Toby lee parents Continue Toby Lee, is an incredibly talented 10-year-old schoolboy from Oxfordshire whose homemade videos of himself strumming off his guitar have recently gone viral with millions of YouTube hits around the world. Virtuoso American blues gutarist Joe Bonamassa recently shared a video of Toby playing the song BB King on his Facebook page, and dubbed him a future blues guitar superstar. This video has now reached over 12 million people and has been viewed more than 4 million times in just a few days! SCREENSHOT OF TOBY'S ORIGINAL VIDEO POST - SHARED POST BY JOE BONAMassaWhen journalist from one of the British national newspapers asked Toby whether he thought he could do it at the top of the music industry, Toby responded just like a typical 10-year-old and said: I'm not sure how far I can go with this - I don't have a time machine. Toby, how did you feel when Joe Bonamassa shared his video on Facebook? I just felt amazing and proud of myself. Joe is my huge hero, but I never thought he'd ever notice me. I still can't get over it. I watched Toby's video on Facebook and was just blown away by his talent. The fact that a 10-year-old already knows and understands how to play the blues as a muscian who has been around for years is just amazing. Toby and his father Terry were kind enough to do an email interview with us after we contacted them on Facebook and Toby's dad even took the time to chat with me on the phone before this post was published. We will follow Toby's progress with great interest because, like Joe Bonamassa, who was also discovered to play at a very young age, we are sure that Toby is destined for great things to come. Let's go back to the very beginning ... ... how and when did Toby's amazing musical talent first begin to develop? It started when he was a little kid. Toby's father played guitar tunes to help his son fall asleep. Things really started to take off when Toby received the ukulele as a gift from his grandmother at the tender age of four. I played until all the strings broke down, said Toby, and then Santa gave me a red copy of Strat when I was 7 and that's where it started. After watching the movie School of Rock I wanted the right guitar. I felt like a rock star and carried him everywhere with his first SET OF STRINGSToby being influenced by some great guitarists and his extensive list of favorite musicians amazes a guy his age - he certainly knows that he loves to play and listen, and the usual pop-chart music that most other 10-year-olds like, just don't even figure in his playlist. Obviously I'm a big fan of Joe Bonamassa, Gary Moore, Walter Trout, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Jimi Hendrix, BB King, John Mayer, Jimmy Page and Eric Clapton. I also follow players such as Lawrence Jones, ?uinn Sullivan, Chris Chris Robinson, Joan Shaw Taylor and Aaron Kaylock. I also love rock 'n' roll - Buddy Holly, Elvis, modern bands like J.D. McPherson and Jack Rabbit Slim and Brian Setzer. I'm a big rock fan too - Guns N Roses, Metallica, AC/DC..... If one day you could own a guitar that was played by either Jimi Hendrix, Jimmy Page or Stevie Ray Vaughan - which would you choose and why? I would like Jimi Hendrix Strat, but I can't play left-handed and he'll probably be broken or burned. So I would say SRV Strat for a certain . Toby's response indicates that for a young guy, he already has a good sense of humor and knows his Rock and Roll stories as well as his guitars! Toby's dream of owning a Fender Stratocaster finally came true earlier this year when his father gave him one of his own as a well-deserved award for winning the Young Musician of the Year competition. TOBY WITH BERNIE MARSDENToby famous fans now include blues legend Bernie Marsden, whom he met, and Mick Box, lead guitarist Uriah Heep, who was also very supportive. Radio 2 DJ Chris Evans described it as natural. and legendary Radio 2 newsreader Moira Stewart said he sounded like a budding Jimi Hendrix. TOBY WITH MICK BOX FROM URIAH HEAPToby has already been filmed by the BBC speaking at his school. He has been championed by Seattle Rock and Blues radio station, and having a recent opportunity to appear on Radio Chris Evan 2 Breakfast Show to play Highway to Hell. CLIP TOBY PLAYING SOME AC/DC AT HOMEOne from Toby's recent video show him performing AC/DC 'Thunderstruck' wearing a school cap - just like another of his idols, Angus Young. Some of his other home beeen videos are shot by his dad on I-Pad, while Toby wears his comfortable onesie, and strums away in his parent's living room. Toby Onesie Jams has become an overnight internet sensation with millions of people around the world tuning in every week and sending requests. We asked Toby about how the idea to play Onesie came about: I shot my first Onesie Jam without mom and dad knowing, and I was wearing a onesie that Mom did for me. I liked the idea of doing weekly jam in a onesie! I have a tiger onesie, an army onesie and a onesie guitar! I can see it's getting a bit of a trend - every budding Rock Star-in-solution needs a memorable trick and Toby has already got this area covered! Joe Bonamassa may have sharp men-in-black suits and shades like his recognizable image, but Onesie Jams may be the next big thing! AMAZING VIDEO TOBY PLAYING FOR BB KING WHICH JOE BONAMASSA SHARED ON FACEBOOKDespite all the instant fame and suddenly with a spotlight placed on it, put back Toby sounds surprisingly grounded for a budding future Guitar Hero:I'd give my guitar a play of 9.5 out of ten because no one is perfect. I'm playing blues and rock 'n' roll. I'm not sure where the sympathy rock came from, but I listen to it all the time and my mom and dad really like it. How long should you practice on each day? Do you play by ear or read music or do a little bit of both? Do you just enjoy playing songs of other peoples or do you play what you come up with yourself? I don't really practice as such, I just play all the time. So it never feels like sitting to learn something - I always have a guitar in my hand. I play by ear and don't read music yet. Only recently I've done a few covers - so far it's all been improvised in my style. In my rock school - Witchwood School of Rock - we don't do covers - it's all our own songs. What is your favorite song to play for your own pleasure and why do you like it? Thrill is Gone - BB King - I can do so much with it and mix different riffs. Staying quietly understated about his newfound internet fame, Toby says: I just love playing, and when we put videos on Facebook I thought they would have about ten people watching them. When I found out that more than a million people had seen it, it came as a surprise. What was best for you about getting so many hits on You Tube and Facebook and becoming an internet star? I had so much support and great comments. Many people around the world have told me that they look forward to Sunday jam! Bb King jam has now reached 10 million people and has been viewed almost 4 million times! I have quite a few fans on Facebook, which is cool, and I also befriended an amazing 8 year old drummer in the US called Alex Shoemaker and hopefully make a transatlantic jam together soon! Despite all the attention he gets in the media and his immense talent for music, Toby is just like any other normal 10-year-old kid and has many other interests too: I have a lot of friends, I love classic cars, running, going to music festivals, playing with my dogs and playing drums. My best subjects in school are English and art - and I love playing time! So how does music fit into Toby's education? Toby currently attends Crackley Hall School in Kenilworth and also attends Witchwood Rock School in Oxfordshire a couple of times a week. Although his blues plays mostly self-taught, Toby has weekly guitar lessons with Aldie Chalmers at Witchwood Rock School. Aldie was an amazing teacher for Toby and creates just the right balance between lesson and jamming session. It can be hard to keep a 10-year-old engaged for an hour, but his lessons are often done in WA style-sharing riffs, and lots of laughs, and manages to slip into some practice scales at the same time. They often run over on time because they are so However, despite his skill on the guitar, the young musician says he certainly won't add to his repetoire at any time in the future. I really hate singing, he says - but when you can play guitar like Toby does, adding things like the vocals of his improvisation isn't such a big deal.