Sydney, Australia: Mumbai-based sonic branding agency BrandMusiq has created the first-ever MOGO (musical logo) for Cairns Crocodiles Presented by Pinterest, bringing Indian sonic branding expertise to one of Asia-Pacific’s leading creativity festivals.
The collaboration saw BrandMusiq develop a bespoke sonic identity for Cairns Crocodiles, blending original composition with crocodile-inspired roars and breathing sounds. Founder Rajeev Raja led the project, unveiling the MOGO during a surprise opening ceremony at Cairns Crocodiles 2026 in Australia.
The initiative positions Cairns Crocodiles among the first major creativity festivals in the region to introduce a dedicated sonic identity, while placing an Indian agency at the centre of that milestone. BrandMusiq, which coined the term MOGO and has built a global reputation for pioneering sonic branding, worked closely with the Cairns Crocodiles team to translate the festival’s personality into sound.
Beyond the Visual Identity
“At Cairns Crocodiles, we’ve always believed that a brand shouldn’t just be seen, it should be heard and felt,” said David Hovenden, co-founder of Cairns Crocodiles and CEO of The Misfits. “As we looked at building a truly multi-sensory identity for this growing event, one element kept calling out to us: sound.”
The project originated after Raja travelled to Cairns Crocodiles in 2025 to speak about the power of sonic branding, sparking the idea for Hovenden’s team to commission a MOGO of their own.
Over the coming months, the Mumbai agency worked closely with the Cairns Crocodiles team, applying their methodology to uncover the personality and emotional character of the brand.
Crocodiles as the Key Ingredient
The festival’s namesake animal became central to the composition, with the crocodile being an iconic symbol of tropical Far North Queensland.
“We worked with the team to understand the brand, and, at its core, it was all about transporting people into a different world the moment they step in,” Raja said.
“The crocodile is iconic, it’s bold and people love it,” Raja said. “So, we asked ourselves: can the crocodile become part of the music?”
That question led the team to weave crocodile roars and breathing sounds directly into the final track.
Launch and Live Performance
The MOGO premiered on day one of Cairns Crocodiles 2026 with delegates first shown a behind-the-scenes film on the creative process, before the sonic identity was revealed live on stage in a high energy performance.
Featuring Raja alongside six local musicians, as the performance built to its finale, a packed room of delegates clapped along and recreated the crocodile breathing sounds, turning the launch into an interactive celebration of creativity, music and Far North Queensland culture.
Following its debut, the MOGO featured throughout the three-day festival, as the soundtrack to keynote sessions and delegate experiences across the event
Built for the Delegate Experience
Pippa Chambers, content director of Cairns Crocodiles, said the sonic identity was designed to deepen the delegate experience and create a stronger emotional connection with the festival.
“The delegate experience is at the heart of every decision we make, and audio plays a fundamental role in shaping that experience,” said Pippa Chambers.
“Our job is to create memorable experiences, not just a conference agenda, and the MOGO delivered exactly what we hoped for: a high-energy, unexpected moment that brought the room together, set the tone for three days of creativity, and showed just how powerful a shared creative experience can be.”
Please find a performance of the MOGO here and a video showing the process behind MOGO here.
Visit www.cairnscrocodiles.com for more.
