Tanya Disner & Jim Disner shared their story and experiences with us recently and you can find our conversation below.
Hi Tanya & Jim, thank you so much for taking time out of your busy day to share your story, experiences and insights with our readers. Let’s jump right in with an interesting one: Are you walking a path—or wandering?
Tanya: Both! There is definitely a path in front of us but we have changed direction several times. We have been together for over 30 years and priorities shift. After meeting in Middle School, becoming friends, then dating in High School and having our son young, (we were 16), our priority was to provide for him. Jim worked at Flesher-Hinton Music by day and performed by night.
Jim: Tanya was a florist and hadn’t sung since High School choir, which is where, when I heard her, I fell in love instantly. After our son was grown and on his own we changed paths.
When Prince died it hit me really hard. I decided that I needed to dedicate my time, energy and soul to performing and creating. Tanya took a bit of convincing, but after a bit realized that her love of singing had never left.
Tanya: We formed The Ordinary Two and got to work writing songs and booking gigs. That actually allowed us to wander as we took our music on the road. We meander from one path to another frequently to care for and spend time with family and friends, volunteer, and work little jobs to pad the coffers. The wandering can be a bit distracting and sometimes the path gets overgrown, but we always find it again.
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
We are The Ordinary Two, a couple of madly in love soul mates, making beautiful music together. As a duo we create connection with the world through songs about our experiences of love, life together and the open road.
We perform our unique blend of alternative/folk/jazz in locations from theaters to Vineyards, festivals to house concerts. Music can be made anywhere, really!
In the year ahead, we have two albums that we are putting the finishing touches on and are very excited to share with our friends and new friends yet to be made.
Amazing, so let’s take a moment to go back in time. Who saw you clearly before you could see yourself?
Jim: For me it was Ron Miles. I had the privilege to study with him at Metro State in Denver, and that’s all I did. I took all of the classes he taught and not much else. He always treated me, and all of us students, as the professionals he would teach us to become. With respect and care, while still imparting an enormous foundation of knowledge.
What did suffering teach you that success never could?
Jim: That you can live without certain comforts and material possessions. It was essential when we first hit the road with the duo and were living out of a van for the most part.
Sure, so let’s go deeper into your values and how you think. Is the public version of you the real you?
Tanya: I am who I am and actually try to remain authentic, true to myself, you know? I’m quirky, self conscious. I like to think that I’m “cool” but I never have been, never will be and I’m alright with that. In the words of Bart Simpson, “I’m comfortable with who I am”.
Thank you so much for all of your openness so far. Maybe we can close with a future oriented question. Are you doing what you were born to do—or what you were told to do?
Jim: I think it ebbs and flows. As a kid I did mostly what I was born to do. I am just beginning to do more of that again and hopefully the trend continues.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://ordinarytwo.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ordinarytwo/
- Facebook: https://facebook.com/TheOrdinaryTwo
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/c/TheOrdinaryTwo
- Other: Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/3sq29AOS4zHUktUB8R5IE1?si=qZpmzUz5SYG9cV_ZxW5EXA
Image Credits
Marc Marnie
Hillery McCalister
Dan Disner
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