED: I read that you are both well-educated and classically-trained, both receiving full rides to college. What did you study and where? Who is your favorite classical musician?
Tacboy: Yea, haha. I studied Bio Med Engineering at Tulane in New Orleans. It was ass. I hated studying all day, but it really helped me keep discipline within myself and strengthened my mind.
Tchaikovsky. He makes me feel like I’m a mastermind villain.
Sharkeyes: I studied Chemistry in Chicago at Loyola. Shoutouts to SP Kebab, Buffalo Joes and Fondue Stube. I don’t have a favorite classical musician, but my favorite modern composer is Yann Tiersen — I’ve learned so many of his songs on the piano. Also, have to mention the GOAT Nobuo Uematsu — the composer of all the Final Fantasy music.
ED: Being Latinos and hailing from Miami, a great Latin American cultural hub, how has Latin music and culture influenced your sound?
Tacboy: Growing up, we would hear Flamenco a lot in the house. In high school, I used to listen to Don Omar. Other than that, I wouldn’t say I’m the biggest Reggaeton fan. I even hate going out in Miami sometimes because it’s like 4 hours of pure Reggaeton. I can’t take it.
Sharkeyes: I think Latin music has influenced our sound just as much as every other genre. When it comes to Latin music, I like Peso Pluma, Hadrian, Aventura, Chucky73 and Quevedo to name a few. But we take inspiration from almost every genre as we really do listen to just about everything.
ED: What is “Nu Pop Melodic Rap”? Is this how you would describe the ET Boys sound?
Tacboy: I don’t really know, haha, but I guess that is how we’re being described by the press. I said it before and I’ll say it again: The only way to describe our sound is pure ET. Our songs may be completely different, but when you hear them, you can tell they sound like us and were made by us.
Sharkeyes: I don’t really know what that is. We just always make what we think sounds cool or enjoy. Sometimes it’s punky, sometimes it’s poppy, trappy, whatever. There is a core sound that you can hear in each song, but the genre does get kind of bent.
ED: Why do you call yourselves the “ET Boys”? Where do the names “Tacboy” and “Sharkeyes” come from?
Tacboy: The “ET Boys” actually stems from our dad’s Spanish accent. Instead of calling us ‘idiots,’ he would call us ‘ETs.’
The name “Tacboy” comes from my brother. “Marcos” turned into “Mac,” “Mac” turned into “Mac Attacc” and then eventually became “Tac.”
Sharkeyes: “ET boys” means “idiot boys.” It’s what our dad used to call us when we were doing something dumb. He would sometimes make up words when speaking English, and ET was supposed to be a placeholder for “idiot,” because he couldn’t think of the word at the time. The phrase stuck, and “Don’t be an ET boy” became a common phrase.
The “Sharkeyes” name came from Tacboy, because my eyes are black.
ED: Tacboy, what do you like better? Modeling for an international modeling agency, or fronting ET Boys?
Tacboy: Neither. I honestly enjoy my solitude and would live in seclusion if I could. Well, a part of me. Another part likes modeling best when I’m doing that and singing when I’m creating.
ED: Sharkeyes, why do you keep your face a secret? Surely you’re hiding a model face, like your brother’s?
Sharkeyes: I like to wear a mask, because I like it and I think it looks cool. It’s fun to put on a mask and become something else. I’m not hiding a model face, that’s why I hide my face. I-I’m only a little bit of a cutie. I’m actually the ugly guy that just makes the music. My brother is the face and front man.
“I’m not hiding a model face, that’s why I hide my face.
I-I’m only a little bit of a cutie. I’m actually the ugly guy that just makes the music. My brother is the face and front man.”
– Sharkeyes
ED: Tell me about the single you have slated to release for the 12th annual MJBizCon (Marijuana Conference and Cannabis conference). What’s your relationship to the ‘counter-culture’?
Tacboy: The single is out now and is called “Bong Bong.” We’re happy to present it to the Panda DJs. It came from a jam session at my brother’s apartment. I kind of just freestyled the chorus and everyone liked it, so we made it into a song. Ever since I was a kid, I hated when people copied me, and was often told it’s the biggest form of flattery. So, I guess I’ve always hated what’s popular, but as I grew older, I realized it’s kind of lame to be so oppositional, so now I just like what I like.
Sharkeyes: ¡¡¡¡QUEREMOS ROCK!!!!
ED: Hailing from Miami, which is famous for its options in adult entertainment, you must have been to a strip club or two. What’s your best strip club story?
Tacboy: My brother handed me 100 bucks and told me to ask for a dance. She told me I was way too cute to be there, and I thought that was really funny.
“My brother handed me 100 bucks and told me to ask for a dance. She told me I was way too cute to be there.”
– Tacboy
Sharkeyes: Back in college……strip club in the Midwest next to a cornfield. I’m in there with my friends — one who we’ll call “CJ” for this story. CJ was notorious in our social circle for premature ejacking with the women he dated. This dancer came up to him and singled him out, probably sensing the legend that he was. She grabbed his crotch and loudly proclaimed while holding on to his junk, “For $200, I can make you cum.” Legit, the moment she finished the sentence, CJ began to bust a nut in his pants. Everybody popped off and started dying laughing. I actually ran out of the club, I was laughing so hard. I’ll never forget that.
ED: Why do you think strip clubs will be playing “Bong Bong” on repeat?
Tacboy: Honestly it’s just an authentic song, and it’s quite catchy.
Sharkeyes: I don’t know, but I hope that becomes true. It’s still weird to me that people actually listen to our stuff. Thank you for playing our song. I hope it makes you feel good.
