BONUS EPISODE – Warm up your taste buds and meet us in the Farm to Fork Capital because the 2026 Event & Venue Marketing Conference (EVMC) is just around the corner! This bonus episode is filled with everything you need to know as you pack and prepare for this year’s conference in Sacramento, California. Hosts Paul and Dave are joined by a couple special guests which help craft this podcast KBYG — Kim Allen (EVMC President, Director of Arena Marketing at Golden 1 Center) and Brandon Darnell (Director of Marketing at Visit Sacramento). Hear about the agenda, evening events, awards, and top conference advice from each person. If you’re visiting Sacramento for the first time, learn what makes the city special, some restaurant and dish recommendations, and key landmarks to visit on your trip. Whether this is your first time attending EVMC, you’re a seasoned vet, or you’ve never been and are wondering what it’s about – we’ve got you covered!

Coming to the conference? 🎙️ Be sure to join us Thursday, June 11 at 9am in the Regency Ballroom for Beyond Venue Walls, an Adventures In Venueland LIVE session! Our hosts will moderate a special, recorded session that explores creative strategies for marketing experiences beyond traditional events. Come say hello, meet our team, and grab a free AIV sticker! We’ll see you in Sactown!

Event & Venue Marketing Conference: Instagram | Facebook | LinkedIn | X/Twitter

––––––

ADVENTURES IN VENUELAND

Follow on Instagram, LinkedIn, Facebook, or X/Twitter
Learn more about Event & Venue Marketing Conference

Meet our team:

Paul Hooper | Co-host, Booking, Branding & Marketing
Dave Redelberger | Co-host & Guest Research
Megan Ebeck | Marketing, Design & Digital Advertising
Samantha Marker | Marketing, Copywriting & Publicity
Camille Faulkner | Audio Editing & Mixing

Have a suggestion for a guest or bonus episode? We'd love to hear it! Send us an email.

Ahoy Venuelanders! 🛳⚓️ Join us for a revelry at sea as we set sail with Jeff Cuellar, CEO of Sixthman, a promoter focused on “tearing down walls” by creating community-inspired festival experiences that use cruise ships as their venue. Celebrating their 25th anniversary as a company, Jeff gives us an overview of Sixthman, their approach to their experiences, and the history of the company. Learn how they bring to life the magic of passionate communities through performances, food and lodging, international destinations, and entertainment while providing a safe space for fans to be together and bond over shared passions. While music is their core business and what started it all, they have expanded to comedy, podcasting, as well as other passionate groups that led to the creation of events such as Chefs Making Waves and The Broadway Cruise. Additionally, Sixthman has had the pleasure of working with other brands that have extremely tight communities like the Savannah Bananas and Hallmark, providing an opportunity for a more intimate and curated experience for their fans. We also chat nuts and bolts with Jeff about setting up, loading in, and challenges producing a festival at sea – including things like working with naval engineers, accounting for motion and weather, and coordinating production operations. So, grab a Mai Tai and dive into this fascinating episode that gives you an inside look into a wonderfully unique side of live events on the open seas.

Jeff Cuellar: LinkedIn
Sixthman: Facebook | Instagram | TikTok

––––––

ADVENTURES IN VENUELAND

Follow on Instagram, LinkedIn, Facebook, or X/Twitter
Learn more about Event & Venue Marketing Conference

Meet our team:

Paul Hooper | Co-host, Booking, Branding & Marketing
Dave Redelberger | Co-host & Guest Research
Megan Ebeck | Marketing, Design & Digital Advertising
Samantha Marker | Marketing, Copywriting & Publicity
Camille Faulkner | Audio Editing & Mixing

Have a suggestion for a guest or bonus episode? We'd love to hear it! Send us an email.

Welcome to Messina Touring Week on Adventures In Venueland! 🎉 As we celebrate 2️⃣5️⃣ years of Messina Touring, we’ve got a couple special episodes dropping this week to give you a behind-the-scenes look at what makes them one of the top concert promoters today. — For this bonus episode which extends our Breaking In series, we talk with Rachel Powers, VP at Messina Touring Group, about artist growth from clubs to Sphere. We jump right in and talk about Rachel's role with Messina Touring, where she oversees marketing and promotional strategy for some of the biggest names in country music (Eric Church, Blake Shelton, Zac Brown Band and Ty Myers). Using the case study of Ty Myers, she tells us about his growth from a local Austin kid to playing a club tour, growing into an arena artist, and some of their strategies and challenges facing developing artists. We then chat about Zac Brown Band, in which Rachel helped with their Sphere residency. From 500 cap rooms to global stages, hear what things stay consistent, what recommendations she has for emerging artists (and those marketing them) and some great stories as we break in with this fun episode capping off our Messina Touring Week.

Rachel Powers: Email | Instagram
Messina Touring: Instagram | Facebook | LinkedIn

––––––

ADVENTURES IN VENUELAND

Follow on Instagram, LinkedIn, Facebook, or X/Twitter
Learn more about Event & Venue Marketing Conference

Meet our team:

Paul Hooper | Co-host, Booking, Branding & Marketing
Dave Redelberger | Co-host & Guest Research
Megan Ebeck | Marketing, Design & Digital Advertising
Samantha Marker | Marketing, Copywriting & Publicity
Camille Faulkner | Audio Editing & Mixing

Have a suggestion for a guest or bonus episode? We'd love to hear it! Send us an email.

Welcome to Messina Touring Week on Adventures In Venueland! 🎉 As we celebrate 2️⃣5️⃣ years of Messina Touring, we’ve got a couple special episodes dropping this week to give you a behind-the-scenes look at what makes them one of the top concert promoters today. — To kick things off, we’re chatting with Kate Des Enfants McMahon, Executive Vice President at Messina Touring Group, who has been with the company since the beginning. One of the most influential forces in live music touring, Kate has helped shape the modern touring business across companies like Pace Concerts, SFX Touring, and Clear Channel Touring before starting Messina Touring with Louis Messina and Rome McMahon 25 years ago. We chat about the history of the company, her current role, and how their “concierge promoter” all-in services have earned them such a great reputation. We learn about her career in the industry, what she thinks makes a good venue, advice she has for women entering the industry, and some landmark moments of her career – such as being involved in one of the first country music stadium shows. Enjoy listening to this five-time Billboard Woman in Music recipient and Pollstar Impact 50 recipient as we talk shop, share stories, and discuss amazing career advice.

Kate Des Enfants McMahon: LinkedIn
Messina Touring: Instagram | Facebook | LinkedIn

––––––

ADVENTURES IN VENUELAND

Follow on Instagram, LinkedIn, Facebook, or X/Twitter
Learn more about Event & Venue Marketing Conference

Meet our team:

Paul Hooper | Co-host, Booking, Branding & Marketing
Dave Redelberger | Co-host & Guest Research
Megan Ebeck | Marketing, Design & Digital Advertising
Samantha Marker | Marketing, Copywriting & Publicity
Camille Faulkner | Audio Editing & Mixing

Have a suggestion for a guest or bonus episode? We'd love to hear it! Send us an email.

We’re headed to the Home of the Blues, Memphis, for this episode where we chat with Crystal Carpenter, Event & Marketing Coordinator at FedExForum. In a city known for its culture, music, soul, and food, Crystal tells us all about FedExForum, which is the home for the Memphis Grizzlies (NBA) and Memphis Tigers (NCAA). We discuss her role with the building and some of the unique ways their departments are structured. She tells us about fun promotional ideas they have done with local businesses and how her role, which is nested under the Arena Operations side, focuses on being in the community, working with promoters and managing show day experience and hospitality. Crystal also tells us about being a DJ, which she has done for over 17 years, and co-founding SheDJs, which is a network of over 50 women DJs who support each other. We learn about her career journey from being an athlete to her time in radio to managing a record studio that worked on GloRilla’s debut hit album. Enjoy this fun, creative episode full of inspiration, grit and grind, and creative ideas.

Crystal Carpenter: Instagram | LinkedIn
FedExForum: Facebook | Instagram | X/Twitter

––––––

ADVENTURES IN VENUELAND

Follow on Instagram, LinkedIn, Facebook, or X/Twitter
Learn more about Event & Venue Marketing Conference

Meet our team:

Paul Hooper | Co-host, Booking, Branding & Marketing
Dave Redelberger | Co-host & Guest Research
Megan Ebeck | Marketing, Design & Digital Advertising
Samantha Marker | Marketing, Copywriting & Publicity
Camille Faulkner | Audio Editing & Mixing

Have a suggestion for a guest or bonus episode? We'd love to hear it! Send us an email.

We’ve had a good run at Adventures In Venueland but we’ve decided to shift focus and give the live event industry what they really want (and need) – a good night’s rest. Introducing… Snoozing In Venueland… or Adventures In Slumberland… honestly we’re too tired to decide. Having a hard time settling in for some sleep after a crazy run of show days? Enjoy 8 hours of the familiar, comforting white noise of semi trucks humming paired with the occasional background noise of backstage banter. 🚚 Take a load off, get some good rest and relaxation on us, then meet us for a walk and chalk at the venue first thing in the morning. Happy April Fools Day!

––––––

ADVENTURES IN VENUELAND

Follow on Instagram, LinkedIn, Facebook, or X/Twitter
Learn more about Event & Venue Marketing Conference

Meet our team:

Paul Hooper | Co-host, Booking, Branding & Marketing
Dave Redelberger | Co-host & Guest Research
Megan Ebeck | Marketing, Design & Digital Advertising
Samantha Marker | Marketing, Copywriting & Publicity
Camille Faulkner | Audio Editing & Mixing

Have a suggestion for a guest or bonus episode? We'd love to hear it! Send us an email.

Join us in beautiful San Juan as we chat with a force behind many unforgettable live event experiences in Puerto Rico – Roxey Garcia, Founder of RXY Marketing. We talk with Roxey about starting her company, which provides promotions, event production, artist logistics, and digital marketing to not only tours and venues but also other businesses in the area. She talks about the emphasis she puts on being a great communicator and reliable, offering solutions to problems and support during stressful challenges. We talk with her about working at the historic Bad Bunny residency in Puerto Rico, and his impact as an artist in the area as he has grown from his first tour to a global superstar. Roxey walks us through her career history from starting as a Premium Concierge at Coliseo de Puerto Rico, transitioning into digital marketing to help build their brand, going to school to get her MBA, and then opening Coca Cola Music Hall as the Marketing Manager before starting her own business. Enjoy this inspiring, fascinating episode that takes you inside live events in Puerto Rico and what it’s like to start your own agency.

Roxey Garcia: LinkedIn | Email
RXY Marketing: Instagram

––––––

ADVENTURES IN VENUELAND

Follow on Instagram, LinkedIn, Facebook, or X/Twitter
Learn more about Event & Venue Marketing Conference

Meet our team:

Paul Hooper | Co-host, Booking, Branding & Marketing
Dave Redelberger | Co-host & Guest Research
Megan Ebeck | Marketing, Design & Digital Advertising
Samantha Marker | Marketing, Copywriting & Publicity
Camille Faulkner | Audio Editing & Mixing

Have a suggestion for a guest or bonus episode? We'd love to hear it! Send us an email.

We’re headed back to Tinseltown to chat with Vanessa Mancao, Tour Marketing Manager in Los Angeles for Red Light Management – the largest independent artist management company in the world. Vanessa works closely with artists like Jon Pardi, The Fray, Trombone Shorty, Maoli and Slightly Stoopid, helping behind the scenes of major tours, collaborating closely with promoters and venues to turn strategy into sold out shows. We talk about how she helps prepare for tour announcements, reviews assets, works with tour managers and agencies, and helps facilitate ideas for ticket promotions. She tells us about her career history from growing up in Wichita and attending University of Missouri for Broadcast Journalism to being a television producer on Good Morning Oklahoma and her first industry job at BOK Center and ASM Global as Special Events & Festivals Coordinator, ultimately moving to a booking role on the convention center side before relocating to LA and her current role. Enjoy this really interesting and fun episode which provides great insight into the management side along with some fun stories.

Vanessa Mancao: Instagram | LinkedIn
Red Light Management: Instagram

––––––

ADVENTURES IN VENUELAND

Follow on Instagram, LinkedIn, Facebook, or X/Twitter
Learn more about Event & Venue Marketing Conference

Meet our team:

Paul Hooper | Co-host, Booking, Branding & Marketing
Dave Redelberger | Co-host & Guest Research
Megan Ebeck | Marketing, Design & Digital Advertising
Samantha Marker | Marketing, Copywriting & Publicity
Camille Faulkner | Audio Editing & Mixing

Have a suggestion for a guest or bonus episode? We'd love to hear it! Send us an email.