Adventures In Venueland

BONUS EPISODE (Part 2 of 3) – Now that we’re a little more versed in venue sustainability, let’s dive a bit deeper and learn all about carbon. For Part 2 of our Earth Week Series we’re joined again by Brianna Treat, Director of Sustainability at Climate Pledge Arena and the Seattle Kraken , and we're talking all things carbon! What is it? How do you track it? What does carbon look like in a venue?...

BONUS EPISODE (Part 1 of 3) – It’s Earth Week, which means it’s the perfect time to dig into the impact venues and the live event industry have on our beautiful planet. As we discuss innovations and solutions around venue sustainability, we take an inside look at a venue which is prioritizing this on a level never seen before – Climate Pledge Arena . For Part 1 of our Earth Week Series, we chat wi...

Podcasters unite! This Venueland journey takes us to Chicago where we chat with Jahaan Blake, Career Coach, Fan Experience Consultant, and host of the A Game of Her Own podcast! Jahaan talks about how she got into the industry – from an early love of sports to a unlikely opportunity with the Boston Red Sox to later gigs with the Los Angeles Dodgers and Chicago Cubs – and how she ultimately decided...

Put your helmet on and meet us on the field in The Bay, as we talk with Allie Dicken, Director of Brand & Influencer Marketing for the San Francisco 49ers . Allie tells us all about her role with the team, as well as involvement with their stadium shows at Levi’s Stadium. We dive into influencer marketing, including strategies, tracking methods, what stats and skills to look for, and the best appr...

Place an order for your favorite deep-dish pizza, kick back, and join us in Chi-Town as we chat with our friend, Colleen Quinn, Communications & Digital Marketing Director at United Center . Colleen walks us through the complicated and interesting process of bidding on hosting the Democratic National Convention – from the RFP response to hosting the DNC Committee to presenting at a visit to Baltim...

Pass through the Gateway Arch and explore the Show Me State with us as we chat with our friend Cindy Underwood-Oleshak, based in St. Louis, Missouri. Cindy’s career has taken her to all sides of the live events industry – from 13 years on the venue side at Scottrade Center (now Enterprise Center), to freelance marketing and publicity for Sesame Street Live, The Wiggles, Dreamworks, the Vancouver O...

No matter if you’re team Buffalo Chicken Wings or team Nashville Hot Chicken, you’ll love our latest episode with thespian and all around great guy, Kevin Kennedy, Marketing Strategy Manager at Outback Presents . Kevin takes us along on his career journey, from his start in live theater and in the box office at Shea’s Performing Arts Center, to kicking it on tour with The Rockettes, to his time wi...

Land of 10,000 Lakes or Land of 10,000 events? Join us as we talk with Rick Hansen, Director of Booking at Historic Theatre Group – which manages booking at the Orpheum, State, and Pantages Theatres in Minneapolis – all a part of the Hennepin Theatre Trust . In a market rich with live events with more theater seats per capita than any city in the US outside of NYC, Rick gives us an inside look int...

BONUS EPISODE – Snap the ball and laces out as we kick our way into this fun detour episode taking a look inside the College Football Playoff National Championship with Brett Daniels, Senior Director of Communications and Branding for the College Football Playoff . Hear about the preparations leading into the game, how they handle signage and the marketing rollout without knowing finalists, and th...

From the South Bay to the Valley, from the West Side to the East Side – we head to Los Angeles for this episode to chat with Kishore Ramlagan, the Manager, Marketing & Promotions at Hollywood Park , SoFi Stadium & YouTube Theater . Kishore takes us along for the ride through his unconventional career path – from playing soccer and being a fan to joining the industry through an internship with the...

BONUS EPISODE – OH!… IO! Ohio rock legends unite as we go behind-the-scenes of a unique charity event, VetsAid , which recently gathered iconic Ohio rock bands at Nationwide Arena to raise funds for veterans charities in the state. We chat with Tracy Hedrick, Chief Marketing Officer for Ohio State University Department of Athletics and Business Advancement, who walks us through how the event came...

It’s Tulsa time! For this episode we rock the BOK with Meghan Blood, Director of Marketing at BOK Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Hear all about Meghan’s journey into live events, from college in Oklahoma to working in Dallas and now at one of the most cutting-edge arenas in the country in Tulsa. We discuss artist gifting, fan activations, artist welcomes, back-of-house murals and clings, and all the 3...

From the Live Music Capitol of the World to the Country Music Capitol, we catch up with Mark Salazar for this episode, the Arena Marketing Assistant at Bridgestone Arena , who recently moved from Austin to Nashville. Mark, who is early in his live events career, walks us through his adventure, from gigs with C3 Presents and Austin Radio Network, to finishing school while getting experience and als...

Step inside the studio with us for this in-person interview with Janice Jimenez, Marketing Director at Climate Pledge Arena , live from the Amazon Music Artist Lounge located backstage at Climate Pledge Arena. As we visit Seattle to plan the upcoming EAMC conference , Janice tells us all about Seattle’s amazing new arena and it’s many features and initiatives. Hear about some of the incredible cli...

BONUS EPISODE – In honor of spooky season, enjoy this ghoulish bonus episode which goes inside a hauntingly unique event, the Thriller Parade & Halloween Festival in Lexington, KY. 🧟‍♀️ Grab your favorite goblet of blood and undead dancing shoes as we chat with Amber Luallen, Superintendent of Cultural Arts & Events at Lexington Parks & Recreation , which plans and produces the event. Learn how t...

It’s Episode 5️⃣0️⃣ of Adventures In Venueland! We’re celebrating by heading to the beautiful Isla del Encanto – Puerto Rico. Joining us from San Juan is Wesley Cullen, VP of International Business Development for Oak View Group . Hear all about Wesley’s exciting role with OVG, which has her focusing on new venues they’re developing internationally, like a new arena coming soon to São Paulo, Brazi...

Cruise down South Figueroa in the City of Angels and you’ll find Crypto.com Arena , Microsoft Theater , and L.A. LIVE – a mecca of entertainment in Los Angeles. Join us as we catch up with Cara Vanderhook, Vice President of Marketing and Communications, and learn all about the happenings of a district that houses four professional teams, the largest stage in California, and some of the biggest awa...

A music-loving rockstar dad with legendary hair – this episode we grab our sunglasses and head to Orlando to chat with former thespian and current Marketing Division Manager at Orlando Venues , Kirk Wingerson. Kirk guides us through his adventure, from the outback of Australia to the swamp of Gainesville, from touring Broadway and interviews with luminaries like Lin-Manuel Miranda to his current r...

Wax the coping and drop into the half pipe with us as we skate down to sunny Phoenix, Arizona to talk with Steven Kargol, Director of Arena Marketing at Footprint Center , home of the Phoenix Suns , Mercury , and Rattlers . Come with us on this episode’s adventure, as Steven takes us through his career – from a skater kid attending Vans Warped Tour, to multiple stints on the promoter and venue sid...

Grab your favorite sunglasses and meet us stage left as we chat with Angela Lanza, self-proclaimed theater kid and Director of Event Marketing at Vinik Sports Group in Tampa, Florida. Angela tells us all about the venues VSG oversees – Amalie Arena (pronounced like family) and Yuengling Center – and how they have navigated two years filled with extreme success and unexpected residencies. Hear all...

From west Philadelphia, born and raised, working with venues is how she spends most of her days. Join us for a discussion with Dr. Debonair Oates-Primus, VP of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion for Oak View Group . Hear about the work Dr. Deb is doing with OVG – working with venues to track diversity within their organization and with the businesses they work with, and then identifying opportunitie...

BONUS EPISODE – Having a ruff day? Furr-get your worries and head backstage for this paw-sitive, off-the-leash, episode with Live Nation Pawduction Manager, Backstage Bowie. 🐶 We chat with all around awesome person and Bowie’s owner, Lindsay Gjerde, who’s a regional Production Manager for Live Nation. Lindsey tells us about when she first started taking Bowie around with her on show days, how it...

Go for a cruise around Charm City, as we chat with Baltimore-based live events PR legend, Edie Brown. Edie takes us through her career from her beginnings in PR at the Baltimore Convention Complex in 1979 to when she decided to start her own PR firm in 2020. Hear stories about family friend Dave Grohl of Foo Fighters fame, decorating back of house for a Pavarotti show, meeting previous presidents,...

Head with us to the sunny state of Arizona, where we catch up with Kelly Lovell-Taylor, Marketing & PR Officer at Tempe Center for the Arts . Kelly, who recently won the Impact Award at the 2022 EAMC Conference, talks about her involvement in the creation of the Tempe Black Employee Alliance , the first black employee group established in any government organization in Arizona. She walks us throug...

Plunge into the Land of 1,000 Lakes with our very first LIVE episode of Adventures In Venueland, recorded in front of a live audience in the Twin Cities at the Event & Arena Marketing Conference . We chat with Kosha Irby, Chief Marketing Officer at Professional Bull Riding , and 2022 EAMC Hall of Fame Inductee. Kosha tells us all about his career journey from Conference USA to WWE to PBR, how he f...