Who we are
My Next Planet was founded by Justin Coppolino and Michael Caruso in 2023 . Originally it was named Next Planet by Justin and Billy Gale in the summer of 2015 as they were a song writing team and band mates. Justin and Billy still co write together and are great friends.
Flash Back to 1980:
Justin and his identical twin Johnny grew up in Philly with an apartment full of guitars as their late Father Tony Santoro was a guitar player and singer in a band called Black Eyed Susan in the early 1990’s. Michael and Tony were great friends and co writers. Tony passed away when Justin and Johnny were 14 years old and they were determined to make him proud as musicians. They started a band called Still Standing in 1998 and played up until 2015. They decided it was time to move on and start new projects.
Flash forward to 2023
Justin and Michael are now strong songwriters and warriors who currently battle it out over phone calls only achieving the best creative flow for the songs they produce together. Justin who is the singer and bass player of My Next Planet decided it’s time to start a band again and found Ray Benitez (Drums).
Ray is an extremely skilled and mature drummer who is also a doctor. He brings such magic and dynamic to this band with his tight drumming and his beautiful personality. They needed a skilled guitarist and Ray knew just the person. He suggested his friend Chris Wheeler who he had met through their daughter’s gymnastic lessons.
Chris is a phenomenal guitar player that has been collecting and playing for many years. He pulls you in with his soulful riffs and amazing solos. He also sings beautifully with Justin giving the perfect harmonizing for the music.
The band is collectively working on an Album which will be titled “It’s All So Personal” and they currently have 3 songs released “Funny Thing”, “This Summer”, and “Already Dead”. The songs are streaming on all platforms.