One cold day in 2006, Jack Kernan, a young boy from the far north reaches of Michigan, got lost in the icy tundra that occurs in the winter. He wandered for many days in a blizzard, becoming chilled to the bone. Jack let out a wail of desperation to the empty winter surrounding him, and suddenly a light appeared before him. The mysterious light-being had heard his prayer and gave Jack shelter from the cold. The light-being revealed itself to be a Muse and took Jack into its heavenly realm, healing him of his shivers. The Muse made a special soup to give to Jack, and Jack ate it vigorously. The soup was special because it contained a fraction of the Muse’s power. Since that fateful night in the blizzard, Jack was blessed with music flowing through his veins from the Muse’s magic soup. Spring emerged, and Jack left the being of light. He could hear with perfect pitch the buzzing of the bees, and the rhythms of flower petals colliding in the wind. Jack traveled far south following the music of the winds until he found himself at the University of Michigan Bell Tower on central campus. He heard the pristine melodies emerging from the 8th floor practice room from the Friars, and knew at that moment that he was meant to be a part of that group. To this day, Jack continues to bless the Friars with his power from the icy Muse to make the best and perfectly tuned harmonies possible.

In late 1957, the Soviet Union began working on Project Octave, a humanoid weapon of mass destruction that could vaporize anything in its path through infrasonic bass frequencies. Though the project was abandoned in the early 1960s, a prototype model resembling a 21-year-old man was found in 2001 by moose breeders at an abandoned Siberian lab. After being spooked by the weapon’s low frequency moans and boyish good looks, the breeders plopped the automaton into the Pacific Ocean, where it drifted off the coast of Seattle. There, it was discovered by a radish farmer, Anne Toni Antony, who bestowed the name “Nick” upon the android and decided to raise him as her own. Though being a Soviet doomsday device growing up in early-2000s America comes with its fair share of challenges, Nick lived a happy childhood and now attends the University of Michigan. Pursuing a degree in Computer Science, Nick hopes to gain a better understanding of the algorithms that power his cold, metallic body. Nowadays, Nick utilizes his ability to hit earth-shatteringly low notes by singing Bass in the Friars. The group could not be prouder of their special beep boop boy but must ask you to refrain from using any Russian battle commands in his presence (it’s a touchy subject!).

Years ago, one bright morning on the distant planet Krypton, a miracle was underway. A baby was born with an incredible gift for music. His laughter sounded like celestial chimes, and he could manipulate sound waves with his thoughts, creating captivating melodies by warping reality itself. Kryptonians were amazed by the baby’s talents, but greatly feared the disruptions to their otherwise orderly society. Riots spread, villages burned, and chaos ravaged the lands. Many wanted the new baby imprisoned. “Lock him up! Chain his limbs!” they’d all scream. Recognizing the danger the baby faced, Superman intervened by balling the baby up and chucking him through space until he finally arrived at Earth. Crash-landing into a big tomato farm, the son of Superman was found by Mr. and Mrs. Villeneuve. “My tomatoes!” Mr. Villeneuve screamed as he ran towards the crash. The newlyweds adopted and named the baby Michael, and his human childhood quickly flourished. As he grew, he discovered how to hone his superhuman abilities, including his exceptional musical and performing talents. Then, while performing one day as Tevye at a charity flash mob in Metropolis, he caught the attention of music producers Lois Lane and Reilly Buckley, who envisioned him joining a legendary music group called "The Friars". Upon his quick admission into the group, Michael soon helped The Friars' music transcend genres and bring unity, joy, peace, and the end of hunger to people worldwide. Michael had found his true purpose, using his musical gifts to make the world a better place, just like Superman did. And so, the story of Michael, the Kryptonian baby with super music abilities, became intertwined with the legacy of The Friars, leaving an indelible mark on Earth's history and proving that the light of music could shine from even the farthest reaches of the universe.

Contrary to popular belief, George Michael did not write the original Careless Whisper. Brenton Svacha: time traveler, epic sax guy, and master of tone gave him the idea when performing an original song titled "Careful Shout" at a nightclub in london in 1981. Brenton realized that word of this getting out would have serious repercussions with the time-space continuum, so he decided to travel to 2019 and attempt to blend in as a college student. Back in the present, Brenton captivated the hearts of The Friars with his buttery tenor voice and bangin' sax riffs. They knew that his musical talents and his dangerously good looks would be a valuable asset to them in their endeavor to enchant all of their audiences.

In August of 1942, a top-secret project was launched in order to construct a weapon of mass destruction. This project, known as the Manhattan Project, spanned over three years and culminated in the creation and testing of the atomic bomb. This initial test was declared a success at first, however after the bomb’s damage was surveyed, an infant was found close to the scene: a young Leo Parikshak. There was little to no damage to the child, however, there was minimal radiation found in several hair follicles. Luckily this led to no health risks as Leo grew up, only resulting in his hair occasionally changing colors, from blood red, to royal purple, to golden blonde. Today you will find Leo singing his heart out alongside the other Friars. With a boisterous chest voice and a smile that could brighten even the darkest of rooms, Leo absolutely has a nuclear presence in the Friars.

Well howdy doodley there, partner! It seems you’ve led your horse down the beaten path and stumbled across the big, beautiful bio of the Friar’s favorite Texan, Reilly Buckley! The well told tale of our sweet Reilly dates back to a crisp autumn night in the year 1961. As famed puppeteer Jim Henson toiled away in his puppet-making shop well into the night, a flash of lightning tore through the sky. The bolt crashed through Jim Henson’s window and struck a box labeled “JUNK MUPPETS, THROW AWAY!” At first, Jim thought this miracle had just saved him a trip to the landfill. But then… a hand– once felt, now flesh– pushed back the cardboard flap and out emerged… Our lovely muppet boy, Reilly! Reilly walked toward Jim with the grace of a newborn deer and began to mutter, “I… I…” Addressing his newborn son, Jim said, “What? What is it, puppet lad?” Reilly looked up, searching for the right words in the seemingly endless lexicon of language that had just been gifted to him by this supernatural act of nature. “I… I… I want to go get a double major in Film and Communications at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, Michigan.” Jim Henson beamed with pride. “Then go my boy. Become the Wolverine you were born to be 30 seconds ago.” With that, Reilly darted to the door owning nothing more than the inexpensive felt clothes on his back. But just as he was about to step out into the world, a beckoning from his creator stopped him. “Reilly,” said Jim, “Promise me one thing…” Reilly turned away from the door. “Yes, father? What is it?” After a moment, Jim finally said, “Promise me you will sing Tenor 2 in a semi-decent, all male a capella group sixty-one years from now in the year 2022. Promise me.” With tears in his eyes, Reilly spoke the last words he would ever say to Jim, “I will, father. I will.” Reilly turned back toward the door, and took one step outside. The first step in fulfilling his destiny.

What’s that strange noise coming from the halls of the MLB? It sounds like a trumpet, but it isn’t loud enough to be one. Wait a second, what’s that yapping? Is there a puppy dog in this building, too? Something doesn’t seem quite right here. Woahhhh, now that’s weird, is the dog beatboxing? Can it also play the trumpet? I have so many questions! If you concluded that there is a beatboxing, trumpet-playing dog roaming the halls of the MLB, your logic would not be entirely faulty. However, you would be mistaken. All of this mischief has a very reasonable explanation: it’s just Kyle Coon being Kyle Coon. What does that mean exactly? Well, it’s pretty hard to describe, but once you meet Kyle, it’ll all start to make sense. Describing Kyle is like trying to describe what it feels like to go skydiving: you don’t know what it’s like until you’ve done it (that is to say, you just have to meet him in order to fully understand). For the sake of this bio, however, I will now attempt the impossible and will do my best to wrangle the essence of Kyle Coon into a single paragraph…Kyle once was the world #11 in Mario Kart (seriously). He majors in Computer Science, so he’s wicked smaaaat, but he also studies Film, so do with that what you will. One might call him a theater kid, and that would be an accurate description, since he is constantly making different (strange) noises, taking on different wacky personas, cracking jokes, and committing to the bit no matter the cost (and trust me, sometimes those costs are great). His sense of humor most precisely resembles that of a middle school boy going through puberty, but is weaponized by the fact that he’s a 20-year-old college student. He was probably the kid who won the “class clown” superlative in elementary school every single year. All of this makes Kyle special, in all senses of the term, but what helps complete the package are his musical abilities. His heavenly voice is sure to woo all who are fortunate enough to listen, and his range is so vast that the bass 2’s and tenor 1’s gasp in awe. You also might hear him playing a song of his own invention on the piano, or practicing beatboxing and other vocal effects. Most important, however, is how Kyle can light up a room and turn your day around: he is the life of the party and an amazing friend. However, a word of caution to the wise: he is best kept at a slight distance. You never know what he might do or say next, or which corner of the MLB he will be lurking around, so keep your eyes peeled, your ears open, and buckle up. Kyle Coon is always in the driver’s seat, and the destination is unknown (even to him). Let’s hope the airbags work!

Ever since the Percy Jackson and the Olympians book series came out, it’s been common knowledge that Greek Gods are still around today and can disguise themselves as humans. Now you would think that these gods would take unsuspecting personas in order to blend in, but when it comes to Apollo, the God of Music, you would be dead wrong. Instead, Apollo chose to become a student at the University of Michigan who plays the snare drum in the marching band and sings in the Men’s Glee Club. Not only is he openly displaying his god-like musical powers through these ensembles but he is also seen playing the acoustic guitar, the piano, the talk box, the bass guitar and the drums. Under the alias “Carter Krumins”, he was instantly accepted into the Friars due to his angelic tenor voice. After the rest of the group found out about his true identity, they swore to secrecy and to only use his power for the sake of entertaining audiences. And now that you, the reader, know his true identity, you too must swear to never speak about it in public. If you don’t comply, there will be consequences…

You may have met Jack Kernan, but a new challenger has entered the arena: Jack Rusinowski. This new Jack, with a bass voice low enough to shake your very bones, joined The Friars after only a couple months in Glee Club, following in the footsteps of the Jack before him. It seems that these Jacks were always destined to meet in this space, as they were rivals in high school as well. The Jacks might tell you that Jack Kernan insisted that Jack Rusinowski audition for Glee Club and The Friars, but this seemingly friendly gesture was a clever lure, ultimately culminating in a duel between the Jacks to determine which one is the superior “Jack in The Friars who joined the group during their first semester in Glee Club”. We have yet to select a date, but rest assured this duel will be held in the Bell Tower and may or may not have special merch to celebrate the occasion.