INTERVIEW: Devon Webb (Golddust Productions)
D: Devon
J: Joseph
J: Hey everyone, welcome back to our interview here, this is Something Something and today we have Devon Webb from Golddust Productions!
D: Hello, hello, happy to be here!
J: So we just wanna know a bit of a history about Golddust and what they do.
D: So Golddust is an event management company and we put on shows, primarily live music shows, and hoping to branch out into other forms of art like commissioning film makers and visual artists and all that kind of thing. So essentially it just about supporting artists and especially upcoming artists in the scene.
J: How has 2021 been for you, for Golddust?
D: Well, I was actually pretty lucky because I started Golddust after the whole sh’bang, the lockdown and everything. So we had a pretty good run later in the year and yeah, I’ve just been keeping my fingers crossed that it wouldn’t get muddled up this year and it was actually funny, we had a gig planned for the 18th of February I think it was, and there was a lockdown that ended at midnight on the 17th of February. So I was sorta like “oh, gig’s off, gig’s off” but we got it, we got it, and it happened, and it was a really good gig, so I think in that sort of climate everyone’s keen to get out and support when they can y’know? So it’s good that we can do that. And I’m glad that New Zealand has been pretty onto it with all that, so that we can continue having these opportunities.
J: What is one of your favourite gigs you’ve done?
D: Well, Golddust was definitely pretty known for the rooftop gigs we did. We did three gigs on this rooftop, it was a private residence, so it was pretty lucky that we had access to that space via the residents that lived there. The first one was the first ever gig we did and that was really really beautiful because it was quite wholesome and intimate. We probably had about just over 100 people there and it was really nice, that kind of size, and it was all through the day. And obviously it was my first gig so there were things I sort of learnt along the way. And then we had the second one which was kind of the, sort of, very well known one, because it went viral on Facebook and we had over 300 people. That was really awesome, but there were some not awesome things about it. Like, I made some errors on my part and it was a bit overwhelming. So I would say that my favourite gig we’ve ever done was the third one, the final rooftop gig, which was in January this year, because I could kind take what I’d learnt from those previous two gigs and combine them into this awesome whole day of activity on the rooftop. And we had artists playing from probably about 3:00pm and an art exhibition as well and so I really loved the amount of artists we had exhibiting in different forms and how sort of, together everyone was. It was just a very nice time. And there were lots of great acts playing. I sort of learnt, I’ve learnt some things about booking acts. Y’know, I try and book acts that are good people as well as good artists and I think that’s like a really, that’s been a really important thing to me personally. So I had some of my favourites, shout outs to Sure Boy and King Fish, some of my favourite bands who are just great people as well. Just some awesome people and so it’s awesome being able to connect with the artists in that way.
J: What are the goals for future gigs you might be putting on? What is some stuff that you want to work on as a production company?
D: I have some ideas for shows that I wanna do. At the moment I’m trying to book venues. So I want to do something again in a unique venue, like the rooftop was unique, we did a church last year as well which was also unique, so trying to find somewhere like that. But I also wanna do some shows in my favourite venues like San Fran, I’ve ticked Valhalla off the list, we love Valhalla, shout out to Ben. But San Fran is something that I really really wanna do, I’ve got some ideas about that. But also one of my other primary goals this year with Golddust is, I want to branch out as well as just doing the live music. I want to focus on other areas as well and giving other artists opportunities like film artists. I’m putting on a show this week at Raglan Roast and the goal is to have these artists performing in a kind of acoustic style and setting, with a film crew operating at the same time and being able to create some content for those artists that can then be used as internet promo and all that, because that’s something that’s really helpful for artists to kind of get known and share their work in that way. I also want to do an art exhibition, so y’know, just branching out rather than just keeping myself limited to live music. I wanna y’know, do it all.
J: What would be your advice for any other person who is trying to create a promotional company?
D: There’s definitely some difficulties that you don’t anticipate when you set out to be an event manager. I never actually planned to be an event manager, it was never like, a conceptualised idea, it just sort of happened because I had access to this venue and my process was “make a Facebook page to make an event” and it kind of just popped off from there. But my advice would be A: do your admin. That’s, that’s the thing. Event management is definitely a lot of admin, a lot of correspondence, so stay on top of that but also don’t burn yourself out and don’t expect too much. Don’t expect perfectionism from yourself. Don’t put too much pressure on yourself to do everything perfectly. Because if you’re starting out in an area like I was starting out, and when you’re a beginner at something, you’re going to make mistakes and I think be kind to yourself and listen to other people. Take advice, don’t be too… y’know, be humble, be humble enough to kind of be able to learn from these things, and when you do make a mistake, don’t beat yourself up about it, just work on improving and either making reparations or improvements for the future. Because it is a lot of work and there are a lot of things you don’t realise are gonna be a lot of pressure. But it is, and there’s a lot of things to putting on a show that say, maybe a live, like a musician doesn’t realise because they don’t think about y’know…
J: How do you stay motivated? Is your job exciting?
D: My job is definitely exciting. Being in this community I don’t think it couldn’t be exciting, with, I don’t think it could not be exciting with all these amazing people around us. And that’s what motivates me, is the people. It’s putting on a show, if I was putting on a show to an empty room it wouldn’t be much fun, but it’s when people come to the shows and they say “I had such an awesome time, this is so cool, I love what you’re doing.” That’s what motivates me and y’know, like I said y’know like, beating yourself up about mistakes you’ve made. Those people aren’t seeing those mistakes, they’re just seeing the good things and when people feel inspired or happy, the goal of putting on an event is for people to have a good time and enjoy these artists and if they’re having a good time, then you’ve achieved your goal. So it’s that sort of community response and collaboration that inspires me and motivates me.
J: What’s your favourite pizza?
D: I actually have IBS so r.i.p, but pepperoni for sure. I worked at Sal’s Pizza, that’s probably why I have IBS. Because I ate too much cheese!
J: Too much cheese!
J: So with Golddust Productions, who is a part of your team?
D: So, I would say it’s a reasonable independent operation, but I have one of my best friends; Margherita is, I call her Golddust mother, and she always does door duty and has all the art supplies and sort of makes sure everything’s running okay. So she’s a pretty awesome part of it. And then I sort of collaborate with different tech people each time, and work with different photographers. So I try and kind of keep the team flexible and mobile, so I can, because I want to work with the people who really resonate with the idea of Golddust and the message behind it, rather than doing anything for ego reasons or y’know, not for the right reason y’know.
J: What instrument do you actually play?
D: I know some very basic ukulele, I know about six chords on the ukulele, and I have a one woman ukulele band called Spliffs After Sex. I managed to translate that to a little bit of keys, I can’t play guitar because my hands are too small. But I also like to sing, and if anyone wants to start a band and needs a singer! And I do spoken word poetry, so that’s my personal art form.
J: If you were a mermaid, what colour would your tail be?
D: Some kind of like, bluey purple combination. Definitely some purples and some blues but quite, what’s that word. Not luminescent but that, you know the word where they’re all, reflecting, y’know. Like a nice blend.
J: What is your favourite album?
D: Lana Del Rey. Not any specific album, just whichever one she has released most recently, I will listen to her most recent album on repeat until she releases her next album, and then I will listen to that album on repeat. So it’s currently Chemtrails Over The Country Club, chur Lana.
J: What kind of music did you listen to as a child?
D: I listened to my parents’ CDs. Elton John, The Beatles, and Spice Girls. And I thought I was alternative, and in primary school I was like “ya’ll are so mainstream.” because I was hip.
J: Any final thoughts or shoutouts?
D: Just the community in general and everyone who enables me to be able to do what I do and who supports me. Thanks for all the artists that I’ve collaborated with or who have performed at my shows or designed posters for me or anything like that. Thanks to all of y’all, couldn’t do it without you.