MIC invited three live event industry workers to explain their jobs to students and answer any questions presented (Photo credit: courtesy of MIC)
The event started promptly at 7 p.m. and was led by MIC’s president, Matthew Morales. Morales, who served on MIC’s executive board as the social media director for the 2022-2023 academic year, began with club introductions before bringing in the panelists to start the live events discussion.
The moderating began as soon as Rosales, Lamb and Le were seated. The panel, which lasted around an hour and a half, covered many facets of a live events career. However, the areas most talked about by the panelists were daily tasks/challenges and advice for students.
Rosales was the first to explain her daily tasks as a booking and marketing coordinator at Catch One, an independent music venue in Los Angeles. Her primary role is to book various artists for her venue while balancing social media work for the venue as well.
Rosales, Lamb and Le (pictured left to right) explain their day-to-day work lives and how it is never stagnant (Photo credit: courtesy of MIC)
While Rosales enjoys giving artists the opportunity to play live music at the venue, a career challenge lies in deciding if the artist will bring in proper revenue and crowd. A role in booking is a balancing act of financial responsibility for the venue while also putting on a great show.
Next, Lamb discussed her role as a special operations supervisor at Insomniac, a well-known electronic dance music (EDM) event promoter. Lamb prefaced that the role of special operations is the most dynamic provided at Insomniac, never doing the same task for more than two hours at a time. Whether it is checking wristbands at the entrance or checking on event headliners, a role with special operations is never stagnant.
A significant challenge Lamb faces in her career is not a slight one: public safety. Live events can turn dangerous quickly, and Lamb understands that her safety decisions on the job can majorly impact an individual’s life. The strategies Lamb implements as a special operations supervisor can be the difference between a festival-goer having a fun, safe experience or having a frightening, dangerous one.
Le was the third and final panelist to discuss her role as an event services and production coordinator at The Kia Forum, a famous live event venue in Inglewood. Akin to most jobs in a live event space, Le described her daily tasks as always different and ever-changing. Whether dealing with back-of-the-house or front-of-the-house needs, Le oversees venue preparation and client communications.
When discussing the challenges of her career, Le reiterated Lamb’s former comments on crowd safety. Le brought up Travis Scott’s notorious and tragic 2021 Astroworld festival (that claimed the lives of 10 people) to represent how extreme live event scenarios can be. Understanding these repercussions and implementing safety strategies allow for a more fruitful and safe live event.
While discussing the severity of safety measures in live events may not have been the most light-hearted part of the evening, it is a part of the live events realm that needed to be discussed. As the evening wrapped up, the panelists gave advice to the students in attendance.
Rosales, who entered the live events space as a college student, stated that although academia is essential, the extracurriculars one partakes in college is most important. She also said there are many opportunities a student could be involved in, so before telling yourself no, put yourself out there and see what happens.
Lamb’s advice took a more spiritual approach, asserting that everyone’s dreams are valid and that if you keep putting in the hard work, your dreams will come true. Rejection is redirection, meaning more opportunities will be meant for you along the way.
“Everything happens for a reason, and you have to believe that,” Lamb vocalized.
Further, Le advised every student to understand the word ‘no.’ Being told ‘no’ is not always a straight-out rejection but could mean a ‘stop.’ Conversely, Le advised students to learn how to say ‘no’ for their own peace of mind. Sometimes, opportunities must be passed on to avoid career burnout, and that’s okay.
