Studying At SAE Institute Led To A Lot More Than Just An Education For Ronnie & Benni

Ronnie & Benni are Sydney’s freshest pop-fusion duo and Surya "Ronnie" Luthikurthi and Benjamin "Benni" Peterson are two of the nicest guys you’ll meet in the local music scene. 

Luthikurthi had success in India as a DJ but grew disillusioned with the monotonous creative process he was experiencing.

"There was no ingenuity. I was playing at big festivals and to big crowds, I was collaborating with international artists but I wasn’t being authentic and I wasn’t following my own sound. I decided to come to Australia to pursue another path," Luthikurthi says. 

Moving to Australia in 2016, Luthikurthi started a Bachelor Of Audio course at SAE Sydney. Here he met Peterson, a folk singer/songwriter from the Central Coast, immediately clicking with him personally and musically. Deciding to pursue their musical partnership professionally, they formalised Ronnie & Benni, showcasing their unique creative fusion; Peterson brings the narrative element to Luthikurthi’s electronic sound. 

The duo have now released their first single titled Fake Smiles, with Luthikurthi’s initial experience of moving to Australia and the undercurrent of xenophobia inspiring the lyrics for the track. Peterson, who wrote the lyrics based on his friend’s experience, says that Fake Smiles is also a story of positivity; "It's about spending time experiencing the real Sydney, noticing sincere smiles among the fake ones. It’s about finding your tribe and the true inclusivity of Australia."

An amalgamation of east meets west, and a clear vision of culture and art is something Ronnie & Benni strive for in their project. Putting this into practice, Peterson spent hours hand painting each frame for their Fake Smiles lyric video. 

Joining Ronnie & Benni is SAE studio supervisor and band manager Tye Pennington on guitar, SAE audio lecturer Dean Belcastro on drums and SAE audio graduate Kristina Maggio on guitar and bass. 

Ronnie & Benni aren’t the only two bringing their eclectic music backgrounds to the outfit; band members Pennington and Maggio come from metal scenes while Belcastro has extensive experience playing in rock bands. Pennington believes their rock and metal histories brings a tight sound to the electronic outfit. “The diversity of our talent brings a dynamic sound to Ronnie & Benni, this isn’t your ordinary electronica,” he shares. 

Embracing differences is the ethos of Ronnie & Benni and all band members embody this philosophy. What sets them apart also brings them together and aside from the commonality of SAE, from mentor to student to colleague - all five share an authentic friendship and genuine affection for each other. 

"We want to send the message that the spirit of our sound is about life, love and culture," says Luthikurthi. "We want individuals and audiences to connect with our music and through it we extend the hand of love, we want to transcend sexuality, race, religion. At the heart of Ronnie & Benni lies friendship."

SAE Audio Lecturer and drummer Belcastro helped Ronnie & Benni refine their sound and is the mix engineer and co-producer of Fake Smiles. “Although Ronnie & Benni wrote and produced the track it sounds as good as it does because of Dean, he leant his expertise to it,” Luthikurthi notes. 

“On the other hand, our manager Tye has a tough love approach, but he was the first one who knew we had something special, who thought we should go out and spread this love, who believed in us,” he continues. 

With their grand plans of spreading the love and their music Ronnie & Benni are going to go far with their nice guy attitude, unparalleled sound and unwavering support of their friends and bandmates. 

To see where studying at SAE could take you, come to the Sydney Open Day 2019! On the day you can take a tour of our facilities, check out students and studios at work and learn why SAE is the world leader in Creative Media education for the creative industries. Chat with students and staff about studying abroad, industry work placement and scholarships, taking place from 10am-2pm on Saturday 11 August at SAE Sydney, 39 Regent Street, Chippendale.

Sponsored by SAE.