And then there was Chris Rock's wife, who complained that there were two chicken wings missing from the deli tray in his dressing room. Such are the crises of a concert promoter, in this case James Gore, who has carved out a niche for himself in the cut throat highly competitive field, first by bringing urban comedy to Seatle in the 1980's and later becoming a force in smooth jazz, via his ongoing "Jazz In The City" series (next is Boney James, April 28 at the Paramount).
Now, fresh from receiving a doctorate in education at Seattle University, the entrepreneur hopes to encourage young people, especially African Americans, to consider show-business careers behind the spotlight.
Gore, whose company is called Ariel Productions, doesn't fit the image of the cigar-chomping, fast-talking, money-grubbing show-biz heavy. For one thing, he's a religious man who values the ethics-based education he got from S.U.'s Jesuits. He's unfailing polite, with an easy laugh and ready smile. And he's tall, 6 feet 4 inches, which explains how he came to Seattle University on a basketball scholarship, almost 20 years ago.
A Detroit native, Gore arrived at S.U. in 1982, after playing ball for junior colleges in Arizona and Colorado.
"I didn't know it was a Jesuit university," he confessed. "When I saw these priests with these long gowns, I was like, 'Whoa, what is going on here?' But it turned out to be the most unique experience. The education I received is more liberal arts, based on a lot of ethics. The religious studies were optional. I'm not Catholic, but I took some of those classes. I think it taught me to be a little more well-rounded."
The young Gore liked Seattle immediately.
"When I first came here, it was a refreshing breath of fresh air," he recalled. "Coming from Detroit, which is probably about 80 percent African American, I couldn't believe the diversity here. Dialogue is very important in Seattle. Reading is important. This is probably one of the few cities where you can go out on a date to a bookstore. Seattle is what the world should be like."
An injury cut short Gore's college basketball career, and ended the scholarship money. So he had to find work, and cut down his class load. He became a bailiff in Municipal Court, a job that suited his tall, 200-pound frame.
He remained active in school, as co-chair of Students Against Apartheid in the mid-1980s, and as an officer in student government.
He became involved in local politics, working in Seattle City Councilman Sam Smith's office, raising money for Norm Rice's mayoral campaigns and interning in Olympia for State Rep. Jesse Wineberry.
He volunteered at the 1990 Goodwill Games, coordinating security and transportation for athletes and celebrities.
"How can a kid be so lucky to land in the right place at the right time?" Gore said of the job. "That type of experience you can't buy."
He got an internship at the Kingdome, where he learned how sporting and large entertainment events are coordinated and staged.
But he found his calling when he became a close friend of a young comedian named James Stephens III.
Believing in Stephens' talent, he helped him get bookings in local clubs — Gore's first experience as a promoter. Then, taking a cue from the highly popular cable-TV series, "Def Comedy Jam," which influenced Stephens' act, the two organized several of what they called "Mo' Better Comedy" shows, first at Parker's Nightclub in Seattle in 1990, then at the Pantages Theater in Tacoma the following year. Stephens — who called himself a "musical impressionist," doing bits on Michael Jackson, Stevie Wonder, James Brown and others — got lots of work, providing both with tidy incomes. Eventually, he attracted national attention and moved to Los Angeles.
With Stephens gone, Gore began booking national comedians in theater shows here (using some of his student-loan money) and was so successful he was able to buy a condo building (in which he lives and has his offices) and pay for college.
When urban comedy became so big that comedians he once booked moved out of his price range, or traded stand-up for movie or TV careers, Gore moved into another area he felt was neglected by mainstream promoters — smooth jazz. Reviled by critics and shunned by many promoters, who prefer sure-fire pop acts, Gore did his homework, finding out which smooth-jazz artists sold the most albums locally, and who got played on local radio.
"I didn't know anything about the music," he says, "I was kind of feeling my way through it."
His research worked. Since the mid-'90s, he's booked Dave Koz, Bob James, David Benoit, Rick Braun, David Sanborn and many other stars.
In some ways, he finds the work more rewarding than comedy.
"The audience (for smooth jazz) is more mixed." And, he said, smooth-jazz musicians aren't as troublesome. He couldn't think of one crisis caused by any of them.
As for those earlier crises, Gore says he learned from them, and moved on.
He didn't blame Jamie Foxx, for instance, when the comedian held out for more money. "It was OK, actually," Gore admitted, "maybe even appropriate. We did have a full house and sometimes there's a bonus for that. It wasn't in his contract, but I said I'd send him a check. But, no, they wanted cash. So I ran to the hotel and gave him all this cash. He put it in his pocket, and I said, 'I thought you guys trusted me.' But he said, 'No. Business is business.' And I learned from that."
His smooth-jazz success has enabled Gore to take Ariel Productions into new areas, including corporate shows, career management, public relations, technical support, video and photo services and catering.
(Check out his new Web site, www.arielmedia.com, which has links to his long-established www.jazzinthecity.com.)
Now he wants to pass on what he has learned to young people.
"One of the things that I'm hoping to do is to help kids, especially minority kids, understand that you don't have to be on stage to enjoy some of the things about entertainment and sports," he said. "I'm talking about being part of an industry, being part of an art form, and having a career and making a living doing something exciting and fun. I don't see a lot of minorities in the business part of show business, from stage hands on up. There are so many opportunities. My career is proof of that."
|
