"Hello my BEBE, hello my darling"

WEDNESDAY 4-2-08

Megan @ Rockit
(from Megan:) "Rockit on Wednesday was good…kind of slow, but Rockit said they were picking back up. I played a lot of current rock and new rock and sing-alongs during [the period of] 11:15pm to 12:30am. [The] funnest part was playing new good indie rock and [people] came up and asked me what I was playing."

THURSDAY 4-3-08

Vogue @ the Bebe Store (downtown Chicago)
Lead: Megan Taylor
(from Megan:) "Bebe was great. [It was] fun concentrating on music and Andrew and Alvin doing sound. I liked that I discussed all of my concerns up front. [Big win: I] Used my team well. [The] Hardest part was knowing people and saying hi and playing music. [I received] Lots of compliments, and lots of people asked for my card. [This was] a great artist gig!"

Brent @ Rockit 4-3-08
This was a very enjoyable evening at Rockit, and my very first time going solo for six hours straight! I was totally excited for this as I wanted to experience what it was like behind the helm for a whole evening. There was a small corporate party that was winding down when I arrived. I made sure to get to the venue early to enjoy a black angus cheeseburger at the bar, which filled me up excellently for the night to come. I befriended one of the bartenders (namely, Jessica), who was very friendly and served me well. I also met one of the people from the party and gave him my card. Musically, I bounced from genre to genre; the majority of what I played was rock. Patrick came over and stated that there were people eating downstairs and that there was a slightly smaller-than-

usual crowd, so I started with some slower, yet lively rock tunes, like "Circles" by Soul Coughing and "Where it's At" by Beck. One of my fave songs at the beginning portion was Scott Matthew's "Lithium Flower" from the Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex soundtrack. Prior to playing this song, Pete came by and I showed him my anime music collection—I then learned that his brother is into anime. Awesome! (He liked the song I played, as well.) As the night picked up, I had a few moments where I didn't know where to go next. I got a bit nervous when people would come in and out. I played a lot of older rock and 80s hits; some hit, some didn't. Patrick came by once and advised that I play some "newer" rock. This is something that I have to study up on, as I feel that Rockit is gearing more towards catering to the new and modern rock lover. I used the my Promo Only book to the best of my ability, as well as the Rockit computer. With every selection, I had fun and mixed it up quite a bit in the evening. New songs: "La La" (Ashlee Simpson), "Rock & Roll is Dead" (Lenny Kravitz), and "Pretty Vegas" (INXS); songs that hit: "Message in a Bottle" (Police), "Runaround" (Blues Traveler), and "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'" (Michael Jackson). Favorite transition: "We Will Rock You" into "Beverly Hills" into "I Love Rock & Roll." The most enjoyable part of the night was seeing people dancing with their friends and groups—even at 1:00 in the morning! I had one small group that I had dancing for well over an hour, and another group in the back of the restaurant that were enjoying some of the sing-alongs that I played after midnight (i.e. "Brandy, You're a Fine Girl"). Learn: This may be a myth, but I heard from one of the security guards that the owner of Rockit would fire any DJ who played "Bad, Bad Leroy Brown." Thank God he wasn't there! I closed the night at 1:30am with "Tiny Dancer" (Elton John) and "Piano Man" (Billy Joel). Despite the rough spots, I had an awesome time, and look forward to my next Rockit!

SATURDAY 4-5-08

Beach/Parsons @ Maxim's
Lead: Brian Carey; Assistant: Jon Hood
Producer: Andrew Ettenhofer
This was a small wedding ceremony and reception for Kathy and Eric, a theater-loving couple. All events took place at Maxim's: the night started with their ceremony, followed by performances, their first dance, and dinner and dancing. The audio was provided by Maxim's for the ceremony and performances; Brian and Jon provided audio for dinner and dancing. Being "theater people," the couple wanted to hear music from They Might Be Giants, LCD Soundsystem, and a few tracks from the Rent soundtrack. There were groups of people dancing here and there, but the ones that enjoyed the music the most was Kathy and Eric. There was no tip, but the couple was very happy. A rather eclectic night!

Worboys/Royer @ Pritzker Pavilion
Lead: Brent Rolland; Assistant: Andrew Ettenhofer
Producers: Brent Rolland and Erik Friedly
This was my second production and performance (in two weeks!) at the Pritzker Pavilion—this time, it was a wedding for Fiona and Randy. The evening was all about celebrating cultures, as the bride, Fiona, was English, and Randy, the groom, was 100% American. This was a very fun, yet exhaustive wedding that had its points of frustration. Losses: I had some uncertainty around the timeline regarding the beginning of dinner and when speeches were going to happen, which I should have had down the first time, but I used the catering manager (Danielle from Jewell Catering) and Erik (who co-produced with me) well to sort out my concerns and ask a lot of questions. When the bride and groom came in, I let them know what was going to happen, and they were cool with it. Another loss that happened was that our speakers "blew out"—due to the fact that Andrew and I were positioned in the upper choral level of the pavilion (as opposed to the stage level, where the guests were). It had to do with the fact that our levels were pretty high, a switch on the back of the mixer was misaligned (to be explained at the next deejay meeting), and one of the XLR cords that we used had a faulty male end (the little locking rectangular hole was broken). The blow-out happened during dancing, and it did break up the really full dance floor that we had, but we were able to get back into the groove after a while. Andrew did an awesome job working the technical side of the evening while I was able to deejay from the upper level. He also supported me with great music choices during the night. As for me, I showed a lot of grace under pressure during the time the speakers went out and used Andrew when I needed him. Wins: The introduction of the bride and groom, the first dance, and the speeches were perfect; we received both box lunches and ate from the buffet (the people from Jewell was really friendly!); I asserted myself well with the couple, the catering staff, and kept in great communication with Andrew and Rick Aguilar; I hit all the couple's must-plays; Andrew and I split the decks during the latter part of the evening, and we got a few compliments during the evening. Learns: Push for either putting our speakers on the stage level, or for our full rig to be on the stage level with the crowd. Additionally, I saw Randy and Fiona on the way to get some equipment from the bottom, and Randy says that he will be giving me a call either on Monday or Tuesday to "take care of me." Cool! This was a tough gig, but I had a lot of fun producing it and being in the space.

THURSDAY 3-27-08

Brian @ Rockit

(from Brian:) "Good sized crowd. My big win was that I've been researching new rock songs on Q101; I ended up playing a lot of those songs. It worked out great. I got a good response from the crowd. Songs that hit: "Stop" (Against Me), "Take it Off" (The Donnas), and "Swing Swing" (The All-American Rejects)."

FRIDAY 3-28-08

Hafeez @ Rockit

(from Hafeez:) "Rockit went very well! Megan DJ'ed a private party from 5-9. She had the place was rockin' when I got there at 9! People everywhere! Megan mentioned that there is a problem with the bass in the speakers. She had it cranked up all the way but was barely getting anything out of them. Megan set the tone really well and I was able to pick up where she left off and keep the people there. Patrick and Pete both said the night was great. Carey, another one of the managers who "never talks to anyone" (that's a direct quote from him) came up and talked to me about how great the whole night was. I was all over the place with genres: I started with 80's, then went modern, then to classic rock, then modern, then 90's, modern, 80's, then back to classic rock for the end. The loudest reactions were for "Sweet Caroline" and "Don't stop Believin'." ("Sweet Caroline" had the louder of the two) Some other nice reactions were for "Sweet Child of Mine," "Holiday," "Living on a Prayer," "American Pie," "All Star" (Smash Mouth) and "Girlfriend" (Avril Lavigne) and "Doorbell" by The White Stripes. I played "The Seed 2.0" by The Roots and Cody ChesnuTT for the first time and [it] went over well. I also beatmatched "Are You Gonna Be My Girl" (Jet) into "Walking on Sunshine" (Katrina and the Waves). I didn't notice any reactions, but it sounded awesome. Great night. Lots of compliments and high fives from people in the crowd as well! Awesome gig!"

SATURDAY 3-29-08

Brian @ Rockit

(from Brian:) "I replaced Jon. Compared to Thursday night, the music [I played] were more popular [titles]. I played a lot of 80s, some 90s, and some modern rock. A big win was spreading out the sing-along songs, for this kept the crowd more aware of the music. The room was packed all night. The crowd thinned out at 1:30am. New songs that worked: "Possum Kingdom" by Toadies, "Stupid Girl" by Garbage, and "I Want Money" by Flying Lizards."

SUNDAY 3-30-08

Ernst & Young @ Jay Pritzker Pavilion

Lead: Brent Rolland; Assistant: Jon Hood

Producers: Brent Rolland and Erik Friedly

This was the very first gig that I both deejayed and produced—a double bonus for me! Erik (who co-sold the gig) was originally my assistant, but he was replaced last-minute by Jon. Our mission: We played during the Shamrock Shuffle, an 8K walk/run that takes place in Grant Park and the surrounding area. We were both on the chorus level (the upper seating area where choruses usually perform) of the stage area of the Pritzker Pavilion, which not only had excellent acoustics, but had more than enough space for our books and decks and also had plentiful outlets for us to use. From 11am to 2pm, Jon and I played background music while the runners and their friends and guests mingled and enjoyed a marvelous breakfast prepared by Food For Thought. Jon and I both had feelings around Erik not being on the gig, and we took the wait time that we had (we setup around 9am and started at 11am) and walked outside and talked. It gave us time to clear our minds, as well as to watch the runners and walkers stride by. From there, Jon and I ate a lot of delicious food and played great music. Some of the cool first-time tunes that I hit: "Wild Wild West" (Escape Club), "Pocket Full of Kryptonite" (Spin Doctors), "River of Dreams" (Billy Joel), and "Cloud Nine" (The Temptations). We had one table that was responding well to a few of the songs Jon and I played (i.e. "Mickey" and "Centerfold"), which was a joy to see, especially because the majority of the crowd was eating and talking with one another. We received a compliment from one of the FFT servers: "Great music—this was the best part of the whole day." Honestly, that was the gig—no frills or other fancy details. I was honored to be on the Pritzker stage, as well as perform at a gig that I produced.

Fig Tube: Episode One

Fig Goes You Tube!

Thats right! Fig has gone on the tube....you tube that is.

We have our own channel.
Check us out as we post ideas, randomness and films.

http://www.youtube.com/user/figtube1120

St. Josaphat Fundraiser @ the Westin River North

Lights! Cameras! Toilets!

What?

That so did not sound right. Not that the above statement is uber-cliché, but toilets simply do not have a true connection with lights and cameras. However, at the recent fundraiser that Jon Hood and I recently participated in, a better combination could not be fathomed. Jon and I were the deejays and sound engineers for an amazing fundraiser at the Westin River North. This was for the St. Josaphat School, a Catholic institution in need of a new bathroom for their students, teachers and faculty. The theme of the evening was movies, and the whole bottom floor of the Westin was decked out with bright lights, glitter, movie posters, and guests walking down a red carpet in their best evening wear. The night was held in three parts: a silent auction, dinner, and a live auction (with smaller fund-raising contests mixed in). This evening contained numerous wins:

1) Jon and I did the final meeting/walk-through together, which totally helped in understanding the flow and purpose of the event, as well as connected us to our clients/contacts.

2) We had a huge 6-speaker setup that was split among the rooms: Two 10" speakers were placed into the silent auction room (which worked great, although two 15's would have worked a lot better); two were outside in the lobby; and two were in the main dining hall. When the silent auction was finished and just before everyone made their way into the ballroom, I retrieved the two speakers that were in the lobby area and put them in the ballroom (making the total number of speakers there four). Although this was more of a three-person setup, Jon and I made it happen and everything sounded great.

3) We worked with an exceptional emcee/auctioneer by the name of Jim Miller, who did a fantastic job keeping the guests abreast of the auction and the other goings-on in the event, as well as leading the audience superbly in the auctions. A lot of the funds that were raised were due to his energy and commanding presence.

4) We had a packed dance floor during the entire night—guests were ready to party right after the auction ended. At the end of the night, we received a rousing, riotous chant for "one more song," and with the go-ahead from the hotel, we played "Last Dance," which worked for the most part, but a lot of people disliked it. Here's the rather amusing (and somewhat upsetting) factoid: One woman was about to give me $40 just to play "My Humps" as the last song! The money was nice to look at, but I just could not take the request. Still, people danced and enjoyed their time.

Additionally, Jon used me well throughout the entire evening, from the first meeting all the way to the event itself. He used me best with setup, sound checks, and times when he needed someone to talk his thoughts and feelings to. This was a star-studded night, and I certainly hope to be a part of it next year.

How would I describe this event as a whole? Oh, let's just say it was a royal flush.

– Brent Rolland, resident fig deejay

(My heartfelt thanks goes to Lindsey, Renee, Jody, Peter, John Burdett, everyone of the St. Josaphat school, and all the great people at the Westin for a fabulous evening!)

A Wondrous Event/Project SOAR @ McGaw YMCA

Here is something to contemplate: If you could redo any event in your life, what would it be? For my very first gig of 2008, I got to relive and experience a very important moment in my life: my senior high-school prom. And there I was without a date! Talk about a crime, huh? It's all in good faith, actually. Erik Friedly and I were the deejays and audio specialists for a fundraiser for Project SOAR, an organization dedicated to supporting literacy and literacy programs for preschool children, teens, and parents. The evening was literally a prom night for the 200+ people that were there. The spacious gymnasium of the McGaw YMCA in downtown Evanston was transformed into an amazing dining hall and dance area—complete with a balloon arch and numerous strings of lights. It was awesome seeing people dressed in prom wear from their respective eras: bold varsity jackets, powder-pink tuxes, and fluffy, ruffled dresses. There were even a few tuxedo T-shirts in the mix, worthy of a laugh or two. Ha. Ha. Fig was hired through A Wondrous Affair to handle the deejaying, audio and the emceeing for the event. Erik and I worked with Lisa McGowan, who gave us cues for music and for announcements. I was the emcee for the evening, while Erik handled all the music.

The toughest part in the event was not braving the costumes that some of the people wore, but more so, it was getting everyone to sit down at the beginning of the evening—it took about four or five announcements from me to get everyone to get to their seats, but I received some help from some of the dressed-up guests who got on the mike and calmed the group down. My learn in that process was to be more persuasive on the microphone, but my huge win is that I had a ton of fun with the crowd through that time and through the night. Two of the big events of the "prom" was welcoming the "celebrities" (police chiefs, firemen, state officials, politicians and the like), who were gaining votes to be the "Prom King and Queen," as well as a big live auction. I had the pleasure of working with a woman by the name of Julie during the live auction, and while she held rapport with the crowd and drew bids, I announced all the prizes and played second banana to Julie. I kinda felt like a game show announcer at that time. Why I said "This raffle prize can be yours if 'the price is right'" is beyond me. Along with the raffle, I did a great job working well with Lisa with all the numerous announcements that came up, as well as being playful and working with the presenters and celebrities. Erik did an amazing job with the music all night—during dancing, he maintained a packed dance floor for virtually the entire evening. Even yours truly cut a bit of a rug with the guests. The servers and volunteers were dancing too! We received numerous thank-yous, and even a few compliments on this being "the best party ever." Seriously, it must be true that one can have fun at their prom—no matter when you are celebrating it!

– Brent Rolland, resident fig deejay

Ahoy!

The Love Boat was the theme for this year's Four Seasons holiday party.  They decorated the stage as if it was the deck of a ship.  Looked really cool.  To either side of the stage were screens where water related videos were shown.  Fig was brought in to dj and host a karaoke contest.  Honestly, I was disappointed with the videos that were shown on the screens.  It didn't look like the guests were into the videos at all and I think they had a difficult time relating to the water/Love Boat theme of the evening.  The mood was kind of mellow for the first half of the evening.  There was a skit that the crowd didn't really get into, and I think part of it was because it looked kind of thrown together.  After the skit, they gave out the Employee of the Year and Manager of the Year awards.  Then there was a lull where we played more upbeat music as we made our way closer to the karaoke contest.  We did a raffle and then it was off to the races.

When doing karaoke, always take dance breaks throughout.  We were originally going to do an hour straight of karaoke, but there were people that wanted to dance and weren't into the karaoke.  I would say that those who were into karaoke, were really into it.  Those that weren't were upset that we weren't dancing.  There were also people who were upset that they could only have 2 drinks.  I've done quite a bit of holiday parties, and the better ones are where there is a unifying theme, or something that brings everyone together.  Companies will often do skits or awards or prizes.  With companies such as hotels, it's harder to bring everyone together because it's so diverse.  Last year there was a video that was shot throughout the hotel and I think everyone felt valued because all the departments were represented in the video.  This year, I don't think the skit did that because not everyone could relate to it.  It was harder for us to pull everyone together because the group wasn't unified, and therefor the party was bifurcated once we got to karaoke.  You either like it or you don't.

The bifurcation didn't become apparent until closer to the end of the party.  We were nearing the end of karaoke, when we realized that the crowd was getting too hostile and it was starting to come through in their singing.  It got pretty bad.  We cut off karaoke, although there were people upset about it.  We cranked into dancing and got a packed dancefloor with everyone that was still there.  I saved Calabria for the encore song, and unfortunately, it got everyone riled up for one more.  The encore song is the one you play after the last song.  We let the last song die out, pause, get on the mic and ask if they want one last song, let them scream and yell "Yes!," tease them with a brief intro, cut it and get back on the mic with "Are you sure?," let them say "Yes!" even louder, then go into the encore song.  Only do it if the last song is REALLY good.  Calabria is.  They went nuts!  We played a merengue afterwards, and that wrapped up the night.

--Jonathan Hood, lead

Alvin Black, assisting

First Wedding of the Year!

Getting back into the swing of doing weddings can have a few rough edges.  Rachel and Tim had their wedding at the Allerton Crown Plaza downtown and it was my first time working in the space.  A few learns on this gig is to ask about a house system when I do a site visit.  The Allerton's ballroom is long and skinny that looks like a dog bone when viewed from above.  Our dj table was set at one end and the sweetheart table was at the other.  They didn't have a house system we could plug into and we should have included a smaller speaker that would have been placed on the other end of the room.  What we ended up doing was placing one speaker on either end and when we go to dancing, we turned the speaker off that was at the other side.  It worked out okay, but wasn't ideal.  The house also has a wireless microphone which the bride and groom didn't include in their package.  This would have made things a little easier, as well.  Instead, we used a long cord for our microphone which we ran down to the other end of the room so speeches could be done near the sweetheart table.  Another good thing to ask in our meetings is where the older guests would be.  They were seated on the other side of the room next to a speaker.  They didn't want the speaker on, probably because the music we were playing didn't appeal to them.  The bride and groom wanted to hear music they like and fit their personalities, which was a mix of indie and southern rock.  Those older guests ended up turning the speaker into the wall, which caused several announcements not to be heard.  We weren't aware of this until the middle of the evening when one of the guests in that room asked us to turn the music down on that side.  The guests sitting in that room where disgruntled beyond anything I had ever seen.  Emily went to turn the music down and the guests were mean to her and told her to just turn the speaker off.  I was upset because they didn't respect the bride and groom's wishes to hear the music.  The volume we ended up setting it at was barely audible.  Dancing was great!  Amazing!  We had some challenges, such as the bar being outside the room, tables taking up a lot of space with only one way to the dance floor that got clogged easily with people just wanting to watch, and tables that were set on the dance floor that couldn't be moved until dinner was complete.  That being said, we rocked!  We had a pretty good sized dance floor most of the night with only a couple lulls that we quickly corrected.  Hip-hop was big later the evening and we left the crowd wanting more.  Alas, we had to leave.  All said and done, this was a really fun event and I can't wait for my next wedding!

--Jonathan Hood (lead)

Emily Hard (assisting)

Dissecting a gig

I like studying people. Sociology was one of my majors in college and one of the things I like about dj'ing parties is that I get to watch people all night and study how they interact. It is also one of my goals to go back to school and get a masters and PhD in sociology. With the support of my colleagues at fig, in particularly James Gustin himself, I am turning my blogs into little dissertations. From my blogs, I hope the readers get a sense of the dynamics that happen at a party in order to predict the success or failures of future events.

The study of today's blog is Reed Smith, Sachnoff, and Weaver's company party at the Palmer House. Reed Smith recently merged with Sachnoff and Weaver this last year. The party was for about 200 guests, employees only which comprised mainly of lawyers and secretaries. During the night, two skits are performed. One by the secretaries and one by the lawyers. These skits act as an outlet for the employees to voice their opinions, thoughts, feelings about the events that have happened over the last year and although it's not necessarily designed this way, anything unexpressed throughout the year will come out in this forum. Skits are an excellent way to see any underlying hostility or appreciation towards the company. In this case, there was more hostility than gratitude. Subjects like the merger and employees that are not present anymore came up. While the tone of the skits was geared toward making light of these subjects, because they have not had the opportunity to be expressed throughout the year, the humor sits on top of anger, hurt, sadness that will remain until it has a chance to come out. Leaders of companies often take the brunt of these unexpressed feelings. In this case, it was the managing partners who were present at the party. It also manifests itself within anyone planning the event. This is often unbeknownst to the person (people) planning it and should not be blamed for any mishaps that happen with the planning or hosting the event, but rather supported by the coworkers that much more.

These dynamics were present at this party in three forms. One was present within the guests as a whole, another within the host, and the third within myself and my assistant. I stress that people are often unaware of these factors. It is best to deal with these scenarios with compassion and understanding while asserting what is best for the party. The best example to use is at the beginning of dancing. It took the crowd a few songs to get warmed up and feel comfortable enough to approach the dance floor. Once the crowd was dancing, I worked them through some disco, funk, 80's, and into some old-school hip-hop. At this point, the host of the party asks to switch directions and put on something more exotic, like motown or salsa. I switch from the hip-hop I was playing into some salsa and then into motown. Half the crowd left the dance floor for the salsa and the rest left for the motown. After a couple songs, guests started leaving steadily from that point on.

The first dynamic was the song request. It didn't fit in with what most of the crowd wanted, which caused half of them to leave. Very few were into the motown which caused the rest to leave. If this were the only dynamic about this example, then it would be no problem bringing the crowd back. The second dynamic was the crowd's reaction. While most crowds would stick out the party through a set that doesn't agree with them, this crowd chose to start leaving. The urge to celebrate wasn't high enough for people; there wasn't a central theme that united everyone together. This party centers around the skits which were filled with references about people who aren't there anymore, people who are dissatisfied with their jobs, people who are dissatisfied with decisions being made without their say, and decisions being made that they did not agree with. The central them was hardly celebratory and thus people did not feel the urge to stick around. The third dynamic was myself and my assistant. We did not let the host know about the dynamics happening in the room and what effect the song request might have. I actually thought it wouldn't be a problem to bring the guests back after playing the salsa and motown if they didn't hit. Unfortunately, I did not understand the dynamics in the room fully and thus went ahead with the requests.

I would say that this was the turning point in the evening. While I eventually got the crowd dancing again, it was not the same party after this. There was a heaviness in the room, and I was often scared of clearing the dance floor again. The party died about 30 minutes left to go and we played lighter music for the few people who stayed. Reading a room is tricky, and little things can effect the outcome of a party. My biggest concern is that the person (people) planning a party may think the deejay is doing a bad job when really it could be a few different factors coming to play all at the same time. If at any point you feel that the party isn't going as well as it should be, talk to the deejay about the dynamics in the room. If the deejay doesn't know, then you have a bad deejay. If the deejay does know, then getting him/her to talk about it may help him/her see the party differently and begin to play music that counteracts the dynamics in the room. But how to counteract negative dynamics is the topic for another conversation. Until, happy partying.

--jonathan hood
dj operations manager

(tim musho assisted)

GE & the Intercon

Lola and myself deejayed GE Rail Services holiday party at the Hotel Intercon. In the past, GE went with a band and they decided on a dj this year because many of the guests complained about the sound. Either too loud or too soft. We had two JBL towers and smaller 12" Mackies on the balcony above us. It was in their Grand Ballroom, which has a balcony that wraps around the back of the room. Cocktails took place on the balcony, so we used the smaller speakers for that while the towers filled in the rest. When people came downstairs, we turned the towers up, turned the balcony speakers in and readjusted their volume to fill in where the towers weren't. What happened was that the room was nicely filled with sound while kept at a level where people could talk and not feel overwhelmed by the music. It was very elegant and romantic night for the employees of GE and their dates. Everyone came with a date. There were only a few guests that didn't.

When it got to dancing, it was tough to get people out. One reason was the dancefloor. It was ginormous. It's easier for people to dance when there is a smaller dance floor. Even if you have 500 people, you still don't want a large dance floor because it's VERY intimidating. This crowd was around 200. Because there were a lot of couples, we played some slower stuff which brought EVERYONE out. The dance floor was packed! This is a good way to use a large dance floor. It's easier to get people out to slower stuff if 1.) there are plenty of couples and 2.) it's easier to dance to slow stuff and people look and feel less dorky. That's why it's a good idea to start off with slow stuff because it gets people comfortable to the dance floor, gets people out there, and gets people "in the mood" to wiggle and jiggle the rest of the night. This crowd kept wanting to leave after every song. It's like they were thinking, well the songs over so let's go sit down again. But then they would recognize the song, realize they like it, and then come back out. My guess about this crowd is that they don't go out dancing that often. Makes sense if they are coupled up. Most couples don't end up going out after a few years of being together.

Anyway, we got a good portion of them dancing most of the night and overall, they had fun. Our contact said that we were much better than the bands they've had in the past and wants to work with us again.

--Jonathan

McDonald's @ The School of the Art Institute Ballroom

Have you had your break today? My fellow fig artist Emily and I certainly did yesterday. It makes sense for me to open this entry with that familiar commercial phrase, as we were the deejays for a group of corporate employees from McDonald's (yes, the McDonald's) at the majestic ballroom of the School of the Art Institute. For this four-hour dinner-and-dance soiree, the main challenge of the evening was not digesting the delectable miniature roast beef sandwiches and onion zingers, but moreso enticing the nearly one hundred people at the party get on the dance floor.

We started off cocktails with a mixture of jazz, latin/bossa nova, and some downtempo music. Both of us could see the guests as one talkative mass, tightly packed near the bar in the upstairs balcony. Amusingly, when it was time for one of the heads of the company, Kevin, to get on the microphone and call everyone downstairs to dinner, he asked us to play the Black Eyed Peas' "Let's Get it Started." As Kim Possible might say, we were "so not the expecting that." The crowd did not expect that either, but it certainly got a laugh and slowly brought people downstairs.

Dinner was ending, and dancing was approaching. There was ninety minutes left until the evening ended. Dancing was a challenge for us. Somewhat like pulling that tab off of the sweet & sour sauce carton for your Chicken McNuggets. Thankfully, I have had much experience with holiday parties—not to mention McNugget sauce cartons—to carry through a gig like this. Armed with our music collections and a list of suggestions that our clients gave us the night-of, Emily and I poised ourselves for the music to come. We built up a dancing mood with such tunes as "Ain't Too Proud to Beg" (Temptations), "Superstition" (Stevie Wonder), "Domino" (Van Morrisson), and "September" (EWF). We totally played everything that we liked and enjoyed it. The crowd, however, were still in mingling mode. I remember throwing on "Billie Jean" and two people began to get on the dance floor. Yes! Sadly, they stopped dancing after a while and went back to talking. Non-yes! Our clients were certainly the catalysts—or, in layman's terms, the "party starters"—for the evening. Their suggestion: "Sweet Caroline." We played it, and several members of the crowd began to sing out loud. We then played some disco, such as "Stayin' Alive" and "I Will Survive," and eventually made our way into hip-hop, 80s favorites, and current stuff. I had a ton of fun playing Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch's "Good Vibrations" and Survivor's "Eye of the Tiger"—two songs that I rarely get a chance to play and were on the list. We even played the current bouncy hip-hop hit, "Crank That" (Soulja Boy). We ended the night with Culture Club's "I'll Tumble 4 Ya." We managed to keep the small, but mighty crowd going into overtime, which was definitely satisfying.

Emily and I performed some serious teamwork throughout the night with dinner and dancing music. We talked a lot about our musical choices, and when either of us didn't have a song or an idea, the other one of us did. We laughed when some songs (like the aforementioned "Good Vibrations") that we thought weren't going to work totally hit. Overall, we rode with our challenge and had lots of fun, making for quite a successful night. It was food, folks and fun for this successful evening. And, yes—the clients, the crowd, and us two deejays were "lovin' it."


– Brent Rolland, resident fig deejay

Rockit Bar and Grill Residency

After being a video and photo vendor for Rockit Ranch, this past year fig established a residency at Rockit Bar and Grill. Fig DJ's can be seen at the restaurant/bar usually three nights a week on Wednesdays, Thursdays, and rotating with other DJ's on the weekends. Fig spins Rock..... meaning old, new, classic, 80's, glam rock, indie, funk.... think Bon Jovi every night. Yes like every party there is a certain formula to the night, but heck that gets old, so fig keeps it fresh mixing it up and bringing back favorites that you all miss and may have forgotten. The bouncers, managers, bartenders, wait staff, owners are all super cool, welcoming, and professional. All in all Rockit Bar and Grill is an awesome place and our fig DJ's just top the cake.

Check us out this New Year's!!!

-Megan Taylor

Jemily Hord Strikes Again!

Myself (Jonathan) and Emily deejay'd Bell, Boyd and Lloyd's holiday party last night and it was rockin! We've deejay'd their party the last couple years and the feedback we got from last year is that it got too clubby at the end. That motivated us to keep the music mixed up throughout dancing and created some pretty sweet mixes. We were going from 80's to disco to hip-hop to funk to rock. I think there were only two times when we only played two songs of the same genre in a row. One of my favorite mixes of the night (although technically not the best and some of the people left the dance floor) was going from Superstition my Stevie Wonder into Stayin' Alive by the Beegees. It was a new mix for me to try out. I was having trouble lining up the beats because the tempo of Superstition kept changing. The tempo of Stayin' Alive also changes a little at the beginning, but having worked frequently with this song, I'm used to where the changes are to either speed it up or slow it down. I haven't beat matched to Superstition before, so it was a little tricky to get it to sound good on the spot. My dance floors are often my laboratories where I try out new mixes. I could try to perfect it in a studio, but there's something about making something live that I've never done before that's cool and exciting. It's alive and breathing, creative and expressive. Here's what it looked and sounded like:

(Still trying to upload the video.)

Emily is really cool to work with. We always seem to have awesome gigs. Here is a video of her deejaying and a pretty good dancer in the midst:

(Still trying to upload the video. Check back soon!)

The party was a little weird because a third of the crowd left during dinner. The buffet seemed to be open FOREVER! It was open way too long. There was a good thing to the buffet being open for so long, because it weeded out all of the guests that didn't want to stay and party. Everyone that was left after dinner wanted to dance, created a pretty darn good dance floor given the size of the crowd. We got the crowd a little worked up towards the end of dinner; several people walked by and said we needed to save the music we were playing for dancing. We were teasing them a little bit, playing some MJ

Jemily Hord: Live at the Palmer

Jemily Hord (Jonathan Hood & Emily Hard) deejay'd Mira and David's wedding at the Palmer House on Saturday. Mira is the Catering Manager at the Palmer House. A cool thing about the wedding is that one of the guests was also one of our clients, and she didn't know it until she got there. It also just so happened that Emily was the dj on her wedding. There was a pretty cool reunion when Emily and her saw each other.

Overall, the wedding was awesome! We ran into a few snags with timing. The ceremony started later than expected and things got backed up from there. Dancing started around 10:30 and I knew there wasn't going to be enough time for dancing. We were contracted until 12:45, but the schedule was until 12, so I talked with Mira to see if we could stay in the room longer. She has connections and made it happen. The dance floor was PACKED all night! We went until 12:30 and almost everyone stayed the whole time. Dancing circles kept happening throughout the night, where a circle would form and someone would dance inside it. At a couple points, two circles formed side by side. There were a group of people that wore napkins on their heads. Not sure what this was all about, but I assumed they were there to party. And they were! Everyone was! This party was a ton of fun!

Emily and I played off each other. I took one deck, she took the other. Emily is one of our newer djs and I got to see how much our training pays off by seeing her work. She's awesome! All thanks to me! About a year ago, she assisted me on a gig and was doing a great job playing to the crowd and I told her she should become a dj. And she did! Our deejays rock...


--Jonathan

The Deadbanger's Ball @ the House of Blues

One hooded ghoul, one anime samurai, and one guy who passes for a Russian computer programmer—these were the three masqueraders responsible for the music for the Deadbanger's Ball, the House of Blues' yearly Halloween party. This fright fest of dudes and dudettes dressed in their most haunting habits included the music of fig media deejays Tim Musho, our partner/liaison Russell Furman, and yours truly. I have played at different holiday parties, but knowing that this was one of Chicago's most exciting and eclectic party venues, I knew I was going to be in for a treat—not to mention a few tricks.

The festivities took place in the Foundation Room, an elaborate, two-story Indian wonderland of ruddy fabrics and gold Buddha statues. The celebration was for the employees and the members of this intricate interior venue. To accomodate the 200-plus attendees, the party was split into two areas, with a specific menu of music in each: The top floor, which was the lounge/bar area, was going to feature straight rock music, and the downstairs area, which housed the Foundation room's private restaurant, had dance music in store. I was the lucky recipient to host the latter of the two rooms. Wearing my collective costume of anime convention garb—i.e. my yukata (summer kimono), my sandals, and a hat that beared the face of the "Puuchu" from the series Excel Saga—I was ready to play.

Nearly all the guests of the ball were dressed as some kind of person or other, and for the most part, they were quite well done. Among the many duplicates were two Rick Jameses, about four Amy Winehouses (or Amy Wine-hice?), three of the four members of KISS, and a little gaggle of girls going as the "tabloid pack"—Paris Hilton, Lindsay Lohan, and the somewhat-beloved Britney Spears. I think I even spotted a Rainbow Brite and a Jessica Rabbit somewhere in the thick of the crowd. My favorite costumes of the night were these two guys dressed up as robots. The construction of their suits were rather excellent, right down to the delightful details of real flashing lights built-in to their boxes. I was quite impressed at the costumes, but additionally touched that people took the time to get dressed and participate. Trés admirable.

From the music list that I received from our venue contact, I was led to believe that I was going to play straight rock music. With much gratitude to the diverse crowd and their diverse requests, I was freed from that confining thought. Cool tracks like Stevie Wonder's "Superstition," Duran Duran's "Hungry Like the Wolf," and even Ram Jam's "Black Betty" were well received. Of course, rock staples from AC/DC, Aerosmith, and Motley Crüe were certainly part of this musical trick-or-treat bag. The aforementioned robots loved when I hit Daft Punk's "Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger," to which they immediately sandwich-danced with a random woman to. Um…maybe I should not have played that. My musical choices were sporadic, but everyone had a great time, all the way to the end of the night. I could not believe that there were still five people in the bottom jamming to the last song I played, Michael Jackson's "Wanna Be Startin' Something." It is a great feeling having people that are still wired and having a great time. Makes my job more relaxing.

If there were any challenges through the night, one of them was wondering what was going on upstairs. Because I did not have a partner, I could not leave my post. This is why I was super-grateful to have Russell with us during the night, as he would periodically check in with the both of us during the evening. Having him there helped me to get a sense of how my fellow deejay was doing. The really fun thing that kept Tim and I "in touch" is that I would pull CDs from my book and have Russell run them up to him to borrow for the evening. Ironically, I didn't think about playing the songs that Tim was borrowing from me!

The highlight of the night occurred when I fulfilled the request of "The Humpty Dance" for a lovely woman by the name of Erica, donning a darling French maid outfit. About five minutes later, she asked if I would marry her. Yeah, I gasped too. I remember kissing her hand in courteous agreement…and never seeing her again after that. Le bummer. All's fair is love and deejaying, I suppose.

My set ended at 1:30 in the morning. To my surprise, Tim was still spinning tunes to the rather wired crowd. It turns out that his musical choices were just as diverse as mine—and we even played some of the same songs through the night! Very interesting. Tim ended a little after 2am. Exhausted and full of cola and grenadine, we packed up and headed out. In addition to playing a lots of great music, the most enjoyable facet of the Deadbanger's ball was seeing adults—mind you, adults—dressing up, looking great, having fun, and really getting into the Hallowen spirit. This holiday is not everyone's cup of tea…or shot of vodka, for that matter. Despite the challenges, I was able to have a highly enjoyable time. Thank you for putting the "Happy" in my Halloween, House of Blues.

– Brent Rolland, resident fig deejay

(Special thanks to Cindy and her partner for the awesome photos during the night, as well as to Mary, Stacy, Laura, Neil, and everyone at the House of Blues for taking such great care of us and welcoming us at their space. Thank you all for a rockin' night!)

Fig-oween! @ Rockit

I helped Brent, Tim, and Russel set up for a gig at the House of Blues and then headed over to Rockit. I liked being with other figgies before heading to Rockit. I was sharing ideas with Tim because we were playing similar music. We were burning music for each other before heading out and it definitely helped prepare me for Rockit. For the first couple hours, I was only playing off of the CDs we burned. Then I was like, "Oh, I brought a whole library!" The crowd was nuts! There were two waves. The first wave hit around 8:30/9pm and half of them left around 10:30, I'm guessing to go to other parties. The second wave hit around 11/11:30pm and stayed until about 1:30/2 before people started leaving. I played until 2:30 and there was still a pretty good crowd there. I played a few songs twice, one by accident "Give it Away" by Red Hot Chili Peppers and two other ones that were requested twice "Monster Mash" and "Your Love" by The Outfield. The crowd went NUTS! to songs like "Your Love." EVERYONE was singing along and dancing. I played a pretty good sing along set with "Your Love" leading it off and I also hit "Livin' on a Prayer," "Summer of '69," and "Don't Stop Believing." There were a couple times when my CD stopped. The first time, I had something ready to go on the computer and hit it. The second time, I had a song cuing on the second CD player and waited for it to come on. It took about 10 seconds and the crowd was like, "huh? what's going on?" And then it hit and they went NUTS! I waited because I new the crowd was going to LOVE it! Totally worked. I have TON of great rock stuff and this gig really helps me with what works and what doesn't work and I can play a sing along set better now than I ever could before. My transitions were pretty sweet for the most part, using a guitar outro to help build the intro to the next song, using similar beats or patterns, etc. Another cool thing I was doing was playing to the costumes in the room. There was a guy dressed up as Rocky and I played "Eye of the Tiger" during the first wave and the crowd started chanting "Rocky! Rocky! Rocky!" I played the Rocky theme song (which I discovered is called "Gonna Fly Now") during the second wave and the same thing happened. Hulk Hogan came up and asked if I had his theme song, and I didn't. I have it on my computer, but I don't know how to hook my computer up to their system, which is a loss. There were a couple characters where I couldn't download their theme song and I realized there are characters that I can anticipate being there. The Hulk, Superman, Spiderman, Pirates, Bears fans (played Superbowl Shuffle), etc. My second favorite theme song moment was when I saw girls from Flashdance and I played "What A Feeling" and the women went NUTS! I went into "I've Had the Time of My Life" and the women were screaming. Then I followed that up with Pat Benatar's "Hit Me With Your Best Shot" into Cindy Lauper's "Girls Just Want to Have Fun" into Madonna's "Material Girl." Women were lovin' it. This brings me to a hurt that I was feeling during the night because there were very attractive women there and the guys were all up in their business, couples makin' out left and right. A couple was getting it on right in front of me! I hate being at this gig alone because I'm building a charge of being single, being in front of gorgeous women, not being able to mingle with them and talk to them, hating that none of them are coming up and talking to me, and I'm not able to talk it out with someone and clear it. I was holding onto it all night and wanted to scream! I see that a cool win is being able to turn out a GREAT gig while having these feelings and charges and I've learned how to take care of myself in these situations and what to tell myself in those moments so I don't tank the gig.

Craziness@Carnivale

Extravagant decor. deep color. crazy dancing. This all characterized the Client Appreciation Party put on by MARSH at Carnivale. Carmel music brought fig in to provide the party atmosphere for the night - fig deejays Alvin Black III and Tim Musho were the designated party providers. Starting things off was an extended funk and motowm set, with a little blues thrown in for good measure. At this early stage in the evening, Alvin and Tim were playing for the fellas in the room - just good, chill music, upbeat enough to bob one's head to, but not necessarily dancing music. During this time, many of the guys in the room complemented the music and wanted more...

After about an hour of chilling out and head bobbing, the coordinator and planner of the event gave a short speech acknowledging a particular client that they wanted to highlight. At this point, fig preparation comes into play - although during earlier phone conversations there was no indication that speeches would be made, but standard procedure has all fig deejays bringing mics all the same, which made this even run all the more smoothly.

As Alvin and Tim get the dance floor packed for the next 2 hours with wild dancing to everything - disco to newest top 40,and quickly the time that they thought they were supposed to end approaches.

The story doesn't end there however...

Unbeknownst to the fig duo, there was an extra hour added to the night, which Alvin announced to the crowd, much to their delight. 1 OT became 3 as Alvin and Tim went another 1/2 hour past the extra hour that had already been added.

Lessons Learned: always make sure to have don't stop believing

Goals Achieved: Rocking Dance party for 2+ hours

-written by Alvin Black III, fig resident deejay

Chilled Out Tree Studios

Tree Studios is looking to be a hip new event space down in the Medinah temple complex, and on October 9th, the grand opening of the space took place from 6-9pm. Rachel Bradley is the planner running the show, and fig DJ Alvin Black III assisted by new intern Dan In played some hip lounge music to set the scene in the lower level of the space. The two levels were designed with a heaven/hell theme, all white upstairs with delicious catering done by Food for Thought and music from a jazz trio. For unexplainable reasons, the figDJs provided the chill and moody soundtrack for hell, complete with red lighting. Botanicals gave the space some life with floral installations for both floors.

Alvin spun a variety of lounge music for the evening - with a decidedly world beat feel. Brazilian and latin rhythms were a key component of the set played that night. Mixed in was some hip hop instrumentals, and a bit of jazz thrown in for good measure.

Power players in the event industry were in attendance, representing the big names in event planning, catering, floral, and photography in Chicago. A strong first impression was made, and due in part to the atmosphere that fig helped to facilitate - Rachel had a spectacular opening and...
Sept '08 is completely booked !
fig will be the exclusive DJ referral !

to check out more availability of this cool new space, check out Tree Studios online: http://www.thesuitescollection.com/tree/index.asp

-written by Alvin Black III, fig resident deejay

...You've Got to Hide Your Love Away...

My very FIRST lead DJ gig!!! After months of training, I finally took my training wheels off and I led my first wedding! I deejayed for Erin and Chip Wright at Deer Path Inn in Lake Forest. I don't think I could have been more scared/excited for this event. I wanted it to go so well and really wanted to help throw a great party for the couple.

Keren assisted me and everything went GREAT! The crowd was awesome, I couldn't have asked for a more energetic fun group of people. A highlight of the night for me was when all 10 of the groomsmen sang the Top Gun song 'you've got to hide your love away' accapella to the groom's mom, all while wearing black sunglasses. It was great! Another memorable moment was when I played 'Ayo Technology' into 'Stronger', into 'One More Time' and they loved it!

I had a great time, I was so glad to be a part of Erin and Chip's wedding and I'm looking forward to my second lead this weekend!

Emily Hard

Hedge Funds

On October 11th at the Hotel Intercontinental, I shot video for Hedge Fund Reseach. The company is a leader in providing data and analysis of alternative investment information. fig was called in to cover a day long event consisting of panels with industry professionals. Kelly, Joe and myself set up with two cameras to properly cover the day.

Investments and hedge funds are not things that I know much about, so it was a unique challenge to ensure that I asked all the right questions and cover what needed to be covered. I realized that there is a lot I have to learn about investing. My personal favorite moment during the conference was actually at lunch. No, it wasn't the chicken I was excited about, but Professor Thabel who was especially compelling. He used great media clips to demonstrate what is going on in the current financial environment. I don't want to give it away, but google 'psychology video on basketball being passed around'.

The video looks great and we enjoyed a analysis filled day!

Emily Hard

Kleinschmidt, Inc. @ the Four Seasons

Stevie Schmidt is a loving mom and wife, a world traveler, a culture fanatic, an excellent storyteller, a music lover, and one of the integral parts of Kleinschmidt, Inc., an e-commerce solutions company. Stevie and her small, but mighty group of 60 employees were going to celebrate their holiday party at the Four Seasons Hotel. The cool thing about this event was that there were some really big music lovers in the group. I was speaking with this one gentleman who periodically came up to the table and gave me interesting requests, like Maynard Ferguson, a really old Al Jarreau song, and mixing old and new Tony Bennett together. Whoo. Even my client Stevie was into the blues and good ol' rock and roll. Overall, dancing was quite active and very fun. Two versions of "Soul Man" and "SexyBack" were played during the evening. The first mentioned song was covered by Sam & Dave, as well as The Blues Brothers. As for the latter, yes…Justin Timberlake, of course, but did you know that the band Poison recently came out with a rockin' cover of the JT dance hit? Yes way. What's even more amusing is that Stevie introduced the song to me. I would have never, ever discovered it without her guidance. Go figure, indeed. I ended the night with the Blues Brothers version of "Soul Man," which was a last-minute decision on my part, but it worked out well. Stevie came to me at the end of the night and gave me a big hug along with the affirmation that "this was the most dancing that has happened at any of the past parties." That alone made me feel pretty darn good.

Here's one bit of information that I did not relay: This was the first time that I worked without an assistant. That's oh-so right! DJ Lone Wolf was in the hawwwssse. This was one of our "all hands on deck" days, in which almost every Fig person was out on a gig. There were times where I would have liked to have someone to talk to during the gig, but for the most part, I felt confident. In fact, I enjoyed the challenge of making my own musical decisions and being in charge of the event. Besides, it was fun having the table all to myself. Heh. I did have the awesome Erik Friedly to help me set up and break down the gear, and I did borrow the well-working deejay rig of Jon Hood. Although I performed alone, I definitely did not feel alone. Thank goodness I won't have to keep the name "DJ Lone Wolf!"

– Brent Rolland, resident Fig deejay

Ennis Knupp @ Jak's Tap

It's not everyday that I wear my well-worn Levi Strausses to a professional deejay gig. In the case of the Ennis Knupp company party, the exception was welcomed. As I learned from my client Cindy Spalla, this investment consultant firm had just hit over 100 employees, and it was time to celebrate the old and the new in a relaxed, fun atmosphere. Oh…and they wanted some karaoke action, too. Hi-yah. The downtown bar restaurant, Jak's Tap, was the setting for a fun night of music, merriment, and a multitude of Millers. My partner Matt and I were certainly not alcohol lovers, but we certainly drank to that vision.

We set up a full rig—including the karaoke television and such—in less than 30 minutes. Wowza. It was as if Matt and I were playing the game "Perfection", trying to get all those pieces into their right places before the platform popped. We worked together well to get our equipment up and going. As the crowd trickled in, we began to play music to set the tone of the laid-back bar setting. With a strong foundation of classic rock music, Matt and I split the decks and played a plethora of genres, including classic soul, some 80s, funk, and modern pop. As I played, I constantly did what any normal disc jockey would do: read the crowd. I continuously gauged what the crowd was feeling; most of the time, they were either talking, smoking, chowing down on their pizza and hot wings, or investing in a game of pool. Usual bar activity, as I saw it. Was karaoke going to fit into this smoke-lined picture? Matt and I were soon going to find out.

About two hours into the four-hour event, I got on the microphone and announced that karaoke was about to begin. It took a while for people to gain the gusto to sign up. How much time, you ask? An hour, believe it or not. I was glad to see people signing up, but it was disheartening to know that time was running out. Here's the great thing, though: After the first few singers performed, the list began to fill up nicely. In fact, as we were entering the last 15 minutes of the event, Cindy asked us to stay an extra hour, just to get more people singing karaoke. Sweet! I could have sang "I'm So Happy" at that moment—luckily, it wasn't in our karaoke library. I was amazed at the number of people that sang various country songs—it seemed to be the "thing" with the company. The crowd did get pretty drunk, but thankfully, people were dancing, singing, and having fun. That was what Cindy wanted, and that was all that mattered to me.

As Matt and I experienced tonight, music brings people together. Alcohol comes in at a close second.

– Brent Rolland, resident Fig deejay

Kulbok/Carlson @ Swissôtel

Are you a fan of Chicago's 100.3, a.k.a. "LoveFM?" Jill Kulbok and Steve Carlson surely were. Countless hours of listening to "easy listening" led them to win a special contest in which various vendors would provide their wedding essentials for free. Free. Eff-are-eeh-eeh—free. Fig Media was one of the service providers of choice, and we gave Jill and Steve a Mod Deal that they would never forget.

My partner Tim and I provided a cool night of music for cocktails and dinner which included alternative/electronic and soft rock artists Sarah McLaughlin, Alphaville, Hooverphonic, the Cocteau Twins, and others. Going into dancing, Tim and I were all over the place, especially with 80s hits and classic hip-hop. In regards to the latter genre, our groom, Steve, was certainly a man of surprises: I remember playing "The Humpty Dance" and I saw Steve lip synching to it. The little wheels in my brain started to speed up at this moment. I thought, "Why not give Steve the microphone and let him rap to his crowd?" I did just that, and he blew us all away with his fly, fresh, uh…karaoke-ing. That was so unexpected, but it was a priceless moment that I wanted to create. An even bigger hoot was ending the night with the song that nobody puts in a corner, Bill Medley and Jennifer Warnes' "I've Had the Time of My Life" (from Dirty Dancing, of course!) and the Chicago favorite, Journey's "Don't Stop Believing." Steve and Jill were highly gracious of all of our services, and the fact that we went all out to give them an unforgettable evening, even though it was a contest prize. Seems that there are rewards to bearing the sounds of easy listening, no?

– Brent Rolland, resident Fig deejay

THE TEAM:
Producer: Andrew Ettenhofer
Coordinator: Tobey Geise
Photo: Carl Wiedemann and Brian Carey
Video: Emily Hard and Keren Aronoff
Deejays: Brent Rolland and Tim Musho

McKinney/Moffat @ Embassy Suites Chicago

Here's the story of two optometrists…who were not bringing up three very lovely girls. Kelly McKinney and Randy Moffat flew all the way from their abode in Washington to have a full wedding and celebration in Chicago at the gorgeous Embassy Suites Hotel. Matt Carlson and I were the deejays of the evening, and this being our first full ceremony together, we set a vision that we were going to succeed and have a drama-free time. That vision worked out well, as the ceremony, cocktails, dinner and dancing all flowed from one event to the next. There was one good learn that I gained from the dance part of the evening: Ask your clients if they are having photos taken during the evening. Unbeknownst to Matt and myself, Kelly and Randy took photos along with their family outside the dining hall during dancing, which took about a good 30 minutes or so. Gah-lee. I kept wondering why dancing was such a slow burn—we needed the bride and groom in here! Well, I shouldn't say "needed," as Matt and I played some fun 60s, 70s and 80s songs to keep the crowd entertained and get dancing going. It was just challenging doing the dance portion without Kelly and Randy there, as well as the fact that I did not want them to miss out on hearing their must-plays. As soon as the bride and groom came back, that is when the floor became more electric. Matt and I kicked in some hip-hop and R&B favorites, not to mention the inescapable "Sexyback." One of the best songs of the night was Joan Jett's "I Love Rock and Roll," which Kelly and Randy were totally rocking out with their crowd to. It matters to me that the clients that I serve enjoy their event, and it made me glad to see them back in the room, dancing and taking in the fun.

All in all, the night was a success, and Randy and Kelly both took the time out to acknowledge Matt and I for keeping dancing going and keeping the crowd bubbly until they came back. The dancing portion of this evening was a true test of patience, but as in all cases, patience is always rewarded. The proudest thing that I have about this event is this: I played "Smooth Criminal" for the first time in my life as a deejay. And, yes…Annie—not to mention Kelly, Randy, the crowd, and myself—were okay.

– Brent Rolland, resident Fig deejay

Food For Thought/U.S. Futures Exchange @ Harris Theater Rooftop

The initial thought that entered my mind as I walked into the massive space of the Harris Rooftop Theater was, "My Lord…it is waaaay too orange up in here." Understandably so, that was the primary company color of U.S. Futures Exchange, a corporation dedicated to providing products to stockholders and investors. Along with the delicious delicacies of Food For Thought (who hired us) and the stellar sound set-up by Soundtronics, Fig was chosen to work with the best of the best to deliver an amazing aural and visual evening—and then some.

I was partnered up with one of our prime deejays, Alvin Black. This was special to me: Seeing as how Alvin and I do not drive, it is usually difficult for us to work together. Awww. We're usually partnered up with other people that have licenses, cars, and, well…the ability to drive. Thanks to our partners Jon and Tim (who helped us out later in the evening) who assisted with the gear, we were able to play together under the same roof. I consider us both to be well-versed in numerous genres, and I was excited to see what Mr. Black was going to lay down tonight.

The evening began with people, as it is said, "mingling and schmoozing" (whatever that is!) to the jazzy background music of Bebel Gilberto, John Coltrane, Yoko Kanno, and other artists. I was already impressed by Alvin's selections; I was always wondering what was coming up next. One fun thing we learned during the evening was how the "color" filter works on our DJM-800 mixer.

(OOPS—SHOP TALK ALERT!)

Okay—a "color" filter simply changes the tonal colors of your song. There are four kinds of filter effects that you can apply to music: Harmonic (detects the actual key of a song and changes it to to the next truest key to go with another song); Filter (acts like a "kill switch" to single out the highs and lows of a song); Sweep (makes your music sound more airy and "old," or deep and complex), and Crush (self-explanatory—it distorts your music).

(SHOP TALK OVER!)

The night continued with a PowerPoint presentation and speeches from two of USFE's head honchoes. Disappointingly, the presentation froze a couple of times, but through diligent troubleshooting, the presentation continued. After the PowerPoint and another 90-second "pep" video, Alvin and I were ready to rock. I started off with "Start Me Up" by the good ol' Stones. Alvin followed up with a perfectly beat-matched "(You Shook Me) All Night Long." From there, we went all over the place with our selections, and we kept it fresh, funky and lively. I was thrilled to play Cameo's "Candy," as well as Neil Young's "Keep on Rockin' In the Free World," which some people were mirthfully lip-synching to. We played music all the way until—believe it or not—8:17pm. We were quite close to declaring overtime, yet we ended with an apt choice: Harold Melvin and the Blue Notes' "Don't Leave Me This Way." The guests and employees left anyway, amusingly. It was time to go, and all went pretty well. Alvin and I packed up our gear and the lovely gift bags we were given. It was great working with a huge, friendly team and making this evening happen. To say it with color, we were ticked orange!

– Brent Rolland, resident Fig deejay

Kaiser/Kalemba @ Womens' Club of Evanston

Okay…allow me to state the obvious: I am a guy. A dude. A man. El hombre. With that in mind, here is an interesting inquiry:

Why would I spend my Saturday evening at a women's club?

(And, no…I do not have a new hobby of dressing in drag or picking up older chicks.)

The best reason—and the only reason—that I was at a womens' club this weekend was to emcee and deejay a wedding for a very fun couple. Pauline Kaiser and Matt Kalemba were going to hold their post-wedding celebration at the Womens' Club of Evanston. Everything was in place, except for one thing: Music. They had a situation with their originally-chosen deejay, and they chose fig two weeks before their wedding date to provide a fun evening for them and their guests. I partnered up with Emily Hard, who has been with me on some rather energetic gigs. We teamed up to make a great night for our clients and their guests. Little did we know that the party was going to be made for us as well.

The Womens' Club of Evanston fits exquisitely well into this part of the state: it is a very stately, clean, and accomodating venue, not to mention flowery. Flowers in the pots, flowers in the grass, flowers patterned in the carpet…you get the idea. Heck, I was surprised that there were mens' bathrooms there. Heh. Anyway—wedding reception. Emily and I were greeted by Ted of J&L Catering and Carol of the Womens' Club as soon as we arrived. We (and our gear) were situated on a wide stage in the second floor ballroom. Our only dilemma of the night was finding power: While I was changing into my suit, Emily gives me a call on my cell phone, stating, "Brent, we need power! None of the outlets are working!" Good thing that I had my fly up at that time, or I would have left the bathroom looking like a fool. I went upstairs and joined Emily, along with Carol and the Club's electrician. It was a bit weird, seeing as how the catering staff (who was behind the curtain we were standing in front of) had perfect power. We later discovered that our power was working all along—it appeared that one of our power strips was inactive. Boo. It was a good thing that we had our much-needed juice at that time, for if it had stalled, we would have not been in good shape to perform. From setup all the way until the end of dinner, all the events flowed smoothly. When it came time to dance, that was when the mood began to rise positively.

Dancing started a bit earlier than I had expected. I was thinking we were going to begin at 8:30, but we started closer to 8pm. Totally fine by me. Something told me that people were ready to bust loose. Pauline and Matt started the night with their first dance, Dave Matthews Band's "Where Are You Going." After their family and wedding party dances, Emily kicked things off with Nat King Cole's "L-O-V-E." From there, we played everything from Motown to 80s to country and polka as well. Emily and I talked about our transitions during the night as if we were playing musical chess—which we were. I tried some rather cool and new transitions during the evening, including going from "Roll Out the Barrel" to "Love Shack," and "Sweet Escape" to "Come on Eileen" and "Dancing Queen." Whatever we played, the crowd was with us the entire time, and they filled the dance floor up wonderfully for the whole night. It was quite special being on a stage in front of a crowd of over 100+ people with bright lights hanging over us, as if Emily and I were young musical gods. What is even more rewarding is the picture of looking out to the crowd to so many happy, smiling, singing, dancing people. That is what deejaying is all about, as far as I'm concerned.

The greatest moment of the evening happened near 10pm: We were playing the final songs of the night—"Livin' on a Prayer" and "What a Wonderful World." After the final soft, yet raspy tone from Satchmo's song faded out, a grand round of applause ensued. Emily and I thought the evening was all said and done. The next thing that happened threw our expectations completely out of the Club, as a chant from the crowd crescendoed:

"ONE MORE SONG! ONE MORE SONG! ONE MORE SONG!"

Oh…crap.

This is a stunning, yet sticky situation that I sometimes get into; I say "stunning," for it is a wonderful thing when people want more music; I say "sticky" as well for it is my duty to stick to the house rules and end at the appointed time, or face the consequence of losing the respect of the caterers and the venue. At first, I oriented towards the timeline, smiling kindly to the audience and mouthing out "I'm sorry! We have to go!" This action was much to the dismay to the crowd. Suddenly, Paul from the catering staff comes up to me and states, "You can do one more song." Gold. Those words were like the kiss of an angel to me. (Thank God Paul kept his lips to himself.) It is once in a blue moon that we are given leeway to go a bit overtime, and this was definitely one evening With that, I got on the microphone, and stated to the audience that we were going to do one more song. My goodness—did they ever cheer! We ended the night with "Last Dance," and tons of applause and cheering. I could not ask for a better or more satisfying way to end the evening for such a celebratory crowd.

I honestly do not know what else to say, so I will compliment my clients: Pauline and Matt were such a joy to work with and to be with, and this caring couple exemplifies the meaning of how to celebrate and be fully invested in their wedding. It was great to be invested in their special day as well. I guess it's worth it going to a womens' club—no matter what you are!

– Brent Rolland, resident fig deejay

(Many thanks to Russell Lowe, our fun photographer; to Ted, Paul, and the whole bunch at J&L Catering, and to the lovely Carol and everyone at the Womens' Club of Evanston for a magnificent night!)

comming soon!

Martin/Melone @ the Adler Planetarium

The stars definitely came out for Michalene Martin and Mark Melone, who celebrated their wedding along with 200 of their loved ones at the scenic Adler Planetarium. My partner Kelly Hendricks and I were the deejay team poised and ready to play a night of music. The most enjoyable part of this evening was the fact that dancing virtually "happened:" Right after dessert, I received a request for some swing music, which I graciously went into. After that, I played a few fun 60s songs, and that got people bobbing their heads and moving their bodies. I then moved into Sam & Dave's "Soul Man," and the bridesmaids began to move towards the floor. From there, with every choice I made the dance floor was packed for almost the entire night. I felt that every song I played was a hit with the crowd, which does not always happen at each gig I perform at. Possibly the coolest move I made during the night was that I took a few seconds to dance with one of the bridesmaids who wanted for me to dance with her to Michael Jackson's "Rock With You," and coming back to the table just in time to pop in Johnny Cash's "I Walk The Line." Whoa-ho-ho! I think I could have called myself "DJ Bond—James Bond" at that moment. We played everything from hip-hop to 80s to funk and big band classics. I even think I hit my record of "the most Michael Jackson songs ever played at a wedding"—which was four for this night. We ended on Donna Summer's "Last Dance," which couldn't have been a better ending for the sizable crowd that were on the dance floor. My only disappointment was that I did not get to see both the bride and groom at the end of the night to thank them, but I was assured that they were pleased. I sure was, by golly. Typically, I am a person of structure—I like to follow a set timeline and take cues to begin events as they are called. Performing at Michalene and Mark's event strengthened my ability in loosening my structured self and going with the flow. Change is certainly a good thing.

– Brent Rolland, resident fig deejay

The Inside Scoop Behind Our Gig Check-ins

Here's a look behind the scenes of what it looks like to check in at fig. We break our gigs down into three categories: Losses, Learns, Wins. You'll be able to figure out what each category means after you read through. The goal is to figure out what went wrong so we can correct in the future, what went well so we can recreate it, and what skills did we develop that we can bring back to share with others.


My gig from last Saturday:

Eve & Christian
Embassy Suites (downtown)
around 100 guests
Jonathan Hood lead & Russell Furman assist

Losses: catering manager didn't know was not experienced in coordinating an event and running a timeline. There was supposed to be a receiving line, but they were behind in opening the room. Schedule got pushed back about 15-20 minutes. Lining the wedding party up took longer than it should have - they had a lot of questions, jokes, comments, etc. Eliminated part of the schedule (dancing during intermezzo) to hopefully speed the timing for the food, but it didn't help much. Half the crowd left between 10-10:30 and it looked like the party was going to die. Not that many people were dancing during this time.

Learns: ask more questions about the introductions (ie. how are they lining up for the ceremony, do they want to keep that order, where are they going in the room). Take the time to vision out introductions (how they are entering, where they are going). Don't rely on anyone else to run the show - at the first sign that they don't have it handled, handle it. Working with the venue/caterer on timing of food can be crucial to a successful event (had we gone with the original schedule, their steaks would have been overcooked). When you have a bride and groom that aren't making decisions, make the decisions. If they don't like it, they can either suffer or say something - give them something to push against.

Wins: working in the moment with the catering manager to make sure the entree came out close to on time. Moved speeches around and eliminated a few items to keep things moving. Had great rapport with everyone involved. Kept bride and groom in the know about decisions that were being made. Owned the event more so than I ever had (not only was I a dj, but I also acted as the event coordinator). Got Russell on the 1's and 2's, playing music during part of dinner and handling music and mics during speeches/announcements. Worked the must play list in well during the night. When I thought the night was over (the room died around 10 and half the guests left), brought it back with Bust a Move. Had a killer dance set once I brought the crowd back. Recorded the whole thing.


--Jonathan

Live From the Flannel!

Jonathan and Tim, rockin' it in Harbor Springs, MI baby! Annie and Paul heard about fig at a holiday party for Kirkland and Ellis at the River East Art Center. They saw Andrew and myself (Jonathan), loved the music, and wanted us to dj their wedding 380 miles to the north. The reception was in a building that looked similar to a barn, except nicer. Rafters ran across the ceiling, the inside of the walls were exposed, plants were placed around the room with lights in them, tables were dressed elegantly, and everyone looked as cute as could be. The sun was setting across the lake during dinner and created a romantic atmosphere to an already romantic day.



Tim and I stayed in a very homey and country hotel that had the look and feel of a cabin (complete with wooden walls and ceiling, and a couple walls with plaid wall paper). The Birchwood Inn, according to their website, “is a bit like donning a pair of favorite dungarees and a soft flannel shirt.” Very true. Felt like going hunting after a few hours stay. The town was small and quaint, with the feel of the 20’s or 30’s. Main Street was the main street and downtown was 2 blocks long. Stores with an old-style front to them line the streets and at the end of Main Street was a church with a tall steeple. With the silence that was abundant throughout the town, Tim and I were waiting for two gunslingers to come out of a local bar and have a showdown. All seriousness aside, this town was very relaxed and a nice change of pace from the city of Chicago.



Dancing started off with some old big band era songs, featuring artists such as Ella Fitzgerald. We made our way into some oldies with Build Me Up Buttercup and Same Old Song, before heading into some 70’s like E, W, & F’s September, and then heading into all different directions after that. County, 80’s, pop, hip-hop, rock – it was all part of the evening as the crowd packed the dance floor at the start of dancing and continued dancing through to the end. A few down times happened during dancing. Senorita by J.T. cleared the dance floor, and then Don’t Stop Til You Get Enough brought them right back. The crowd wasn’t really into the more clubby dance stuff such as Murder on the Dance Floor and Can’t Get You Out of My Head, but the bride loved it. The crowd was more of a rock crowd, so dancing was a balancing act between poppy clubby stuff for the bride, country for the groom, and rock for the guests. Overall, I think we did a good job of pleasing everybody.




On a different note, exclusive artist gigs are tough as nails. The pressure is much higher on these gigs, especially when I’m out of state. The thought through my head is, “Better not mess up!” Of course it happens because I don’t want it to. I’ve been getting much better with recognizing the pressure and making the appropriate adjustments which typically means talking out what I’m feeling so I can concentrate on the gig. Checking in with the clients is always a good idea throughout the night and maintaining the rapport. Taking a walk around the room is another. One thing I’ve run into in the past with artist gigs is that the client is looking for someone to make people dance and have a good time. It typically doesn’t work this way. I don’t make people dance. Either they want to, or they don’t. Sometimes the expectations might be a little off when it comes to this because some clients may want me to raise the dead. If your crowd is dead and just wants to sit and stare, there’s not much I can do. Sorry. What I’ve been getting really good at lately is noticing red flags in my meetings and addressing points of concern. Typically I can weed out the gigs where I might run into this scenario. If the bride and groom are invested in their event, meaning they’ve thought a lot about it, but not so much that they are control freaks and if a little detail doesn’t happen they freak out. I don’t know how I got on this topic because this gig was SO not this. The bride and groom were a very cute couple and Annie LOVED to dance. This helps out a ton because the crowd will typically follow the bride and do what she’s doing.

I think I’m rambling at this point. I’ll close by saying that I can’t wait for my next artist gig. I’m also looking forward to doing more gigs where I’m traveling and seeing exotic places.

--Jonathan Hood leading w/ Tim Musho assisting

Chang/Kang @ the Garfield Park Conservatory

"Chang, Kang…they're almost the same name—they rhyme!"

Such humorous words could only come from the father of the bride. But this entry is not entirely about him—this is about Grace and Tony, a couple I had the pleasure of deejaying for this past Saturday. With sensational 80-degree weather and the lush green setting of the Garfield Park Conservatory, my partner Matt Carlson and I were definitely one with nature for this wedding celebration.

This evening, I was pitted (or, for the sake of the venue, should I say "potted?") against a big musical challenge: trying to satisfy the musical requests of the bride and the groom. The conundrum was that each of them supplied me with a list of songs that contained completely different genres: Grace was more inclined to hip-hop, funk, and house music, while Tony was more of an 80s-90s one-hit-wonder child. My main j-o-b and j-o-y is to make sure my clients hear their favorite songs during the night, as well as to read the crowd and play whatever will keep them dancing. It could have been the fairy spirits from the pink fairy plants that were housed in the Conservatory, but Matt and I pulled through really well. Some of my favorite transitions during the night were going from P!nk's "Get the Party Started" to Madonna's "Hung Up," as well as the movement from Marvin Gaye's "I Heard it Through the Grapevine" to a slowed-down version of Vanilla Ice's "Ice Ice Baby," which we ended the night with, believe it or not. The greatest part of the evening involved a huge dance circle to DJ Sammy's "Heaven," Darude's "Sandstorm," and a really great track from Paul Van Dyk. Although we could not get to all the songs the bride and groom requested, we played a majority of them and were able to spread them out wonderfully during the evening.

I do not think I have ever been up against such a challenge, but seeing that I am still alive, I have strengthened myself from this gig. Grace and Tony were quite grateful for our performance, and I was glad to have played for them. Here's to more green pastures, and fun deejay gigs.

– Brent Rolland, resident fig deejay

Kaya/Bilgin @ Swissôtel

Megan Taylor and I are definitely not of Turkish heritage, nor are we dancers of the nationality. After spending some time spinning music for the wedding of the lovely Ceylan Kaya and her husband Efe Bilgin, we left with some really great dance steps—and a great deal more. The attractive Turkish couple had their wedding ceremony and reception at the beautiful Swissôtel in downtown Chicago. We were on the top floor of the hotel, which proudly showcased one of the most breathtaking views of the city. The evening was filled with a load of awesome music: the ceremony featured a grand selection of the Gipsy Kings; cocktails and dinner contained a compilation of various artists like Norah Jones, the Eagles, and Stan Getz (as well as a rousing live song performance from the best man) and dancing featured a whole lot of upbeat dance music, including the original versions of Ricky Martin's "Cup of Life" and Shakira's "Wherever, Whenever." We also played a lot of great Turkish songs that definitely brought the crowd to the dance floor—both those of Turkish and non-Turkish backgrounds. The biggest song of the night—and I have the right to say this, for it was played twice—was a song titled "Simarik" (a.k.a. the "kiss-kiss song") by Tarkan, a Turkish pop artist. If you ever have a chance to listen to this song, you'll understand why it was part of our line-up. This was an energetic and cultural evening, and I was glad to learn a few dance steps along the way.

– Brent Rolland, resident fig deejay

The Air and Water Show @ Navy Pier

Swoosh!

That minute morsel of onomatopoeia could very well be the sound of a turbo-charged F-16 Fighting Falcon flying over your abode. If you were in Chicago and happened to stop by Navy Pier on Sunday, August 19th, then you would have seen Jon Hood and myself there, as we partook in the 49th annual Air and Water Show. Our main function at the Pier was to broadcast the radio coverage of the show that came from WBBM News Radio 780, via an AM/FM radio that we connected to our mixer. Notably, this was a challenge, for we were in the farthest northern part of the Pier, and it was tough to get decent radio reception in the space we were in. Luckily, Jon had a portable CD stereo that had a radio receiver on it, and after adding some wires and connections, we successfully got some reception—and the rather clear type, thankfully. Additionally, between commercial breaks, Jon and I piloted an amazing set of music for the entire afternoon. We played nearly everything, from blues to funk to 80s to popular radio fare. This was a very laid-back event, but we treated it as important as any gig we have done before. Sadly, the show was canceled due to rain, but that did not stop Jon and I from ending the day with some awesome music. We definitely earned our "deejay wings" that day.

– Brent Rolland, resident fig deejay

Wong/Cehovic @ The Drake

Have you ever tried eating a croissant with a pair of chopsticks? Me neither. It's true: Some French and Chinese objects just do not go together. The same cannot be said for my first clients in the month of August, however. Lisa, of Chinese heritage, and Georges, a French doctor, recently had their wedding ceremony and reception at the super-swanky Drake Hotel in downtown Chicago, and me and my partner Chris Paluch were there to provide a musical background for their celebration.

The evening mixed the best of Chinese and French culture: Following Lisa and Georges' celebration was a ceremonial Lion Dance, which consisted of a pair of dancers in a huge, lavishly-decorated dragon-like creature and other dancers playing loud percussion instruments. It was certainly a sight to see. During the night, I played a lot of cool French tracks that Georges supplied to me, including Charles Aznavour, Yves Montand, and Catherine Deneuve (a very famous French actress, to boot). I also played some great Latin, downtempo, and 80s hits, including one of my favorite English bands, Level 42. Dancing was quite fun during the evening, as I played a combination of disco, Motown, and some hip dance music. As the crowd thinned out a bit during the evening, Chris and I played less dance music and oriented towards more cool, lounge-type tracks, including Thievery Corporation and a bevy of French artists. One of my favorite "moves" of the night was playing "Last Night a Deejay Saved My Life," which then progressed into me dancing with a lovely Chinese woman for the duration of the song. I love when things like that happen.

Georges and Lisa were both very grateful to Chris and I for our services, and I was glad to be a part of their cultural evening. Now, if I can only figure out how to get a croissant between a pair of chopsticks…

– Brent Rolland, resident fig deejay

Bat Mitzvahing in the Ice Box

Horra. Southside. At the wonderful event/art/cafe space the Little Black Pearl, nestled down in hyde park figDJs Alvin and Melissa did their thing for one Miss Naomi Itzkoff's Bat Mitzvah. Things started off with a ceremony that Naomi was quite nervous about, but did marvelously all the same. Dinner was buffet-style, and while everyone bum rushed the grub, Alvin had on some crooning goodness (think sinatra, buble, cole), including Nat King Cole's rendition of "More", which was Naomi's parents first dance when they got married. As people started to wrap up eating, Alvin started to ramp up the music, getting some motown and funk to start the party off.

Now here is what's surprising about this group of kids: they had a strong
affinity for music you would assume that would be more their parents speed. So
all night there were requests for Elvis, Temptations, and so forth.

Disco, motown, a bit of 50's/60's, and a lot of newer top40 was the order of the night. After about an hour 1/2 of dancing, the crowd had formed a circle and started to watch people as they got in the middle and did their thang. Melissa at this point felt it would be good to play some games, and get everyone involved. Melissa got the kids doing a Soul Train line, follow the leader dancing, and Scavenger Hunt Chairs, a hybrid of Musical Chairs and a Scavenger Hunt, which was a huge hit! She deftly went from one game to the next, commanding all of the attention throughout. So for the last 45 minutes Alvin played a few slower tracks for the adults - some Sinatra and Van Morrison, went into a three hit combo of Hava Nagila, Shout, then Footloose which had everyone up on their feet. At 11, Melissa and Alvin handed over the mic to Naomi who thanked everyone who came. A fun event in a very cool space. Chalk up another win!

So what got the kids jammin?

• Bulid me up Buttercup, The Foundations
• Do You Love Me, The Contours
• Everytime we Touch, Cascada
• Girlfriend, April Lavine

written by Alvin Black III, fig resident deejay

PS: the icebox referred to the AC that blasted down directly onto the DJ that could not be cut off independently. Despite a bit of shivering and numbness in the fingers, Alvin and Melissa still rocked.

Jalvonathan Blood III - the Third Strike!

Before the blog proper starts, something should be addressed:

Who is this Jalvonathan Blood III? He is the amalgam of new jack DJ Alvin Black III and veteran DJ Jonathan Hood. When they team up on gigs, people dance, ridiclousness occurs, memorable times happen. This is the 3rd consequative gig they've done in August, are currently batting 1000 going into this gig...

At the spacious River East Art Center, figDJs Alvin Black III and Jonathan Hood rocked the reception for Jim and Blair, the Schade-Doyle Merger is what the union goes by in the streets. Starting with cocktails, which was a mix of upbeat 80's and house music, this party had all of the makings of a fun night. The beginning was not without flaw however, as the intro song would not play, but that problem was handled deftly in the moment, as Jonathan realized the crossfader was on and the reason for not hearing anything. Getting those mistakes out early got Alvin and Jonathan ready to rock the party. The groom used to be a DJ, so Alvin and Jonathan had to bring their A game to the party.

Dinner served
Speeches deilvered
Antsy Crowd
Time to Dance!

Dacning started off right after a rousing round of the Norte Dame fight song, which went into a trifecta of MJs Rock With You, beatmatched into Celebration into We Are Family, and everyone was up dancing. There was an extensive list of music provided, which initally lead DJ Alvin wanted to work closely with, but decided to go with his gut reactions to the crowd and work in any of the songs listed. Lots of requests were made, which at times threw a rock in the stream of Jalvonathan Blood III, but their flow broke up any pebbles in the way. 80's, old school hip hop, top40 with a dash of rock was the music of the night. As things progressed it got a little crazy - grown men had ties around their heads, belly's and chests were exposed, and their was something of a champagne slip and slide in the middle of the dancefloor after some bottles of bubbly were opened. At the end of the night, Jalvonathan played Donna Summer's Last Dance, and Alvin gets pulled on the floor by a lovely woman and he got down with her, and then with a friend of hers. Thats what DJing is all about. Closing things up was a round of thanks from the groom and a shout out to fig media - excellent!

Hits of the night included:

• Humpty Dance, Digital Underground
• Dont you want me Baby, Human League
• Glamourous, Fergie
• One more time, Daft Punk

Another gig rocked. The streak stays intact. Jalvonathan Blood III - the Third Strike!

written by Alvin Black III, resident deejay

Rock On, Wayne! Sorry, I Mean Matt!

Okay, so Wayne’s World has absolutely nothing to do with this wedding, except for the part where they say “Rock On!” because that’s exactly what we did. Mario and Elizabeth had their reception at the Sunset Country Club. The fig team of James, Billy, Megan, Tanya, Matt, and myself rocked this party as both photographers and deejays. Matt and I were on the decks playing a wide variety of stuff, with a concentration in rock. Classic rock, modern rock, indie rock, hard rock, rock & roll, light rock, hip-hop. Wait. Hip-hop? That’s not rock! True, but we hit it anyway because the crowd was loving it.

I had a few mistakes, which seemed to be the theme of the weekend, mistakes on all my gigs. Darn it! I hate it when that happens! I wish all my gigs were absolutely perfect. On this one, we played the wrong track for the cake cutting, Matt’s Motown cd had the wrong track listing and we ended up playing “Motown Philly” during a Motown set early in the evening, and I called Elizabeth’s dad the wrong name for a song that was dedicated to the two of them. The cake cutting song we quickly faded out, and then back in with the right song. Same thing with the Motown Philly. For the wrong name, “Woops. I mean Patrick.” I called him Robert. Robert? Where did I get that from? Who knows. I felt frustrated after that. It seemed like the whole weekend was off for me and things kept going wrong. The best thing for me to do in that moment was to take a walk. Matt took over while I stepped out, got some fresh air, breathed, walked around the crowd, saw who was there, relaxed, became part of the party again, started bobbing my head to the music, came back to the dj table, and went back to work. From then on it was smooth sailing.

Matt and I rocked the bajeebers out of that crowd and had them begging for more at the end of the night. The only downside was a few drunk idiots who wanted to hear the electric slide. I swear, I’m going to stop bringing this song so I can’t play it. I told them it was on the do not play list, that I’m not going to play it, yadayadayada. After several times of pestering me, the pestered the bride who gave in and said we could play it. I ended up not playing it because the music wasn’t going in that direction and played to the crowd. But those couple pesky guests came back and were like, “Why didn’t you play our song asshole!” Okay, they didn’t say asshole, but they were thinking that based on their tone. I gave in then, because I was tired of them pestering me and giving me a hard time. So, much to my dismay, and to the dismay of the bride and groom who ended up leaving the room during the song, I played the electric slide.

The thing that really pisses me off to no end with this song is that people come up to me and say, and I quote, “This will bring everybody out.” The strange thing, everybody WAS out! They were LOVING the music I was playing. And I don’t NEED this freakin’ song to bring people out. Why? Because I’m good. Unlike other wedding deejays who need to play songs with special dances associated with them (or lyrics that tell people how to dance to them) because it’s the only way they can get people to dance to their crappy music other then getting on the mic and telling them what to do (“It’s air guitar time! Break out your air guitar!” as I heard at one banquet hall from the other side of an air wall at a venue that shall remain nameless). So am on a rant right now, and I’m okay with that. Because I don’t need no stinking slide or a microphone to get people to dance. How do I do it, you ask? I play good music. Period.

Whew! I wasn’t really expecting that when I sat down to right this blog. Feels good expressing it though. One of these days, I’m going to get on the mic and lay out the ground rules for requests. “No need to request the electric slide tonight folks. Why? Because I’m not going to play it. Why? Because I’m good.”

--Jonathan, lead dj
Matt Carlson, assistant

Yingling/Jose @ The Carleton in Oak Park

That's right, friends—Oak Park, just as the title boldly states. This suburb is known to be one of the cleanest, quietest, and most picturesque in all of Chicagoland. Just between you and me…it honestly is. Typically, I would not be hanging out in this part of Illinois if I did not have something important to do. Thankfully, I did have something important to do: a deejay gig. Yes. Charlie Yingling and Hector Jose, who are both doctors and very delightful gentlemen, wanted their wedding day to be fun, relaxed, and full of their favorite dance and 80s choices. The couple was aware of the "cheesy deejays" who donned in sequined vests and brought fog machines—and they were sick of it. My partner Matt Carlson and I had the remedy for that, as we were the guys who were going to doctor up a healthy and enjoyable evening for the couple. Professionalism and good music was our prescription, and we were ready to deliver it.

The event took place at the beautiful Carleton Hotel. This is one of those hotels that's either hit or miss if you are walking down the street and trying to locate the darn place—like I was a while ago. The second entrance to the hotel was situated ever so snugly between two of its restaurants, so much that I had to do a double-take at my site visit there to self-verify that I found my destination. The coolest factors included free parking and a direct passageway into the grand ballroom straight from the parking lot. Me like convenience. Convenience good.

I will start my gig deliberations with one positive factor: the guests. Right after I announced, "Welcome to Charlie and Hector's wedding celebration" at the beginning of introductions, resounding applause and cheers ensued. Ooooh…what a good vibe. It has been a while since I have worked with such a warm, loving and celebratory crowd, and Charlie and Hector brought the best people to their event. The couple and their wedding party walked into the uplifting electronic track "Sunchyme" by Dario G, and near the part of the song when the drums came in, I introduced the couple into the room to one of the loudest and most welcoming receptions ever. The guests cheered and clapped to the beat and started the evening off at a very high point. It's always a good sign of a probable successful evening when you know the crowd came to celebrate.

Matt and I played mostly 80s, new wave, disco, dance music, and some light Motown and funk sprinkled in the mix. Erasure was the somewhat "featured artist" of the night, as we hit four of their hits during the evening: "Always," "Star," "Chains of Love," and "A Little Respect." We even got away with the ill-fated "Electric Slide," which actually drew a good number of participants. Boogie-woogie-woogie they certainly did. Some of the more entertaining songs of the night included Mr. Big's guitar-laden "To Be With You," in which Charlie and his maid of honor Megan did a fun interpretive dance to. A boom-boom-boom-and-a-bang-bang-bang went Basement Jaxx's "Do Your Thing." The night ended with the rousing Olivia Newton-John tune, "Xanadu." Little did I know that a majority of the people who were there were going to: 1) scream, and 2) get out of their seats and back on the dance floor because of this song. Seems like "Grease" was not the word at this party. (Sorry, Olivia-dear.) The party ended at exactly 11:30pm…and thankfully, none of us turned into mice or pumpkins. We ended on time, much to the affirmation and gratefulness of the Carleton staff.

Everything was simply delightful about this gig. Heck, even the hotel was located on Pleasant Street—which is the truth! Ah, sweet irony. Charlie and Hector were such gracious hosts, and it was so rewarding to be their deejay for the evening. It was almost as if they were our patients, and we gave them a healthy dose of hospitality and great music. That's just what us doctor-deejays ordered.

– Brent Rolland, resident fig deejay

Legacy of House Wedding DJ

So, I had this artist gig on Saturday at the Hotel Allegro. The bride and groom were Rachael and Dominic. A very sweet couple who like club music. Tiesto like stuff. What they wanted for their wedding was a club-like feel with a house set at the end with artists like Deep Dish, Basement Jaxx, and Chemical Brothers being among their favorites. I was looking forward to this gig all year (they booked me at the end of 2006). I don’t get to play techno, house, club, dance, whatever you want to call it (I like house, but you can substitute your own terminology) that often for weddings. House parties, actual HOUSE parties, are a different story. But for a wedding, it’s a real craft.

The guests at weddings come from different backgrounds, ethnicities, cultures, age groups, personalities. Music at weddings will typically span a range of genres. I would LOVE the opportunity to play all of dancing sticking to just house and hip-hop. That would be my ideal wedding gig. Hasn’t happened yet. Someday…someday…

Rachael and Dominic were married in the same room as their reception. For the ceremony, we played three songs. One song for the groomsmen and groom as they walked in, one for the bridesmaids and bride as they walked in, and one for the recessional after they kissed. The songs for the processional were timed perfectly. My favorite was for the bride; as she walked in, the song hit the climax of the song were it crescendoed as she walked down the aisle and decresendoed as she reached the end. It created a beautiful moment that would probably not be able to be repeated if we were to do it a thousand times. Coordinating the timing of people walking in to a song is difficult because of the different factors involved – speed of people walking, length that they walk, timing when each person ends to when each person begins, and not being able to walk through the timing until the rehearsal which typically happens the day before.

Another factor to this wedding is that it was an artist gig. I didn’t realize until we’re half-way through dancing when I got how much pressure I was putting on myself to do a great job and not fuck up. As it happened, I fucked up. A couple times. And I got really frustrated with myself when it happened. The mistakes weren’t anything disastrous, some horse clomping (when two songs are being mixed together and not matching up right), a cd skipped, and the sound went out for a few seconds. I wanted so much to do a perfect job, that it created a lot of stress for me. Most of the night I wasn’t having fun because I worried about other people having fun. How could I forget this basic rule of dj’ing? My best gigs are where I’m having tons of fun. That’s when I’m on, beatmatching like crazy, making creative transitions and mixing, and dead on when it comes to reading the crowd. This gig was probably a 6 on a scale of 1-10 with 10 being my best. I had some pretty sweet transitions, people were dancing the whole night, but there were times when I songs weren’t coming to me and I would pick something last minute hoping it would work. There were also times when my beatmatching was up to my standards. I also played songs that didn’t go over so well. They were must plays, and I didn’t sandwich them in very well.

Learns coming off of this gig are to use my assistant, in this case Billy, to talk out what’s going through my head going into the gig. Talk about the expectations I have for myself, for the party, for the bride and groom, for the guests. Another learn is to go over the must plays more and think about what would go well before and after them to get an idea of where to place them during the night.

I’ve only had a few artist gigs, so I’m learning the pressure that these gigs bring. I feel like I need to be at the top of my game, and I should be, but I should also be at the top of my game regardless of whether or not someone books me specifically. The learn here is to understand what it takes to get me to be at the top of my game and to recreate it. Here, it’s talking about the pressure I’m feeling so I can move through it and have fun. Also, practice before the gig starts. Get into a groove early and notice where I’m getting out of the groove and what were the factors that did that. Then readjust the course heading to get back in the groove.

I think that’s about it when it comes to the learns coming off of this gig. Overall, it was a big success and I can’t wait to do it again. If you or anyone you know wants a house dj, let me know. I’m itching to get my hands on another one of these.

--Jonathan, lead dj
Assistant – Billy Rood

Bob Goldberg's 50th

For those deejays who don't know it, there is a lot of Bruce Springsteen music out there. No one would know that more than Bob Goldberg, a huge Springsteen fan. His wife, Susan, and 2 kids surprised him with a birthday party at the Hard Rock Hotel, here in Chicago.

Bob works in Chicago, and lives in Baltimore. He flys in weekly for business, so Susan's was not on his radar. That's exactly why Susan's plan worked to perfection. Bob was blown away by the party.

Where does Bruce come in? Bob's a huge Springsteen fan. I played a lot of Bruce, mixed in with other rock, throughout the night. "Hugry Heart", "Glory Days", "Born To Run", etc. Fig intern, Russell Furman, designed a 6 foot card board cut out of Bob jamming with Bruce Springsteen. Bob's face was photoshopped over the sax guy's face. fig media "We do cut outs"

Brian Carey
deejay, photographer

Michigan vs. N. Carolina

On Saturday, August 11th I attended and deejayed one of the most crazy wedding receptions I have ever been to. Chrissie and Drew threw it down and tied the knot at the Sofitel Hotel. They held their ceremony, cocktail hour, and dinner at the event. Emily and I were there to supply music for the dinner and dancing. The crowd was crazy fun, I announced everyone in to "This is How We Do It" Montell Jordan style that is. We threw down the classic nice jazz for dinner and into a hopping dance floor. A last minute first dance was put into the mix playing "Home Sweet Home" by Motle crew, with guitar solo by the groom. The crowd was awesome, so fun, and half the time I couldn't believe what I was seeing. A groomsmen took off his shirt and wore his vest and bow tie to bartend, a man pulled out the cloth from under the glassware and wore it as a toga, there were many dance offs, many inpromtu dances, like the Hora to Timbalands "Give it To Me," I mean I was going to slow it down and the bride and groom asked for "Give me that Nut" yes it was a wild party. Another favorite moment: a man jumping off our stage onto a high kick and then landing in the splits on stage, or how about the Michigan State song being played, and a battle off of the groom shouting the NC song. The night went another hour overtime, was a blast, and a gig I will never forget.

DJ: Megan Taylor
DJ Assistant: Emily Hard
Venue: Swiss Hotel

A TURKISH celebration

This past Saturday I had the privilage of DJing Ceylan and Efe's wedding reception. Ceylan booked us through a friend, and saw me at the Vera Wang event and asked if I could be her DJ. I committed and worked with them this summer to create an awesome Turkish affair. Ceylan is Turkish born in Chicago, Efe is Turkish and grew up in London. They are the cutest couple, both into IT work, and love music. Ceylan and I have a very similar taste in music, so for cocktails I played a lot of my own mix: Electric Boutique with a mix of old jazz and cook bossanova cocktail music. I emceed the evening with the support of my assistant Brent Rolland, played music for ceremony, cockatails, dinner, and dancing. A few exciting unique things about the event, my fav was a live painting by Ceylan's sister Ela during their first dance, also a live performance from Efe's brother Tarik to a piano, and Turkish music. This was my favorite part... playing off of an awesome CD that the couple gave me, I spent some time preparing and listening to the CD, and when it came time for the dance set it hit hard. It was first time in my DJ career where I was playing music I didn't know, but reading the crowd, going off of their recommendations, and playing from my gut. It was hot! I played a mixture of Tarkan (the Turkish Ricky Martin), Ricky Martin, Shakira, but not my white mtv girl shakira, the raw spanish hip twirling music. It was and is hot. So, that was my biggest win of the night.. of my international event.

Venue: Swiss Hotel
DJ: Megan Taylor
Assistant: Brent Rolland

Fig Mod Deal Strikes Again: Jessica and David

Jessica and David, hired fig this August to supply their mod deal expertise for their wedding at the River East Art Center. The event was classy, unique, elegant, and personal.

SOUND: I (Megan Taylor) was the lead DJ of the event. I loved how Jessica and David created a day of elegance and still kept their individual style present in the event. I began the day with the ceremony, playing cute and soft love songs from cool indie rock albums (Feist, Wilco, Iron and Wine, Magnetic Fields, Flaming Lips, Cat Power, Ryan Adams... ) as guests arrived. As they entered the River East Art Center the went into a room of white fabric designed by the fabulous Pavel of Kehoe. Then as they walked down the aisle I played the perfect set of Ryan Adams "It Takes Two", "End of the Line" Travelling Wilburys, and then as Jessica entered I played "Story" by Brandi Carlile. It was so perfect... Then the ceremony proceeded as we amplified the rabbi with a wireless microphone. The vows, kiss, and then the exit to "Jessica" by the Allman brohters.
I then made up a killer playsit with bossa nova and reggea music for upstairs. As people entered downstairs into dinner a band called Tributosaurus took over playing a lot of rock from the 60's and 70's, the singer rocked with a voice exact to Van Morrison. This was my first time doing band breaks... and can I say we (my assistant Matt Carlson and I) rocked. I created a dance floor so the band could take over, then did sets of disco/80's to keep the dancing alive.. by the end of the band they were begging for more. I threw in "You Shook Me All Night Long" and everyone went crazy, into "Walk this Way" which created a dance circle that brought out moves I haven't seen in 10 years. This event was awesome, I went staight to current music, played JT, Timbaland, Nelly Furtado.... the party was a total success.

I Left My Heart at A New Leaf

Jeanne and Joe had a freakin’ awesome wedding and reception at A New Leaf tonight. They were married in the courtyard and then went into cocktails, dinner, and then dancing. For a Sunday night, it was rockin’. Fig also did photography. Brian, James, and Joe were on photo. Myself and Alvin were on DJ. Going into dancing, I was a little worried. The reception was laid back with the only real structure being a few introductions going into speeches. We cut the cake later in the evening and were supposed to do a first dance, but the Jeanne and Joe said to just go into dancing. I announced that the dance floor was open and let the party happen. At A New Leaf, the DJ is on the mezzanine level and to get up there, you have to go up a long flight of stairs. It’s typically a challenge to get people up there, and it’s the kind of space where you just have to let the party happen and can’t really force the guests to do anything. We were ending dinner with some upbeat Motown and old R&B, lesser known but awesome tunes. So making the transition musically into dancing wasn’t difficult. We made the announcement, and just kept playing great music. We switched into more popular stuff, hitting Jackson 5, Stevie Wonder, Michael Jackson. The guests started coming up into the end of “Billie Jean” and I transitioned into “Promiscuous Girl” when they started dancing. Odd song to start off dancing for a wedding, but it worked. What I was thinking before they came up was what’s new and beat matches with Billie Jean and kind of fits with their song list. When I saw them coming, I started thinking, “Oh Crap. I’m not sure if this will work. They’ll walk all the way up, hear the song, and walk all the way back down.” I said, F it, and went ahead and played it. Worked great. We played another current song and then worked our way back in time. Another odd thing about the night was when we were packing up, the groom’s brother came up to me saying thank you and stuff, then he gets me three bumper stickers with the map of Oregon and a heart inside it. “I Left My Heart in Oregon” I believe is the slogan. That’s where he lives. That’s where my brothers live. Odd. Cool. Boss.

--Jonathan
Resident DJ, lead for the gig, DJ Operations Manager for fig, professor hood in the streets.

Argentina comes to the Michigan Shore

Tango. Horah. Small champagne grapes. At the Michigan Shores Club, fig deejays Brian Carey and Alvin Black III rocked the house for the Shea+Smud (pronounced smoood) with a varied mix of music, paying homage to Argentina, the motherland of the groom. Dinner started off with a mix made by Alvin combining jazz, tango, and some bossa nova to set the mood for the evening. Place settings were made using bouquets of flowers flanked by champagne grapes, as was the wedding cake. A little Ella + Louie was used for the first dance, Can't take that away from me. Some Argentine rock was supplied straight from the shores of South America to the fig decks, adding something new to the mix. Brian kicked off dancing with some some Motown classics, mixing in a bit of funk, which flowed into some 80's, then exploded into a short latin set by Alvin, which had a lot of the Argentine delagation singing along. The crowning achievement of the night however, was a brilliant, yet unorthdox idea from Brian -

while playing Shout, the brothers/cousins of the groom started to do a Horah. Quickly he pulled up a Horah, flowed out of Shout, did the Horah which got crazy - small children spinning, people almost falling over, all kinds of fun
- and then brought Shout back in.
The crowd goes wild.

Alvin played a pair of Tango songs, letting the dancers show their stuff. David, the groom, danced with one of his younger nieces for the second song, much to the enjoyment of everyone present. Ending the night, Brian started to play a rock set which went over well with both sides of the newly formed family. Finally, David had a special request to play Lily Allen's LDN, for his new wife, which Brian and Alvin gladly obliged. After that, a few slower latin and jazz songs completed the night.

Summing up the night muically:

• Shout
• Hava Nagila
• La Vida Es Un Carnival, Ceila Cruz
• LDN, Lily Allen
• You Shook Me All Night Long, AC/DC

Thats all folks.

written by Alvin Black III, assistant deejay

MediaBridge Youth Fest @ the Harold Washington Cultural Center

The usable and terse phrase "short but sweet" can be applied to many things in life. In regards to a deejay gig I had this past Sunday, no other saying could be more fitting. The MediaBridge program, offered through Facets Multi-Media, is a special film workshop series for international students aged 15-20 in which they get to learn about the movie-making industry and work on projects to enrich their education in film. August 12th was the end of the program for the students (lovingly named "Youth Fest), and a going-away party at the cavernous and beautiful Harold Washington Cultural Center, complete with exclusive film screenings and "autograph book" sessions among the staff and students, was in store for them. Being a former employee at Facets and an ongoing volunteer of the Chicago International Children's Film Festival, my relationship with the great people there (and a touch of God's favor!) led my partner Beth and I to deejay a portion of the good-bye party. I was nothing less than excited and ready to do so.

Here is where the term "short but sweet" comes into play: The gig lasted only thirty minutes. Yeeehp. That's all the time we were contracted to play. The sweetness, however, was that the kids and the Facets staff were, for lack of a better statement, getting their groove on. Originally, the requested music vibe was "hip, contemporary downtempo and acid jazz," but I decided to kick it up a notch. Besides, this was the last time the kids were going to be together, so why not have fun? My focus was on international artists: I played choice cuts from the electronic jazz band Four80East, Japanese songstress Mika Nakashima, and England's very own masters of smooth, Jamiroquai. I even threw in Sean Paul for the heck of it all. I totally love when I can step away from the "normal wedding stuff" and play music that I think others would enjoy. Everyone simply dug what I was spinning and beatmatching, and that affirmation was confirmed with dancing and a few "woooos!" here and there. It was disappointing when the MediaBridge group had to go back into the theater to finish watching their films, but I felt so good knowing that they were going back in with springs in their steps and smiles in their faces. It's amazing what a little good music can do.

Another "sweet" spot of this gig was working with Beth, who is one of our new interns. I had the privilege and joy of teaching Beth some of the tricks of the deejay trade, including simple things like how to cue songs, how to listen for beats in music, and how to time your transitions. During our car ride back to return the equipment to fig, Beth mentioned to me that she was "glad to be on this gig" and that she "learned a lot." Every gig is not as rewarding as such, and I only wish that it was. Albeit the gig lasted only a half-hour, the success Beth and I received from it will potentially lead us to more gigs with Facets—maybe even longer ones! But still, here's to hoping for more of life's "short but sweet" moments.

– Brent Rolland, resident fig deejay

Davy/Bower @ Spiaggia

On August 4th, 2007, Anne Davy and Tony Bowers were wed at Spiaggia's, located at Michigan and Oak St. in Chicago. The ceremony, cocktails, and reception were all held in the same cluster of spaces. Melissa and Myself set up in the dance floor section, and the ceremony was held in the next section. During the cocktail hour, the tables were placed, the center pieces were set, and the candles were lite. A Stem Above did the floral design.

The introduction of Anne and Tony was directly followed up by their first dance, "Into The Mystic" by Van Morrison. Shortly after, there were toasts and then dinner. Dancing was kicked off with the Father/Daughter and Mother/Son dances were together, followed by open dancing. The dance music consisted of a tasteful, yet absolutely fun, array of songs.

Memorable moment - The rich, chocolate aroma was seeping from the chocolate cake. We were able to smell the cake from across the room.

Brian Carey
deejay, photographer

Flynn/Rave @ The Signature Room

The fig media MOD deal consists of all three of our services provided for an event. In the case of Marisa Flynn and Martin Rave, the MOD deal best fit their wedding day. Starting out, the fig photography and cinematography crews documented the couple getting ready at the house in Laakeview. Upstairs Marisa (the Bride) was putting on her make up, examining her dress, and strategically adjusting every curl of her hair. In the meantime, Marty (the groom) was cuffing his sleeves, adjusting his tie, and waiting rather patiently for his bride to be. Marisa captivatingly strolled down the staircase and wowed Marty. The shots were being fired from the digital cameras, and footage was being captured on the video cameras. These brief, yet captivating, events were now priceless memories to be touched upon by the generations to come.

A limo ride took the Bride, Groom, Bestman and Maid of Honor to Wrigley Field, Millennium Park, and then over to the church in Lincolnwood. Photographer Brian Carey and videographer Melissa Martens went along in the limo with the Bridal Party, capturing the interactions of the group as they traveled around the city.

The reception was held at the Hancock buildings exclusive Signature Room, located on the top floor. The sunlight through the windows of the Hancock made for great was natural lighting. Marisa and Martin were introduce into the room and went directly into their first dance during the cocktail hour. After toasts and a blessing dinner was served. Fig artists, noticing a great opportunity, grabbed Marisa and Martin for a moment on the dance floor as the sun set in the distance.

Brian Carey
photographer, deejay

PASS@ the Millenium Knickerbocker

Airplanes. Nixon. Whitney. Salsa. Fig DJs Brian Carey assisted by Alvin Black III did a dinner+dance for PASS [Professional Airways Systems Specialists ]. This was their annual meeting of members from across the country, complete with a slideshow and a ice sculpture with the union's logo. A lot of motown, a bit of funk and world music was played to set the mood. There was a short speech thanking people for coming, and a couple of raffles. Then the dancing was on! An awesome dancefloor with illuminated tiles set the scene nicely, but it could've done more transitions to make it even more of an element of the party. Brian and Alvin split the decks for most of the night, playing a pretty diverse set, with funk and classic rock getting the strongest responses from a sometimes fickle crowd. Rappers Delight was a huge hit, with the crowd dancing for 7 minutes of the 13 minute marathon of a song. Another surprise hit was Whitney Houston's I Will Always Love You, which a couple requested - it was their anniversary, and that was their song. When Brian and Alvin put the song on, slowly the dancefloor filled up with couples, which was completely surprising.
The big surprise of the night, however was the ending. A guest requested a salsa song, and after some initial resistance, the figDJs played one for her to practice her salsa moves. A few other women wanted to salsa as well, but were unsure of the steps.

Alvin to the rescue!

figDJ Alvin Black steps down to the dancefloor and proceeds to show the ladies the basics, much to their enjoyment. At the end of the song, he started to go back to the DJ table but was asked back by the ladies eager to learn. A final salsa was played, the night ended with lots of affirmation for the DJs and some good feedback from the guests [bring waltzes!].

Summing up the night musically:

• You Shook Me All Night Long by AC/DC
• Rapper's Delight by Sugarhill Gang
• Brickhouse by Commodores
• I Will Always Love You by Whitney Houston

If you were wondering what Nixon had to do with the Knickerbocker, he stayed there during the 1952 Republican National Convention...

Word.

written by Alvin Black III, fig deejay

18th Birthday Party Extravaganza

Last Saturday I deejayed another 18th birthday party, the party was beautiful located on Lake Michigan at her parent's home in Winnetka. The party was tasteful with a beautiful tent, lights, and dance floor. I played upbeat fun dance music the whole night for parents and 18 year olds going back a forth, can be a tough combination, but I try to give equal rights to all music. There was an awesome dance crowd that emerged and kept going all night after 9pm. I would have to say the parents and Alison (the birthday gal) were the ones who kept the dance floor popping.

DJ: Megan Taylor
Assistan: Beth Redfern

DJing from the Principle's Office

Well I managed most of my life to stay out the my principle's office but this summer I had to back for a day to the principle's office. Tecate, a pharmaceutical company, donates their companies time every year to spending a day at a school that needs work on it's exterior and interior. They hire fig to keep spirits alive and help people forget about the heat. Last week Emily and I (Megan Taylor) spent a day with the crew cleaning up an elementary school in Waukegan. We played music inside and outside, ran speakers outside and ran music inside using the PA system. The day was fun with requests, music, interviews, principles, teachers, and a great team.

Lead DJ: Megan Taylor
Assistant DJ: Emily Hard

The Blue (Ball)

The Shedd hosted for the first time Blue, what was formally Shark Ball, at the end of July during Venetian Festival. The co-chairs hired fig to be the music experts and dj's for the event. The night included cocktails by the reef aquarium, with a fig dj Alvin playing cool lounge and bossa nova music. Then moved to the terrace where they had cocktails, and could mingle and lounge on pillows in the grass as the Venetian parade floated past. I (Megan Taylor) played music on the terrace and then traveled down into the cafeteria turned into lounge for dancing. The party brought in 800 guests and was held on a perfect night. This was definitely one of the most challenging DJ nights I have ever done. I ran a team of 4 people, in charge of 3 huge setups and only have one hour to do each. It was a challenge and a success as our fearless team pulled off a stellar night.

Lead DJ: Megan Taylor
Assistant DJ: Alvin Black, Melissa Martens, and Tanya Cascoe
Venue: Shedd
Catering: Shedd
Designer: Kehoe

DJ at the Grove

I deejayed a beautiful wedding with Jon at the Grove this past month. The couple Cheryl and John had a very intimate gathering for the celebration. One of my favorite characteristics at the Grove is the cozy feel and close community it creates. I have deejayed in the past there, and its location in the woods, being a small cottage, and size all create a very intimate wedding. I always feel I am a guest as well as a vendor there. Jon and I sat with the family during dinner and met relatives who shared great stories about the families air conditioning business and family history. I always feel it is a treat to be with guests and included. The night was so beautiful most people wandered outside as the room was being turned over, we were setup to play music inside, but found a fabulous way to rig up a speaker in the window to play music outside. It was so fun to run around the house and hear our music. I just love music. Dancing was spectacular and actually inspired the groom's daughter to email us and ask if they could shadow us. Super cool. jon and I were the perfect duo as the couple wanted a lot of current hip hop and old school house, two areas Jon and I know well. We were the perfect fit!

Lead DJ: Megan Taylor
Assistant DJ: Jon Hood
Producer: Andrew Ettenhoeffer

Lobo/Corey @ Hotel InterContinental

Erik Friedly and myself were situated at the lavish Hotel Inter-Continental to celebrate the marriage of Maria Lobo and Jason Corey. Sounds pretty rosy so far, right? Sure it does. There is more to the story, though: The couple had a concern around me being the best fit for their wedding, although I clicked well with the couple and I chose them based on their music list, which I was quite familiar with. Working with their producer (and one of our fellow deejays) on the event, Brian Carey, I made sure to make Maria and Jason feel super-secure by meeting with them twice, answering all their e-mails immediately, and serving their concerns. The back-end work was done well; the true test of my efforts was all in their wedding day. To make a long story short, the night went better than I hoped it would. Erik and I played every song off of their playlist—which included lots of fun, forgotten 80s tunes (i.e. "Situation" from Yaz and "Party Train" from the Gap Band) and some funk and 70s hits. The genres that Maria and Jason liked were the fortés of Erik and myself, and we were able to create a long-lasting dance party for the 150 people that were there. The synergy that we had with each other and the crowd led to us getting 30 minutes of overtime, which totally unexpected. I had my fears around Jason and Maria not being fully satisfied, but I let my fears go and simply played from the heart. We ended the night with "California Stars"—quite apt for two of Chicago's biggest Wilco fans. Our couple called us "terrific," which was very welcoming to hear. This was a night of good success and enjoyment, and I am glad that I focused on making the celebration fun, rather than surround myself with fear. That's what celebrating is all about.

– Brent Rolland, resident fig deejay

Total Event Resources/M&M Marscar @ Swissotel

Buenos dias!

Oh, no. I'm speaking Spanish. There must be something going on in my cabesa. Hee. Actually, the only factor that is contributing to this atypical effect is a recent gig that I did with my partner and friend, Erik Friedly. The Puerto Rican division of M&M/Mars, the company behind numerous famous candy specialties and pet food brands, was having a seminar at the classy Swissôtel to present new products and to celebrate their team and their success. We were hired by Total Event Resources to supply sound reinforcement and background music for these Spanish-speaking individuals.

The theme of the day was "auto racing;" that fact was highly apparent from the impressive decorations of real car tires, checkered flags, bright lights, and posters of famous auto racers posing with the hilarious red M&M from the commercials. All the attendees were clad in new baseball caps and sizzling-hot black-and-red track jackets, covered with a near-endless array of well-stitched logos of M&M/Mars properties. Wicked cool. The routine of the day was simple: Erik and I reinforced the clapping by fading in and out sounds of race cars. We played Latin and Reggaeton tracks for the introductions and walk-offs of the presenters as well. This was my first time ever playing Daddy Yankee—and actually feeling good about it.

I will be perfectly frank and honest in my opinion of this event: It was lohhhnnng. In a good way, of course! The gig was initially four hours long, but an extra five hours of agenda items were added on, making the entire event a total of nine hours. Holy frijoles…among other things. Erik and I used our break times very well, as we either ate or took time out to call clients or complete small assignments. Most of the day was like watching a Spanish broadcasting network; I kept looking around for a button on our mixer to turn on English subtitles (I wish our mixer had that option). I understood bits and pieces of the presentations. If anything, the only Spanish word that I instantly understood throughout the day was "Musica!" That was my cue to play music for the presenters and hosts. With all that said, the whole day went successfully well, and I ended the seminar with a dancy Latin set, including songs by Santana, Sergio Mendes and The Black Eyed Peas. Caliente.

So, maybe I could not understand everything that went on in this event, but I carried myself well and performed like a pro. Most importantly, I had fun, and I am certain the next gig I will be at will be enjoyable as well. Until then, hasta luego!

– Brent Rolland, resident Fig deejay

Friedman/Cabot @ Spiaggia

As a deejay, it never fails to pique my amazement how music plays such a part in the lives of the clients I am thankful to serve. For Jill Friedman and John Cabot, one of the warmest, most gracious couples that I have worked with, music was the basis of their wedding night. Their ceremony and celebration took place at the excellent Chicago Italian restaurant Spiaggia, complete with a cocktail hour, a full dinner buffet, loads of Italian dessert (can you say "gelato" and "bombolinos"?), and lots of dancing. Nearly everything that took place during the evening had some sort of musical background to it, which set the tone for the evening.

I simply loved the way the first of many dance sets started off: Jill and John came up to our microphone after their salads and said a few words right before doing their first dance to Aaron Neville and Linda Ronstadt's "All My Life." As I was instructed, in the middle of the song, I switched into Chuck Berry's "You Never Can Tell", and the couple started to do the twist—exactly like the Travolta/Thurman restaurant scene from Pulp Fiction! From there, my partner James and I (who was also the producer of this event) played everything from Robert Palmer to O.A.R. to Outkast. The most popular song of the evening was "Time Warp" from the Rocky Horror Picture Show, which nearly brought the entire 60-person crowd to the dance floor. I do not think that I have felt more comfortable behind the decks—I felt every song was a good choice and worked well with the audience. We celebrated from 6pm (when the ceremony started) all the way until two in the morning. I was astonished at the fact that my couple had more energy than me! Jill and John were super-grateful for us being there, and were elated about all the music that was played during the evening. I was one pooped, yet proud deejay, with a strong confidence in my heart that music made this night a success.

– Brent Rolland, resident fig deejay

Not Just Your Average Beach Party

On July 11th, fig DJ's Megan Taylor and Keren Aranoff deejayed at Castaways on North Ave Beach. The party was anything but a normal beach party... The party was for PAW's annual 5th Beach Party presented by Salvatore Ferragamo. The party's tagline "All Paws on Deck" literally drew over 100 dogs and owners to the Hawaiian themed luau. The party included dancing on the deck, cool cocktails, and a beachy dinner buffet. The party also had an exclusive "Pup Deck" for dogs to relax. The party was a blast and fig was excited to be able to donate their services for the cause. The hit of the night was themed song "Hounddog" by Elvis which got the dancing party started and lasted late into the night.

Written By: Megan Taylor
Lead DJ: Megan Taylor
Assistant DJ: Keren Arenoff

Live at the Notebaert!

Sarah and Brad were married on Sunday at the Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum. We dj’d along with a band… and a singer... and a band… and a singer… and a singer… and a guitar player… and another singer… The crazy thing about this night is that we went in without much of a game plan. We had a brief outline for the beginning of dinner. Intros into the cake cutting into a blessing of the food and wine into salads into speeches. Outside of that, we were winging it. Improv baby, one thing I'm great at. I was kinda freakin' out while we were setting up because we didn't have much of an agenda, but at some point I realized that as long as I'm checking in with everyone and seeing where their at, everything would work out. And it did. Beautifully! The bride's family hired a band to play during the ceremony, dinner, and part of dancing. We were hired to do some emcee'ing and dj when the band wasn't playing. During our initial meetings, the bride's family were talking about different people that wanted to perform something during the night. We weren't sure what the best placement of everything was and decided to play it by ear. My main concerns were the band they hired, and the bride's brother's band. Things were running a little late, but that worked out to our advantage. I came up with a basic plan for the after dinner music, and then changed it after talking with the different people involved. I checked out where they were at, if they were ready, as well as their thoughts on what should happen. Once I collected all the data, I formed a better plan. After seeing the dynamics of this new plan, I would check in with people again and then readjust. I would keep readjusting as the night went along. We started off dancing with the bride and groom's first dance, invited everyone else to join for a few while the band grabbed some dinner. When the band came back, they went into some Jewish music. After the band played, the bride's brother's band started setting up while another guest played a guitar and sang. After he played, another person sang a song, then two more people sang a song, then the band came on. It was the perfect build up which crescendo'd into a fantastic performance that I could not (and did not) top. After the band played, I went into some music, but it was difficult to get people dancing again. I played some funky stuff and then went into some motown which brought people out. Twist and Shout into Shout! packed the dancefloor again. It was an awesome night! Improv, baby. I love it.

--Jonathan

Tony and Christine’s Wedding

Another wedding goes down in the history books. The Chicago Historical Museum was the site of Tony and Christine’s wedding where fig media did both video and dj. I, Jonathan Hood, with the help of one of our new interns, Beth, provided the audio for the day. The ceremony was outside in the rear of the museum and was set up in a in-the-round theatre style. We provided a mic for the ceremony, while musicians performed the music. The officiant was using a handheld, but was holding it down by his waist. I told him a couple times, before and during, to hold it closer to his mouth. Not sure why he didn’t, but the audio wasn’t that great. We turned up the mic as loud as we could, but it was pretty hot, and we were bordering on feedback.

Dancing was a little difficult in getting things started. We were playing a variety of stuff, starting off with some Rat Pack stuff, hitting some Motown and classic rock, through in some pop and then brought it home with Don’t Stop ‘Til You Get Enough which brought everyone out. It was cool watching this process because guests were bobbing their heads at their tables and looked like they were on the verge of coming out, they just needed the right song. Michael Jackson did the trick. Once the guests were out, they stayed out the whole night. Current pop was the flavor of the evening, based mostly off of the bride and groom’s play list.


--Jonathan

Code Name: The Rod

Have you seen this viper! He is very dangerous. Beware of his lighting quick editing skills, they can strike at anytime. You can tell if he is near, by feeling a tap on the shoulder and nobody is there. Another common way of picking out this wolf in sheep's clothing is finding massive amounts of tidiness in a 3x3 ft area. If seen please proceed with caution and call 555.555.5555.
Thanks,
Hugs and Love Bunny's,
Management

Centrella/O'Neil @ The Hard Rock Hotel

She was Madonna and he was Van Halen. The Hard Rock matched Tiffany and Jerry's personalities perfectly. Tiffany Centrella and Jerry O'Neil's wedding day was spent at the Hard Rock. The ceremony, cocktails, and reception werre all held on the 2nd floor of the hotel. Billy Rood, my assistant, and I got tere early to set up lighting for the group shots. We went up to Jerry's room first, only to find him and the 2 groomsmen hanging/getting ready in a messy, thoroughly used room. Billy stayed with the guys as I went up to Tiffany's room. She was getting ready, and touching up her make up. We went into shots of Tiffany, her mom, and her bridesmaids. A few minutes later we went down to meet up with Billy and the guys for group shots. We did the group portraits, and then headed back upstairs for a chaimpagne toast. There wer lots of great candid moments captured during this time.

The ceremony was in the Gibson room of the Hard Rock (known for it's Gibson guitars). Erik Friedly deejayed the ceremony and reception. He fit their style of Rock. The ceremony was short and to the point. The cocktail hour followed, as we finished/continued the group portraits.

The reception started with Tiffany and Jerry being introduced into the room, a few short speeches, food, and dancing. There were lots of great dancing moments. Including the Maid of Honor on her hand and knees. Great energy and fun!

Brian Carey
photograper, deejay
fig media incorporated

Trota/Lex wedding @ the Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum

Karaoke, karaoke, and more karaoke. This was the theme for Michi Trota and Jessie Lex's wedding at the Notebaert Nature Museum. They ceremony was outside in the courtyard. After the ceremony guest proceeded to the atrium on the first floor museum for cocktails. Then the fire alarm went off! All the guests went outside to the front of the building. The fire department showed up. Everything was fine, and events happened as the were to happen. Dinner was out on the second floor greeting terrence. Craig Sherman, Michi's friend and karaoke hero, emceed the night. Craig handled the intros, toasts, and karaoke announcements. Thanks Craig! This was my first karaoke/dj gig, so having Melissa Martens as an assistant was awesome. She has the best system for coordinating songs and singers, andd it works great. I was playing the breaks between karaoke songs (every song). They jammed the night away. The last song was done by Craig Sherman. He sang "Come On Eileen". It was a great ender to the night.


Brian Carey
deejay, photography

And the rest, as they say, is history

Rachel and Charlie are a very sweet and cute couple. They were married at the Chicago History Museum last Saturday and it was a beautiful ceremony and reception. I felt honored to be there and to provide the audio and music. I'm getting to know the History Museum and Amy who works there. Side note for a moment: I made a little bit of a mess the last time I was there. I played a couple songs after the cut off time and upset Amy because of it. I have a load of reasons why I played over. I was cocky, was caught up in the moment and the crowd, they were loving the music and having a great time, I wanted to keep going. One thing I wasn't thinking of was fig's relationship with the History Museum. It's a great venue and a huge learn for me for that night was to respect that relationship and ask what their rules are about playing over. Some places have "hard" stops, meaning the music can't go past a certain time regardless of what's happening. I didn't ask about that. I really wanted to do my own thing, and sometimes gets me into trouble. I'm also learning that making mistakes like this isn't the end of the world. It's not good, it's painful and I'd rather not upset anyone. But when it happens, it can be cleaned up and relationships can be restored. This is kind of new for me because I tend to stay on the good sides of people. I don't quite know how to clean up where I make mistakes in relationships, but I'm getting a great opportunity to learn here because I've got 4 or 5 gigs at CHM this year. Getting back to the story at hand (we're a dj company, what am I doing talking about relationships? Oh yeah, we're good at that, too. Or, in my case, good at learning to be good in it.) Well, actually, this gig was all about relationships. I had great rapport with the bride and groom, their family, the guests, the vendors. I was all about serving on this gig and caring about everything and everyone. Not that I'm not about serving on my gigs, but I was taking it to a whole new level with this one. A few weeks ago, I was on a retreat for a week that opened my heart way more than it normally is and I've found that I care a lot more about everything. It really showed in this gig. From recording the audio from the ceremony, burning it straight to a cd, and having it ready when the reception started, to talking with the bride and groom and checking in with them throughout the night, to communicating with the vendors and making sure we're on the same page, to talking with the guests. This is normally what I do on my gigs, so what makes this one different? It was how I was talking with people. It was going out of my way to help, even when it's not my job. It was seeing the space, noticing something that didn't look right, and doing something about it. It was acting as though this was MY party and wanting it to be the best party EVER! The only downside for me was that not very many people danced. When I checked in with the Rachel and Charlie afterwards, it made total sense. They wanted to talk and catch up. Everyone spent their time connecting. THAT'S how I want all my gigs to be. Guests really connecting with one another. The pastor said something in the blessing that really hit home for me. I guess there's a line in the bible about parties and how they're a preview of what heaven is going to be like. Everytime I throw a party, it's a preview of what's to come. It's a taste of God's love.

--Jonathan

Nichols/Breen@ Michigan Shores

7.7.07. I was at the Michigan Shores Club, co-leading with Tobey Geise the wedding reception of Lisa and John. It was challenging experience to say the least, being assigned the lead at the last minute, but Tobey and I rose to the occasion. I learned a lot more music in time for Saturday, enlisting the aid of my fellow fig DJs to ensure that I had a complete list of the songs ready to go. During the final meeting, Lisa came to fig with her father Ken, who I must say, is an awesome guy. Perhaps the fact that he called me a "likable guy" had something to do with that...but I felt the need to make sure he was well tended to in addition to the couple. He mentioned a 70s Jazz man, Keith Jarrett, that he really liked, one live performance in particular. So I made sure that I had that ready to play during dinner.

Onto the gig...setup was straightforward, except for one monster tangle that occurred in a very long XLR cable. Tobey handled the announcements with poise, letting the crowd know how the night is going to play out. Dancing started slow, as we competed with the opened bar and dessert table, but it gradually built up. The crowd was finicky though, up for one song, down for another in some cases. But I knew once I had guys on the floor doing the worm, everything is going to be alright. People always remember the worm. The groom, in addition to a 6-yr old present, break danced, and they would have impromptu battles, much to the delight of everyone present. The big genres of music played during the night were rock and disco, with a top 40 set thrown in for good measure. Tobey provided lots of good music suggestions - next time she will be on the decks more.
The end of the night came, and to get everyone to rock out I cut on Bon Jovi's Living on a Prayer, which made for a good ending.
It was perfect says Lisa
Hellofajob says Ken
Everyone danced says Lisa's mom

Summing up the night musically:

• Paul Simon, Late in the Evening
• Van Morrison, Moondance
• Young MC, Bust a Move
• Prince, Lets Go Crazy
• The Police, So Lonely

Solid.

written by Alvin Black III, co-lead deejay

Anderson/Huffman @ the Swissotel

Shelley Anderson and Tyler Huffman were married on the 43rd floor of the Swissotel on June 23, 2007. My assistant, Tobey Geise, and myself deejayed the event. We were hired to play the ceremony/cocktails/dinner music for the night. During the precessional, the bridal party walked out to "Here, There, and Everywhere" by The Beatles. Shelley, escourted by her father (who designed and made the wedding cake), walked out to "First Day of My Life" by Bright Eyes. Cool songs for a cool couple.

CHALLENGE: The space was divided by a removable wall. The ceremony was held on one side of the and the cocktail hour was held on the other side. As the cocktail hour was happening, the ceremony space would be turned over into the "buffet style" dinning area. The next thing I know, guest were heading towards the food, as dinner was started. I still needed to formally introduce the wedding party into the room. So, I suggested to Tyler (the Groom) that we skip the intros, since guests were into their plates. He gve a look, and I knew that I must make this moment happen. I did, it was fun and energetic as I introduced Shelley and Tyler into the room to "This Is How We Do It" by Montell Jordan. It worked out beautifully!

THE MAGIC MOMENT: The most anticipated moment of the night was their first dance. Tyler wrote and recorded their first dance song. Tyler had contacted me earlier that week, and let me know what he was up to. We even had a dummy song in place, just in case she asked about the first dance song. She may or may not have been surprised by the song, but I know their family and friends were.

Brian Carey
deejay, photographer

Merrie and Charlie @ The River East Art Center

Andrew Ettenhofer and myself recently partnered up to be the power team to provide an enjoyable, energetic musical background for Charlie and Merrie, a delightful couple who recently had their full ceremony and reception at the River East Art Center. Speaking of a power team, Andrew and I worked with a horde of skilled individuals, including Mina from Taste of America (catering); Benny, our electrical genius from REAC, and photographer Andy Collins (with his lovely partners Charlene and Liza). We also worked with a sextet from Symphony Sounds, who provided over three hours of expertly-played classical music. It was great to work with such cool people on such a humid day.

This event was a bit odd, in the sense that Andrew and I did not begin playing until the first dance. Plus, the typical Rat Pack fare heard at almost every other wedding reception we perform at was not requested to be played by Merrie and Charlie. When I heard that from Andrew before the gig, I initially thought, "What the heck are we playing, then?" Seriously, this is quite a refreshing thing, to say the least. Surprisingly, it was not difficult to get people out of their seats after the first dance and family dances. I started off with the Temptations' "Ain't Too Proud to Beg," and continued on with more Motown tunes before ending my set with Michael Jackson's "Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough." Andrew and I then split the decks and took turns playing small sets for the rest of the night. We went in every single musical direction we could think of. I have no idea how we ended with Bob Marley's "Jammin'," but we did. We had a very responsive and fun crowd to play with, and I felt that Andrew and I were totally on the same page musically.

If you are wondering what that crowd looked like, take a look below! I need to cool off from all this writing. Enjoy, all.

– Brent Rolland, resident deejay

Wang/Kronstadt @ The Phoenix Restaurant

I have been fortunate to be surrounded by numerous cultures in the notable deejay gigs I have performed at. A new one for my record has been added this past Saturday, as I partook in an event that mixed both Chinese and Jewish culture. Go ahead—do not be intimidated to shake your head in wonderment. Chinese…and Jewish culture? Believe it or not, the diverse, yet rich backgrounds (and a few others) of our clients, Amie Wang and Gabe Kronstadt, fused together in the same space to form a unique celebratory evening. That is what Andrew Ettanhofer and myself experienced, as we were the deejays for Amie and Gabe's wedding reception.

The Phoenix restaurant in Chicago's very own Chinatown was the backdrop of a promising evening of music, honor, dancing, and all the delectable Chinese food you could eat in one sitting. Trust me, if you were at this reception, you would need a whole lot o' sittings to clear the plates that were placed in front of the guests on this evening. Get this: everyone shared dishes of a ten-course Chinese meal. In my eyes, I see that as one word: HEAVENLY. Everything from barbecued pork to noodles to various seafood and poultry dishes were served to perfection by the fine folks of the Phoenix. Not only that, but there were two dessert courses at the end as well. Woo-wee. Although we could not participate in this Asian smorgasbord, Andrew and myself were given the chance to enjoy some of the restaurant's best dishes. We ate with Bella photographers Dave and Emily, and our very own Figsters, Tobey and Emily (who were the on-site coordinators for Gabe and Amie's wedding, as well as for the beginning of the reception). It was great to put my chopsticks to work alongside some very cool people.

Muscially, Andrew and I were on top of our game like hot chicken on a bed of rice. Okay…weak analogy, but you get the point that we did well. The evening opened with the bride and groom walking into their first dance: a salsa number entitled "La Murga de Panama." This song was special for Amie and Gabe, as they were slated to have their honeymoon in Panama, and they took numerous lessons just to make this dance happen. I wish I knew the Hebrew or Chinese word for "electrifying" or "magical," for that is what the couple was in that moment. What was even more exciting was that we followed that song up with Sinatra's "The Way You Look Tonight," which packed the dance floor incredibly well. Nice. During dinner, we served a delicious mix of artists including Stan Getz/Joao Gilberto, Van Morrison, Death Cab for Cutie, and even a few Chinese artists like Faye Wong, CoCo Lee and Andy Lau. Later in the evening, we had a hora a la Harry Belafonte which was followed up by a great suggestion of Andrew's: The Gipsy Kings' "Bamboleo." What a great transition! From there, Andrew and I split up the decks and took the crowd on a somewhat international train ride of music. Kenny Loggins, Shakira, The Black Eyed Peas, and even Bonnie Raitt were along for the 2-hour-plus trip. We were sad to see a few people "depart" during a few songs, but we were able to pick them back up later in the evening. It was a joy to have Amie come behind our table and dance alongside Andrew and myself during some of the 80s songs we were playing. Despite some questionable laughs and looks from the crowd, I felt affirmed that our clients was enjoying themselves, as we were as well.

To summarize, this was one heck of a night, and a very memorable one for Andrew and myself. It did not feel as if there was a clash of cultures during the evening, but more of a respectful and fun celebration of the honored couple and their guests. Here's one rather important detail that I did not mention: Andrew was gone on the week of the event and returned on the day of the event. With a cold and very few hours of sleep under his belt, it appeared as if Andrew was not his best for the gig. How he handled driving, setup, announcements and music throughout the night is a mystery to me. Wowza. Bearing the fact that Andrew was just coming back for a gig, I made darn well sure to prepare myself with all proper notes, music, and necessary information just in case I had to lead the event. I kept in touch with both Amie and Gabe on the week of the wedding and tended to their needs. Plus, I also met both Gabe and Amie at their final meeting. Every small detail assisted in setting Andrew up well for the gig upon his return. There seriously is nothing more palatable than a job well done. Well…maybe except for Mongolian chicken!

– Brent Rolland, resident deejay







Pictures by Brent Rolland and Emily Hard

The Pride Parade 2007

This was my first time attending the parade, and I was deejaying on the Whole Foods float. It was Jon Hood, Tanya Cascoe, and myself representing fig media and the music that almost a half million people were hearing. The parade started at Belmont and Halsted. Jon was well into "I'm Coming Out" when our float started to move up Halsted. I played the next song "Hot Stuff" by Donna Summer. We played a little more disco at this point, and transitioned into club anthems like "Call On Me". We hit eighties, nineties, and current stuff along the route. The parade turned were Halsted crosses Broadway, and headed south. At that point, to their surprise, I pointe out some of my friends in the crowd. Later on they gave me mad props for suporting them. Tanya had been taking pictures this wwhole time, and gave me her camera to shoot. I ended up shooting most of the Broadway portion of the parade. It helped to interact with spectators. They would wave, point, and smile at the camera as I got their picture. The parade ended at Diversy and Cannon. I had a lot of fun and would do it again.

My learns on the gig were to bring less music. I would put togeter about 6-8 mixes and play from those songs. Also, have the car, for pick up of our equipment, parked inside the blocks of Belmont to Sheridan to Diversey. Bring sun block, sun glasses, and water.

Brian Carey
deejay, photographer

Quizzo!

Blogs are rather ubiquitous tools for sharing one's personal information in an open space. Here is one of my characteristics that many persons do not have the foggiest notion about: I am a huge fan of game shows. I grew up watching the wacky Whammies of Press Your Luck, the incredible Instant Bargains of $ale of the Century, and the persnickety pricers and Plinko players of The Price is Right. My mother states to this day that my very first words were "Ten thousand dollars!" Naturally. My adoration of quiz programs has meshed with my other love—that of Japanese animation—to form one of my current dreams, which is to host and produce anime-themed game shows for conventions. On a certain Monday, one phone call brought me one unexpected step in that direction: I received a call from Tobey (our office goddess!) at the Fig office, stating that they needed someone available for a last-minute gig: a game show. I did not care that I was not home for even an hour when I received that call—I was on it faster Richard Dawson's lips on a female Family Feud contestant. This was an opportunity not to be missed.

Quizzo is a trivia game provided by the National Trivia Association that is played by individuals or teams at numerous bars and pubs throughout the United States (hence the "National" part!). The game consists of seven categorized rounds; each round is comprised of ten questions, each worth ten points. The team or individual with the most points at the end of the game wins a great prize, such as a free round of drinks or bar swag like T-shirts and hats. Mmmm…swag. Swag good. Anyway, think of Quizzo as a friendly Frankenstein of sorts, as it combines elements of numerous game shows, including 80s cult favorites Face the Music, Trivia Trap, and the ever-beloved Jeopardy!. As host, it is my duty to invite bar guests to play, have all the question sheets and score sheets ready, to provide music for periods before, after, and between rounds, and to pretty much keep the flow of the game going.

My first experience with Quizzo was held at River Shannon, a quaint bar in Lincoln Park. On the first day I was assigned to emcee the game in question, me and my partner Lauren learned the ropes of the game from our Chicago Quizzo Representative, Mike Metreger. He set up Lauren and I extremely well by detailing all the rules, equipping us with all necessary score sheets, and also giving us pointers on how to handle contestants and awry situations. We were both ready to play…yet, the four people who were at the bar were not interested in playing, and no other people came in during the time Lauren and I were there. Poopie. Still, we received the information necessary to host successfully.

The second week, however, was a huge improvement, as we had three awesome teams play against each other. I did not think of myself as nervous on my first day as a host, but I did a few nervous things, such as forgetting to mention the teams' names before beginning round one. Tiny mishap, but I brought it back in the second round. The rest of the game was smooth and flowed My partner for that week was Joe, and he did a great job playing music during the night and being my second set of eyes for the crowd, as well as my liaison for joke opportunities: We offered a "shot beer bonus" during the music round, in which the team with the most points in the music round would win a free round of shots. One of the teams, named "Dunder Thunder," used their musical expertise and teamwork well to win the round. One thing that I didn't notice about the team is that its player size doubled from the beginning of the game. Joe noticed this frivolous fact, however, and passed it on to me, and I pointed it out to the crowd, which resulted in a good laugh. Heh, it is amazing how alcohol brings people together. I had so much fun hosting Quizzo this day, but I also had a realization: Hosting is so much more than meets the eye. Yes, I have led and emceed numerous events in my time, yet this game show boasts a different venue, a different crowd, and a different atmosphere—one so, well, different, that it encourages me to be looser and more relaxed in my hosting style.

I dislike shameful plugs, but what the hey: If you are in the mood to show your smarts and win some prizes, while gathering a lot of fun, music and drinks along the way, please come down to the River Shannon (425 West Armitage in Chicago) on Monday nights from 8-10pm to play Quizzo! You, your brain, and your beer gut will be glad you did!

– Brent Rolland, resident Fig deejay

Wang/Yang @ The Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum

Oh. My. Lord.

I feel I should title this blog "Hot Asian Women, part II." (Yes, I wrote a part I a year or so ago.) From the pictures you'll see below, you can see why I have the such said inclination. This reception was one of the best parties I have ever deejayed, particularly because of the super-celebratory crowd that was there to welcome the bride and groom, Grace and Jeff. This crowd was here to par-tay. Another reason why this was such a memorable night was due to the fact that although rain befell the area of the Notebaert and caused the ceremony to begin later than scheduled, every single element of the night went smoothly—including the first dance, the speeches, the bouquet toss, and even the awesome projection rig (which is, mainly, a projector, a computer, and a huge screen) that my partner Joe Martinez set up successfully. Every little element that could have gone awry…didn't. Thank God.

Okay–back to the pictures of the party!

– Brent Rolland, resident Fig deejay


Photos by Brent Rolland and Joe Martinez

Skadden Idol @ The House of Blues Restaurant

Erik and I provided a karaoke setup for "Skadden Idol," a watered-down version of "American Idol" created by and produced for the folks at Skadden-Arps, a Chicago law firm. As I have learned, this company has run these fun competitions for the past four years, which automatically generates some important data: This is something that they were totally looking forward to. I have been on karaoke gigs where just a few or no one dares to throw away their inhibitions and sing a song or two. The participation level was so high for this group, I could hardly keep up with the song changes! Wheee-ew!

Take a look at the photos below to view some of the fun moments of "Skadden Idol." To this day, karaoke for me has never been so…satisfying.











– Brent Rolland, resident Fig deejay

Sychra/Savino-Sullins @ Spiaggia

Please enjoy these photos from Diana and Justin's wedding reception at the luxurious Spiaggia in downtown Chicago. More to come!

– Brent Rolland, resident Fig deejay





Photos by Brent Rolland and Chris Paluch

Ingersoll/Nocas @ the Chicago History Museum

Carrie Ingersoll and Scott Nocas made history—that is, they celebrated and commenced their wedding at the Chicago History Museum. Jonathan Hood and I were the deejays for our couple's big day. I speak with humility and gratitude when I say the following: I do not think that Jon and I have worked so hard at a full wedding such as this.

Prior to the wedding, we set up a two-speaker cocktail system outside the main hall, and also prepared the main ceremony setup: two-speakers, a wireless microphone, a mixer, Jon's computer, my iPod, and a back-up CD player. We performed the full outdoor ceremony that was complimented by specific classical music tracks, After the ceremony, Jon and I quickly broke down the ceremony setup and moved into the dining hall, in which we had to set up our rig while everyone was in a separate area enjoying their cocktails. That was a challenge, for the guests were mingling in-between the area of the ballroom where we were set-up (the left side) and the dining tables were hidden (the right side). Jon smartly laid down and taped his wires before we started the ceremony set-up, which saved us some time. A bit sweaty and tired from the combination of summer heat and tiredness, we completed our setup, and we were ready to go.

For me, the joy in this was mostly taking the proverbial driver's wheel and leading the event, although I was the assistant to Jon. Emceeing is a love of mine, and although there were points where I was dog tired from setting up/breaking down equipment and checking on other thing, I was happy to host and have fun with the audience. One of the cool things about the evening is that the dinner tables all had movie names on them (which made sense, as the groom, Scott, works in the movie industry). I had a ball pointing out some of the tables during the speeches, especially "The Good, The Bad and the Ugly" table. All the people were in the good category, I was sure. Holding the hosting role made for a good interactive experience for me.

From there, the rest of the event was fun. Jon deejayed the entire night and had people dancing and enjoying themselves, especially Carrie and Scott. One of my favorite songs of the night was Bill Withers' and Grover Washington, Jr.'s "Just the Two of Us." It's rare when it is requested from the couples I work with, and I was glad to hear this sweet soul song.

So, there was a lot of hard work that went into this day, but it's all in the name of satisfying our clients, and that is what we did.

– Brent Rolland, resident Fig deejay

John Wilson's 50th at the W Lakeshore

So this was a 50th birthday bash thrown for John Wilson by his wife Deanna at the lavish W Hotel lakeshore and about 60 of his closest friends and familiy. In terms of agenda, there was not much to the night - cocktails for a hour and a 1/2, dinner, and a short speech from the man of the hour thanking his guests. While this sounds straightforward, it lead to a unique situation in terms of getting in relationship with the crowd and getting dancing started later in the night. With weddings, the structure allows for early interaction with the crowd, getting them warmed up to the deejay. This event, however, was more like a corporate pary in terms of that element, with no real time bulit-in to actually acknowledge the crowd.
The Hybrid.
Brian recognized it and spoke with the crowd, introducing John, which let them actually see the deejay. During dinner, the crowd was getting a bit antsy, doing more mingling with each other, I was getting antsy myself, wanting to get the party started...
Getting dancing was a little tough at first. But, just like a coporate gig, there is always one person who will come up and ask for something to dance to, fun, current, etc. A woman did just that, and she wanted to hear current stuff. Brian put on Hey Ya, and that got the crowd out. Over the course of the evening we hit a lot of genres, songs ranging from Rock Around the Clock, to Usher's Thats What It's Made For during dinner. Cocktails consisted of a lot of midtempo lounge style music, with a world beat feel to it. I played songs from brazilian artists, french, and a variety of latin beats. Even a bachata was played for one guy that had an overwhelming desire to show off. There were some great song transitions over the night - I Like Big Butts is always a crowd favorite, which was followed up by My Humps, in a pair praising posteriors. The keyboard outro on that song allowed Brian to completely shift gears and have the crowd rock out to end the night. A good time was had by all, and Deanna said that her 50th is in 3 years - so fig can do it all again!
Summing up the night musically:

• Bossa no. 5, Riolistic
• Tabou, Les Nubians
• The Right Kind of Lover, Patti LaBelle
• Hey Ya!, Outkast
• Rapper's Delight, Sugarhill Gang
• Livin' on a Prayer, Bon Jovi

written by Alvin Black III, assistant deejay

Debowski/Pantazis @ Cite at Lake Point Tower

This was my first time at Cite. The view from the 70th floor was spectacular. My assistant Matt and I were blown away by the view. It's too bad that I couldn't sit back and enjoy it at my fullest. I was zoned in on the Isabelle ans Steve's wedding. We were making sure to hit all the ques, and get festivities moving forward. At one point during cocktails, I found myself being the deejay, helping the fig video crew set up, and helping out the photographers (non figs) with where they were setting up their photo loading station. I've been in that position as a photographer myself, and wanted to help out. I was in the event zone.
Isabelle and Steve's vision for the music was a Jazz theme. The venue was perfect for this occasion. It was classy, elegant, and "Chicago". The other element that played a big role in the music was their ethnicities. Steve was Greek and Isabelle was Polish. So, I played sets of 30's and 40's jazz vocalists songs, and then sets of Greek and Polish music (provided by Steve's cousin, Chris). Alternating between the two genres. The music fit them and their guests perfectly. There was a magical moment during the night. Just after Isabelle and Steve finished cutting their cake, fireworks at Navy Pier went off. I played Ray Charles' "Georgia On My Mind" during the fireworks as Billy Rood (fig videographer) captured the Bride and Groom holding each other close, as the display went on in front of them. A magical moment. It was the perfect timing and the perfect wedding for a moment like that.

Brian Carey
deejay/photographer

Hinda Incentives on the Anita Dee 2

On Saturday, June 2nd, the employees of Hinda Incentives were treated to a night out on the Anita Dee 2. The Anita Dee 2 is a 3 tier cruise yacht docked on Chicago's Navy Pier. The boat set off at 7pm for a 2 hour cruise. I worked with Patty and Connie at Hinda to work out the details of the night. Musically, these two hours were filled with live piano and cocktail tunes. The music flowed through out the boat by way of the house audio system. Employees were celebrated and thanked for all of their hard work by the Michael and Brad, the COO and CEO of the company. Alvin, my assistant, and myself found that we were short one XL cord-the cord that I was going to use for speeches. I did some trouble shooting and was able to use a shorter cord for the mic. The cord was about 5 feet, so I made sure to instruct speakers to "sorry your going to have to stand right here and not move". If they move out one more foot the cord would be yanked out. I used quick humor to deflate the embarrasement of the situation. It worked! At 9pm, the boat docked in it's slot on the pier. Some guests got off of the boat, calling it a night, and the majority stayed aboard. We played off of the employees and their requests the whole night. We played a lot of current hip-hop, some disco, some Motown, and one requests that stick out are Miami Sound Machine songs. Thanks for reading.


Brian Carey
deejay/photographer

Monday @ the MCA

Lead DJ Erik Friedly
Assistant DJ Emily Hard
Projectionists Tim Musho and Billy Rood

Monday night we did a 4 hour cocktail party for J & J Invision, a textile company. The MCA can be a very difficult area for sound and has a lot of option for projection. With our experience their we knew we could do a great job providing we had a site visit. Tim and I did the site visit and got their vision down, even adding a projector to make it better.
When you first walked in you saw a projection welcoming you the aniversary party for J & J Invision. As you walked down the center of the museum you saw another projection of a slideshow Tim made showing some of the history of J & J.
The next part of the center had Emily and I DJing. If you have ever been to the MCA it is like a big capital "I". When you first walk in it is the bottom part of the "I". Then the center section is the tall center of the letter and the restaurant area is the top. Then you can leave the top to go outside.
This is how I got audio to everyone. I had a 15" and a 10" speaker on one corner where the bottom and middle of the "I" meet. to fill out the bottom and part of the middle. I then had a 15" speaker in the middle of where the DJ decks were and another toward the top to fill out the rest of the middle and add support to the top. Then on the wall between the top ond the outside I had one more 15" to fill out the top area. This takes a lot of XLR and extensions and like Phil Spector, creates a wall of sound.
We also added a 10" outside until 9pm.
4 hour cocktail partied can be tough with no crescendo of a dance floor at the end. However, they seem to pop up anyways. As Emily and I moved into the last half hour, many dance style songs were chosen and we had pockets of dancers until the end.

My highlights were playing Cheap Trick and Urge Overkill and having someone asking who it was and having a pleased client!

Erik Friedly

Lewis/Shule Wedding @ the Hilton (used to be DoubleTree downtown)

I have to start of by saying; I love a catering/service staff that feeds me well. Soon as my assistant Tanya and I were set up we went over the schedule with the catering manager. Then he asked if we wanted to eat now or later. I said now, as it is much easier for to concentrate on the client and the party if I am already fed. I didn't know what to expect having not worked her since it changed from a Double Tree to a Hilton. But I got a good club sandwich with hot fries, I am guessing from their restaurant. I've had my share of pre-made, soggy toasted bread, club, but this was hot and good!
Now I am onto the party. Maria Lewis and Chris Shule booked with us about a year and half ago. I remember seeing them in the calendar a lot and wondering when we would get to that date. Then it was here and it was time to have fun.
It was a small crowd of about 65 and I have had a few more then usual of these smaller receptions. My fear rise a little more as you need to have a higher percentage of the crowd dance to have the dance floor look good. What helped is the size of the room was consistent with the size of the crowd. So it felt good whether there was 8 people on the floor or 30.
The most difficult part for me was the Father/Daughter dance. Maria's father is older and was not feeling well by the time of the dance. He decided to go home and Maria danced with her father-in-law. It felt uncomfortable at first, but then Maria danced with her young son Lance and we had a great "awww" moment. When everyone came up to dance it started strong for the 1st two songs then started to wane. This is has been typical for me on smaller weddings, so I start to leave the 3 like style songs in a row and do two before I move on. Also, if something isn't working I moved on. A big key for me was to see the reactions of the people not dancing. I read that some would enjoy certain songs and were never going to dance. Then I concentrated on the reactions of those that would and started keying in on them. I then spatter in Chris and Maria's must plays to keep the crowd dancing around them. Tanya was a great assist in giving ideas and watching the crowd for me. She saw things that I wasn't catching and her choices went well. I love that we at fig have assistants; it makes DJing so much more exciting.

In the end I had really enjoyed the people that danced. I got a few songs in that got people, which I perceived as not dancing, on the floor. Especially, You Dropped a Bomb On Me and Brickhouse. I also had a great House/Electronica set mixed in with some Hip-Hop toward the end that really ended the night well. Chris and Maria picked their last dance song and I felt proud of my work.

Lead DJ: Erik Friedly
Assistant: Tanya Cascoe

Gadeken/Pollyea @ The Newberry Library

This was my second time at the Newberry this season. Jessica and Dan's ceremony was in the lobby area of the Newberry, and then the room was turned over for the cocktail hour as the Bridal Party went out front for photos. They had a music style that combined classic rock and indie rock. Jessica got me a disc with their cocktail mix, already put together. As cocktails transitioned into dinner, I continued to play a classic/indie rock mix of songs. It was music that fit them, and was appropriate for dinner. Jessica and Dan had a special moment, they sharred a toast to each other. Dan had contacted me earlier in the week, and asked me to play the Bob Dylan song "Shelter From the Storm" directly after his toast to Jessica. Dan beautifully spoke of the story behind Dylan's song, and how it related to his own relationship with Jessica. Erik, my assist, played the song directly after his speech, as planned. It was perfect. The fig videographers were crying. I did my job.

Brian Carey
deejay, photographer

Nicole and Patrick a night to remember

Last Friday Lauren Pollock and I (Megan Taylor) deejayed the wedding reception of Nicole and Patrick at Newberry Library. The reception was a beautiful event, flowers by Gowder Designs, catered by Levy, and run by planner Ali Phillips. Cocktails were held in the middle room at Newberry from 6-7pm and reception to follow in the east room. The couple was fun, young and had a very great bridal party to support them and support a fun evening. I was touched by how supportive the bridal party was to cheer, hold space for speeches, and support the evening. The atmosphere makes for a great place for me to not worry about the guests, but support the great evening. Lauren kicked in her latin dj skills and played for the catering staff to not just play for the party but the support as well before the guests arrived. The party was so up my alley, as I played for young fun people, who wanted to hear just the music that I like and know well. Hip hop forever made the crowd go crazy, and as is my fav to play. I kicked up my transitions with beat matching mixed in with bar hit fav's. In fact enjoy my list: 1. Someone Like You- Van Morrison--first dance 2. L.O.V.E.- Nat King Cole 3. The Way you Look Tonight- Frank Sinatra 4. You're nobody til Somebody loves you- Dean Martin 5. I've got you-under my skin- Frank Sinatra 6. Mack the Knife- Bobby Darrin 7. RESPECT- Artetha 8. Ain't Too Proud Beg- Temptations 9. SUgar Pie Honey Bunch 10. Got to Give it Up- Marvin Gaye 11. You sexy thang 12. That's the way I like it 13. Sex Machine- James Brown 14. Super Freak- Rick James 15. Lady Marmalade- Patty LaBelle 16. September 17. Shake Your Groove Thing 18. Stayin Alive 19. Bouquet 20. Garter 21 Wonderful World 22. At Last 23. Wonderful Tonight 24. Tupelo Honey 25. Jump Jive and Wail 26. Bamboleo 27. Let's get it Started 28. Hot in Herrre 29. Rock Your Body- JT 30. Crazy- Gnarls Barkley 31. Like a Prayer 32. Kiss-Prince---didn't work, cut early to: 33. You Shook me all night long 34. Walk this Way-RunDMC and Aerosmith 35. Ice Ice Baby 36. Tricky 37. Jump Around 38. Yeah 39. Perculator 40. Sexy Back 41. Up in Here-DMX 42. Hypnotize- Notorious BIG 43. Buttons- Pussycat Dolls 44. Hey Ya- OutKast 45. Smack That- Akon 46. Naughty Girl- Beyonce 47. Pony- Genuine 48. You're Beautiful - James Blunt 49. I've Got Friends In Low Places - Garth Brooks 50. Livin on a Prayer- Bon Jovi 51. Pour Some Sugar on Me- Def Leopard 52. What I Got- Sublime 53. Get Right- Jennifer Lopez 54. Give it to Me- Nelly Furtado 55. Summer Love- Justin Timberlake 56. American Pie- Don Mclean 57. You're Stil the One- Shania Twain

Russo/Baum @ The Westin River North

Here are some photographs from a recent wedding reception that my partner/shadow Erik Friedly and yours truly deejayed. Believe it or not, our clients' names are the very same as our beloved president and vice president of Fig—Michele and James. Talk about completely beating the odds!

There is a much more story to go here, so please enjoy these lovely snapshots for the time being.







– Brent Rolland, resident deejay

(Special thanks to Peter and Jobie, our dear photographers, and to Michael Mitloff and everyone at the Westin for their smiles and support!)

Ratatouille @ the Park Hyatt

May 15th event at the Park Hyatt for Experiential Marketing Company Becker Group for the new Pixar film Ratatouille. A film about a young rat living within the walls of a famous Paris bistro wishes to become a chef, but is hindered by his family's skepticism and the rat-despising staff and patrons, was the main experience for the evening. French food, cheese, drinks, music and atmosphere was transformed as an experience for promoting the film. fig was there to document the event and experience what The Becker Group had to offer to event owners and spaces. Being the lead videographer, I had the pleasure of working with Keren Aronoff as my assistant at the Park Hyatt for this private event. I learned a lot about how these events can be specialized and marketed with a purpose and bring in the experience of a film to a real space, which I look forward to learning more about promoting my own feature documentary in the upcoming year.

Billy Rood

Liquid History Fun

On Friday may 18th, I got a chance to work with one of my favorite families to create a liquid history for a birthday party.
Late last year we had created a liquid history for Elona, a wife and mother of three, for her 35th birthday.
This time we are creating one for Dimity...Elona's husband, for his birthday.
We work with their kids, Mark, Skye, and Alexandra to create fun films and messages of well wishes for his birthday.
My assistant Hafeez and I spent the evening at the beach, biking the lakefront, and shooting at the four seasons pool.
Working with kids I found myself learning about how to ask the right kind of questions to get genuine answers.
Questions that could produce a yes or no answer were not getting the material that I was looking for.
So I started asking more open-ended questions, working with the kids to get them to open up more and be relaxed on camera.
My first interview was cute, but I wanted more. So I started getting creative.
I had Mark, ride his bike while I paced him and asked him questions. The activity helped to focus him more, and he started talking and giving me some really cute stuff to work with.
I also found that letting the kids see themselves through the camera and interacting with my equipment-helped produce more compelling work. The kids loved hearing themselves through the microphone and seeing each other on the screen.
I made sure to get down on the ground and play with the kids on their level. Getting some great shots of them playing in the sand.
At the pool, I did more interviews and had them do fun things like jumping up into the water at the same time, swimming across the pool and putting their faces in the camera. I had them sing happy birthday while sitting on the pools edge, and had them show me their best water tricks. I watched the footage and was very pleased with my work. Next steps, to focus in on the vision for the project more and work on getting more sound bites to use for the piece. I think I can go even deeper with the kids, and after having my first experience working with them on a shooting level...I know I can do a kick ass job.
I still have one more shoot with them coming up. And plan to spend more time with Elona, talking about the project and what she sees the piece being like. Interviewing Elona and getting a heart felt story from her about her husband, and playing with the kids one more time.
Should be lots of fun.

Bowling for Birthdays

I have done 2 bar mitzvahs in my career at fig media. This one would be my second. On Saturday, I worked with Andrew at a bowling alley in Hyde Park for Daniel's Bat Mitzvah party. This would prove to be one of my more challenging gigs.
Upon arrival Andrew and I set up in the private bowling alley, touched base with the planner, and worked on our strategy.
I would facilitate the games, and Andrew would play the music.
We started out playing fun punk rock versions of old songs, some current hip hop/pop, and enjoying our free refills at the soda bar.
Once guests started arriving we got an ipod from one of the kids with a play list on it to choose music from. Andrew and I took turns choosing music and watching to see how the kids were responding.
After the first hour we realized that the flow of the event was going to be more challenging than we thought. With an activity such as bowling for the kids to engage in, the first hour went be fast. Kids were bowling, coming up and giving us requests.
As dinner began to wind down, the father of the birthday boy came over and said it was our turn to take it away.
I realized in that statement.... that I was unclear about how much of the evening we would be facilitating.
I started the round of games out with balloon games, musical chair treasure hunt, a soul train dance, and then opened the dance floor for dancing and requests.
The kids did not pick up on dancing and went to playing video games, bowling, and standing in groups and talking.
Soon the parents approached us again and asked us to play more games.
Feeling scared and unprepared, I looked at Andrew and asked.... well what should we do?
We decided to wing it and go with what we knew how to do.
I got a follow the leader dance going, played a Simon says type-dancing games giving out commands for how to dance. My favorite...Andrew came up with "dance with just your eye lids" I learned that just being in a kid like space and playing helped a lot.
I then lead the cha cha slide, a snowball dance, another follows the leader dance, and a freeze dance followed by a fast motion slow motion dance.
After the last game I was running out of ideas, and was still feeling the pressure to entertain the kids and keep the party going.
They did one more round of bowling, and asked us to do one last round of games.
We decided on the limbo. One boy was so limber I was shocked at how he could squeeze under the bar.
After that the kids all put on sweatshirts that said "Daniels bat mitzvah" took a picture and then slowly started to depart.
Wanting to close the evening, and not feeling satisfied that I had celebrated the birthday boy enough. I got the whole party together...put Daniel in the middle and had everyone do a huddle around him, put their hands on his head and give one last cheer for him.
I then thanked the crowd and began to pack things up.
My learns from this gig, ask lots of questions.
I was not prepared to lead 3 hours of games, and was not clear on the client expectations or what my lead DJ expected from me.
Next gig that I do with games, I will be sure to ask more questions, get a clearer vision and insist on a pre meeting to talk about the night.
My wins were using my skills to my best ability to play, Dj'ing and helping with song selections, and acting on my impulses and being creative with game choices.

An All Star Night w/ Jessica and Tony

Client: Jessica and Tony Yen
Date: May 19, 2007
Location: Illuminating Company
Caterer: Blue Plate
Decor: Ronsley
Fig Producer: James Gustin
Lead DJ: Megan Taylor Fig Media, Inc
Assistant DJ: Hafeez Surami Fig Media, Inc
Lead Photography: Carl Wiedemann and Brian Carey Fig Media, Inc
Assistant Photography: Emily Hard Fig Media, Inc.


DJ: First I will start with saying that Jessica and Tony were fabulous clients. They had a vision for their night, and brought in a great team to make it happen. Jessica is the art director at Ronsley, so had a great eye and created a fabulous space for the ceremony, cocktails, and reception. I deejayed a hip electronic cocktail hour that provided great energy and groove to the evening, Hafeez then took over and created a fun transition of funk into dinner, we played some jazz and fun rock throughout dinner w/ fun announcements and 3 speeches, Blue Plate provided wonderful stations including a raw bar, yum. Dancing was all over w/ some motown, funk, 80's, hip hop, but the hottest hits of the night were house music, mainly Deep Dish. It was very fun to play music all over the board, and to many differnt people. Jessica and Tony were awesome, affirming, and were an awesome couple to work with.

Megan Taylor
deejay


Photo: I first met Jessica and Tony at their place. Carl and I spent an afternoon shooting Jessica and Tony's engagement photos. We starting at their place and circled around their neighborhood, finding spots to stop and direct the couple. This session set us up for the day of photography. We built a great relationship with Jessica and Tony, and were able to work "with them" instead of "for them" to capture awesome shots. The space, Illuminating Company, reflected the couple's personality and played an important role in the backgrounds, as far as style, texture, and light. We covered the ceremony, first dance, cake, toasts, and dancing. Later in the night guests twirled sparklers in celebration of Jessica and Tony. I dito Megan, Jessica and Tony were awesome to work with. I'm looking forward to seeing their book completed.

Brian Carey
photographer

Mary Meyer Fundraiser

Last Friday I got to develop my skills as a DJ on a quest to help raise money. Last spring I deejayed the Sacred Heart Gala and Fundraiser and then took my learns and skills to another school fundraiser for Mary Meyer. Mary Meyer is a private preschool, with only 36 kids, and many parents willing to contribute to the school. The event took place at Architectural Artifacts on Friday, May 19th. The night began with an open bar, the silent auction, and cocktail music. Stations opened up, as I ran the agenda, and made announcements as to what silent auction tables were closing and when. The job took a lot of coordination as well as the ability to go with the flow when my client wanted a table to stay open longer. The evening concluded with a live auction and raffle. I only wish I (the DJ) could have bid on the Oprah, Bulls, New York tickets :)
This was the first year that Mary Meyer hired professional entertainers and coordinators to help with the event and I feel very confident that I served the company well. I held the agenda and time, so the committee could concentrate on making money. I also brought great energy to the party with Matt (my assistant) and I's spirit and music.

Lead DJ: Megan Taylor
Assistant DJ: Matt Carlson
Client: Mary Meyer PreSchool

Seneshal/Otte @ The Wyndham

Stacey and David's wedding ceremony and reception was held downtown at the Wyndham. I deejayed the reception portion of the night. The bride and groom were introduced into their first dance, "Lady" by Styx. A unique, yet really awesome choice. Melissa, my assistant, played during dinner. I gave her some pointers, but from most of dinner she played a mix of the Stacey and David's selections along with her own selections. Dancing was kicked off with the Father/Daughter and Mother/Son dances into the Bridal Party dance–"Express Yourself". That set the tone for the night. Early into dancing I played The Stones, Queen, Tom Petty, and Bon Jovi. We played a game of who's been married the longest. Starting with 24 hours, and ending with 64 years (Stacey's Grandparents). There were a lot of requests, which we were able to mix into the flow of songs. 80's music was played throughout the night. Stacey and David were sent off before midnight with Journey's "Open Arms", one of there favorites.

Brian A Carey
deejay, photographer

Woods/Ruhl @ A New Leaf

This was my second time deejaying at A New Leaf in 7 days, so going in I knew the challenges of the space. Diane and David's wedding ceremony was up in "The Apartment" space of A New Leaf. The ceremony lasted about 20 minutes and guests proceeded down to the first floor. The "Loft" space is where the music and dancing happens. The challenge at A New Leaf is to play inviting music, so that guests will be attracted to the dance floor and dance as the night goes on. Diane and David have a love for modern rock music, so I played stuff like Weezer, Foo Fighters, the Killers, Wilco, Radiohead, and the White Stripes during cocktails. I was really rockin' it out. guests responses were not exactly what I wanted. During dinner however, I brought the tempo down, and played some 50's and 60's lounge/Jazz. Guests responses were better. When it came time for the first dance and an open dance floor, I had gained the trust of guests. The floor was packed all night. Hafeez, my assistant, and I ended up playing a lot of hip-hop and pop music. The highlight of the night was, "Rapper's Delight" by Sugarhill Gang. The Maid of Honor, on the mic, rapped the lyrics to most of the song. I ended the night with Al Green's "Let's Stay Together", a classic, groovin', slow dance, and a great send off for Diane and David.

Brian A Carey
deejay, photographer

Heinrich/Mariano @ A New Leaf

Fig's own Brian Carey delivered one of his best deejay performances for our clients Heidi and John at A New Leaf this May, as you can see in the below images. The peculiar (and rather admirable) detail in this is the fact that Brian went through the night with a very unfavorable cold. Anyone else in his position would have probably focused on the sickness and went through the day miserable and victimized; Brian was the opposite, as he focused on playing great music and keeping the party going. While he honed his energy on doing that, I did the emcee work and led the party the best that I could. On top of that, I was the assistant to Brian, so I made sure that he had copious amounts of water, plates of food, and hot tea. Our teamwork and the understanding of our roles was one of the reasons why this was a successful celebration.

On a humorous note, I did learn one thing: When your partner asks for one glass of water, bring two. It's hell getting through a dance floor suavely with one glass, so reducing the number of times you retrieve sustainance may be more beneficial…and drier.











– Brent Rolland, resident deejay

(Many thanks to the Hearty Boys and photographers Glen and Mike for being vital parts of this great night!)

Erik Friedly @ the Sovereign, 4.27.07

Here are a few pictures from Erik Friedly's performance at the Sovereign Bar and Lounge on April 27th, 2007. Enjoy!











Photos by Brent Rolland

Popular Science @ The Nokia Flagship Store

To the many hotels, restaurants, museums, galleries, and other eccentric places I have deejayed, I now add a new venue to my repertoire: A cell phone store. Yes, a cell phone store. Cell. Phone. Store. (I won't repeat it again, I promise.) April 26th was host to an event in honor of Popular Science magazine. They advertised a special contest in their magazine featuring the new Nokia N800 internet tablet phone, and a contest to win this cool new device. To celebrate this launch, Erik Friedly and myself were "called" to be the deejays at the swanky, hi-tech hostel that was the Nokia Flagship store on Michigan Avenue.

Simply put, this was a cool night. You may be thinking to yourself, "If I was a deejay and I was playing at a corporate party at a mighty fancy-looking phone store, what would I play?" Answer: Anything you want. That is exactly what Erik and I did. We "dialed up" tunes from about seven or eight different genres that night—rock, pop, oldies, techno, downtempo, and the like—and we had lots of fun doing so. One notable track I played was the original version of the song that mall maven Tiffany made oh-so radical in the 80s, "I Think We're Alone Now." Remember that one? Of course you do.

Speaking of the word "remember," our only drop of the night was that we did not remember to speak to one of the store employees to turn off the background audio before the beginning of speeches. One of the speakers turned to us in the middle of her speech and asked us if we could turn off the music. We laughed inside, due to the fact that she looked at the "audio experts"—us—first. Of course, we had no control over the store's piped-in audio. We knew that the sound was going on subconciously, but we did not think to request to one of the store employees to turn it off before speeches. Luckily, that went on for a few minutes and was resolved quickly. Erik and I learned to be more conscious of our surroundings in that moment, a very vital lesson.

It was a short gig (2-1/2 hours), but one of quality. We received some great compliments from people, and the employees of the Nokia store were kind and accomodating. Our client from Popular Science, Eshonda, loved the job we did, and showed that in her feedback form. All in all, this was a success, and I cannot wait to see what the next eccentric venue I'll be in. Maybe another phone store is in my future…

– Brent Rolland

McMeekan/Quintas @ Chicago City Center

What do headbanging, 80s rock music and a wedding reception have in common? Ask the couple that Jon and I recently deejayed for, Lora and Dean. Joined by fellow Fig videographers Billy and Eric, we joined the couple du jour in their wedding celebration at the Chicago City Center in River East Chicago.

This gig, to say the least, was a lot of hard work. The biggest challenge of the night was the dance floor. We started off with a few Greek songs (due to the fact that the groom, Dean, is of Greek ancestry), which the family enjoyed. We then moved into one number each from Sinatra and Dean Martin. The floor, at this time, was pizz-acked. Thinking that Stevie Wonder's "Signed, Sealed, Delivered" would keep the floor going, I gave it a try; the result was that half the floor moved back to their seats. Shudder. It's the worst feeling for a deejay. I usually do not get intimidated, but this time, I felt it was best to step back and let Jon handle the decks. For a while, it was difficult getting people out to enjoy our musical choices. We saw some headbobbers and toe-tappers, but no true dancers. This became tougher as the night progressed. What does a deejay in this position do? Two things:

1. Keep on playing and pressing on.
2. Pray.

I was definitely responsible for the latter, as I stepped outside the ballroom and said a prayer that the rest of the night would be a success. As I expected, God heard my prayer. Around the time that Neil Diamond's "Sweet Caroline" was requested, that was when things turned around. Jon turned his musical selections towards 80s hair-band rock, which the bride, the groom, and a ton of their guests totally loved. This music…and maybe a itty-bitty amount of booze…brought the dance floor back and better than ever. Believe it or not, Jon even received a negotiation of 40 minutes of overtime for the party, which neither of us expected. It was no cakewalk achieving this success, and there were some guests that we had to deal with, but we got through it all and acheived it there as a team. I am glad that I gave Jon the space he needed so that he could be the best artist possible.

Not only did this party rock, but so did the power of the Lord.











– Brent Rolland, resident deejay

Indie Rock can be done

On April 14th my assistant Tobey Geise and I celebrated the marriage of Lesley and Johnny at a New Leaf. The couple was married in Japan the previous fall, and asked wanted to celebrate with their family in the states. They choose A New Leaf to have their intimate celebration and had a very specific vision for the night which tied largely to the music. Lesley a huge music fan worked with me on what to play and not, she wanted a very Indie Rock, no cheese, little pop and mainstream event, so I took on the gig because we shared many of the great tastes. Going into the event I was hesitant as too what would hit, how the music would effect the party, and what I found was that the music fit right into her vision. Many compliments were given about the music, my client said she loved me kissed me, and was relieved to hear her music and music she loved. Tobey and I had a great time playing music we love and usually don't get to hear. Music included: The Rapture, Modest Mouse, Fiest, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Stones, Johnny Cash, Beatles, Electric 6, Fiona Apple, Tom Waits....

DJ Lead: Megan Taylor
Assistant DJ: Tobey Geise
Planner: Susan Jablowski
Caterer: Big Delicious

They want more---- so we will give it up.

DJ James Gustin was booked as an artist to deejay with his team the hot and happening closing event that brought over 1,500 internationl trademark lawyers to Chicago. The final event happened at the Museum of Science and Industry. In the Loop brought over 8 bands and the Carmel and fig team to deejay the "disco/techno" room on the bottom floor at the MSI. Guests made their way through the musuem hearing music and eating food, but fig once again stole the show "in my sweet opinion" and brought down the roof and the party with a killer dance party that went an hour overtime. Jon Hood had the international guests shaking their stuff to disco, funk, 80's, European dance, hip hop, and everything in between. Megan Taylor and new intern DJ Matt supported as fig unleashed their magic and created an unbelievable night and ending to the conference.

I'm on top of the world!

99th floor of the Sears Tower, baby! Second time there and damn! if the speakers don't pick up radio stations. I mean, they pick up radio stations - like you wouldn't believe! The speakers just need to be powered up, no link to the decks necessary, although it helps. Hafeez was assisting me on this gig (by the way Hafeez, I want a copy of that fella you were playing), and we were trying to trouble shoot this problem. Speakers close to the floor helped, but it also depended on where the speaker was placed, how long the cords were, and where the cords were run. I was getting so frustrated with other things to worry about, that I handed this problem over to Hafeez and he took care of it. It was faster for him to handle it than to have two heads working on it. I then worked on coordinating the awards ceremony. Oh yeah, this gig was for Carmel and On the Scene. The end client was Kraft International. It was dinner and a conference with awards mixed in. A seperate company came in to do sound reinforcement and visuals for the ceremony and conference. Not sure why they didn't handle this part of it, but we did music cues during the awards show. We put it through their system, but didn't test it ahead of time. We ran into a few problems during the show, but it got worked out. Not sure what it was or how it was fixed. Mike, the guy I was working with, kept pushing buttons and turning knobs. It's one of those big 50 channel mixers (exagerating a little) with all sorts of knobs and doohickeys that I have no clue what they do (being a sound guy, I should know, right?). Anyhoo, we got the sound problems worked out and the rest of the awards went fine. It wasn't that big a deal, show went on and everything and it's only a 5 second clip while people were going to the podium. But it's still important and would have added to the event. We played background music as people arrived (upbeat, victory themed songs) and during dinner (international and electronic lounge). No dancing, but it was almost all guys. Great view from up there. I could almost see my house.

--Jonathan

Kirkland and Ellis

Wedding? Nope, a law firm. Associate lawyer casino party at the River East Art Center. Fig team: Andrew and myself.

Learns: be part of the planning process sooner when they are deciding where to place everything. The casino tables were on the other end of the room from where we were. It was hard for the sound to reach the tables and the party was basically where the tables were. I felt like we weren't part of the party and stopped having fun once the guests started gambling. The room we were in wasn't very full, there were less people there than they had expected. The guests in our room very accurately reflected what I was feeling. Why? Because the party is a reflection of myself. Don't get it? My vibe and energy gets transmitted through the music I play and gets absorbed by the people hearing it. Wild, huh? Anyway, Andrew was helping me figure out the dynamic in the room so I could have better direction in where to go. This is something that Andrew does really well. The best piece of information he gave me was that the people who were at the casino tables were doing what they were supposed to do. It's a casino party, so they are gambling. The people who didn't want to be part of the party were in our room and it was like trying to wake the dead. Broad generalization that accurately reflected my feelings of wanting to belong to the group who was playing and having fun and feelings of rejection because that's not what was happening. After Andrew gave me that piece of info (the first part, not the latter), I made a decision that I was going to have fun regardless of the people in the room. Once I made that decision, people started dancing. Still don't believe that the party is a reflection of myself? Overall, people had fun, but it's hard to gauge because there wasn't that many people there and everyone was spread out.

--Jonathan

Lora McMeekan & Dean Quintas at Chicago City Centre

Lora and Dean had their wedding reception at the Chicago City Centre (formally the Holiday Inn). Brent and I were the deejays and we also had a video crew: Billy and Eric. I acted as the coordinator for the evening and made sure the timeline was happening and that everyone was on the same page. Brent deejayed for dinner and I hopped on the decks once we got to dancing. What I'm seeing looking back is that I should have stayed in the coordinator role during dancing, too. Switching roles like that got confusing. Actually, just communicating more about what I was thinking and what kind of role I wanted to have during the night would have been key. The dance floor was hard to get going, partly because Brent and I weren't completely on the same page. Dancing started off well, everyone came out, but at one point, everyone slowly left and it was hard to bring them back. What finally worked was the 80's hair bands. We ended up playing that for the last hour and wound up getting overtime. The crowd was intense. A lot of angry or assertive guests that wanted their way. It took a lot me asserting myself with them to have successful event. One of the guests wanted overtime, but spent 10 minutes trying to get me to lower our rate. Part of his tactic was trying to get me to feel either guilty for stopping or ashamed that I would be going back home and going to bed. What I'm learning about dealing with people who are belligerent is that I should set clear limits and boundaries. It wasn't until I said that I wasn't doing overtime that he finally agreed to it. I spent a lot of time talking with Brent throughout the night, venting my anger to keep in good shape and make great decisions.

--Jonathan

Museum of Science and Industry - May 2, 2007

Museum of Science and Industry – May 2, 2007

Unfreakin’ believable! There’s so much to dissect about this gig. I’ll start with the basics. The fig team was James, Megan, Matt, and myself. James was the artist (headlining dj) and I led the team. We were working for Carmel and In the Loop at the Museum of Science and Industry. 3,000 people scattered throughout the space with 6 different kinds of performers (bands, singers, Djs – us!). We were set up on the lower level in the room with the ticket counter and near the Silver Streak Zephyr. Most of the guests came into our area when they entered, dropped they coats off at the coat check, and then proceeded upstairs to see the exhibits, eat food, watch the other performers, etc. We played down-tempo music as guests arrived and kicked into dancing as the night progressed. The space got PACKED during dancing. It was like a river of people flowing down the escalator at one point. We did an hour of overtime and everybody had a ton of fun, ourselves included.

Tons of learns on this one for me. I coordinated the set-up and take-down of equipment which included getting a truck and extra equipment rented, getting the equipment down there, coordinating with the other vendors, and keeping our team performing at our best. Set-up was like birthing a calf. Not that I know what that feels like, but I imagine it was close to this. We picked up bigger sound equipment to support the sound within the room up. To get the equipment down there, we rented a truck. We had been trying to get into the space the day before to set-up because something always goes wrong and with a large set-up, the last thing we wanted was to be rushed and not adequately prepared. It was like pulling teeth to get our equipment down there the day before, but we were able to do it. We weren’t able to set up, but at least it was down there. I’m glad we did do it the day before because I ran into a host of problems getting the truck and driving down (miscommunication about where to rent the equipment, going 45 minutes out of my way to get the truck because of that, printer problems at U-Haul, traffic, etc.). Drama, right? Yep. So, the learn: communicate effectively to my team about what’s going to happen and allot for adequate time because stuff always hits the fan, and when it sprays across the room, it gets messy and stinky.

Setting up the day of was a breeze. I had it all visually laid out in my head about how it was all going to work, communicated what I needed to my team (Megan and Matt), we made it happen, and BAM! we’re done setting up ahead of schedule. We had enough time to talk about how we were going to be with each other, what we wanted the evening to be like, what we wanted to have happen, and see some of the exhibits as well.

As guests were first coming in, I was playing upbeat, fun, fast-paced songs that were way too upbeat and fast for the time of the night. James came over and reminded me to keep it chill, down tempo, laid-back to create a space where people can feel safe, comfortable, talk. Matt observed most of the night and it was helpful having him there because you get that many people in a room and it gets overwhelming. Matt right next to me was like a security blanket because I knew I wasn’t alone, I felt safe, was able to talk things out, move through my fear rather than let it block me, etc. Megan and James came on for a while after Matt and I. We kept the same vibe going. A couple hours into the event, I hopped on with Megan, starting picking it up a little bit, I threw on some Earth, Wind, and Fire, and the crowd started dancing. There wasn’t many people there at that point, but the crowd slowly built, I slowly worked them with disco and 80’s. The next thing I know, the whole lower level is packed with people and I’m going from disco to 80’s to current stuff to house. In and out of all that stuff and keeping the crowd guessing once I earned their trust. Megan and James came on when we hit overtime and tore it up with some Latin and Hip-Hop. Megan and myself wound up the night at the end, YMCA being the final song. Normally I detest playing that song, but it was totally perfect for this crowd that was eating up the happy, upbeat, discoey, housey stuff. All said and done, we made a great team that communicated well with one another and supported each other well.

I liked being the "warm-up" dj. It was cool to build the dance floor and step away when it was at its peak, and allowing James and Megan to take over at that point. I helped create a space for others to play in and saw the value in what I did - overtime!

--Jonathan Hood, team lead
Team: Megan Taylor, Matt Carlson
Artist DJ: James Gustin

Heidi and John

Saturday, May 5th at A New Leaf in Chicago. The couple, Heidi and John, live in Milwaukee and decided to come back to Chicago for their wedding ceremony and reception. DJ Brent Rolland assisted myself. Brent played a huge role as the emcee. I was currently getting over a cold and had a "frog" in my throat. Brent stepped in and did a great job facilitating the announcements of the bridal party and the toasts. The dancing got started earlier than usual. Let me elaborate, I played fun up beat music during the dinner hour. I had guests bobbing their heads and swaying their shoulders. Heidi and John cut their "cup" cake around 9:00, and at that time the caterers were breaking down tables to create a dance floor. I had guests dancing right into the openings of the dance floor as tables were moved. The dancing continued as I played 6 motown hits in a row. This was out of the ordinary, since the bride and groom's first dance didn't happen yet. Heidi and John, being scarred that the dancing would stop, suggested that they not have a first dance. I insisted that they should. After their first dance and Heidi's dance with her father, I threw on "Shout" and the floor errupted once again with energized guests. The rest of the night was a lot of fun. I ended the party with two House Music songs. Cher's "Believe" and then Eric Prytz's "Call On Me". We worked with John from The Hearty Boys Catering and the photographer Glenn Abog.

Brian Carey
deejay, photographer

Hennessey @ the Underground Chicago

Miri Ben-Ari, Josh Kelley, DJ Vice,...who? These were three names that I was not too familiar with before May 3rd. Who are these people you might ask? They are three amazing performers that played for an exclusive party held by Hennessey Artistry at the Underground in Chicago. A very VIP night, and I was to cover the entire night with 2 performances and a night of only Hennessey with my lovely assistant Emily Hard and Daaimah! The night consisted of a challenging crowd of HOT women and a video camera. Not too shabby. My first exclusive party was a great experience and I learned a lot from working as a team and leading. I also learned the value in these parties with networking and how these events can lead to opportunities with highly respected artists and bigger celebrations. The social scene has always been attractive to me and as a filmmaker, seeing these artists affirms my dreams to another level. I'm also in a band and talking to these artists were inspiring and also a lot of fun.

Billy Rood
cinematographer

Best staff EVER!

Ed and Holly had their wedding reception at the Courtyard by Marriott in downtown Chicago. Flavia led a kickin’ catering staff that was the friendliest and most hospitable hotel staff I’ve EVER worked with. As fun and successful as the gig was, the gig did run into a few trouble spots. One was the timing of the dessert. I find this transition to be the most challenging of the evening. People finish their entrée at different times, so dessert is often pushed back 15 minutes, sometimes more. People start getting antsy and the dilemma is do we go ahead and start dancing because they are ready, or do we wait until dessert is served? If we start dancing, then people will either leave the dance floor to eat their dessert or it will sit on the table and go to waste. If we delay, then people will get upset and wonder why nothing is happening. I prefer to start dancing unless dessert is right around the corner. It’s important to have good communication with the caterers and the back of the house to ensure good timing if the dessert is to be served at the right time. The timing didn’t work out quite right on this gig; the dessert was slow to come out the communication wasn’t accurate from the back of the house. I’m hesitant to say any of this because I don’t want anyone reading this to get a bad impression. The hotel staff was wonderful to work with from my perspective. I just would have liked more accurate data so that I could make the best decision for the party. It didn’t have much impact on the dance floor, if any. People just get a little bit upset, then I come in and play great music and everyone has a ton of fun.
I mentioned they were the friendliest and most hospitable hotel staff I’ve EVER worked with, right? No joke. Everybody there was ready to help out. We were unloading our equipment and staff passing by helped us out by either moving equipment, getting a cart, showing us where to go, carrying things, etc. It didn’t matter who they were or what their role was. The banquet captain, Alfredo, was the best host and served us and the party well. He really understood that the dj makes or brakes a party. He kept checking in on us and asking if we needed anything. He grabbed us a ton of water. After we finished with that, he grabbed us energy drinks. After we finished with that, he laid out an array of beverages next to us: juices, waters, Gatorades, Starbucks Frappucinos, etc. I’ve never seen anything like this before. Usually, we are left to fend for ourselves and grab the beverages ourselves. Alfredo, wherever you are, good lookin’ out.

--jonathan; deejay operations manager and resident deejay

Kate and Brian (deejay version)

This wedding was by best deejay performance I've had to date. The gig started with my first meeting with Kate and Brian about a month ago. We clicked right away. Michele, who sold and produced the gig, thought that I would be a great fit with them, and I was. The gig continued in the week of walk-thru at the Newberry Library, and concluded on the Saturday, April 14th at Kate and Brian's wedding reception. For the cocktail hour, I put together a mix of songs by various artists (The Shins, The Decemberists, Belle & Sebastian) that they liked, but guests may not be able to get down to. During dinner I played various artists (Wilco, Coldplay, Bright Eyes), again accomadating the bride and groom's taste in music. During the announcement of the wedding party and bride and groom, I told myself to just be yourself on the mic. I was myself, and turned out great. Hafeez, my assistant, made sure the music cues during introductions and first dance were blended to perfection. Dancing was awesome. I'm glad that fig cinematographers Melissa and Lauren were there, along with Hafeez, to create a buzz of energy as I played from song to song. It was a great night all around. The second to last song was One by U2. Kate and Brian were saying their goodbyes to their guests at this point, and slowly making their way out of the room. When I went into the last dance (The Arcade Fire's "Neighborhood #1"), they were out of my site. So, I turned the speaker to face the Newberry hallway, hoping that the music would reach their ears. It did, and they came back into the ballroom. As they did, I announced them one more time. It was a great moment for them, and it brought closure to the night.

Brian A Carey
deejay, photographer

Kate and Brian

Being a wedding cinematographer, there are certian couples that I just click with. They are the type of couple that I smile while filming them, cry when they cry during thier ceremony, and have a lot of fun filming them.
Kate and Brian were like that. Not only are they super cute with each other, but they have a great genuine manner.

On April 14th at St. Andrews Church and then the Newberry Library, Kate and Brian got married.

I learned the value of preparation on this shoot. This was my first wedding of the season, and i was afraid that i would be a bit rusty. To get into the heart space to do a wedding, i made sure that i was well taken care of, well rested, and also rehersed. The night before i watched a heartfelt film and thought about my well wishes for the couple. This allows me to connect to them in a way that makes my footage better.
When i was training at Fig, James Gustin, a lead cinematographer that I learned from told me that " if you havent fallen in love with your couple and your footage by the end of the night, you haven't done your job."
I have found this to be true. When i am able to fall in love with my footage and the couple the peices that come out of it are amazing. Those who i have not, my product is not bad, but not great either.
It also has a lot to do with the couple, and Kate and Brian were very much in love and I could tell from the moment that i met them.

Lauren and I attended the rehersal. We planned out how we were going to shoot the ceremony, and while they rehersed, we rehersed our shots. This proved to be extremley valuable the day of. Knowing what each of us were doing and when...worked out great.
We had a 2 hour break after the ceremony and used that to review footage. We watched what we shot and then gave each other feedback and came up with things that we wanted to do for the reception.

We arrive at the reception to be greeted by our fellow DJ partners: Brian and Hafeez, of fig.
They were busy practing thier cues and getting things just right.
We set up for ourselves and then Lauren filmed the cocktail hour and b-roll, while i filmed the bridal party.
I got beautiful shots of the bride and groom in the hallway of the newberry library, holding hands and stealing a kiss.
I loved filming hte introductions, Kate and Brian entered the room to thunderous applause.
Dancing was a lot of fun. Brian our DJ was tearing it up, keeping me dancing while i was working. I love working with our DJ's.
We filmed lots of dancing and people mingling.
At the end of the night we said our goodbyes and headed back to the office to watch our footage, sad that we had to leave such a great dance party.
Lauren and I watched our footage and loved what we saw, i am exicted to see the new edit.
We meet with the couple when they return from Paris, and I can not wait to hear thier story of thier travels.
I have such a cool job.

Molin/Smith @ Park Hyatt Chicago

My Saturday—as it was for many of us Figs—was notably wonderful. Here are pictures from a wedding reception I deejayed for my clients, Kelly and Matt. More to come!











– Brent Rolland, resident deejay

(Special thanks to Elizabeth @ Asrai Garden, Jimi and Kate from Jimi Allen Photography, Gordon and Steve from Count Video Productions, and all the great staff of the Park Hyatt for a fantastic Saturday evening!)

Obiala/Dowling @ A New Leaf

Murray Head's "One Night in Bangkok" is a prime example of a song that snuggly fits into the "cult 1980s favorite" category. Featuring sinister, streaming synths, subtle slap bass, and a sultry beat that you can step-dance to, this tune from the musical Chess is one that its fans hold near and dear to themselves—including our clients, Julie and Jake, who requested this song at their reception to honor their upcoming honeymoon in Thailand. Jon Hood and I were the deejays for this young couple's wedding celebration at Chicago's very own A New Leaf; an evening that was, just as the aforesaid Murray Head song details, "a show with everything but Yul Brynner." Et cetera, et cetera, et cetera.

Now, if you are a deejay (and thank you for coming by and reading!) and have performed at A New Leaf, then you must know that the building is situated within residences—most of them inhabited by families with young children. Because of that fact, it is up to us as deejays and upstanding citizens to respect that rule by situating our speakers in such a way that they do not disturb the next-door neighbors. Near the end of our setup, we were informed that we had to move our speakers. Oop. Apparently, one of our main speakers on the second floor was positioned too far forward, and our 10" speaker on one of the landings in the left balcony (connected to the main mixer) could not be used for main-floor music reinforcement. This request did not sit well with Jon, as that caused him to change his plans completely. I did my best to hold space and keep Jon calm. Eventually, he worked the situation out: We placed our two main speakers in the back, and we utilized the 10" only for speeches. With this setup, not only were the music and announcements heard clearly during the event, but the configuration was more direct and had less cordage. Jon and I even used our people skills: I went around to the guests announcing the beginning of dancing, while Jon handled all the other microphone work. We came out better than we would have before.

Music was of high importance this evening, and Jon and I covered all bases. We began the evening with Chicago-themed songs, like Sinatra's "My Kind of Town" and "Sweet Home Chicago" by the Blues Brothers. I played some great instrumental jazz during cocktails and dinner, including Jeremy Kahn, Duke Ellington, and even a bit of rare Latin treats from Vince Guaraldi. Jon served up such downtempo artists as Zero7 and Thievery Corporation. During dancing, we double-teamed to create one of the most electric floors we have ever produced. This was the first time that I ever played the Jackson 5's "I Want You Back" and the Notorious B.I.G.'s "Hypnotize." Yes, really. My first time. Go figure. Regardless, those songs—and many of my other selections—hit gorgeously. My "highlight" spin was Lionel Richie's "All Night Long." This track totally matched the lively mood of the crowd. In fact, I left my post from behind the decks and joined the guests on the dance floor. I even danced with Julie, the beloved bride! Truthfully, I do not get to physically join in the celebration at every gig, so every chance I get out on the floor, I enjoy myself fully.

Jake and Julie thanked us both graciously for a great time. Julie stated that this was "the best wedding party that she had ever been to." I'm sure she knew that it was her wedding party and not someone else's. Even with the anger and struggle that occurred at the beginning of the day, we took each situation at a time and sorted through them, enabling ourselves to perform well and throw a wonderful party. Rough starts can always lead to smooth endings—that's where it matters most. Because of this memorable celebration, I was inspired to write my own lyrics to "One Night in Bangkok":

One night at New Leaf with the Fig deejays jammin'
They overcame the speaker discrepancy
All night the crowd kept the dance floor slammin'
Who could predict that this would go so sweet?
I can't believe the bride danced right in front of meeeeee!

Daa-daan!

– Brent Rolland, resident deejay

Don't Know What to Title This

Not many people know this, but A New Leaf only allows speakers on the Mezzanine level of their space.

Floorplan of A New Leaf:


The family next door has a baby and doesn't appreciate loud music. The rule at A New Leaf is that music can only be on the Mezzanine level. When speakers are placed further in, the sound is too loud for the neighbors. What we've done in the past is put one or two smaller speakers further down along the railing, like so:

Floorplan with previous speaker placement (green squares are speakers)


I've always done this type of arrangement and worked it out with the venue to keep the volume at a low level for cocktails and dinner, especially with speakers towards the front. Those speakers are mainly there for announcements and speeches, but also help spread the sound out. What upset me about this gig, was that we were told we had to put both speakers upstairs up against the back wall. Our layout then looked like this:

Floorplan with current speaker placement (green squares are speakers)


The speaker that was closer to the railing on the mezzanine was used to help push the sound from the upper floor into the rest of the space. The problem with this new arrangement is that speaker no longer pushes sound past the upper stairs. The reason is because of how the space is constructed, it's further away from the middle, and more importantly, anybody upstairs will block the sound from leaving that area. The drawing below shows the space a crowd will take up. Note: there is also a similar size crowd in the middle and front areas, but I didn't include them.

Floorplan with current speaker placement and crowd on second floor (pink blob is the crowd on the second floor)


Now, I understand there is a family next door. However, a good speaker placement within the space can provide great sound that everyone can hear without being too loud to offend neighbors. It's pretty simple, actually. Many times, I'm working with clients that are not aware of the sound restrictions in the space and this severely limits the flow of the evening and what happens during the night. Any announcements that need to be made, will not be heard by everyone. With my vast experience of crowd management within this space, and the help of an experienced dj who's great with rapport, I was able to make flow work for my gig here last Saturday.

Julie and Jake had their reception at A New Leaf with yours truely and Brent Rolland at the helm. Sally and Dan from Hearty Boys were bringing in the scrumptious food. This wedding was a blast. Even with the new speaker arrangement, we were able to make it work. To manage the flow of the crowd into speeches, we made three announcements. The first was upstairs to all the people on the mezzanine. The second, we plugged a mic into the speaker downstairs and pointed it into the middle section. The third was pointed towards the front. The speaker downstairs was only used for speeches and announcements, which was approved by the venue. It seems pretty simple. Right? Well, it was. When we went into dancing, we did the same thing, with one exception. Brent prepped everybody first by going up to them individually to let them know, and then I came in over the PA. It was easy as pie. I think what sets us apart from other people is that we're willing to find ways around our limitations to make an event work. Originally, speeches were to happen by the balcony on the mezzanine level. When we were told to move our speakers, I adjusted how speeches were going to happen and let the Julie and Jake know. They would not be heard in the original location and even though it looked like Julie and Jake were nervous about the location changing, I knew it was for the best and went with it anyway. It turned out to be the best place for them in the end and everyone heard them great.

As far as dancing, I've never seen prepping the crowd work so well. Almost everybody came upstairs for the first dances and stayed the rest of the night. We never had an empty dance floor. Brent and I each took a side and tag-teamed back and forth all night. The food was AMAZING! The crowd was WONDERFUL! And I've never seen a bride and groom enjoying their party so much as Julie and Jake!

Cheers!

--Jonathan Hood, resident dj & dj operations manager
also on duty: Brent Rolland, resident dj

More New Faces of fig

Many of you wonder, what is it like in office? It always seems so crazy, creative, wild, fun, hectic, etc. For those of you wanting a glimpse into the lives of the figgies and how crazy it gets, here some photos showing just how crazy it gets...


















--Jonathan

Williams/Bradford @ Hotel Orrington

Welcome to "Weddingpalooza!"

This is the period when the Fig deejays gear up for receptions, ceremonies, and any other events that fit well with the magic word of "wedding." Although my first event did not contain bushy-haired hippies and drummers with bass drums larger than their car, this one did honor the holy matrimony of my clients, Kevin and Tonya. Along with my partner Andrew Ettenhofer, wedding planner extraordinaire Hope Weis, two skilled photographers from Stuart Rogers, and Bruce Kite from the luxurious Hotel Orrington in Evanston, we joined forces to produce a classy, fun afternoon for the couple and their guests.

The reception began at 11:30 in the morning. According to Tonya and Kevin, music was certainly the core of the afternoon. It was my responsibility to come up with a cocktail mix, a dinner mix, as well as all the music for the afternoon. Cocktails showcased the cool sounds of Najee, Incognito, and Kirk Whalum, to name a few. The dinner mix was really nice, as I played a lot of smooth jazz covers of familiar songs, such as "Joy and Pain" and "That's the Way Love Goes." As for dancing, I handled most of the playing, while Andrew filled in when I had to step away from the decks. The big pleasers were the "Cha-Cha Slide" and a very unexpected request, Parliament's "Knee Deep." Yeah…I didn't recognize it myself until I heard it at the event. There were also a few slow songs here and there, but for the most part, there were some fun, energetic soul, disco and R&B songs in our mix. I really felt a lot of ownership around the music of the event, as I worked hard to locate and gather every song that they requested, as well as use my musical knowledge to set the mood of the day well.

Were my efforts all in vain? Listen to this: At at the end of the afternoon, at least four or five people—including one of the bridesmaids—complimented either Andrew, myself, or the both of us on our great job and collaboration. The most wonderful happening occurred right before I left the grand ballroom: This tall, lovely woman by the name of Leslie Wesley (yes, that is her real name, and it does rhyme!) sought me out and not only did she give me praise for my hard work, but she also asked for my card and a copy of the smooth jazz dinner mix that I made! That was the icing on my virtual wedding cake. Yum.

Truly, this was a successful, yet mellow event. As mentioned before, this was an afternoon gig, so most people were not crazy-drunk (or just plain drunk or crazy). This was a conscientious and mature event, and I fit in well with my professional attitude and my music. I am really fortunate to be on gigs where that can happen. Let's see what the next wind of "Weddingpalooza" will take me.

– Brent Rolland, resident deejay

(Special thanks to Hope Weis, Eric @ Stuart Rogers, and Bruce @ the Orrington for everything!)

Billboards also know as Adventures of Tim and Brian

A lot has happened in the past two years.
Love
Managment

Swimming With The Fishies

I dj'd a gig at the Shedd Aquarium last Friday. The gig was for Shedd's professional junior board, roughly 800 people. David and I were set up in the main entrance area, food and bars were located in the center and off into the wings. We started the night off with "beach" music like Beach Boys or Jimmy Buffett. The guests lingered mainly in the center or off in the wings. They didn't come into our room until about an hour and half into the gig. I don't like it when this happens because I'll start thinking that the music isn't good enough to attract people into my room. Realty isn't the case though. The bars and food were more attractive to the guests because they were only interested in drinking. It's very unsatisfying when guests just want to drink. When the bars closed, the guests vacated within one song. The bars close, I look down to change cd's, look up and everyone was out of there. All the same, we still had fun. David handled most of the requests - there were a LOT of them. I read the crowd and played the music. We hit pretty much everything, from 80's to hair bands, to hip-hop, to latin. People would scream when I'd play a song, then go back to talking. We never got a unified dance floor going. Most people wanted to drink and talk. The others would dance in their own little groups. It was like a meat market where everybody was there just to drink and hook up. We got really great reviews on the music. Handed out a lot of cards. It just wasn't that satisfying. I want to be appreciated for doing a great job and didn't get that. So the question becomes, how do I feel satisfied without looking to others in order to get it?

--Jonathan

All In! All Done! - Sold!

Morgan Park Academy threw a fundraiser at Adler Planetarium. It consisted of a silent auction and a live auction to raise money for their school. They flew in an auctioneer from Washington to handle the emcee work and auctioneering. The dj booth was set up in the Galileo room with 6 speakers spaced out from there down past the sun. If you haven’t been to the Adler, you have no idea what I’m talking about. James leaded this gig with a broken hand. Chris, Tim, David, and myself set the space up. It was a huge set up with cables and speakers running rampant. A little exaggeration. It was a well thought out plan that was executed with extreme precision. I think we’re getting much better at these big set ups, both in placement of the equipment and in execution of the set up. It was like clockwork. James pointed, we moved. He was the brains, we were the brawn. Tim and David took off after set up and Chris stayed to assist me with the deejaying while James kept an ear on the big picture as the producer of the event. Music during the evening started off with some tunes from the Hidden Beach collection, moved into classic jazz standards, and then I hit some of what I’m know for – worldly down-tempo electronic lounge along with some lightly sprinkled deep house tracks. I love this stuff. I had just gotten some new stuff off emusic.com and I had been waiting to play it. Finally got the chance. I love this stuff. We also did music cues for the live auction. When an item sold for high amount or if it was an intense bidding, we would play 10-15 seconds of a song. My favorites were “Oh Yeah” by Yello and “Start Me Up” by the Rolling Stones. We also played the Bull’s theme song when tickets to one of their games came up, and “Don’t Stop Believing” by Journey when White Sox tickets were auctioned. James made sure that the space sounded great by monitoring the speakers and adjusting as conditions in the room changed. He also tended to the Auctioneer so he could sell the items. Chris was tending to me and also keeping an eye on the big picture as well. We worked well as a team and made sure the evening was a success.

The New Faces of Fig

A day at fig:












I spent a day taking photos of the figgies today. It was a CRAZY day, as you can see.

Ted Kupper's Bar Mitzvah After-Party @ Whirlyball

I know what you're probably thinking, after reading the title line: Whirr-lee-bawl. What is this…Whirr-lee-bawl? Imagine a fervent fusion of jai alai, hockey and basketball and with a heaping helping of bumper cars and a dash of extremeness, and you have the fun sport that has entertained—and possibly bruised—many people for quite some time now. The Fullerton location of this franchise was the venue for a cool bar mitzvah after-party for young Ted Kupper and 75 of his friends. Oh, yeah. We were in for a supposed ride wilder than Whirlyball itself.

The concept of this celebration was only to concentrate on having a fun time, as all of the traditional events (i.e. the hora, the breaking of the bread) took place one week before the party. This event was complete with a pizza buffet, laser tag matches (lovingly called "Lasertron"), unlimited video gaming, and three hours of non-stop music. My partner Ryan and I headed up that latter department, and we played a lot of great punk, rap, and mainstream hits. We had a few dancefloors here and there as well. Our main challenge was to keep the kids in the room that we were in, as it was my task to announce which groups (designated by wristband colors) would be next to play both Whirlyball or Lasertron. Unfortunately, being in a large venue with copious electronic eye candy, that just did not happen. That caused some confusion as well as questioning among the kids, along with the fact that the rounds changed from 15-minute periods to 10-minute periods during the day. Whoa. Ted's mother, Janet, had to run around and inform the kids on which groups would be next. I felt disheartened that she had to do that, but as the day progressed, I noted that as "teamwork", as opposed to anything else, as I did my part inside and outside of the buffet/deejay room, informing kids about the schedule. For the most part, everything seemed to work out well. I did not hear any complaints of kids missing their turn or such. Plus, in fairness and honesty, that circumstance turned out to be somewhat of a blessing, for if a large group of kids had to bear with one another (and yours truly!) in a rather small, dimly lit room for three hours straight, that probably would have made for a less enjoyable time for them. I think there's a word for something like that…like, "classroom." (My apologies to any teachers that are reading this. I'm only kidding!)

The end of the afternoon was quite memorable, as a snowball dance occurred. This was Ted's main request, and I made sure that it was fulfilled. I utilized the ne'er-forgotten favorite, James Blunt's "You're Beautiful", and the kids followed suit. My goodness…Ted was definitely ready for this part of the day. He appeared as if he was on a pleasant prowl for his next dancing partner after every "snowball" call. I was giggling inside, for I thought that Ted's comfort factor and eagerness to dance was refreshing. Not all of the other kids were prepared and/or ready, which caused a bit of awkwardness during this moment, but it turned out really well. Ryan and I ended on a slow rap song (whose title escapes me at the moment), and a small "mitzvah mosh pit" ensued. With that, the kids exited from our room and went about their merry ways.

Whirlyball is the kind of place where you want to walk around and experience every inch of its space, as well as take in all the gaming and things to do. One could go absolutely crazy and get lost, as well. With this group, there were not any worries. Ted and his friends exhumed an appreciable level of maturity and were able to take care of themselves well in this place, which I totally adored. I appreciated the fact that kids came in during the afternoon and were able to enjoy our music and playfulness. Thinking back, I could have been a total wet blanket and coerced the kids into staying in our "deejay zone," but that would have been rather pushy and selfish. I'm glad the kids were free to have their choice of what to do. I totally love how my assistant Ryan and I worked well throughout the day, keeping each other positive and supporting one another, even though we were up against empty floors and all the goings-on outside. It may have been tough being in somewhat of a "box" for three hours, but we got through it successfully. All in all, this was a enjoyable, energetic day that was all about Ted, his friends, and Whirlyball.

(By the way, is it my turn on the court yet? Well…is it?)

– Brent Rolland, resident deejay

(Special thanks to the Kuppers, the Koestrings, and to Jenn and everyone at Whirlyball!)

Atomic Dogs!

PAWS threw a fundraiser at Kaleidoscope on Saturday. Tobey and I dj'd while Brian and Chris took photos and projected them on one of the screens hanging in the venue. Tobey and I started the night off playing music that we wanted to listen to, ranging from downtempo housy stuff to motown to classic rock to top 40. Tobey was a ton of fun to work with. She was getting so excited about all the dogs that were there. She was also great on the decks. One of my goals for this gig was to get her more comfortable on the decks and playing more than on my last gig with her. Once we got a dance floor, these two girls wanted to dance with me. So I did. And Tobey had to take over. I would check in with her while I was dancing to see how she was doing. Not that I needed to, she was doing great. I guess it was more for my piece of mind. I have a hard time letting go of the decks and letting someone else take over. But it's good for me to do because it allows for others to step up and learn. That builds the team at fig and keeps us growing. It also allows me to dance! I've never danced this much at an event. I've dance for maybe one or two songs, but I was out there for a while on this one. It was SOOOO much fun.

--Jonathan

Fig - Live at the Metro

Sacred Heart through a surprise party for their 7th and 8th graders at the Metro last Friday. The kids were there for about two hours. They had pizza, one of the instructors at the school gave them dance lessons, they could get tours of the club, and for the last hour we dj'd - with a little help from two of the students. I taught a dj class last semester and two of my students spun some groovy tunes. They were both awesome and rocked the decks. The students came up on stage and it got a little overwhelming at times with how many were surrounding us. Edgar played the bouncer role when too many students were near the decks. It seemed like they had a great time. At the end was my favorite part when I gave shout outs to the two students that helped me out and asked everyone if they wanted one more. "Are you ready to go back to school?" "NOOOOO!!!" "Do you want one more song?" "YEEEESSSSS!!!" Then I played the Casper Slide and everybody came up on stage and did it. It was a hoot.

--Jonathan

The Fabulous Winter Ball

Poofy dresses, frindged tuxes, the king and queen, cheese balls, cup cakes, disco, big hair, football jocks, band geeks, the popular girl, air guitar, snow flakes, shimmering shoes, beer bongs, tequilla shots, and so on.

Picture all of these pieces put together for one night at the American Legion Hall in Arlington Heights. Jennifer Alese and Kathleen Gabriel, friends from Arlington Heights, planned and organized a high school reunion bash featuring music played by fig deejays Brian and Megan. We had an air guitar contest where dudes and dudettes jammed to Guns and Roses' "Sweet Child of Mine." They all should have won! Kathleen prepared 100 shots made of ice for the tequilla shot, with lime of course. Before the King and Queen were announced a red carpet, rather construction paper, was rolled out to accept the winners. We played Cyndi Lauper's "Time After Time" as our King and Queen shared a wonderous moment. The rest of the winter ball guests joined them, and our dance floor was packed.
Again the song "Paradise by the Dashboard of Light" surprised me. It was a big hit. Deejays, don't be scarred of this song, it is loved by many.

The party was a such a hit that it was published in the Daily Herald. Check out the article online.

Brian Carey
deejay, photographer

Blue Water

The sweetest couple on Earth. And the most supportive guests on Earth. Okay, maybe that's a little extreme, but check this out. Their wedding was at the Blue Water Grill and the space upstairs got a little tight for dinner. Our plan was to introduce Andy and Kelly (bride and groom) into their first dance and invite the guests up for a second song. When I saw the space, I was concerned that the guests might not get up because it was so tight. I expressed this concern to Andy and said it might be better to just go with the first dance song and not invite guests. That didn't feel right either. Compromise: invite the guests up half-way through the song. But I would need a trick to get them up. What if I made a game out of it? The dancefloor was tiny and I used that to my advantage. Before I did introductions, I walked the guests through what was about to happen so they were prepared. Something like, "Dinner will be starting soon, but before it does there are few things we are going to do first. I'm going to introduce the wedding party, and then the bride and groom. They will then go into their first dance and half-way through, I'll invite all of you to join them." And this is where I play the game. "It's a small dance floor" [state the obvious because everyone already sees it but doesn't want to say anything] "and we might not be able to fit everyone, but I want to try. Let's see how many people we can fit up here." We do introductions, the bride and groom go into their first dance, I make the announcement, "Andy and Kelly would now like to invite all of you to join them on the dancefloor" (making it about the bride and groom is a great way to celebrate them and makes it more inviting to the guests. Who am I? They don't know me.). EVERYONE got up from their tables. I couldn't have predicted anything like it. I've never seen anything like it. It was magic. The dancefloor was packed, and those that didn't make it, danced at their table. It was beautiful.

Edgar assisted me on this, his first dj gig. I was showing him the ropes, how to hook up equipment and read crowds. We had a lot of fun with the music and joking around. The crowd was a rock crowd, which isn't my strong suit. That can actually be a good thing. It was cool stretching my mind around a genre that I don't use often enough to encompass most of dancing. Edgar made a great suggestion as to how to end the night. He suggested a song by The Rolling Stones. The song he picked wasn't quite it, but I knew it was the right band. I did some searching and found "Start Me Up." Perfect. What a great way to end the night.

Jonathan, lead dj
Edgar, assistant

Elvis has left the building!

It's a bird! It's a plane! No... It's Elvis! He lives. Again...again...again...and again. Five Elvis's? Could it really be? Yes! It is! We did this gig through Ken Arlen. He hired us to dj the Four Season's holiday party. Half-way through the party, there was a performance with five Elvis impersonators. They sang "Viva Las Vegas" and then did an encore of "Jailhouse Rock." Other cool things about the party was the dance contest where we switched from song to song to song, only playing a minute or so of each song while the contestants were being weeded down to the final winner.

Erik Friedly assisted me on this gig. I like working with him because he thinks so differently than me. His knowledge of rock music greatly surpasses mine and I was hearing stuff I haven't heard in a long time. I love playing with someone with different music tastes because it expands my knowledge. We hopped back and forth all night and when I got stuck, he would be there to back me up and take over. It kept the energy of the party up and moving and my creativity was totally sparked from those interactions.

Jonathan, lead dj
Erik, assistant dj (second lead)

Sutton Place

Zack and I were on this one. Great learning experience for both. Tough gig. Some of the things that I did not like about this one were all the raffle prizes that were given away. It really ate away at the time and the crowd wasn't excited about it. They gave away 54 prizes at three different times. Each time took about 10-15 minutes, with the final taking around 30. One of the challenges I was up against as a dj was to keep the crowd engaged while the raffle was happening. I started by playing theme songs during, then switched to rat pack stuff with the suggestion of the emcee. The second raffle, we played some funk. That got the crowd into it a little bit more than what I was playing earlier. The last one, we played some hip-hop and house. That totally worked. They switched emcees at this point which helped out also. The second emcee was more playful with the guests, so that helped out more. He was getting into the music, too.

The crowd was mostly hispanic, and the music I played tended to be either merengue and salsa or hip-hop and pop. While I was in a merengue set, one of the guests told me, "Enough of majority rules. Play something I can understand." That comment really pissed me off. 1.) It was racist. 2.) I was about to switch music anyway - although I almost reconsidered after she made that comment.

This was one of those gigs where there were a lot of things that pissed me off and I was talking a LOT with Zack about everything that was upsetting me. It was mostly about the comments people were making. It didn't seem like they were there to really support and celebrate each other. Zack was great support to be there as someone I could talk things out with so my anger wouldn't effect my judgement that much. It effected it a little, because I didn't say anything about the raffle once I found out there were 54 prizes and strategized about the best way to do it.

--Jonathan, lead dj
Zack, assistant dj

Fig is Part of Celebration at Hilton Towers

Last Saturday I deejayed a reception for Meghan Moffet and Dan Dzeicanokws, and it was a party. They held there ceremony and cocktail hour at the Hilton, and rented out the top tier suite, originally built for Elizabeth Taylor, for the reception. The suite was very large and quite perfect for a DJ, because of the layout and space. The suite was just for the party, so I believe the "home" feel really made people comfortable and ready to dance. The dancing floor was small enough that is gave a great vibe for dancing. The envoironment is key for dancing, because from my experience people/crowds like to be someone confined when busting a move, the intimacy builds a sense of security. So, I began the evening by playing high energy rock and lounge songs, that got poeple bopping. I choose this because it was 8pm, and I wanted to get people ready to rip up the dance floor. I then went into introductions, toasts, played music that the bride requested and that fit the atmospere. Then Meghan and Dan did their first dance, mother/son, father/daughter and I went straight into a polka which got many couples on the floor. I then played some fantastic Dean Martin and Sinatra hits, and then hit a few Italian hits, which really got the other crowd on the dance floor. I made the song go on repeat, so I built energy and momentum and had people joining the circle. When I felt the moment was right I ended the song and went straight into Respect by Arethra and everyone jumped on the dance floor. The night from that moment sailed onward hit after hit after hit, I played motown, disco, funk, 80's, blues.... The best part was hearing the crowds reaction when I began a new song, the song would begin everyone would look around and then scream when they realized what it was. Grandmothers were forming tango lines, people were breakdancing, jumping off of the walls, it was such a fun celebratory event! When I hit the old school 80's, Meghan and Dan's friends went crazy... I played a fantastic set... Bust A Move, Ice Ice Baby, Jump Around, You Have to Fight for your Right to Party, followed my Pust It. I was so pleased. I played until 1:30, when the dance floor was still going, but I had to say goodbye.
Lead DJ: Megan Taylor
Assistant DJ: David Joyce
Venue and Caterers: Hilton Towers

WJE Holiday Party

WJE is an architectural firm, located downtown on LaSalle. They were having their annual holiday party at the Westin River North. We worked with Laura Altman, who planned the party. I heard that Laura and her husband danced and danced some more! We were hired to shot a group photo of all of the employees. They were all gathered that night, and it was the perfect time to capture the group as a whole. So we did! Ryan and I, that is. We were there for about an hour, and covered group and couples as they arrived to the ballroom, along with the larger group. Tim and Lauren deejayed the party, so we had their support in gathering/directing the group for the shot. It was a lot of fun!

Brian Carey
photographer, deejay

Food life

Hafeez and I formed the dj part of our Integrated Experience for a gig at Food Life - food court in the Water Tower Place. After we got set up, I hopped on the decks and started playing some hip-hop. Older stuff I hadn't heard in a while. After I put on the first track, employees of Food Life who were setting up, started dancing. These two guys started doing the dance from House Party. I was just doing my thing, playing music I wanted to hear. It's so cool to see people dance to music I like. Hafeez took over to warm up and started using some of the tricks I use (stutter starts, blending, etc.). He's getting pretty good with his mixing. It was cool to see him learn and use what I'm doing. I didn't even know he was picking that up while I was spinning. I often talk about what I'm doing, but it's more about what I'm seeing and thinking. Mixing is more instinctual to me now.

During the event, little things here and there were really pissing me off. A woman requested Sexyback when we were about to start the raffle, and she was very persistant about wanting it played. NOW! I did not play it. Hafeez took her to the side and talked to her. They talked for a good ten, fifteen minutes - she must have been really upset. Another thing was that one of the women who was part of the raffle asked me to make an anouncement and to say that it was happening in five minutes and to ask everyone to come to the dancefloor. I started to make the anouncement and as I was talking, she's telling me what to say and that I'm forgetting to tell them to come over. This is how far I got into my anouncement before she interupted me: "The raffle will be starting in five minutes, once again the raffle will be starting--" When things upset me during a gig, I immediately pull my assistant aside and talk with them about what happened so it doesn't effect my performance on my gig. It seemed like things were happening non stop during the night and I kept talking with people during the whole event. Hafeez would take over when this would happen and I would pull one of our other teammates aside to talk. I finally got it all out by the end of the raffle and we kicked into dancing hardcore. I was back on my game and tore it up.

--Jonathan

Photos!

I like photography! I've been dj'ing with fig media for almost three years now and I have to say, I'm pretty freakin' good. Even gigs that I'm not satisfied with are pretty freakin' good. I'm not sure when the urge came up for me to grab a camera and start taking photos, but it did. And I'm finding I'm pretty good at that, too. I've got a ton to learn, but I LOVE it! These are some sample photos from around the office and two from a gig...

I was on my first photo gig December 29 where I was taking photos (I had assisted Brian earlier last year with lighting, but didn't take photos). The gig was for Chicago Storm (indoor soccer). It was much different from what I was used to. It was fast paced and I kept thinking I needed to capture everything. There were all these cool things happening and I was getting upset that I wasn't getting it all. Ryan was leading this gig and he was giving me some good coaching. One, when people were past a certain point on the field, it was too far away and the photos would be useless. Two, listen to the crowd and when they're cheering, it might be good photo ops of the crowd. Three, be mindful of where I'm standing because people are trying to watch the game - I can get good shots while allowing the crowd to see the game. Ryan was still somewhat new to the Storm games, he had been on four or five games at this point, so there were still things we were both learning. One was to have the settings on the camera up high (shutter speed, ISO) because the action is happening so fast. We didn't actually learn this until we got back when we were looking at the photos on the computer. Looking at them in camera, they looked good. But blown up, a lot of them were blurry. We still got some great photos from the game, though.

--Jonathan

Max's Bar Mitzvah @ The Embassy Suites (Chicago)

My very first gig of 2007 consisted of mushroom soup, toilet paper, and inflatable monkeys. Yes, inflatable monkeys. Was this an bona fide, all-expenses paid acid trip? Sounds like it, but…no. This was a bar mitzvah. The thirteenth birthday of Max Smith was going to be celebrated in style at the splendid Embassy Suites Hotel (near Navy Pier) on the north side of Chicago. Cultural celebrations such as the one in question require a lot of positive and substantial energy, as they usually contain many mini-events packed into one five-hour evening. Honestly, your toes have to be on their toes to ensure that you are on the ball with everything. On this night, my partner Melissa and I were prepared to entertain a healthy crowd of 150 adults and children with games and music abound, and to give Max a 'mitzvah to remember.

Out of all the events of the night, the most rewarding for me was the games portion. Being an avid fan of television game shows (and their respective hosts), and wanting to host actual game shows in the future, I could not be any more elated to own this section of the evening. Max and his young friends engaged in a triad of tricky contests, which all had a payoff of the aforesaid inflatable monkeys: A musical chairs/scavenger hunt hybrid, a mummy wrap race, and a balloon-popping game. The first on the list was the most tense and most enjoyably memorable, as the objects to hunt became more obsucre and harder to find (i.e. safety pins), and the kids were highly competitive, which made this game rather compelling. The cutest thing happened in the last round: I announced that the item to find was a cell phone with a flippable cover, and this 8 or 9 year-old contestant by the name of Joanna pulled her own phone out of her pocket to the sheer delight of the crowd. Talk about living in the fast lane, eh? (Ironically, she ended up winning the game by successfully retrieving someone else's flippable mobile phone.) Throughout this game and all the rest, I handled the hosting while Melissa deejayed the background music with extremely thoughful selection and timing. I have done a lot of different hosting jobs at bridal shows, weddings and such, but never before was I this calm and mellifluous on the microphone. I simply felt great and believed that I was going to perform well in something that I enjoyed doing.

Dancing, just in case you are wondering, was an all-night event in itself. Max and several of his friends were hanging out in the ballroom during cocktails, and Melissa and I decided to rock them out with some cuts from Kelly Clarkson, the Stray Cats, and Elvis himself. When dinner arrived, some of the older folks took command of the dance floor…to songs I had piping from an iPod mix! Thank you, Steve Jobs. Of course, being a Jewish event, the Israeli folk dancing commenced with Harry Belafonte's "Hava Nagila" and extended to a fifteen-minute set of Israeli folk tunes until I switched over to the Isley Brothers' version of "Shout." From there, we did a mixture of dancing, games, and one snowball dance, per the request of our 'mitzvah man. We even partook in a fun and complimentary salsa lesson from Hannah, a friend of the Smith family. (I think that was the only thing that I was not quite good at, heh.) Looking back in my deejay career, I recall assisting on a bat mitzvah (the Jewish celebration of a girl's thirteenth birthday) last year in which the younger generation overtook the adults on the dance floor by a landslide. Max's event had nearly everyone on the dance floor in a brilliant blend of the young and the young at heart. It brings me joy when the two distinct age groups come together to the same centre, as opposed to having one group having all the fun. This was a very enjoyable crowd, to say the least.

I went into this event with a full confidence and desire to succeed. The many prayers I sent to God for this premiere gig of my '07 season were certainly heard, as I was relaxed from the beginning of the day to the very end. It is amazing how one's confidence can be contagious, and I felt as if everyone "caught" the good vibes I emitted. I was, for that one night, a game show host, a musician, a facilitator, and a couple of other hard-to-name jobs. With so many invisible hats on my head, I do have one inquiry: Where in the hell was my yarmulke?

– Brent Rolland, resident deejay

(Special thanks to the Smith family and to Amanda and everyone at the Embassy for a terrific night!)

The Peninsula Holiday Party

Just like the week before, fig's Integrated Experience (deejay, video mixing, and live photography) was in effect. This time being the Peninsula Hotel holiday staff party. We had Jon and Megan on the music, Tim and Keren on the video/photo mixing, and Eric and myself strike again a the live photographers. Yes, we were live (in person) photo guys, and shooting/projecting our work onto the big screen.

Eric and I, once again, got into the nuts and bolts of a prominent Chicago hotel, courtesy of their staff members. We covered everything from the sales and catering offices to the staff cafeteria. As the guests arrived into the ballroom for food and drinks, we had these photos projecting onto the screens. The photos reflected all of the hard work, the positive attitude, and fun that the Peninsula staff put into their work, day in and day out.

We continued to shoot the party as it went on. This created a "buzz" as guests were starring at the IMAG projection, viewing themselves in amazement by the timeliness of the projecting photos. I was looking for back lighting when framing my shots. I got some really great color and natural lighting, while using what the space was giving me. My favorite part of the night was covering the awards portion of the party. It's important that the hard work of the individual employee of the months and year are celebrated in front of their peers.


Brian A. Carey
photographer, deejay

5,4,3,2,1 Happy New Year.... Get Down Tonight.

DJ Jon Hood and I (DJ Megan Taylor) rocked the New Years Eve Party at Transitions, sponsored by Fig Media, Wright Institute, and Transitions. The party was spectacular and it was honor to play music to such an engaged vibrant crowd. I had one of those "on nights" because I felt confident in all of my sets and alive and engaged with our MC James Gustin. There were two main obstacles of the evening that taught me about setup. One was the speaker setup..... we had to create great sound in all areas throughout the cafeteria and the bookstore. We had to create an atmosphere where people could boogy and also engage in conversation. We setup a 6 speaker setup placing speakers throughout the store on stands, behind curtains, and on the floor to create the dancefloor base. Another obstacle was having 4 wireless microphones that could be used throughout the space. The microphones were tested and ready to go, but after the space had been filled with 200 plus the dynamics shifted and we had to do last minute adjustments. These are skills that I am developing and want to master. Sound is important and delivery is a must. My sets ranged from great 80's, to funk, hip hop, and disco. I think I really was myself at this event positive, supportive, and excited, so I felt great supporting James with dance off's and raffle. Jon and I performed better than ever and we really supported each other my talking a lot, expressing our feelings, yelling with excitement, and switching on and off. I feel proud of the job I did and my ability to have an excellent time.

Ringin in the New Year @ Transitions!

fig media, one of the officials sponsors of the Wright Institute's conscious alternative New Year's Eve party, rocked Transitions Bookplace into the New Year! Megan Taylor and Jon Hood on DJ, Tobey Geise and Zack Redden video mixing music videos, live video and photographs, Melissa Martens on live video, Michele provided the flowers, James the emcee master, and yours truly, Lauren Pollock taking some kick ass photos!
I found out the night before New Years Eve that I would be the only photographer for the event. I was scared and excited all at once. It's a big job to cover an entire event solo! I had lots of support from the crew and had a blast!
It's pretty cool to see people's responses to seeing themselves up on screen and then coming to me asking me to take their pictures. I got lots of compliments, the crowd was energetic and so much fun!
Right before midnight, Judith Wright, one of the founders of the Wright Institute, spoke to the crowd. She said that the way you are at the turn of the New Year is most times an indicator to how you will be in the next year.
I freaked out at first--thought I had to figure out how I wanted to be or my New Year would be screwed! Instead, I surrounded myself with some great people, gave lots of hugs, then started shooting away! Looks like I'll be loved and loving while taking some killer photos in 2007! Watch out, here she comes!


Lauren Pollock
Assistant Office Manager, Photographer, Videographer, Video Editor--fig Extrardonaire!

Siva Strikes Again!

We received another call from the lovely Dr. Siva to photograph his company's EPIR holiday party. So, Lauren and Megan jumped in their car and headed to the Bowlingbrook Golf Club to document the evening. I have worked with the group in the past and again was met by a diverse group of tech's, Indians, and all ages. The group is friendly, fun and loves to dance. The night included a fabulous meal, dancing with and watching Polynesian dancers, and endless hits to dance too.

Photographers: Megan Taylor and Lauren Pollock
Venue: Bollingbrook Golf Club
Date: 12.29.06