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A meeting planner was overheard saying, "This will be your best year ever! Everyone has worked their fingers to the bone, burned the midnight oil and the candle at both ends! I want our company retreat to be the best ever. Let’s get a real Super Star for our entertainment at our annual meeting this year. But how do we go about acquiring one?"
Believe it or not, this still happens. There are corporate and other events that have extraterrestrial talent like Eddie Vedder from Pearl Jam, The Eagles, Elton John, Huey Lewis, and others. So your boss has given you the direction to find entertainment of that stature. Where do you start? How much will it cost? How do I pull it off? It’s OK, there are places where you can look to get your answers and they may be closer than you think.
First you need to decide on what genre of talent you want. Is it a rock band, magician, charismatic speaker, or a specialty act like Cirque du Solei. (Click here for a list of genres) There are some simple steps to follow.
- Who is your audience? Your boss may be a big fan of Andre Bocelli, but the median age of your company is 27.
- You might want to survey your group to find something a bit more mainstream to your group.
- Make a list of your top 10 choices. Remember that some artists may not be available when you need them.
- You have now got your list together. It’s time to move onto the next step.
- Call your favorite music purveyor. Some agencies specialize in Corporate and Special Events.
- Tell the what you are doing and ask for the following
- Availability in your time span
- Asking price
- A copy of the artists Rider. This will explain what you need to provide for the artist; Sound, Lights, Video, Backline, Travel, Rooms, Food, etc.
- Your music purveyor will then ask you to formalize an offer. This is where you send a binding letter to them outlining the event and what you are willing to provide for and pay the artist.
- This is one of the most important parts of your negotiation with the agent. You need to specify the amount you will pay for the artists performance, what you are willing to provide in the way of technical, hospitality, and travel. You need to be specific.
- Just as important as the cost is a complete description of the event, audience, and venue. They need to agree that they can perform within your parameters.
- Communication; You need to communicate with the artists’ team. The more communication, the fewer surprises.
- Hire the right team; Make sure that you have hired a compatible sound & lighting production company. This is not something to leave up to in “in house” hotel AV company. No matter how much they say they can do it, ask the artist if they have a local vendor they have worked with before. It will make your life much easier.
- Don’t skimp. You have now invested several hundred thousand dollars in your event. Don’t buy cheap champagne if the artist is asking for Crystal. Your event will quickly denigrate into disaster. Make sure that the artist production team has fully signed off on your venue and local production company. GET IT IN WRITING!!!!
- If any of this is scary or confusing, hire a talent buying professional. They do this all the time, have established relationships with the many talent agencies and usually the artists management. It may cost a bit more, but you might also save money by avoiding costly mistakes.
- Enjoy your event. Most talent you will hire has does this before and know what to expect and do. Treat them as your guests and peers. They are a partner in your journey to a successful event. They are not your property that you paid for.
Everyone understands that the goal to every event is to have the audience walk away with a smile. You will encounter some bumps and sometimes unsettled moments during your event, whether it is the stage in the wrong place, loading dock with a broken down linen truck, or a weather event. Regardless of all of those obstacles in the 30 years I have been producing events, they have all managed to come off without the audience knowing anything other than they went to the greatest event of their life. Never let them see you sweat, run, or scream. With that, as we say in the business, “Break a Leg” and have a great show, because you will.
 Ken Deans is both a friend and colleague of Mark Sonder, He has 30 years of experience being a part of or producing ground breaking events for Activision (Call of Duty: XP), AT&T, Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival, Catholic Foundation of the Arts, Microsoft, Netflix, and many other corporations. Beginning the early ‘80s Deans worked as part of the management for the musical groups Men at Work, Split Enz, Divynals, Melissa Etheridge, Dave Koz, Alice in Chains and others. His long history and relationships in the music and event industry are called into service by many the top event production companies around the world.
Ken can be reached at Ken.A.Deans@gmail.com or 818-206-8830
Click here for this issue's
Industry News: Web, Major Update On Its Way
Click here for this issue's
featured artist: Kelly Clarkson
 Mark
Sonder, CSEP is the Chief Entertainment Officer of Mark Sonder
Productions, an award-winning entertainment producer, Mark Sonder Productions, Inc. is an award winning entertainment agency that delivers complete program packages to corporations, associations, facilities, casinos and concerts. Since 1985.
In addition, Mark sits on
the faculty of the University
of Nevada at Las Vegas (UNLV), The George Washington University, and Stratford
University.
Event
Entertainment and Production is the book published by
Wiley authored by Sonder.
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