We were lucky to catch up with Christopher Rhodes recently and have shared our conversation below.
Christopher, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today We’d love to hear about when you first realized that you wanted to pursue a creative path professionally.
If you ask my mom, she’ll tell you that I’ve known since I was born. The desire (…or need maybe?) to entertain those around me is woven directly into the essence of my being. I just love to laugh, I love having a good time, I love making people smile. The first ways that I remember trying to entertain, I would tell fantastic stories of my “grand adventures” and talking animals. I remember around the age of three or four telling my mom I wanted to be a tube of toothpaste in a parade when I grew up. While we’re on the topic, if any dentists in the area are looking for a new mascot, I think I would make a GREAT tube of toothpaste. I got into school and realized quickly how much I loved being up on a stage. From around that time I always had this dream of being in movies or on a microphone telling jokes and my thoughts to people making them laugh. That’s not the type of stuff that I’m currently doing exactly but, wanting to DJ and host live events wasn’t something I had realized until about five or six years ago.
As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?
Well hello! I must say, it is so nice being presented to you right now. Thank you for being here. My name is Chris Rhodes, I’m 30 and a half years old, and I DJ as well as host live events in places such as breweries & wineries mostly around Winston Salem.
My start in the field happened because of a manager who truly saw me for me and wanted that to shine. When I was working at Appalachian Mountain Brewery (2015-2020 Boone, NC) our trivia host was moving on and my manager (Crystal Smith) said she thought I would be the perfect replacement and if I wanted it, the job was mine no questions asked. Even though my prior experience was a total of none. At the time this was one of the more popular spots in town for trivia so the crowd was consistent and I was undoubtedly nervous. Mistakes were made along the way and things aren’t always perfect but, my coworker (Johnny Lee) and I banded together and went headfirst into the “storm”.
Currently I’m available to host weekly Music Bingo, Trivia, and Video/Board Game Nights. I also DJ weddings & other private events. I had the honor of being the first person in Winston to host a weekly Music Bingo before I had branched off into my own business. By the time I had worked for a couple different places and word of the event’s success spread across town, the event had lost a touch of its initial spark. Introducing “the world” to Rhodes Ahead Entertainment I knew I had to come up with a way to recapture the moment. That feeling of bringing together a large group of people in your community to have a shared good-time experience. For a while I was stuck and feeling incapable of making it all come to fruition. I just kept saying that word to myself. Community. Community. Community. I knew who I was doing it for but, I was having trouble finding the what it would be. One day I saw something on Instagram and it was as if I had been looking at the whole thing upside down and inside out. Suddenly it all made sense what I was doing wrong. I put together the idea that I call the “Prize Partnership/Prize Pop-Ups”. Each week I work with a different local vendor who will come to Music Bingo (Fiddlin’ Fish Brewing, Winston Salem) and set up a booth to sell their goods. In return, I ask for a prize table donation (no financial minimum required) for each of the two rounds if they are able to do so. Early in the week I will create a reel to showcase our Prize Partner for the week and to hopefully get them as many new eyes on their page as possible. In fact, I’d like to shoutout Wildflower Nation & Co. (@wildflowernationandco on Instagram) candlemakers for being our very first vendors to work with us! Easily my favorite candle that I’ve ever owned.
The thing that I’m personally most proud of is that I’ve made it to where I currently am today even with so much, and I mean SO much, room to grow. I spent so many destructive hours in my twenties (and some beforehand) that I didn’t really think I was ever going to get up out of the ditch I’d been digging for so long. Let alone even make it to be here at my current age. I guess there isn’t really too much that I need your readers to know about ME. If you’re reading this, I love you. I’m so grateful that you’re still here too! I want you to know that life is just as beautiful as it is scary. Don’t let anyone convince you it’s the other way around.
What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?
Having someone come up to me at the end of their first event because they had such a good time. The act itself of course is so affirming but, there’s just so much more to it. I love meeting new people, sharing a laugh/smile with someone who got over their nerves to come “bother me” while I’m packing up. I’ve made good friends through moments like that. I’ve slowly gotten to know regulars, hear stories and seen bingo cards that were JUST ONE SONG AWAY, haha. These little moments I’ve shared with complete strangers are catalogued in the stories that’ll be on repeat to my future one day. Whatever that entails.
Is there something you think non-creatives will struggle to understand about your journey as a creative? Maybe you can provide some insight – you never know who might benefit from the enlightenment.
We have absolutely no idea what we’re doing.. at first. I think it takes a certain type of fearlessness to try something new. Then you’ll need to up that fearlessness if trying to make money doing it. You really have to be able to handle rejection well, especially in the beginning. You have to be willingly able to admit when you’re wrong. For me, imposter syndrome was kind of hard to fully grasp until I started feeling it for myself in various ways. It’s not easy to say what I think “non-creatives” will struggle to understand about my journey. One thing I will always struggle to understand however, is waking up every morning and putting on a tie to go sit in an office. For me, that ain’t it.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rhodesaheadentertainment/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/RhodesAheadEntertainment