Desi & Cody on Tulsa’s Hip Side

Like Johnny Cash and June Carter (or Jay Z and Beyonce), there’s something potent about real-life couples singing together. Not only do Desi & Cody make beautiful music, but they’re part of a local music community that have some people calling Tulsa, Oklahoma the next Austin.

You’re a married couple, but how did your musical relationship start?

DESI: Cody had his project, Cody Clinton and the Bishops. That’s how I met him. I was a fan. When his band got hired to be Leon Russell’s band, they had to go on tour. Cody was like, “Well great, now what am I going to do?” So he set off to do a solo thing.

CODY: It was a little more like what we do now. I just made this EP, because I had written some songs and wanted to do a solo EP where I had some control. And Desi…we’d been together for about three years—and one day I heard her singing in the shower. It was echoing down the hallway, and I was like, “What the heck is that…”

DESI: A dying cat! [Laughs]

CODY: I’ll be the first to admit that I’m not the best singer. I can sing on pitch and on key, but my range isn’t super great. I’m in the world of Bob Dylan, or David Bowie at best. And Desi just had this incredible, super-awesome voice, where she can do whatever she wants with it.

DESI: He’s stacking up brownie points.

CODY: It’s true. I just had her sing harmony on a couple of songs. It took a long time to get her agree to do that…

DESI: He tricked me. He said, “Just come down to the studio to sing backup vocals so I don’t have to pay somebody. It will be great.” I was like, “I guess I could do that. I could be in a dark room with a microphone and nobody else listening.” I’m on two songs, and the recording process was a blast. It was one or two takes, and we were done.

CODY: For the record, it was one or two takes for her.

DESI: Next thing you know, I’m still going to shows, and one night he says, “Hey Des, come up and do ‘Dog Days’ with me.”

CODY: People went crazy, and she got the bug, and the rest is history.

DESI: We’re coming up on eight years together–it’s crazy.