To explain how I became a poised and prepared live event host, ready to navigate any calamity, I have to tell you about the gig that almost brought me to tears.
In 2015, I signed on as one of two DJ’s for a 16 city tour with T-Mobile. At the time, it was the highest caliber tour I had ever booked. At each stop, I was the Host and DJ introducing speakers and soundtracking the event. The night started at 7 p.m and then Club Magenta – the “dance floor” part of the night – was from 9 to 11.
Heading into my first stop, I had the perfect plan.The provided talking points were memorized and I knew what I was going to say. My records and crates were organized to expertly crescendo into the peak hour of the night. I had worked in songs that aligned with the T-Mobile brand — artists they had asked to be included when I auditioned for the gig.
I was ready. Nine o’clock hit, and I started playing my planned set.
By roughly 9:20, the room was as empty as theater’s were for Ryan Reynold’s Green Lantern. Everyone was gone.
Correction: not everyone. Some of the producers and event staff were bopping around the dance floor. But it was mostly empty.
That was NOT part of the plan. I was 10 years into my career as a DJ, so this was way beyond my first rodeo. And — not to brag — but I knew I was a good DJ, with a long streak of hyped crowds to prove it. Throwing a party is what I know how to do.
What just happened?
Maybe it was the city, I thought. The next stop would be better. I had a different creative director and a different producer to work with. I psyched myself up for the next stop.
In the new city, the crowd made it to 9:30. And again…like their name was Wilson…they bounced.
You know how you cut into and onion and moments later you feel your eyes start to well up? To avoid the tears threatening to fall you start to breathe through your mouth, your face scrunches and stretches, you step back from the counter…yeah, that was me, but there were no actual onions.
What the actual f*^k?! Why aren’t these people staying?!?
Imposter syndrome overtook me and I was certain I was going to get fired off the best tour I’d ever had.
As the horror of the moment sunk in, I spiraled into a full existential crisis. Because if I’m not good at this thing, then what am I good at?? Even the “worst” DJ can keep the club open for at least an hour!
My perfect plan fell apart like the Super Bowl 51 Atlanta Falcons.
So what went wrong?
Great question! Why didn’t my carefully crafted set list create the fire I had planned for the dance floor?
The problem wasn’t the plan itself. My problem was I wasn’t prepared to pivot when the plan collapsed.
Not once, but twice.
But that’s exactly how live events go. It doesn’t matter how much thought went into the run of show, the timeline, or the script.
None of that matters because something WILL change. Whether you’re hosting or DJing a live event, I can guarantee that change you don’t expect happens. I remember Oprah saying, “Change is the only constant.” (Paraphrased from the Greek philosopher Heraclitus)
At that point in my career, I knew that truth as a concept. But that was the moment when the lesson cut deep, and I realized I wasn’t prepared to pivot.
What makes a good live event host?
A decent live event host will keep the momentum moving past technical difficulties and unfortunate mishaps.
The best live event host stays in the moment as he shapes an audience-focused, game-changing journey, using the energy of the audience as his fuel. He will turn an on-stage catastrophe into a memorable moment of connection and authenticity.
That’s the difference between a mediocre stage performance and a live event host who truly knows his craft.
How do you build that craft? I’ve identified five aspects to becoming a successful live event host:
5. Prepare, don’t plan
4. Listen and speak with your whole body
3. Alignment over change
2. Authentically connect
And the No. 1 rule when it comes to being a live event host?
… It ain’t about you.
We’ll discuss each of these elements in future blogs. For now, let’s focus on preparation.
How do you prepare to host a live event?
Essentially, a plan is just a list of steps from point A to point B.
Plans fail when step 3 never happens, step 5 is missing a key ingredient, or you get stuck in the mud on the side of a mountain with imminent death looming a few feet away in the middle of step 6.
Preparation means you packed extra snacks and the number for roadside assistance to keep the journey moving.
I recommend live event hosts prepare themselves with education, a good warm up, and by becoming a librarian ahead of each gig.
Get a “Proper Education” to be a live event host
I know, I know. The Hogwarts School of Live Events and Hosting does not exist.
Either that or my Owl is terribly lost.
What enterprising live event hosts can do is practice their craft through improv classes.
When you host a live event, you’re creating an experience on stage in real time. Sometimes things go according to plan and — bibbidi-bobbidi-booyakasha! — the magic flows effortlessly.
And sometimes shit hits the fan, and you gotta try to make it work (You know what I’m talkin’ about Jo Koy).
Suddenly, you may have to improvise an inspirational speech or tell a story to fill time while they fix the wardrobe malfunction backstage.
The other way to educate yourself is to study other hosts. During your favorite game show, talk show, or live TV event, pay attention to what the host is doing.
What works for them? How about what doesn’t work? What would you do if you had to fill time after that awkward moment? How would you recover from that slipup?
Learn from the best to become the best.
(And, yes, the title is an Eric Prydz/ Pink Floyd reference)
Become a librarian
A librarian can help you find that beginner’s guide to Egyptian hieroglyphics because they know their library backwards, forwards and sideways.
When you book a live event gig, you want that level of knowledge at your fingertips. That means researching the brand you’re working with, the past events the clients has put on, and the products you’re promoting.
It means talking to each speaker before you have to introduce them live. It means you walk the stage before the event begins to count off spatial steps and get a feel for what the audience will see and experience.
The more preparation you have at the ready, the more you have to fall back on when the teleprompter dies or the next speaker is stuck in NYC traffic.
Get in your warm up
Hosting a live event will take a lot out of you. You need to get your mind, your voice, and your body prepared to be on stage.
Start by getting yourself in the right headspace with self-encouragement and positive energy. Walk through the layout of the show so it’s fresh in your mind.
Additionally, warm up your vocal cords and diaphragm, just like a singer. We remind our Event Live Entertainment emcees whom are rookies at Super Bowl Experience that if their voice goes out early in the week, they’re out of luck. They can’t host without a voice.
I also recommend doing specific stretches to warm up your body and get the blood flowing.
Tony Robbins famously jumps on a trampoline before going on stage. It’s a way to get his energy levels up so he can psyche up the audience.
As a live event host, preparation will win over a perfection every day of the week.
“So uh… did you redeem that terrible gig?”
Mostly, yes. Before the third city, I did better preparation by talking to the producer. He pointed out that the events were held on weekday nights with a tricky crowd that still had to get up early for work the next morning and it wasn’t an open bar.
With that in mind, I made the decision to rely on my own music experience and understanding of my library/music catalog. Instead of relying verbatim on the scripting one of the producers wrote, I made a pivot.
Rather than building the music to the peak hour of the night— like I would at most venues — I launched right into the bangers and crowd pleasers at 8:55.
And it worked! I did what I genuinely knew how to do, prepared and pivoted, and kept the crowd dancing on the floor… till about 10:30.
I declared it a win. It was a weeknight, after all.
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