{"id":738,"date":"2022-12-30T06:00:00","date_gmt":"2022-12-30T12:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/neworleansmusicians.com\/blog\/?p=738"},"modified":"2023-01-25T14:52:58","modified_gmt":"2023-01-25T20:52:58","slug":"fuel-the-funeral-entertainment","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/neworleansmusicians.com\/blog\/fuel-the-funeral-entertainment\/","title":{"rendered":"Fuel the Funeral Entertainment"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"newor-before-content\" id=\"newor-2325674223\"><script async src=\"\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-8687276566169212\" crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script><ins class=\"adsbygoogle\" style=\"display:block;\" data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-8687276566169212\" \ndata-ad-slot=\"8064447764\" \ndata-ad-format=\"auto\"><\/ins>\n<script> \n(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); \n<\/script>\n<\/div>\n<p>In Louisiana, thirty-seven miles from the Gulf of Mexico, lies the town of Cut Off, the place where Hunter Bruce was born and raised. At that time (and still to this day), it was the type of place with nothing to do. You could find Hunter with friends hanging out in the parking lots of Sonic or Wal-mart. And the music scene\u2026 well it didn\u2019t exist there. Experience with music for him at that time was whatever played on the radio. Streaming could only be found on Pandora and music in his household wasn\u2019t a focal point. It wasn\u2019t until Hunter graduated high school and moved away that he got to actually see live music. His first experience was on a grand scale and it would change his life forever.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>On June 27<sup>th<\/sup>, 2016 the Warped Tour made its stop in New Orleans. And Hunter was one of the thousands in attendance. With most of his friends off to the military, he went to this event alone, and would spend most of that day at the smaller Full Sail University Stage. He affectionately recalls, \u201cI saw Bad Seed Rising, incredible. I wish they would\u2019ve never broken up. I saw Palaye Royal. No one knew who these guys were. There was like twenty people standing in front of that stage with me. Now these guys are touring the world and that\u2019s so awesome to see.\u201d He was later spotted and stopped by the guitarist for Palaye Royal, who signed and gave him a CD, thanking him for coming to their performance. He still has that CD to this day. And he\u2019s kept a record of all the bands he\u2019s seen over the years. Later that same year Islander, whom he was unfamiliar with, would headline at The Varsity Theater in Baton Rouge. He remembered Bad Seed Rising from the Warped Tour, and they were on the bill along with local supporting band Ventruss. That night, he became a fan of Ventruss and would see them countless times in the future. \u201cThe guys from Ventruss came, \u2018aw dude thank you so much for being here\u2019, you know, shook my hand. \u2018Oh man we really appreciate it.\u2019 And whenever that kind of stuff happens, you start realizing; man, this is really a tight knit community. You know, it feels genuine. They\u2019re not just trying to sell me a CD or something. They actually appreciate you being here. That\u2019s a really cool feeling.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I can\u2019t help but draw attention to the idea that, just like Hunter came away with a good feeling from his interaction with the band, the bands exist in that moment on stage drawing their feeling from the crowd. When the energy and excitement is projected from those in attendance, they witness a better performance. For many, these shows also become a new source of friendships. Regular attendees recognize one another from previous shows and began to strike up conversations among one another. And speaking from personal experience, I can say that a band grows in their appeal once you have some sort of personal vestment in them. Gaining friends with mutual interests, meeting members of the band that just blew you away on stage, and perhaps coming away from a show with a memento of some sort all make people feel connected and a part of something greater and more relative. These experiences also help to quell the overwhelming nature of today\u2019s uber-convenient paths to new music. We have the world at our fingertips when it comes to new music. But there\u2019s just so many options that make all too easy to get lost. Indie bands in Louisiana, for instance, often times get drowned out by all the other music with which they have to contend globally. <a href=\"https:\/\/neworleansmusicians.com\/\">Neworleansmusicians.com<\/a> has focused on the niche of Louisiana bands, in part, for that reason. Bands who join our site intermingle pools of fans, helping to lift one another up. Likewise, when a booking agent does their job well, you can show up because you recognize one of the bands on the bill, and walk away gaining interest in new ones. In his present-day capacity as an entertainment company owner, Hunter recognizes and has been able to lend his services to bands in the Gulf Coast region, an area that he paused to recognize in this interview as rich with new talent. This is a pleasant surprise, given the havoc that Covid wreaked on the live music community as a whole.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cThere was a lot of bands that broke up, which is unfortunate. There\u2019s a lot of bands that took that time and said, well we can\u2019t perform right now. But we can write. We can go to the studio. We can record. We can really spend this time honing our craft and come out swinging. And I think once the lockdown stopped and people came back, you could really see who spent those two years just kind of sitting around waiting, and who spent those two years still diligently trying to hone their craft.\u201d As anyone can tell by now, Hunter remained an attentive understudy of the local music scene throughout. From his break out from Cut Off, to a stint in Houma, to finally settling in Folsom, Louisiana, that list of bands he\u2019d seen grew to over 300. And all of these places were and still are rather obscure when it comes to hotbeds of music activity. He was constantly driving out to see these bands play. So, when a new venue, the Hideaway Den &amp; Arcade opened up near him in Folsom, he was elated to attend their first rock show. Pious, Thornprick, and Dead Machine Theory were on the bill. The venue was pleased with the turnout and Hunter, well he saw opportunity. He approached the owner about booking another rock show and they accepted. On the bill was Acala from Covington, 4Mag Nitrous out of Baton Rouge, and Dead Savage from Hammond. The three fit well and, barring the fact that he accidently booked it on his wedding anniversary, the show was a success. \u201cFrom that show, we\u2019ve expanded so much. We built out the stage. We brought in an in-house sound tech with a full sound rig. They\u2019re looking to do more and more. Whenever they first opened up, they were like man, we want to be the Southport Hall of the north shore in the sense that we want to offer a wide array of entertainment.\u201d In the past, many places in the north shore area have been accustomed to the safety of cover bands. Every so often a local act performs. But Hunter hopes to see more original talent performing in the area. And he hopes The Hideaway, where he has become the main talent buyer, sets the standard. His intention is to strategically mix local bands with regional, national, more widely recognized names. Shortly after approaching and booking his first show at The Hideaway, Hunter approached about twenty venues between Slidell and Hammond with the interest of booking shows. \u201cI went to these places. You know, here\u2019s my business card. I understand you don\u2019t know me from Adam. But, you know, give me a chance. Let\u2019s see what we can do. Everywhere turned their nose at me; slammed the door in my face. They didn\u2019t want to work with me. I get it, you know. You don\u2019t know who I am and a lot of these places, they have their in-house people already. But after that, I\u2019m like alright I guess I\u2019m all in on this place (The Hideaway). And I\u2019ve been all in with them ever since. And I don\u2019t regret it man, I never looked back. And I think now if one of these places that originally turned their nose to me came back and said, oh man we\u2019ve been seeing what you\u2019re doing for this place, maybe we can do something, I\u2019d probably tell them no. They take really good care of me here. I\u2019m all in over here.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Reflecting on his start, Hunter couldn\u2019t remember the last time he did something that brought him so much joy. From booking the bands, to doing the fliers, to the online promotion, he fell in love. He became a true believer in the old adage \u201cChoose a job you love, and you will never have to work a day in your life.\u201d So, unbeknownst to most, during his days booking, he spent four months registering, recruiting, and building his own roster. By its proper name, Fuel the Funeral Entertainment is now a booking agency with a list of developmental and promotional services, some of which include EPK one sheets, public relations, advertising, and website creation. Through dedication and diligence, Hunter hopes to bring to these bands what they have brought to him, loyalty. \u201cThere\u2019s a lot of nights where you\u2019re working until two or three in the morning. &nbsp;behind the computer making sure that it\u2019s done the right way. I don\u2019t want to approach these bands and say hey, let me give you booking representation if I don\u2019t know what I\u2019m doing, you know? There\u2019re enough thieves out there. I don\u2019t want to be another one of them. And that\u2019s what really lead me to starting this venture.\u201d Before he began the process of forming this LLC, before he even had the idea, he was hired by an up-and-coming artist management firm that wanted to expand into booking. Though initially excited about the opportunity, upon working for the firm he began to notice business practices that he would only describe as a little less than reputable. \u201cWe\u2019re taking these bands\u2019 money and we\u2019re not doing much for them. How are we justifying this? I just took a big step back and I\u2019m like, I don\u2019t want to do this. This feels wrong.\u201d And just as one experience inspired him to book for The Hideaway, his experience with this company prompted him to forge his own path.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Since its inception, Fuel the Funeral Entertainment has been focused on transparency. The contracts come with personal advice from Hunter himself advising recipients to bring the documents to an entertainment lawyer. And I wouldn\u2019t be surprised if honesty is the best bait out there these days. He\u2019s been in discussions with bands that he\u2019s had to turn away. Though he has confidence in his future ability to become more adept at the art, if what they\u2019re seeking is outside of his level of current experience, he\u2019s not above informing them. During our discussion, he stressed the importance of knowing one\u2019s limitations and not embellishing upon them. This, coupled with his humility and true appreciation for what bands bring left a lasting impression that tells me his candor in business will take him far. You can view their list of services and submit works for review on the contact form at <a href=\"https:\/\/www.fuelthefuneralentertainment.com\/\">Fuelthefuneralentertainment.com<\/a>. &nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Author: David Trahan<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/neworleansmusicians.com\/\">Neworleansmusicians.com<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group\"><div class=\"wp-block-group__inner-container is-layout-constrained wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\">\n<center><div class=\"wp-block-button\"><a class=\"wp-block-button__link wp-element-button\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/channel\/UCJYroaE-LdzB0f5JarBpDTQ\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Press here to check out our YOUTUBE music videos and interviews.<\/a><\/div><\/center>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group\"><div class=\"wp-block-group__inner-container is-layout-constrained wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-group\"><div class=\"wp-block-group__inner-container 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lies the town of Cut Off, the place where Hunter Bruce was born and raised. At that time (and still to this day), it was the type of place with nothing to do. You could find Hunter with friends hanging out in the parking lots of [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":791,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"templates\/template-full-width.php","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[358,449,229,371,360,281,356,359,369,362,364,361,366,60,368,65,29,75,11,58,365,354,370,363,353,355,372],"class_list":["post-738","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-blog","tag-4mag-nitrous","tag-acala","tag-advertising","tag-and-website-creation","tag-cut-off-louisiana","tag-david-trahan","tag-dead-machine-theory","tag-dead-savage","tag-epk-one-sheets","tag-folsom-louisiana","tag-hammond","tag-houma-louisiana","tag-hunter-bruce","tag-louisiana","tag-louisiana-bands","tag-louisiana-music","tag-new-orleans","tag-new-orleans-music","tag-new-orleans-musicians","tag-neworleansmusicians-com","tag-north-shore","tag-pious","tag-public-relations","tag-slidell","tag-the-hideaway-den-and-arcade","tag-thornprick","tag-warped-tour"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/neworleansmusicians.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/738","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/neworleansmusicians.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/neworleansmusicians.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/neworleansmusicians.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/neworleansmusicians.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=738"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/neworleansmusicians.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/738\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":834,"href":"https:\/\/neworleansmusicians.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/738\/revisions\/834"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/neworleansmusicians.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/791"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/neworleansmusicians.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=738"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/neworleansmusicians.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=738"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/neworleansmusicians.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=738"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}