Tenor Evans

Tenor was born and raised within Printy Country - his dad, a wandering and touring musician; his mom, who does takes up odd jobs at home while taking care of their only son. Their family was never rich and have always struggled to make ends meet, but with his dad’s cheerful, optimistic attitude to take everything in life head on, and his mom providing him as much comfort and love as she can, Tenor had quite the happy childhood. Sometimes Tenor’s dad would bring him to the gigs that their band played at. Tenor loved the musical atmosphere, but what he loved the most was watching the stylists work. The fact that they were able to make his dad, and the band members look so much more dazzling before they stepped on stage amazed him. It was until around grade 4 when Tenor’s mother had contracted an incurable disease, having to stay at the hospital most of the time for treatment and observation. Despite Tenor being a child and most definitely not capable of knowing if something was wrong with his mom, he had always blamed it on himself for not noticing his mom’s declining health, thinking that she might have had lived longer if he were to have noticed her condition earlier.

Not only were the hospital fees were a heavy financial burden for the Evans, but without his mom helping out with the household, it was even harder for the family to sustain a living. It didn’t help either when Noah’s band decided to split a year later, due to differences in their creative directions. Noah tried to continue his career as a solo musician, but without a band or vocalist to back him up, he could only earn so much. He tried taking up some part time jobs, but with his overly carefree personality, he got fired pretty quickly. Tenor, too, began to help as much as he could - be it walking dogs, shoveling snow, watering gardens, washing cars…. whatever he could do within his capabilities and earned that cash, he did it. Meanwhile, his dad tried to ask his friends and family for help, telling them his story and almost begging for their aid - which worked for him at first, but he soon started to lose all these connections of his.

Noah’s contacts soon realised that he wasn’t able to sustain a living for his family like this, let alone paying them back. Tenor was in high school at that time, so he started taking up part time jobs with higher pay - a barista during the morning coffee rush, certain days at a diner, certain days at a hair stylist’s and at night, occasionally helping out at the venue where his dad had his gigs. His mother’s health was rapidly declining at that time, so he was desperate to earn enough money for her treatment. Of course, as a result, he didn’t have much time to spend on studies, socialise, or even attend school for that matter.

As he was working, a local small hair stylist took a liking to Tenor when he was working at the studio, mostly cleaning things up. He noticed that Tenor was constantly peeking and observing how he worked, and from Tenor’s eyes, he knew that the boy had an interest in hair styling. He offered Tenor an apprenticeship, which Tenor accepted gladly without much thought. It was something that he had a genuine interest in - and to top it off, it was an important life skill that could have earned him money as well.

As the Evans’ friends and relatives started distancing themselves, the family lost their most trusted connections for help, despite how hard Noah has worked to pay them back. He tried over and over again explaining the family’s situation, hoping to gain some sympathy… only to be shut out by cold glares and harsh words. They thought that Noah was being impractical, thinking that he was too much a dreamer to be focusing on music, instead of trying to work in more “practical” fields. The Evans had nothing in possession that could back up themselves up, so they were turned down by the bank for any sort of loan. Noah turned to slightly fishier sources for money, signing himself up for loan rates that were a lot higher than the norm. However, this, too, was an ineffective method that only worked for a short period of time - Sadie’s disease finally won over, and it wasn’t long before the Evans didn’t need a large sum of money for medical expenses anymore. Sadie’s funeral was a simple one, only involving the father and son duo.

Not that the Evans didn’t need money anymore though - the huge amount of debt under Noah’s name still had to be repaid. Noah continued to earn money through his gigs and several side jobs, but it still wasn’t enough. Tenor, on the other hand, dropped out of school to learn hair styling full time during the day, while helping out his father with audio and visual equipment set up at his gigs at night. Tenor was content with life for a while, as he got to learn a skill that he was passionate about, but it didn’t last long. People have been sent to their flat asking for their debts to be repaid quite frequently, and Noah finally gave in and broke down. Tenor came home one day with a set of keys and a note on the table, written in his dad’s handwriting: “Sorry, I wish I was a better dad. Take care, Tenor.”

Tenor tried to stay calm as his negative emotions built up inside him. He was furious, not because of how his dad left on such short notice, but because he couldn’t understand why something like this could change the man whom he admired and knew to be so headstrong and positive, into a wimp who ran away from his problems. His mentor noticed the change in mood of his pupil, and after a long chat, he understood the situation and offered Tenor a permanent position, and let him stay in flat above the studio. Tenor continued to learn tips and tricks on hair styling, as well as hopping from live house to bars, clubs, or wherever a technician is needed at night for the extra cash.

When the Gru arrived in town, Tenor’s mentor decided (or at least, tried to) to move to a place that was “safer” than Printy country and gave his studio to his beloved pupil as a farewell gift. Tenor contemplated about relocating as well - but with how little he earned, and the strange attachment to Printy country made him decide otherwise. He’s been through so much in life already, aliens shouldn’t make too much of a difference… right?