Fuzzy: Staying one step ahead

14 July 2011

by Nathan Jolly

TMN speak to Fuzzy directors John Wall (Creative Director and Co-founder), Ming Gan (Business Director and Co-founder) and Adelle Robinson (Director and General Manager), about the trials and tribulations involved in staying one step ahead in the crowded festival marketplace.

Congrats on the impressive Parklife lineup. What goes into selecting the acts to play the festival? Is it a balancing act in regards to genres?

John: We do our best to pick a few genres we like and do them properly, rather than try to cover every kind of music in existence. This year we are focusing on indie meets dance, dubstep and a gang of our favourite electro artists. It’s very consistent with what we think Parklife should be musically.

How far out do you generally begin securing acts? How heavily do release schedules affect the acts you book?

John: Some acts take years to secure, as release schedules do of course have an effect on when people want to tour, but it begins in earnest for next year once this year’s event is over and we’ve caught our breath.

Parklife has evolved quite a bit over the years. Could you explain the reasons for the stylistic/ genre shift?

John: It started as a small, simple, “house music in a park” idea. That was exactly what made sense in 2000, 2001... but obviously music keeps evolving and we have no interest in living in the past. That’s why we don’t stack the lineup with big old heritage acts the way a lot of festivals do. A bit of memory lane is cool, but you don’t want it to be a dead end.

Fuzzy continues to be successful in a very crowded market place. How have you managed this?

John: We never consider what we do to be good enough, so we don’t sit back and relax. We really, really care about our customers’ experience at the event and do everything we can to make it a quality party – and a lot of people seem to notice the difference.

How do you see the marketplace changing over the next year or so? Have we reached saturation point?

John: There are a lot of events going on - some make sense and some really feel like cash-in attempts with no soul. So people are choosing the festivals and parties they have confidence in. I like to think people recognise high quality events that have an honest, genuine musical direction and care about customers, and that’s definitely what Parklife is to us. In a couple of years there will be fewer festivals than now.

Adelle, how much pre-planning goes into Parklife in regards to appeasing local stakeholders and council?

Adelle: We have been working with venues since November last year in regards to this year’s event, each year we try to improve the venue layout and event operations. One new thing for this year is holders of our More Expensive Tickets will have a dedicated entry that will lead directly into the exclusive Garden Bar in every city, so that has taken a bit of negotiation.

Any major headaches or close shaves with this year’s festival so far? Adelle: So far no headaches but running a festival will always throw a curve ball; I remember one year everything was going to plan and then just before gates opened in Brisbane there was a swarm of angry bees hovering around the main entrance. I never thought part of my working life would include finding an emergency bee charmer! That is one thing about major event management, it is never boring.

Ming, your bio explains your job involves “counselling, property advice, fashion advice, dating agency”. What are some of the odder requests you’ve had to field when dealing with international artists or agents?

Ming: Diplo’s rider always includes something interesting... from blow-up animals, to a Malawian orphan, to a fully grown gorilla. Whilst it’s tongue-in-cheek, we’ve tried to get them (or something close to them, as a joke back). Fake Blood always requests fake vampire teeth, and you couldn’t guess the number of artists that want me to take them out fishing. But even what seems like the simplest request can be difficult... trying to find a black SUV with tinted windows to hire for Missy Elliott was harder than you think.

John, could you explain what goes into the decision process regarding the artwork for the various Fuzzy events?

John: We toss ideas around until we have something we all like, then our designers get to work! Sometimes it happens pretty easily, sometimes we can’t agree for ages. Usually we end up with something we like in the end!