Meet Craig M Garrett of Next Level Events in East Atlanta

Today we’d like to introduce you to Craig M Garrett.

Craig, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
I’d say I originally started the company (not formally) in college as I was planning events for the student body like comedy shows and parties. Then as an adult, I was always creating events for people – dinner parties, in-home cooking classes, unique travel experiences, you name it. I was always the planner – big or small. Then a friend asked me to help with a concert that I recommended he do. That went well and I received a lot of great feedback from the artists on what I was providing. So, I kept doing it. It just grew organically. In 2015, for some reason, Lalah Hathaway’s team called and wanted us to do her album release concert for her first-ever live concert album (she subsequently went on to win two Grammy awards for it – getting a call during the awards ceremony from a member of her team thanking me for that night was a special moment). At first, I didn’t believe it was real even after having three conference calls with a rep of hers. It wasn’t until I received an email from her attorney requesting a call that I believed it to be real. There was no reason someone of Lalah’s stature should know who we were let alone be calling us to ask her to do such an important event for her. The night was a huge success and we sold out two concerts in one night.

The real epiphany moment came after that night. I had trained all these years in my professional career as a manufacturing/supply chain/operations professional (I’m a mechanical engineer by education, Northwestern University) yet here I was producing and promoting concerts. I had a bit of an identity crisis and “pulled a Dave Chappelle” and booked a one-way ticket to South Africa. I decided to use one of my favorite places on the planet to foster my creative thoughts about what I wanted to do with the next phase of my life. After a few well-spent weeks sitting poolside on a dear friend’s verandah, I left my beloved muse, South Africa, with a plan to grow Next Level Events (NLE) into a thriving cultural contributor to Atlanta and other cities. When I finally got on a plane to return home, I had a clear plan for NLE. I was growing a side project, a passion even, into a viable and flourishing business — which I could be proud of by making a small contribution to Atlanta’s incredible cultural landscape. From that point on, it was deliberate and progressive. Every move would be strategic to grow the brand, improve the overall experience and provide a platform for great musicianship, innovative artistry, dining and travel experiences readily accessible. NLE is committed to providing unsurpassed talent, content, and experiences for the patrons and artists alike. That is my personal pledge and guiding principle. I love and have a passion for live music, international travel SCUBA diving, and people, and I’m a foodie, so I try to combine as many of my passions as possible.

Has it been a smooth road?
Far from smooth. I started this business the exact opposite way you should. In all honesty, I fell into this. And I was lucky. I didn’t have a business plan. I didn’t raise capital. I was just out here winging it. Literally. People were calling me asking to do X, Y, and Z with the concerts and I had no idea what they were talking about but I acted as if I did and just tried to figure it out and deliver without making a complete fool of myself and the company. We were blessed to work with some fairly well known/large acts early on, so people assumed we’d been doing it for years, and I didn’t take the time to correct them. A former mentor of mine in my corporate career once said to me, “people assume you belong in the room because you act as if you do and that you’ve been there before.” I never forgot that, and it’s kind of how I operate.

The music/entertainment business is tough…no other way to explain it. From the shady/unscrupulous people that you encounter every day, to fighting against the big organizations – independent promoters are a dying breed. And let me be clear, everyone isn’t shady. I also meet wonderful people who offer to help and provide advice when I seek it and some offer it even when I don’t.

So let’s switch gears a bit and go into the Next Level Events story. Tell us more about the business.
Our main focus now is producing and promoting music experiences. We also provide talent, support & production for some festivals around the region. We are most known for the concert experiences as those are almost always public. Many of the other events aren’t as well known because they were private or curated experiences for a targeted audience.

I’m proud of a few things; a) the way we treat artists, their team, and the fans who spend their hard earned money to come support live music. That was part of what I built the company’s reputation on. We treat not just the artist well but their entire team – agent, managers, tour bus drivers. It doesn’t matter. We are creating an experience for everyone that participates. I believe that is why so many artists come back to us when they come to Atlanta and other cities.

b) Another thing I’m proud of is that there are no stories of NLE not paying people. You hear countless stories about at the end of the night the promoter not having the money or the checks bouncing or you can’t find them the day of the show. I run NLE like I ran my professional career.

What sets us apart? Now if I told you that, we wouldn’t be special. Seriously, I’ll say I believe some of our success is built upon the experience artists and their team has with us combined with our professionalism, organization, and attention to detail, in addition to offering great music to the audiences. I often hear from people who work with us for the first time say, “you aren’t from this industry are you!?” At first, it would bother me as I felt like it was a bit of an attack on us. But over time, I understood that we just do things differently than most and it’s was noticed and appreciated. Also, the fact is I didn’t know what I didn’t know when I started down this path. Some of the things we pulled off, if I had really known what it took or what we were up against, I’d have NEVER done it.

I’m really fortunate because I have several people on my team (formally and informally) who understand the vision of what I’m trying to create and they are committed to helping me achieve it. For those that work with us, they know that I’m very hands on – picking the talent to bring, creating setlists, working with the chef on the catering, selecting specific drivers for the talent based on what I know they like or dislike, you name it – I’m usually involved or at least made aware and in agreement. I’m involved in some way on just about everything we do. With the people on my team now, I’m able to let them take the lead on things so I can focus on some future bigger projects as they know what I like and how I like things to be done. There is nothing like having people around you who understand you and you trust. It’s become a shared vision.

I’m also proud of the work we are doing to create a festival, with plans to launch in 2019. The focus of the event is raising funds for non-profit organizations and organizations that help people in the local communities. We have an anchor artist bought into the idea and hopefully, we’ll be announcing it in the first quarter of 2019. We are going to start small so that we can ensure success and a donation to the organizations. We hope that it grows into an annual festival and eventually expands to several cities. I like helping people so if I can create something that will ultimately do that, I’ll feel like I’m doing what I was put here to do.

How do you think the industry will change over the next decade?
I think the industry is changing daily. As I referenced earlier, the big corporations are really taking over. Plus with the level of direct contact today that exists through social media for artists to their fans, there are opportunities to create a new experience and unique engagement that we’ve not seen before. Technology is emerging to be the main driver in how content, even musical content and entertainment is delivered as well as how fans decide who they follow and support. For younger audiences, I think you’ll see an increase in festivals – large and small. For more mature audiences, the coupling of two-three headliners on the same bill as a value offering as their time outside the home (away from family and work) is limited. I believe technology brands, as well as consumer brands, are going to take a more active involvement with artists. As we see with Nike and Colin Kapernick & Serena Williams, brands are supporting talent and the causes or themes that that are important to them and a growing population. Let’s be clear; it’s not all altruistic what they are doing. They are taking calculated risks but these are just a few examples.

I believe we are going to see a shift in music as well. I believe audience are going to demand original music where people are really singing and playing instruments again. Fans are going to want great songwriting that connects them through the human condition. Or maybe I’m just projecting my own personal desires for what the future holds.

Contact Info:

• Phone: 404-635-6932
• Email: info@nextlevelatlanta.com

Image Credit:
Almost all photos by Tiffany Powell of Tiffany Powell Photography.

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