Crystal Wise
There is only a handful of Fort Worthians who demand double takes when catching a glimpse of them in the wild — those whose celebrity status has skyrocketed to a stratospheric level. This pool is small and, yes, very exclusive.
These days, local celebrities don’t get much bigger than Grammy Award-winning singer/songwriter Leon Bridges and former TCU head football coach Gary Patterson [now a special assistant at the University of Texas]. For the past few years, the pair have become ubiquitous in our town and, some might say, represent our city on a global level.
Bridges, a Fort Worth native, has been here since he was a 2-year-old. And Patterson, though originally from Kansas, has called Cowtown home for over two decades. It might not surprise anyone to know that the two are friends, bonding over music and their philanthropic efforts.
Patterson conceived of getting this diverse duo of big names together when brainstorming ways to increase his charity work. He thought getting different celebrities who work in different industries and have different fan bases would result in a bigger network and a greater opportunity to effect real change.
Aptly dubbed The Big Good, the foundation hit the ground running in 2020 with a Thanksgiving meal distribution and a virtual holiday concert by Leon Bridges. While it’s difficult to say what the foundation may become, it’s clear the co-founders have plenty of ambitious ideas.
The pair met up with two of our editors at the Fort Worth Magazine offices for a photo shoot and roundtable discussion. Topics of discussion included The Big Good, Patterson’s guitar playing, and their big plans moving forward. On the next few pages, you’ll find a pared down version of our conversation.
Crystal Wise
FW: So, obviously, I think the first question is, what’s the history of this? How did The Big Good come to be, and how’d you two come together?
Leon Bridges: Pretty much my management reached out to me about meeting Coach Patterson, and I’ve always had just the heart to do something in the community — I just didn’t know where to start. And so, I just felt it was the perfect opportunity to collab with another prominent person in the city and try to make a change in the community.
Gary Patterson: Well, for us, we felt like the Gary Patterson Foundation had to get bigger if we were going to help Fort Worth and the metroplex to the extent we wanted to. And so, I was talking to a guy named Elliot Hill that we worked with at Nike and was a TCU grad, and I said, “Who do you think would be great to partner with?” They did something like this in Austin with Matthew McConaughey and Mack Brown back in those days when.
So, Elliot said, “What about Leon Bridges? He’s a cutting-edge Fort Worth guy who’s done really well.”
[Leon and I] finally got a chance to get together, and since then, it’s been really amazing. [We’ve been doing this for] the past two years now, and his career is doing unbelievably.
I think the one thing that we shared, the thing that really made me think that this would work, was that we both loved music. I’m not as talented as he is, but I love music just as much, and we both love Fort Worth and the people here. While we’re both busy, and it seems like we’re not back in Fort Worth as much as we’d like to be, it’s still been awesome.
FW: It’s interesting how you mentioned Mack Brown and Matthew McConaughey earlier and celebrities teaming up for charity. What kind of impact do you think your celebrity status has when it comes to making a difference?
LB: We have such a big platform and such influence. For me, specifically as an artist, I think it’s a great way to get people involved, to want to donate, or devote their time for a great cause. I’m totally down to leverage [my status as a celebrity] for that.
GP: Well, we’re both blessed, and I always believed in paying it forward. And I think both of us feel that way about people. [After my days of coaching at TCU were over] I saw a lot of “Thank you, Gary” signs. It was one of those things where I didn’t really know how far I reached because this wasn’t just TCU people, it was Fort Worth. Really, Fort Worth raised me. Fort Worth raised Leon. And our paths to getting to this point in our lives are very different. They’re everywhere.
FW: And you both come from such humble beginnings. How have your backgrounds inspired you to become such philanthropic people within the community?
LB: Man, this is totally a full-circle moment for me because I look at moments on my journey where there were people gracious enough to allow me to play music on their platform. Or even coming up as a kid, there were people pouring into my family financially. Growing up in the kind of United Community Center, I saw firsthand how their work shaped kids, and even myself. So, this is an awesome opportunity to reciprocate the love.
GP: Being in coaching, one of my first mistakes was saying, “I know how you feel.” Well, you don’t. Because we all come from different backgrounds. I never walked in their shoes. But what I did understand is that I couldn’t do anything about what happened before, but I could try to do something about what might happen in the future. In 25 years at TCU, we had almost 800 guys come through the program. That’s 800 guys who I tried to have a positive impact on their lives.
If you go back to my first press conference when I took the job in 2001, I said, “What I’d like to do is tie north, south, east, and west and tie them into one.” I think people kind of looked at me like I was stupid. But I think in some ways, we accomplished what I was hoping to accomplish. I think Fort Worth did come together. We still have our issues, but I think we’re better than we were, and we’ve got to keep working on improving.
FW: So, what are some things that you’d like to see change in Fort Worth, and what ultimately is the goal of The Big Good?
GP: One of the reasons Leon and I partnered together was so we could be bigger, and, thus, we could help more. I think, together, we can raise more money and help more people. I mean, back in 2020, we fed close to 100,000 people in the metroplex during Thanksgiving [in partnership with the Tarrant Area Food Bank and North Texas Food Bank].
We’ve also been assisting with hotspots and getting internet to specific neighborhoods so kids can have internet access after school. Because that’s how they’re expected to study these days.
Editor’s note: The Big Good has partnered with several North Texas charity organizations, including The Tarrant To & Through Partnership, United Community Centers, UpSpire, Boys & Girls Clubs, Hope Farm, and the Tarrant Area Food Bank, to name only a few.
LB: We’re not a community center. That’s just my experience, and it inspired me to specifically give to them. We just see whatever needs that might come to the surface, and we act on that. We’re still understanding all of the community’s needs, and I need to do my part.
GP: You’ve got to have a starting point. You can’t do big things until you do the small things. Food, housing, education — those are foundational base points that you have to address before you can get to the rest of it.
We try to touch a lot of different points in Fort Worth from the Boys & Girls Clubs to Hope Farms to some of the community center stuff that Leon has championed.
When we started the [Gary Patterson Foundation], we started a program at Clark Elementary that offered $500 scholarships for fifth graders. Kids would write in expressing how much hope it was giving them. We then started having banks come into the school because we discovered that 70% to 80% of the kids that had a savings account would also go to college, no matter what the amount was.
It’s those kinds of things that make a difference.
I mean somebody helped us [Leon and me] along the way, so we’re trying to do the same. Hopefully, there’s somebody we’re helping who will be the next Leon Bridges. And hopefully, there’s someone who’s going to be the next Gary Patterson.
FW: How do people get involved with The Big Good?
GP: Well, I shouldn’t leave out Kelsey [Patterson], my probably better half. She basically runs our side of the foundation. And we’re on every social platform possible, so we’re definitely trying to get ourselves out there. But, when people donate or get involved, it’s important they know all of their money and hard work is going to amazing programs right here in Fort Worth. All of the programs are here.
The biggest thing is people understanding that the platform to help is there if they want to use it. And it’s really surprising how many people ask to get involved when they do find out about [The Big Good]. I think mostly for Leon.
FW: Your mantra at TCU, of course, was “40 not four.” [A reference to Patterson’s goal of building success for his athletes well beyond the four years they attended the university.]
GP: Still feel the same way.
FW: You taught philanthropy, I’m assuming, with your players and giving back.
GP: Yeah. Everybody says in this day and age kids aren’t like that. I disagree.
One of the things that kids have to understand is that it’s humility, it’s accountability, it’s work ethic, and all that stuff. While some might learn these things at church or home, some kids don’t learn it.
So, even if someone’s not at the maturity level to listen to what I’m saying at the moment, someday it might click. Like my own sons, they didn’t always like to hear what I had to say, but that’s what parents do, right? Parents tell you things because they care about you and want you to succeed and be a good member of the community. I think [Leon and I] are just trying to be good role models.
Editor’s note: In January, it was announced that Patterson would be joining the University of Texas coaching staff as a “Special Assistant” under head coach Steve Sarkisian.
FW: Professionally, how has the transition been for you?
GP: Awesome. I’ve been really working hard. So, it’s wake up early, go to sleep early. Kelsey’s not down [in Austin] because she’s still staying up here quite a bit, especially when we’ve been working on the foundation. It’s still 25 years of friends, so you just don’t give that up. But like I told Leon earlier, the people in Austin have been great to me, and I’m one of those kinds of guys where, if I want to do something, I don’t kind of do it. I go all in; I’m not a good yes-man. And so, I’m trying to do, within my role, whatever [Sarkisian] wants me to do to make University of Texas better.
FW: Did it feel a little strange putting on that Longhorn?
GP: Of course, but there’s a lot of Texas fans here in Fort Worth. I mean, there are a lot of Longhorns that gave us money in this city to build TCU. So, I never felt like I had any obligation that would prevent me from going down there. I really think, for the sake of football in the whole state of Texas, if the University of Texas becomes better, Texas as a whole becomes better.
So, that’s what I’m trying to accomplish. Plus, play a little music. When you’re sitting by yourself in a condo, music is a good thing. I mean, when you’re done with your guitar, you just put it in the corner. It doesn’t get mad at you; it doesn’t complain to you.
[Editor’s Note: Patterson and Bridges met us at our Camp Bowie offices right before heading to a Big Good charity event that would include performances by Leon Bridges and other local artists.]
FW: You might do a little guitar picking at tonight’s event?
GP: I think, possibly, when we go over to the after-party, I might.
LB: Going to bring a guitar?
GP: Yeah. Or listen. I want to listen. I want to hear Leon play, really. And Abraham [Alexander].
Last time we had one of these [charity events], I didn’t have to play because I was in the middle of spring [practice], so I couldn’t sing. Now, I don’t have that problem anymore. I can be Gary all the time, not Coach P.
FW: Leon, like Gary, do you find yourself alone picking?
LB: Always, man. It’s therapeutic for me, and I’m constantly just trying to write songs. Man, I remember when I first I learned the piano, and I gravitated toward the guitar. Just loved the sound that it makes, and you can bring it anywhere.
FW: You said you learned on the piano?
LB: I did. I pretty much went on YouTube and learned this one chord progression, and that’s the only chord progression that I know on the piano to this day.
GP: Let me tell you a great story. So, during COVID, I get this call from someone saying, “Hey, Leon’s on his front porch playing.” And the whole neighborhood came to gather around.
LB: That was a cool moment.
GP: I mean, really? Who does that? I mean, it’s awesome. A guy that’s world-renowned, and he’s just playing and singing on his porch, right?
LB: The whole neighborhood was lined up in front of my house, and I was like, “This is cool, but everybody knows where I live now.”
FW: Leon, have you critiqued Gary’s music by chance?
LB: Man, I’m telling him, “Send more of it so that I can critique it.” But it’s some singer/songwriter, strumming on a guitar type stuff.
GP: When you get to my age, you look at music like you look at your own cooking. If you can cook well enough, and you like it, eat it. If I can play it and sing it well enough to where I like to hear it, then I’ll go about my business. But, it makes me happy. I think we tell our experiences in our lives through words. Like [Leon’s] new album that’s out now. I mean, it’s truly amazing. He always tells a story, and I think that’s really cool. I love telling stories.
FW: You two have been really busy lately. I mean, Leon, you released an album, been on multiple tours, and were just at the Grammy’s.
LB: Yeah, it’s been a whirlwind. I was in Dearing, Georgia, shooting a film with this independent filmmaker, which I’m super excited to do and working on new music. I had an opportunity to perform on stage with Justin Bieber. It’s wild to hit all these milestones in my career. It’s surreal.
FW: Yet, despite fame and career changes, neither of you forgets Fort Worth. You keep coming back.
LB: Yeah, man. I raise the Fort Worth flag high. It’s a place that I grew up and my family’s here and my friends are here. In the midst of all the craziness that goes on, the music industry, and fame and all that shit, this place is the only thing that’s real to me.
FW: Do either of you ever pinch yourselves sometimes and wonder, “Is this really real? I’m doing everything I’ve dreamed of ever doing.”
LB: Yeah, it’s wild for me because I never aspired to have a career in music, and it was just one of those things that it happened. I just had to buckle up for the ride. But I’m grateful to be here, grateful that it’s provided a way for me to take care of my family, take care of myself, and I’m able to make good art for a living, which is nice.
GP: Yeah. I tell people, “Greatness happens somewhere where hard work and dreams meet.” Well, that little town where I came from [Rozel, Kansas], people only knew how to work hard. I had to learn how to dream. There was a guy named Mr. Simmons who once asked me, “Why are you trying to become a graduate assistant coach?” He said, “You’re from this little town in Kansas. You’re never going to ever make it.” I think everybody has a Mr. Simmons in their life who tells you you’re not going to be able to do this or that.
I always asked my players, “How do I help you prove all those people wrong?” It was my job to make sure as I could help them prove all the Mr. Simmonses of the world wrong.
FW: Sounds like it should be a tagline for The Big Good, “Proving all the Mr. Simmonses wrong.”
GP: Well, somebody said the other day, “The Big Good equals big hearts.” I kind of liked that.
LB: Unassuming quality, we got big hearts. We love our city; we love the people.
FW: So, where do you see The Big Good in 20 years?
GP: I don’t know. I think it’s going to keep growing, is what I think. I think Leon needs to keep getting bigger and bigger, and I’m just going to keep helping him. That’s what we’re going to do.
Crystal Wise
Quick questions: Gary Patterson
FW: With the additional signing class, the transfer portal policy, and new legislation that’s allowing college athletes to get paid for their name, image, and likeness (NIL), how much more difficult is it being a head coach today?
GP: I think like anything else we’ve ever done in college football, I think we’ll learn how to deal with it. The thing I worry about is kids changing or not finishing college. Because when you [transfer], you lose [credit] hours. In some ways you’re teaching kids to quit because I don’t know too many freshmen who didn’t come into college initially thinking he’d like to transfer because it was harder than high school.
Concerning NIL, I think it’s a good thing.
I’ve been in too many homes where I could see the dirt through the floors and the massive difference between the haves and the have-nots. Something needed to happen. The problem we have right now is that the NFL has a player’s union, and we’re the wild, Wild West.
FW: Let’s say you were vying for a championship every year at TCU moving forward. If that’s the case, how many years does Gary Patterson still coach?
GP: Oh, I would say that 65 would’ve been my cut-off, one way or the other.
So, I’m 62 right now, so I would’ve been another four or five years. I think my thing is, you don’t ever retire; you retire to something. Right now, I want to help college football, I want to help kids, and I’m probably interested in starting a consulting business in the near future.
Obviously, now I have more time, and I have a better voice. I can sing and play and write, so that’s the fun part of it. But I also want to get involved in a lot of different things, maybe ESPN — things that I’ve done before, but I hadn’t had time to do as much of.
FW: How long is your contract with UT?
GP: I don’t know. I don’t know what the contract is. It might be tomorrow, as far as I know.
FW: You’re day to day?
GP: Yeah, probably. My whole role is to make sure Coach [Sarkisian] is happy. That’s my job.
FW: When you left, many felt TCU betrayed you with the way it all went down. If you go back and do something differently, what would you have done anything differently?
GP: I’ve stayed away from the topic just because I don’t think anything good about it.
A good friend of mine that’s in the newscasting business said, “Don’t do an interview.” He said, “Everything always comes out in the wash.” And so, for me, my interview is really coming back, still doing the foundation in Fort Worth, still trying to help. Now, I’m trying to prove to people I didn’t do [all this local charity work and the Gary Patterson Foundation] because I was a football coach. I did it because I care about Fort Worth.
A lot of people ask, “Where are you moving?” And I say, “No, I’m not moving.” College football coaches sometimes move 10 to 15 times in their careers. I moved nine or 10 times in my first 15 years. But now I’ve stayed in one place for 25 years, and you don’t just pick up and leave that.
A guy once told me, “You want to get to a point in your life where you want to be able to say ‘no’ more than you say ‘yes.’”
I still remember the AD at Michigan. They had just let go of Rich Rodriguez, and I was interviewing for the head coaching job. I spent 45 minutes telling him why I wasn’t the right guy for the job. I’m not a Michigan guy. It’s not that I don’t think I can go to Michigan and win, but I didn’t think it’s what was best for Michigan. And Fort Worth was always good to me.
FW: When musicians leave, they leave with their song, a final performance, and that’s it. But, when coaches leave, especially the successful ones, they get a ticker-tape parade. There will come a time when you’re not lining up on the other side in burnt orange. When that time comes, can you let us know so we can plan that ticker-tape parade?
GP: We’ll do this. How about we’ll make it a celebration? I’ll be retiring, and [Leon Bridges] will be coming off his fifth Grammy. So, we’ll have a lot to celebrate.
Crystal Wise
Quick questions: Leon Bridges
FW: Tours, album releases, Grammys, and sharing the stage with Justin Bieber — you stay pretty busy. What’s next for you?
LB: Yes, I know. Embarking on a tour starting May, which I’m pretty excited about. And then get my toes into some acting.
FW: Acting?
LB: Yeah, totally. I’ve done other roles in the past, but they’ve been super minuscule. So, this is my first co-lead role. It’s by an up-and-coming director named of Tayarisha Poe. She did a film called “Selah and the Spades,” I believe. I love her vision. Just visually. It has this psychedelic vibe to it. But at the core of it is this story of this girl who’s transitioning into marriage, and I’m essentially the … well, I don’t want to give too much of it away.
It’s like a love story. The focal point of it is her. It’s from her perspective. I don’t know how they’re going to edit it in, but I’m not even in the movie until toward the end, I guess. Or I don’t know.
Editor’s note: The new film, titled “The Young Wife,” is currently in post-production. Deadline reports that the movie is “a wholly new take on the wedding film.”
FW: What was that experience like?
LB: I can say that it was very humbling. It was humbling to not be in control, to step outside of my realm, and do something new. And daunting. It was daunting to have to learn lines and be around people who are essentially strangers.
But I think musicians kind of have this innate sensibility of acting. And it’s crazy how everything that my teacher instilled in me when I was dancing came into play for the movie. It was just learning how to have that performative aspect and being on stage. And there was dance incorporated into the film.
FW: Do you want to do more acting? Is this something you might pursue?
LB: Ultimately, it’d be cool. It was a great experience, but it was challenging. Number one, I was staying in Brunswick, Georgia, and there’s pretty much nothing to do there.
FW: Yeah, can’t imagine that being your vibe.
LB: Right? Definitely not sexy, not glamorous at all. But I loved it, man. It was humbling. It’s like, “Okay, this is my life for a month.”
FW: Not that we’re envious, but you were recently the subject of a great Texas Monthly cover story that got a lot of attention due to your candidness and some interesting revelations. Has that changed people’s perspective of you in any way? Just curious, because you let your guard down quite a bit.
LB: I did, I did. And I think just the way we conducted the interview was so relaxed, and we’re kicking it at Gold Diggers Hotel. It was cool, but I felt like I had, I guess, a vulnerability hangover the next day. I was like, “Shit, I think I gave too much to the world.”
But, man, I think I had to get it out. It was healing because I had that shit boiling up for so long. And so, it was therapeutic to get it out for sure.
FW: Do you have any more music coming out?
LB: So, I’m working on my fourth album, and the focus is to bring it back to the basics. At least, in a way of sonics and in a way of songwriting. I’m currently working with this cat named Tyler Johnson at Woodshed in Malibu. I want to try to shape something that hasn’t been done before.
