We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Jay Durnell. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Jay below.
Hi Jay, thanks for joining us today. Alright, so we’d love to hear about how you got your first client or customer. What’s the story?
I received my first client without even realizing it would begin my business. In 2015, I created a YouTube channel focused on interviewing bands and performers and recording live music performances in Erie, PA. This led to me meeting and befriending many bands, musicians, artists and performers. In 2016, I watched and recorded a great performance from Philadelphia, PA traditional metal band, Corners Of Sanctuary. I met the whole band after the show and we bonded a bit over being born and raised in the suburbs of Philadelphia. I’d see them in Erie twice more and got to know them better each time. In the summer of 2018, Mick Michaels (the band’s guitarist) asked me if I knew of any venues they could play at and if I could book a show for them. Of course, I just happened to be friends with a few venue owners and decided that I could make it happen for them. That was the day I became a concert promoter for the Erie, PA region. I learned how to do all aspects of the business by just diving in and doing it. I did get some mentorship from Robert Jensen (owner of Basement Transmissions Theater) and Alex Harilla (r.i.p.) (owner/operator of Gimp Guy Promotions). That first concert I booked 5 bands and, of course, the headlining band canceled. The patrons and I all had a great time, but the show actually lost money. I learned that day that you have to work super hard to make a profit in the concert business. I also learned that concert promotions and production isn’t something you want to get into if you just want to make a profit. Most concerts, especially local ones, break even or lose money. You really have to love music and musicians to remain in the business. I measure my success on friendships I make both with local people and musicians and fans from all over the country. The networking and being able to help aspiring musicians grow is another aspect of the business I measure my success with also. So, no first dollar achievement came that day, but I still went home happy knowing I provided a great time for the bands and the fans.
Jay, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?
I’m a lifelong fan of music, particularly the heavier genres like punk and metal, but I love it all. I also learned how to play bass and singing came early in my life through church attendance and youth plays. I think I relate to my clients and customers this way. My clients are all music artists that want to perform in the Erie, PA area. They consist of local and out of area bands and performers. I think I relate to them well because I’ve also performed in the past and I know their needs. Most performers want strong confirmed bookings at good, hospitable venues. They also like being confident that they’ll be paid for their performance if a guarantee is negotiated. Whether win or lose, I’ve always made sure to provide what the clients want. Being friendly, respectful and knowing how to handle multiple issues and situations as smoothly as possible also helps. For familial reasons, I slowed down my productions drastically. During that time, I decided to just focus on two festivals per year. That’s all I’ll be doing in the concert business from now on. Those festivals are The 814 Dread Fest and Thrash Punk Bash. These festivals are annual. 814 Dread Fest is a 2 day multi-genre festival featuring at least 30 bands every year. Thrash Punk Bash is a crossover hardcore and thrash metal event featuring 10 to 12 bands. The desire to play these events from bands has been so great that most of them have asked me about playing. I’ve had to do very little outreach to bands to book these events. Any bands or performers interested in playing the events should contact me on my Dread Metal Productions Facebook page.
What’s been the best source of new clients for you?
Simply put, my best source of new clients has come from the word of mouth of other clients. I’ve found that simply being calm and rationally solving problems while that occur during events makes clients want to work with you. I’ve found this to be mostly true, even when events don’t meet attendance goals. If you treat people well and don’t feed them bs, they’ll continue to utilize the services you provide.
Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?
In 2019, the biggest “underground” music promoter in our area died of a lifelong disease. His death directly led to me receiving a lot more clients. The amount of events I was doing easily doubled. Everything seemed great. Then the covid pandemic began. That put business to a complete stop. All events canceled and no clue of when I could resume. Quite upsetting. However, I used the time to advance my online presence and increased my Facebook following by thousands during that time. Just following others and having them follow you helps tremendously. The more fees you appear in, the more people see you and learn what you do.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: @dreadmetal814
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/share/1AtH9eRHWp/?mibextid=wwXIfr
- Twitter: @dreadmetal814
- Youtube: https://youtube.com/@dreadmetal814?si=qhF8PYwFhe772jH6
Image Credits
Hope L. Durnell
Harold Jay Taylor