Today we’d like to introduce you to Elias Aragaw.
Hi Elias, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I’ve always been drawn to creating things that bring people together. During my time at Texas Tech, as a member of Kappa Alpha Psi, I found myself gravitating toward creative projects, organizing events, and building community. Looking back, those experiences were an early glimpse of what I enjoy most—bringing ideas to life and creating experiences people remember.
After graduating, I built a career across sales, customer success, and commercial insurance, gaining valuable experience in relationship-building, strategy, and operations. Outside of work, I continued pursuing my creative side through podcasting with BunaTime and The Villagers, along with creating funny content. During the pandemic, my “Quarantine Fashion Show” went viral and was featured by NBC as one of its Most Memorable Moments of 2020. That experience reinforced how much I enjoyed creating things that connected with people.
The idea for Funk N Wings grew out of something much more personal. My fiancée is from Atlanta, where wings are a major part of the food culture, and after moving to Texas she often said it was difficult to find wings that really stood out. Since we both love cooking and experimenting in the kitchen, I started making wings using Ethiopian-inspired spices and flavors. She loved them, so I eventually brought them to a Friendsgiving in Austin. I showed up late, but the wings disappeared almost immediately, and people kept asking who made them and where they could buy them. That was the moment I realized there might be something worth building. Friends have called me “Funk” for years, so when it came time to build the brand, it felt natural to build around a name that already represented me.
From there, I spent months refining the recipes, tightening the cooking process, and developing the branding and experience behind Funk N Wings. Today, Funk N Wings is more than just food to me it’s another creative outlet and a way to share a part of who I am, introducing people to Ethiopian culture through flavors that feel both familiar and unexpected.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
It definitely hasn’t been a straight path. Building Funk N Wings has meant learning how to balance a full-time career while pursuing something I’m genuinely passionate about outside of work. Along the way, I’ve experienced career changes, layoffs, and moving from Dallas to Austin, which meant rebuilding my network and finding my creative rhythm again.
One of the biggest lessons I’ve learned is that growth often happens long before anyone else sees it. Some of the most important work isn’t the part people post online it’s the months spent refining recipes, improving processes, strengthening the brand, and staying committed even when progress feels slow.
I’ve also been fortunate to have an incredible support system. My fiancée, family, and close friends believed in the vision before it became real, and their encouragement has kept me going through the highs and lows. Looking back, every challenge taught me patience, resilience, and the importance of trusting the process.
As you know, we’re big fans of Funk N Wings. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about the brand?
Funk N Wings is an Ethiopian-inspired wing concept built around bold flavors, creativity, and unforgettable experiences. Instead of operating from a traditional restaurant, we bring the brand to life through pop-ups, catering, and special events. That gives us the freedom to constantly experiment with new flavors, collaborations, and limited-time offerings, so every event offers something fresh to discover.
What sets us apart is our approach. We take familiar comfort food and reimagine it through bold, unexpected flavor combinations, creating an experience that’s both approachable and memorable. Every detail from the recipes and branding to the customer experience is intentional because we believe memorable experiences don’t happen by accident.
More than anything, I’m proud that people are beginning to connect with Funk N Wings as a brand built around memorable experiences not just a great meal. We want every pop-up to feel like an event, every visit to feel like a discovery, and every guest to leave excited for what’s next. Around here, we like to say, “Funk Around and Find Out.” It’s our invitation to step outside your comfort zone, discover bold new flavors, and experience something you won’t soon forget.
What makes you happy?
What makes me happiest is knowing I’ve had a positive impact on someone’s life, no matter how big or small. For me, a meaningful life is measured by the impact we have on others through our relationships, our interactions, and the things we choose to create.
Whether it’s bringing people together, making someone laugh, introducing them to something new, or simply creating a moment they’ll remember, that’s what fulfills me. You never really know how a conversation, a meal, or an experience might stay with someone, so I try to be intentional in how I show up and what I put into the world.
At the end of the day, I hope people remember how I made them feel more than what I created.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://funknwings.square.site/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/funknwings
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/funknwings
- LinkedIn: https://Linkedin.com/in/earagaw
- Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@funknwings
