So you’ve been to a Mighty Magic Pants show, watched our Youtube videos, or even purchased some music—and maybe you’ve even become a fan of us five wacky singers in unusual pants.
It’s easy to see (and hear) the work put in by Mike, Pirate Jake, Bubble Gum Becky, Azrielf, Wrangler Ryan (me) and in the past Jill E Bean, Miss Tori and Jazzin Jess. But even as most pants, at least for me, can’t function on their own, neither can the Mighty Magic Pants. So we’d like you to meet our own pair of suspenders.
First, meet Michelle. She doesn’t have a silly nickname, but that’s because she’s the boss. By day she is an administrator and professor at Union College, but by night, and the rest of the time, she is the CEO of Family Fridge Entertainment. That big, fancy title basically means she handles the business side of the Pants—pretty important because without her, no one would get paid. She doubles as the band’s sound technician so we can sound our best. Trust me, if it doesn’t sound good, it’s not her fault. It means I’m going flat.
Did I mention she’s also Mike’s biggest fan … and his wife. Michelle loves to cook Puerto Rican food (that’s where she’s from), crochet, read and spend time with Mike and their 16-year-old son, Ramsey.
Next, meet Tawnya. She’s the manager. And yes, managing this group is a lot like herding jean-wearing gerbils. But Tawnya is the one who schedules our shows and travels with us to make sure all the details are in order. Tawnya also designs and builds our sets, and she’s pulled off some pretty amazing stuff.
At home, she gets to be the most amazing woman this side of the Mississippi. But then I’m a little partial because I’ve been married to her for 18 years. Tawnya homeschools our four kids (ages 8-14)—a full time job in itself. If she had any time, she’d love to hang out at the beach, read, watch New Orleans Saints games with her family or go mud riding in a Ford F-150.
By the way, some of us do some behind-the-scenes work, too. For instance, you probably knew Mike writes most of our songs. But did you know he also composes and records our live sound tracks and albums? All the magic happens in a little office tucked away in the basement of his house. Mike also writes promotional copy for our advertising and scripts for cool upcoming videos.
Speaking of videos, that’s where I come in. I do the filming (except when I’m in the shot) and editing for our videos—and its a rootin’ tootin’ good time. I also get to manage the website and work with Bubble Gum Becky and Mike to keep up with our social media channels on Youtube, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Pinterest.
It takes a lot of work to keep a band going, and we are blessed to have amazing families who help in many other ways from lugging equipment at concerts to being extras in our videos. And stay tuned. We have even more family-friendly and family-created fun coming later this year.
- Wrangler Ryan