Dave & the Plushies began life in late 2013 as a band of one – local Melbourne singer/song-writer David Hoang. His Plushies are simply a collection of soft toys who help liven the stage whilst Dave brings the entire song, dance and music to life. The band seeks to “bring light and joy to the world through music and interesting lyrics.”

Launch Album

In October 2015, the release of his first album, titled 1st was launched:

This collection of twelve songs are all original songs:

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Dave & the Plushies operates a Youtube channel as well as a Big Cartel hosted online store for selling his album CD. Check out and follow the band on Facebook.

2016 Tour: On the Road to 2nd

Dave & the Plushies performed On the Road to 2nd, as a tour/show held at the Butterfly Club, one of Melbourne’s signature lane-way venues for hosting live music and comedic acts. The following reviews have already been published online:

1. Weekend Notes, 30 June 2016
2. The Australia Times, 30 June 2016
3. Theatre Press, 5 July 2016

All reviews are favourable and positive towards Dave & the Plushies. As the name of the show suggests, material from both 1st above plus his upcoming album 2nd is featured. As an audience member on Saturday 2 July, it was well worth the trip into town to be entertained by Dave & the Plushies instead of following the nail-biting Federal election results, which, after 6.5 hours was still inconclusive at the time. Performing every night from Tuesday 28 June through to Sunday 3 July, each performance differed slightly and catered for the unique audience mix. Indeed, the audience plays a big part of the overall experience given Dave is constantly interacting with the audience in between song performances, let alone some of the songs. The one-hour show was balanced between live performance and video clips. Indeed, every show opened with Superhero Asian:

With the mood set, Dave then entered onto stage and performed (W)Rapping in Slow Motion. Some of his favourite hits are shared throughout the night, including new material like I Shoulda Got Them Nuggets and Chubby Love, which also featured Dave dance a little as part of the show’s finale. The biggest song in terms of audience participation was the Monkey Song, where Dave encouraged us all to “sing along” by imitating monkeys… The show was continuously entertaining, even for people like myself who have seen Dave perform several times. The variety of topics covered along with the supportive crowd ensured Dave was a great entertainer for the night. Using the Butterfly Club as the venue was a good fit, given the eclectic tastes that the club gives homage to. With a super central location, and seating of up to 70 individuals, our Saturday night attendance was probably one of the biggest crowds with the theatre near capacity.

The Connection?

The connection between Dave & the Plushies is not so random. We both serve in the worship team at Clayton Church and our friendship goes back some ten years. Whilst we both hail from the same Haileybury College background, our paths and generations back then did not cross. Our passion for God has always infused our individual identities and I thank God for gifting this brother in Christ with his creativity and talent. Dave had an opportunity to share his music during a Clayton Church showcase of local mission & community work before hundreds of believers.

I have also previously benefited directly from singing lessons from Dave & the Jaanz School of Singing where he works on a part-time evening basis. His connection to Jaanz has evolved over the years and our season of lessons took place for me in 2013 in the wake of completing my MBA studies. Whilst I learnt and improved a lot, the overall context and driver for me in singing has been church worship. This topic really deserves a dedicated article, so in summary, our relationship at the time became one of teacher and student.

For long-time fans and friends of Dave, we know that the Plushies have “grown up” and have become an extended family. Indeed, the original plushies are somewhat “missing in action”, but we know that they have all gone on to fulfil their destiny in bringing love and comfort to a group of kids somewhere in South East Melbourne. Aka Dave left them backstage at church for months before one of the cleaners decided to clear them out and in doing so, donated them to kids…

Dave & I continue to serve in the worship team in our respective roles. On the odd occasion we sing together as part of the same band, but since I am part of a different band that opportunity is rarer these days. With a very similar church network of friends, Dave & the Plushies has a ready-made audience and support base. As he grows his musical presence in Melbourne, I understand very well his calling to use his musical and entertaining talents to bring and show God’s love to the world – when you understand the spiritual motivation and underlying driver, you can appreciate the depth behind his simple band description: “to bring light and joy to the world through music and interesting lyrics.” God bless Dave!