Written By: Jeff Hyman, Vice President & Agent at Degy Entertainment
What a weekend APCA Albany was! October 3rd and 4th Hal and I were attending the APCA Northeast conference in Albany, NY. We were lucky enough to have many of the Degy Artists showcase and join us. Eric Dittelman taped his eyes shut and guessed peoples drawings, Devon Braxton amazed with his keyboard looping and R&B voice, Ball in the House taught us the meaning of “cover song”, Astronaut Class took us to another planet with their alt rock sound, Rhythmetrix brought our heartbeats in sync and Ysa with that smooth R&B/Soul for that after lunch vibe. They all put on incredible performances and were booked by schools around the region in the Northeast. Keep an eye out for our routing emails to look for money saving opportunities.
NatterDoodle and Plenty O’Cookies joined us in the booth for a “paint your pet” demo, debuting Natterdoodle’s new Color Block glasses (ask us about them!)! Plenty O’ Cookies showed their cookie packages and cake topper decorating. Always fun to have the energy of these creatives in the booth and even more fun to bring them to campuses. Check out more about them HERE. The time spent with our artists, connecting them with the schools, connecting with our friends and colleagues is a special time. Being able to show people what amazing talent you have available to help them create memorable campus moments, is why we do what we do, and we are lucky we get to do it!
Written By: Sophie Low, Agent at Degy Entertainment
We dodged the expected rain and tropical storm and had beautiful weather all weekend! The conference kicked off with a networking session for associates and schools to either catch up or meet ahead of the busy days. Degy was busy on day 2 with an educational session about “Best Practices When Booking Events on Campus” which sparked conversation about how to engage students of all backgrounds and interests when programming. The ed session was followed by the 1st showcase of the weekend, which featured Degy’s very own improv comedy rap group Free Daps, who stunned the whole audience with their on the spot freestyle rap combined with high energy beats. Free Daps are pros when it comes to college events, and even broke out a few improv rap moments in the Degy booth during marketplace!
Written By: Hal Gonzalez, Agent Assistant at Degy Entertainment
I attended my first ever NACA conference this October 17-18 in Hartford; it was everything I’d hoped for and more! I was so excited to be there alongside Jeff and Sophie to represent Degy and the amazing variety of talent we have to offer for campus programming and events. We kicked it off on Friday with our Featured Ed Session: “Best Practices When Booking Events on Campus” led by Jeff. The turnout was fantastic, and students came prepared to ask questions and engage in discussions about campus event planning. This led us straight to the first Spotlight Showcase where comedian Kate Sisk shook the ballroom with laughter during their engaging standup set. Following the showcase, the marketplace doors opened and students filled the aisles of different vendors and activities. We had plenty of visitors stop by our booth where they got to meet Kate, talk programming with Jeff, Sophie and I, and try out some cool crafts with NatterDoodle and Plenty O’ Cookies!
Saturday was also a blast! We had the second and final spotlight showcase of the weekend with incredible mind-reading by Eric Dittelman and a performance by musician Carmen Dianne that had students hollering! Our booth was flooded afterwards with students and staff alike, excited to learn more about Degy and our featured performers of the weekend. I can confidently say that I understand the NACA hype now and am looking forward to all the conferences to come!
Written By: Sean Sullivan, Agent at Degy Entertainment
In late October, I headed south to our last conference of the month! The weekend kicked off with a very busy Friday, including 4 showcases and an educational session! Free Daps got us started with an exciting performance at lunch, rapping about everything from a calculator to a balloon hat! On Friday afternoon, we presented an educational session titled “Major Events: How to Survey, Budget, Offer, Contract, Market, Advance and Execute a Major Concert in Under 60 Minutes!”. At dinner, we got to see showcases from comedy magician Michael Kent and his rubber chicken, comedian Gibran Saleem, and singer-songwriter Keelan Donovan who wowed the crowd with his cover of “Dancing on My Own”.
Saturday had another packed schedule with a showcase at lunch from R&B singer Devon Braxton, and another educational session in the afternoon about Best Practices when booking events on your campus! In addition to all the great performances over the course of the weekend, we also unveiled our new Degy LookBook, which features our whole catalogue of performers and events to support campus programming.
As the curtain closes on this year’s fall college conference circuit, we’re more inspired than ever by the passion and creativity we’ve seen from campus programming boards nationwide. The connections made and conversations started this October remind us just how powerful live entertainment can be in shaping unforgettable campus experiences. We can't wait till the November conferences to do it all again!
Now’s the perfect time to start planning your spring and fall calendars, and our Degy agents are ready to help you build the perfect lineup for your students. Whether you’re looking to bring in major acts, up-and-coming artists, or unique interactive experiences, we’ve got you covered. Reach out to our team today and let’s start making next semester’s events one to remember!