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