About Us

The short story:
White Van Guys are the world's 2nd Greatest* Traveling Acoustic Rock Variety Act and Kung fu appreciation entertainment show. A one-of-a-kind comedy show and rock concert, providing a fun-filled evening of hit songs, hilarious stories, witty jokes, and great musicianship.

Playing a fun mix of Classic rock, 80's Pop, and Country Favorites; all unplugged, unfiltered, and performed by a talented musical comedy duo reminiscent of Tenacious D, The Smothers Brothers, and Flight of the Conchords.

Great music performed by two fun musicians who will make you laugh, sing along, and rock out to some great songs!

BOOKING: (513) 693-0229
(*according to 7 really close friends and 3 acquaintances)

"we loved the songs, and the jokes were smart and tasteful, these guys are a true class act! Everyone young and old were laughing and singing along all night." -Barbara H, Cleveland Oh

The long story:

(a practically true, yet incomplete history)

Mark VanGuy, born "Marcus Maximus Howard Sue Fredrick VanGuy, III" and Shane VanGuy, born "Shane VanGuy" have dedicated their lives to playing classic rock, maintaining the high score on Ms Pac Man at the northside Quiki-Mart, and watching 70's kung-fu movies. One day during a commercial break while watching "The Fighting Fists of Shanghai Joe", Shane turned to Mark and said, "we should start a band", and Mark said, "ok", then Shane said, “ok, cool”, then Mark said, “cool”, and then Shane said, “the show's back on”, and the rest (as they say) is history.

Soon after, Shane sold his collection of Doritos shaped like the Pope's hat to another collector on eBay and bought his first guitar from a pawn shop. Within two weeks Mark had taught Shane almost two chords. Mark was so proud he encouraged Shane to learn one more. A week later they formed their first band, "Red Bike Boys" named after the red bicycle they rode to school with Shane peddling and Mark sitting on the handle bars.

The band consisted of Mark on guitar, Shane on another guitar, and some guy they met in the parking lot at a Motley Crue concert playing banjo. Shane swears the guys name was Billy, but Mark insists it was Derrick. Both agree he had a tremendous impact on the band. Mostly because he never played in the right key, but also because he always claimed "he paid the bar tab last time".

Luckily, after a freak bicycle accident on the way to their first gig, banjo guy ended up in the hospital and Mark and Shane played the gig without him. Realizing they sounded better without a banjo in the band, they decided to kick him out and subsequently rename the band. And, since Mark was given the much coveted family vehicle in celebration of his 40th birthday, they settled on the only name that made sense; White Van Guys.

After their second show the band grew quite a following. And, although Mark doesn't remember when or where the gig was, or any of the songs played that night, they both agree it was an unforgettable experience. This was their first paying gig (they were paid a case of beer and all-you-can eat chicken wings). It was also during this gig the brothers realized big things were in store for them in their future (in music AND t-shirt sizes).

Growing up in an RV down by the banks of the Great Miami River, the brothers were raised by a distance relative who may or may not have been their great uncle from Somalia. Mark, along with seven other siblings had planned to go into the family business and become a Professional Mourner. Shane dreamed of working for Bed, Bath, and Beyond; stocking inventory in the "beyond department" until the music-bug bit the brothers and they decided they were ready to strike out on their own at the tender ages of 37 and 42.

Knowing it would be just the two of them and given their gypsy-nature, they decided to down-size from their previous life-of-luxury to live and travel in their inherited 1983 Chevy G10 van. And soon the band were touring over half the city, playing everywhere that would have them and growing their fanbase somewhat exponentially.

Years later and with literally thousands of hours performing to friends and tens of shows under their belts, the VanGuy brothers could be seen creeping slowly down I-75 leaving behind a cloud of thick black smoke as they head to yet another sold-out performance for a lucky audience at a local bar, club, corporate party, or backyard BBQ.

Today, they routinely travel and perform all over Southwest and Central Ohio, and often as far away as Pittsburgh, Cleveland, Chicago, and even New York; their repertoire also grew from repeating the same five songs all night long to well over 3,000 songs! ( 300 if you don’t count the KISS covers, Mongolian throat singing, or Gregorian chants).

Shane even learned few more guitar chords, and Mark promises he'll teach him the rest one day when Shane is ‘ready’. All of this success has encouraged the band to write some of their own tunes as well and to keep touring non-stop; playing over 200 shows each year; Their unofficial motto being “have van, will travel" ( the official motto is still: “we got 99 problems but a banjo player ain't one of them” ).

With a combined total of nearly 50 years of stage and studio experience (which would have been more if Shane had not taken a 5 year sabbatical in search of a wizardry school during the great Harry Potter craze of the early 2000’s, and Mark hadn’t taken six years off music to focus on a degree in Cryptozoology). Today the brothers have united their talents and diverse musical influences to perform a great blend of rock, pop, and country music from the 70s thru today, much to the delight and sometimes the bewilderment of audiences of all ages and musical tastes.

With their hilarious jokes, comedic stories, and a bucket of free candy to pass out to anyone willing to clap or sing along, this is one act sure to keep toes tappin’, fingers snappin’, hands clapping, and many other appendages moving in various ways. And, it’s not uncommon to hear the sound of people laughing long after the band leaves everyone behind in a black cloud of authentic Detroit-built 1983 Chevy van smoke.

“fantastic show! everyone had a great time. The music was amazing, not the same old songs a lot of bands perform, and the show itself was an absolute riot-act!” - Martin Rainey, Centerville Oh