The Magazine for Youth with LGBT Parents

Grown-Ups

Get Outside!: Joe Mailander of the Okee Dokee Brothers

by Peter S. Scholtes

The Okee Dokee Brothers aren't real brothers, but they might as well be. They met when they were three years old in Denver, Colorado, when one was living on a farm and one was living in the mountains. Their album, Take It Outside, is about fun and adventure outdoors, with songs about water balloons, nature, extraterrestrials, running naked, auctioneers, and the word "antidisestablishmentarianism." The two friends now live two blocks from each other in Minneapolis, Minnesota. We called one of them, Joe Mailander, to ask him some questions.

Did the Okee Dokee Brothers spend a lot of time outdoors?

In Denver, we've got the mountains, and Justin and I were way into camping when we were kids. He was from the mountains and I was actually from the farm, so we would always either go to the mountains or go to the farm. There was always a lot of nature involved in our childhood memories.

What's your most memorable water-balloon fight?

Ha ha, I used to go to this summer camp up in the mountains, and I remember this water balloon war we had.

Is "The Naked Truth" a true story?

Justin would always be the kid who was naked and running around his house, so yeah, that is a semi-true story.

Author

Contributor Peter S. Scholtes is a writer, teacher, and uncle based in Minneapolis/St. Paul. He received a 2003 Communications Excellence Award from Arc Hennepin-Carver for “Love Unlimited” (City Pages, February 13, 2024), and a 2008 AAN AltWeekly Award for “Twin Cities Rock Atlas” (City Pages, December 19, 2023).