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Career Air Guitar Wins
*2005 Chicago Champion
*2006 New York Champion
*2007 New York Champion
*2007 U.S.A. Champion
*2009 New York Champion
*2009 U.S.A. Champion
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*Founder of AIR BAND TOUR
*Lead Air Guitarist of CATEGORY SIXX
*2007-2008 SPARKS Sponsorship
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The Rise of William Ocean
The Origin of the Air Band Tour
Against All Odds
Take a look at me now
There’s just an empty space
William Ocean is a baffled high school freshman, searching for his own identity and place to fit in.
Mr. and Mrs. Ocean are very conservative parents and listen to Phil Collins incessantly. Young Ocean realizes that he must find his own kind of music. He stumbles upon a cassette single of Neil Young’s “Rockin’ in the Free World” and experiences rock n’ roll for the first time. He is hooked.
Between high school classes Ocean sneaks his favorite cassette single into the music room, the only room in school with a tape player. One day Mr. Storkman, the high school music teacher walks in on Ocean playing air guitar to “Rockin’ in the Free World”. Mr. Storkman has a crazy idea; he wants Ocean to play air guitar in the school marching band.
Ocean agrees and he is an instant high school celebrity. He is now content; his remaining high school years are full of rock and good grades. Ocean gets into the college of his choice.
A Groovy Kind of Love
When I’m feeling blue, all I have to do
Is take a look at you, then I’m not so blue
Ocean continues to play air guitar recreationally in college.
Surprisingly Ocean’s freshman roommate is Simon Collins, the son of Phil Collins, who enjoys listening to his father’s music while he studies. One day Ocean storms out of the room after Simon refuses to turn off “But Seriously”. Ocean heads to Bruno’s, the local pizza parlor near campus.
Ocean sees a pretty girl playing air drums while listening to her Discman. Her name is Vicki Valentine. Ocean and Vicki fall in love and start a duet called “Sonny and Air”. Their air band garners a small following playing school talent nights and local open mics. After graduation Ocean and Vicki move to Ohio, where Vicki is content living in a small town and playing at open mics and senior citizen homes. Ocean wants more and both “Sonny and Air” and Ocean and Vicki break up.
Ocean goes to Chicago.
True Colors
Don’t be afraid to let them show
Your true colors
True colors are beautiful,
Like a rainbow
Chicago is Ocean’s first big city and he encounters a lot of new and exciting things.
Ocean grows fond of SPARKS and it becomes his favorite drink.
Ocean reads a Chicago event newsletter, Phil Collins is mysteriously on the cover. Ocean sees an ad for an air guitar competition at Joe’s Bar on Weed Street. Ocean calls the organizers, they tell him that a contestant had recently dropped out and that there is only one spot left. He takes it, just one week before the competition.
Ocean buys his first competitive air guitar attire, a pair of denim cut-off shorts, a denim jacket with cut-off sleeves and a pink leopard-print headband. Ocean’s roommate is Dale Dixon, who plays guitar in a “real” band. He suggests that Ocean performs the song Jukebox Hero, by Foreigner. Ocean agrees and Dixon helps with the technical aspects of the routine.
There are 15 contestants in Ocean’s first competition, including the winner from the previous year, Stephen Saint Lixx. Ocean performs well and it comes down to him and Duke Thrashington. Ocean wins; he is the Chicago Regional Champion.
Ocean goes to Los Angeles to compete in the U.S. Nationals. He comes in third place and people take notice.
In The Air Tonight
I’ve been waiting for this moment all my life, oh lord
Ocean moves to New York City to compete against the best.
Ocean’s love for SPARKS travels with him to NYC. He starts incorporating SPARKS into his routine.
In Ocean’s first New York Regional competition at The Knitting Factory he ties Couch Potato after two rounds and they are forced into a third round air-off. Ocean wins; he is the New York Regional Champion.
During this time Ocean’s legendary fan club; The Wave Riders are born.
The U.S. Nationals take place in NYC for the first time ever; ironically the same night that Phil Collins plays Carnegie Hall.
After the random draw Ocean unfortunately has to perform first. Ocean gets the lowest score ever in his young career, believes that the judges were holding back because he was the first of many competitors. Ocean barely makes it into Round II, where he must perform first yet again.
Ocean begins his routine by crushing a half-full can of SPARKS with a front flip onto his back, the crowd is in awe. Ocean’s Round II routine was just one-tenth of a point away from a perfect score, and Wave Riders and the crowd could sense a victory. It turns out that Ocean’s two scores combined are not enough however to beat Hot Lixx Houlihan, Ocean finishes in 4th place.
Ocean hires a manager and a roadie.
Ocean wins his second New York Regional competition in a row, this time at the Bowery Ballroom and by a substantial margin. The Wave Riders continue to swell.
The wave peaks at The U.S. Nationals at Irving Plaza. Ocean is the overriding favorite and he wins.
Ocean is the greatest air guitarist in the United States of America.
Something Happened on The Way to Heaven
How can something so good go so bad
How can something so right go so wrong
Ocean heads to Oulu, Finland, the air guitar capital of the world to represent the U.S.A. His routine does not translate overseas; he finishes 11 out of 20 international competitors.
Another Day in Paradise
It’s another day for you and me in paradise
Ocean comes back to his native soil as the reigning air guitar champion, but feels something is missing. He randomly runs into Simon Collins on the subway. Ocean thinks about college, he thinks about Vicki. He misses the special feeling of playing with Vicki in “Sonny and Air”.
Ocean asks his manager to find the best air instrumentalists to complement him in a new air band. Ocean’s manager sets up the Air Band Tour. SPARKS is naturally the sponsor.
Ocean plans to go on tour to NYC, Philly, Baltimore, Washington and Boston along with his manager and roadie to assemble the greatest air band of all time.
After the 10-venue tour, the ultimate air band (CATEGORY SIXX) makes rock n’ roll history and plays an all-air set at NYC’S Knitting Factory.
2009 US Air Guitar Champion 
