Leading the cutting edge of innovation in the music industry, the relentless Eric Dozier, former director of the Harlem Gospel Choir, has taken his legendary community gospel choirs into the era of digital commerce!! Yes folks, we have indeed abandoned stone age commerce in a digital economy. The Bounty has grown to over $4,000 in less than two weeks and seems to be continuing to grow with virtually no marketing of the idea as of yet. I had the opportunity to spend a few minutes with Eric a few nights ago and you can see a video of part of our conversation here.

Who is Jones Soda? What is this funny looking drink with its bright colors that you want me to drink?

Are you kidding me!?

Why would I ever give up my beloved Dr Pepper?

This is what I thought in on my first ever Warped tour back in good’ol 1997. I saw products all around me and was taken by their influence on me. Jones Soda, Yoohoo chocolate drinks, Gatorade, Hurley, Vans, AOL, Hansen’s, Sprite, Ernie Ball, G-Shock Watches and the list goes on…I couldn’t get away from then.

What started as a closed minded assumption about Yoohoo Chocolate drinks quickly turned into an obsession. There wasn’t a day on the Warped tour that I didn’t drink at least a six-pack. I know, I know a six-pack you say. Yes, I had one every day. Yoohoo is surprisingly refreshing on a hot summer day. And those wacky guys at Jones Soda had me hooked with their lollypop colored drinks; I was sporting G-Shock watches and wearing Vans shoes. (more…)

jFor the last 17 years I have been involved in live events in some form or another, from concerts to sports events and even some corporate meetings. Regardless if it’s U2, the Superbowl or Microsoft Company Meeting people will never stop loving the live event. And no matter how fast the Internet becomes or how much you can view or download at one time the live event will never disappear. Now you may think I’m nuts, but the live event can mean many things to many people. For some it’s going out to eat, for others it’s shopping at the mall, but for me, and the purposes of this blog, it’s the rock concert. It may be a question of analogue versus digital, but that is really a discussion for another time.

The first large concert that I was involved in was a European festival called Dynamo Open Air. I was there with a band that none of you would know, let alone remember. I was 19 years old, impressionable and extremely naive. I had talked myself into a position of mixing the sound for this unnamed band at a festival with an average attendance of one hundred thousand kids, a far cry from the clubs of my hometown of Austin Texas.I remember standing behind the large mixing console looking out at a sea of screaming kids as the band began to play their thunderous songs. The crowd immediately began to move to the beat of the songs like a giant single organism focused and intent on one thing. As the band finished their set the organism at once leapt into and furry of applause and preceded to purchase the band’s merchandise.

Now I doubt that many of the audience ever knew of this band, but by the end of their set you can sure bet that everyone did. Seventeen years later, and more events than I can count, it still amazes me how much power music has to move people. (more…)