DIEGO MONGUE: THE MULTI-TALENTED BLUES AND JAZZ ARTIST IS A CREATIVE FORCE TO WATCH
By Mark Greenlaw
If you haven't heard of Diego Mongue, I highly recommend that you take note. Mongue is quickly gaining traction as a contemporary blues, jazz, and progressive rock musician. At just 22 years old and a senior studying music at Williams College, he has had some significant accomplishments, including releasing four original albums, performing in music festivals, and successfully competing in an international blues competition. His creative powers extend beyond music and into filmmaking, dance, and choreography, making him a multidisciplinary creative powerhouse you'll want to follow.
A Bluesman & More
Mongue is the leader of the Diego Mongue Band, which represented the Capital Region in the International Blues Challenge (IBC) in Memphis, Tennessee, in January. Mongue is no stranger to the IBC—it was his fifth time participating, starting with youth competitions. "The IBCs are an incredible gathering of blues musicians," he says, describing the camaraderie and networking opportunities that come with competing on Beale Street, the heart of the blues. The core band is comprised of vocalist Chantell McFarland, bassist/guitarist Chase Bradshaw, and guitarist/drummer Cameron Bencivenga. Keyboardist Joel Nicholas and saxophonist Aaron Dean joined the band for the IBC competitions.
Beyond his own band, Mongue is a pivotal member of Misty Blues, the celebrated Berkshire-based blues ensemble led by his mother, Gina Coleman. In addition to the blues, Mongue is an accomplished jazz musician. Gross Mongue, a jazz collaboration with Canadian bassist Trent Grossman, remains an outlet for his more experimental compositions.
Early Beginnings
Mongue's love for music was sparked by his parents. His mother, a professional musician for decades, recalls playing gigs “right up until Diego was born." And his father, artist Michael Mongue, sang Frank Zappa songs as lullabies to him as an infant. Coleman recalls Diego listening to a Frank Zappa mix tape at seven. "I watched him sit on the floor with his ear almost pressed against the speaker, completely absorbed," she says. "Diego was scatting along with the instrumentation. I stood frozen, thinking this is what he's meant to do."
His first foray into making music was playing the guitar, but that didn’t stick. His grandmother's gift of a drum kit ignited a lifelong passion for Mongue. He started taking lessons from Kali Baba McConnell, who was the drummer of Misty Blues at the time. After he left the band, Rob Tatten, current drummer for Misty Blues, became Mongue’s teacher through high school. His first live performance came at age nine with Misty Blues at the Clark Art Institute. "We had no idea it would be such a big event—over 3,000 people attended!” says Coleman. “I told Diego he didn't have to perform if he didn't want to, but he said, 'No, I got it, mom.' He played alongside my drummer on a double drum kit and did great."
While attending high school at Berkshire Arts & Technology Charter School (BART), Mongue formed his first band, Born for Blues, which earned him trips in 2018 and 2019 to the IBC. The band broke up during Covid, and since then, Mongue has focused on performing with Misty Blues and the Diego Mongue Band.
Although drums remain his primary instrument, Mongue is a true multi-instrumentalist. He plays bass guitar, rhythm guitar, lap steel, and pedal steel, often incorporating these instruments into his studio work. His compositions range from straightforward blues to whimsical storytelling pieces, showcasing his creative versatility.
"I think there's a lack of humor in music," he says. "While I take music seriously, the music itself doesn't always have to be."
This ethos is evident in tracks like "Santa's Black Sack" from Proboscis, released in July 2024. This 17-minute odyssey weaves through New Orleans grooves, ’50s rock, contemporary jazz fusion, and more. "Working with Diego is very exciting,” says Chantell McFarland, who sings with his band and also performs solo. “His mind is always going and coming up with new ideas."
In addition to Frank Zappa, Mongue has been influenced by the improvisational style of jam bands like the Allman Brothers Band, Goose, and Phish. His love of jazz has grown through high school and his time at Williams, and he finds inspiration in Cameroon-born bassist Richard Bona. Recently, he's been listening to Miles Davis, especially his 1980s work, and exploring the musicians who played with him. He also counts his mother as one of his major influences, particularly in teaching him the business side of being a musician.
A Prolific Creator
Mongue's productivity as a songwriter and producer is nothing short of remarkable. Over the past year, he has released four impressive albums—a mix of blues, jazz, and progressive rock. And in the next six months, he plans to release an album with his blues band, a live album recorded at the Williams College ’62 Center for Theatre & Dance, and a jazz album. "I've had a lot on my mind and write to clear headspace," he explains.
While he's a prolific composer, Mongue thrives off of being on stage. "I'm a performer at heart," he says. “Playing in front of a live audience fuels me, especially when the music is well-received. It's an incredible feeling to excite a crowd with something you've created." He also loves the recording process— tweaking drum sounds, finding the perfect timbre, and experimenting with ideas.
Career Highlights
Despite his young age, Mongue already has notched up several career highlights, including three standout moments. Playing FreshGrass in 2022 with Misty Blues was a big one. It was his first time at the festival, and they performed on the same stage as Taj Mahal, Mongue says. “Seeing that crowd and being part of such a significant event was amazing." Another was performing at the Kitchener Blues Festival in Ontario, Canada. "We opened for Tom Cochrane on a massive stage with jumbotrons and a sea of people. I was only 16," he says.
Most recently, performing at the Rum Boogie Café in Memphis for the IBC last January had a powerful impact on Mongue. "During the quarterfinals, my band was locked in, and the energy was electric," he says. "Playing in the heart of blues music felt profound, especially coming from a predominantly white area where I sometimes feel othered. In Memphis, my identity as a blues musician felt seen and celebrated, which was deeply fulfilling."
Filmmaking & Dance
Mongue's creative pursuits extend beyond music. A lover of campy horror films, he wrote and directed three feature-length movies. He made Ground Chuck during spring break of his senior year at BART. Hippies vs. Squirrel Men, which premiered at Images Cinema in Williamstown, was made the following year, followed by Summer in Murray in 2023. He's working on a concert film for the live album he recorded during his senior capstone project at Williams, blending his passion for music with visual storytelling.
In addition, Mongue has explored dance as a form of artistic expression. A third-degree black belt in Shaolin Kempo Karate, he transitioned to dance while at Williams, noting many parallels between the two. He enjoys African and Afro-modern dance and is inspired by the work of Katherine Dunham and the Dunham technique—leaning into the dance movements of the African diaspora. He is one of the teaching assistants for the African dance group at Williams. His recent Williams dance capstone featured choreography set to music from his upcoming jazz album, exploring musicians' movements and exaggerated gestures into dance.
On the Horizon
With graduation in June, Mongue plans to hit the road with his band and continue touring with Misty Blues, including an overseas tour this summer in England, Scotland, and Ireland. He's also considering graduate school for music production to deepen his understanding of the craft.
Looking ahead, Mongue has clear goals: "Ideally, I'd love to perform and tour full-time. Realistically, I just want to make a living doing music—whether that's teaching, recording, playing, session work, or running live sound. If I can sustain myself through music in any capacity, I'll be very content." And according to one local industry expert, that's within his grasp.
"Diego is a super talented young musician with a very promising career in front of him," says Tor Krautter, Artistic Director of Programming at Berkshire Theatre Group and leader of the bands Rev Tor and Dead Man's Waltz. "His skill and talent across multiple instruments speaks for itself. What really stands out, though, is his passion. He has that spark that you are just born with, or in his case, born into.”
Whatever the future holds, there’s certainly one thing to take note: Mongue's blend of talent, boundless creativity, and relentless dedication promise to make his journey nothing short of extraordinary.
The Diego Mongue Band will perform on March 15 at 7:30 p.m. at Spencertown Academy’s Blanche Grubin Auditorium in New York. Go to spencertownacademy.org for tickets.
Mark Greenlaw is creator and content director of Music in the Berkshires, an Old Mill Road Media online publication. musicintheberkshires.com
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