Episodes

Todd’s career spans more than 25 years with firms varying in size from $1M to $3B in revenues, with over 18 years in executive leadership roles, working with both startups and established companies to guide strategic and operational growth, acquisitions, turn-arounds, and business sales. Really smart guy with a very patient and collaborative approach to business. An asset to any company looking to grow, work through change management, and more. Episode 230 is brought to you by Elation Lighting...

Marian Sandberg Started doing PR for Jack Kelly/Group One in 1996 and barely left the industry since! Marian has diverse work experience spanning several industries and is currently the Vice President & Market Leader for LDI, DSE, and XLIVE at Questex. Prior to this, Marian worked at Informa from November 2016 to December 2019 as the Content Director for the Live Experience Group, where she was responsible for digital editorial, content strategy, video production, and conference content. Marian...

Rocko was Stage Manager for 30 Years for U2, recently visiting The Sphere in Las Vegas where he saw the gig from FOH. The first time he had ever watched a U2 show from the front, as a punter, as a fan and looking at the band’s faces vs their backs! Rocko has retired from the road since 2019 but has continued making music. His most recent video was a rendition of Sex Is on Fire by Kings of Leon, uploaded to his Facebook page on Valentine’s day. This episode is proudly sponsored by ACT Entertain...

Paul established himself as an industry visionary, one of the early leaders in Fiber Optic lighting solutions and a go-to-source for high-tech, high-touch creative lighting solutions for, working with high profile jobs including the Grammy awards, Broadway shows and major concert tours. After selling his company in 2007, Paul reinvented himself as consultant, author and motivational speaker. He wrote a book, Blue Collar Buddha based on Winning Wisdom Gained on a Journey from Flight Attendant to...

Creech has been in the industry for over 40 years. Steven started as a stagehand in Dallas and then his first BIG tour was with Motley Crew in 1985. Stevens' career just kept on getting better and better, working with incredible artists such as Metallica, Scorpions, Rush, Elton John, Bob Seger and Aerosmith to name but a few. Now with Premier Global Production Company for 24 years, Steven has applied a hands-on approach to each lighting project he has been involved with. Customer service is th...

Jean has been in the business since the 80s, starting in theater and clubs. He was able to work under the tutelage of his very first mentor, Jacques Tanguay. It was with Jacques that he learned all aspects of fixing, hauling, hanging, and designing lighting. Life began to change when Jean was invited to work at a major club in the Czech republic, where he lived for 2 years. It was there, he became acquainted with the folks at High End Systems, due to his use of Intellabeams at the club. On an in...

Eric is the principal designer and creative director at Crossfade Design. He got his start in the industry at the ripe age of 14. His mom was a rock singer in the Dallas area and he would help in the lighting and sound booth at her shows. By 16, he was working for a lighting company, building dimmers and consoles from scratch, and renting his own equipment to local bands. At 18, he was the LD for George Strait. Today, Eric’s robust portfolio includes live events at arenas, convention centers, c...

Marsha Stern is an award-winning lighting designer, programmer, technician and production manager who’s career began in NYC in the music business and spans the NYC Nightclub and Special Events circuit from the late 70’s through the mid 90’s when she began to pioneer using automated lighting and entertainment technologies in architectural lighting design. Today, Marsha continues to take on design projects, while also focusing on her work dedicated to Roy Thode, an iconic DJ from the glory days of...

Jim has had a nearly four-decade journey in production and project management roles within the live entertainment and music touring industry has had him working alongside artists as diverse as Linkin Park, Hootie & the Blowfish, Back Street Boys, the Bolshoi Ballet, Phil Collins, and most recently helping to lead the delivery of entertainment mega-projects inside Saudi Arabia including the first-ever international music festival in the Kingdom in 2018. He was on the stage in 1992 when James Het...

Matthew is a Boston Massachusetts native and resident of Astoria New York. He's a Lighting / Production Designer, Lighting Director, Programer and owner of MG Lighting Design. Matt holds a BFA in Lighting Design from Boston University, and throughout his career, has worked for various styles and sizes of shows including Theatre, Dance, Industrial, Corporate and Concert Design and Direction. This episode is brought to you by and .

Tom Stimson is a Business Advisor, Coach, and Speaker who works exclusively with hands-on owners and management teams that want to improve their decision-making and elevate their strategic thinking. His Intentional Success® framework has helped hundreds of companies remove the clutter of past decisions and focus on better goals with resolute efficiency. This episode is brought to you by and .

Jamie cut his teeth in the automated lighting field, first as a touring lighting tech and programmer, later working directly for a couple of lighting manufacturers. He took a run on cruiseships, and finally decided he wanted to operate his own business. Jamie's business' including lighting, staging and generators but a new hobby and new passion, coffee, eventually became his business. Today, Koffee Kult is a growing brand and its loyal drinkers include our host, Marcel, who drinks our own Geezer...

Exactly 5 years ago today, I launched Geezers Of Gear with a mission. Myself and an employee who would serve as the co-host, would be two old guys (Geezers) talking about gear. Hence "Geezers Of Gear". But then, something happened. People immediately started reaching out saying "I wanna be on Geezers Of Gear - I am a Geezer". The geezer tag shifter from myself to the guests! And it was SO much better than originally intended. Instead of talking about gear, we were talking about the incredible pe...

Nick and his company, currently being rebranded "Live Redesigned, formerly known as Fireplay - are innovators and leaders in the lighting and production design space. He's worked with Metallica, Coldplay, Carrie Underwood, Aerosmith, Billie Eilish, Justin Timberlake, Rihana, Beyonce and many more. This episode was brought to you by and .

Emily Bornt is a lighting designer, currently living in Los Angeles. She started her career in New York as a lighting technician, and moved cross-country to pursue her love of lighting design for concerts. She has kept a diverse resume and list of clients. Recent projects include lighting design for Demi Lovato and Brandi Carlile, and lighting programming for Idina Menzel and the AGT residency in Las Vegas. Previous projects include lighting designer for Lil Wayne, Perfume Genius, Falling in Rev...

George's career began in 1982 with his own "side hussle" while still going to school in his new hometown of Dallas Texas. Eventually, through a lot of hard work and chance meetings, George was able to land a gig at his only target, Varilite. He managed to turn that into a highly successful 22 year run with many roles and accomplishments, before moving in 2012 to ACT where he became the lead guy for Claypaky. When Claypaky and ACT separated, George continued on with CP where he remains today! And...

A pretty great collection of interviews beginning with Eric Loader from , then Daniel Anderson, , Ben Saltzman, , Brad Nelms, and finally, Rick McKinney from . Each of them shared their thoughts on the year that just was, and of course, 2024 as well. Some great business insights here. And of course, we're filled with gratitude for these companies, some of whom have sponsored the podcast since the very beginning. THANK YOU!!!

John has built a career unlike many others in the lighting business. He's been at the top of his game, and the touring business for many many years, and continues to crush it today. It was a great chat with a few zingers! Brought to you by and .

Rob Koenig is a lighting Designer, programmer and director, with over 25 years of experience. Having worked his way up through the clubs in FL in the early and mid 90’s, to arenas and stadiums today. Rob works with artists such as Metallica, Lizzo, Guns N Roses, Eric Church, Cardi B, Billy Idol, Carrie Underwood to name a few. Rob is currently residing in Los Angeles, expanding his career into broadcast TV on shows such as American Song Contest and Americas Got Talent All Stars. This episode is ...

Chris has been around the industry in the Northeast USA for a long time now, and is one of the top lighting account exec's in the NY City area. He's worked tirelessly to build a great book of business and client list, and of course, knows where ALL the best sushi restaurants are hiding in the entire country! He was at LDI and shares a lot of those stories with us and much more. This episode is brought to you by , and .

Martin is one of those guys, you find him pretty easy to like, and super easy to talk to. This was a very enjoyable podcast to record, and hopefully, a pretty great listen as well! This episode is brought to you by and .

Geezers Of Gear is growing, and super excited to be adding a new team member in the role of Producer. And not just any old producer, but the one and only Sarah "Just Birnie" Birnie. With a history in both Formula One and Concert Touring, Sarah recently started her own social media influencer business from an island in Greece. Now, she's helping to share our guest's stories to the world as we grow Geezers Of Gear. This episode is brought to you by and .

Michael is an Entertainment Specialist, Stage Manager, Stage Crew Member, Production Stage Manager, Production Manager, former Tour Manager and so much more. He has one of the most interesting backgrounds and stories we've heard! Be sure to check it out. Thank you to our sponsors, and .

Bob Dickinson is a television lighting designer. His career, spanning decades, has focussed on awards shows, music shows, game shows, talk shows, and special events, which make up his over 1500 on screen television credits. He's lit the Academy Awards for as long as I can remember, was the very first person to use moving lights on Television (Solid Gold in 1982 he says), and has created so many memorable Olympics openings and closings, Super Bowl halftime shows and much more. Brought to you by ,...