espre grew up speaking louisiana creole french and spoke it fluently. as he was physically a large man at tall and , he took the stage name "beau jocque," which was a childhood nickname in louisiana creole meaning "big guy." in 1991, he put a band together, including his wife shelly on rubboard. they initially talked themselves into a few gigs in small clubs or for trail ride parties, and word spread quickly about a new zydeco artist. he especially appealed to a younger crowd by incorporating rock guitar solos, blues-rock beats, and rap lines into his songs, along with his bass vocals and growling lyrics. his initial recording got airplay on local radio stations and the larger zydeco clubs began to take notice. within a short amount of time, beau jocque was playing clubs four to five nights a week and just a few years after his accident, espre was one of the biggest draws on the louisiana zydeco circuit. in june 1995 one newspaper stated that "there has simply never been a zydeco phenomenon like beau jocque and the hi-rollers" who have "thoroughly modernized zydeco". his major zydeco influence was boozoo chavis who also played the button accordion, with hypnotic riffs and two-step stomps that were favorites with south louisiana dancers.