Romeo Bongiovi, Jon Bon Jovi’s Son, Says He’s Wanted to Pursue Music Since He Was 16: Felt ‘at Home’

The “Livin’ on a Prayer” singer previously called his son’s first singles “great”

NEED TO KNOW

• Romeo Bongiovi, Jon Bon Jovi’s son, revealed that he’s wanted to go into music since he was 16

• He recalled touring a music school in Miami that felt “at home”

• Bongiovi is part of the rock band Lawn

Romeo Bongiovi, Jon Bon Jovi’s son, has long felt a calling to music. 

The 22-year-old musician revealed that he’s wanted to go into music since he was 16 on an episode of The Dory Jackson Interview series published on Wednesday, July 29. 

Bongiovi, who is part of the rock band Lawn, shared that he initially thought he didn’t have to go to college to pursue his passion. 

“For the longest time in middle school, when I knew I wanted to do music, I was like, ‘Man, but if you go to a college for music, you’re a total poser,’” he said.

Bongiovi felt that way through high school until he realized he should go to college because he wasn’t sure of his next steps. So, he decided to go to a music school, where he met many of his now-collaborators.

“I know that middle-school-me would probably call current-day-me a giant poser. But he was 12, so what does he know,” he joked. 

Bongiovi admitted that studying music was “scary” because he didn’t know much about music theory. 

“I didn’t know how to compose anything. I just knew that I liked music, and I knew that I loved performing and I knew that I loved writing,” he said, ultimately calling the experience “humbling.”

The musician also noted how it led him to where he is today because while in college, he met one of the founding members of the band when he asked for help with his homework. 

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Bongiovi graduated from the University of Miami’s Frost School of Music in Florida in May. He said his college experience, from the start, played a crucial role in his music career.

“I remember touring Miami and seeing the campuses and being like, ‘Okay, this is for me.’ That was like the nail on the coffin. I was 16 and I knew that, ‘Okay, music is what you want to do because for the first time you really feel at home here,’” he said. 

Bongiovi is Bon Jovi’s youngest son with his wife Dorothea, 63. They also share daughter Stephanie, 33, and sons Jesse, 31, and Jake, 24.

The “Livin’ on a Prayer” hitmaker, 65, spoke to The Independent last year about his son’s band, saying, “The first singles are great. That’s all I’ve heard.” 

Bongiovi continued, “People talk about these nepo babies, blah blah blah, but I’m not in there at all. He’s got his own vision, which I really appreciate.”

Lawn is based in Los Angeles and is made up of Bongiovi, Daniel Coppola and Cliff Dobson. They released their debut EP House Party Hero in April 2025, followed by the single “LASO.”