It's me, hi!

Is anyone else feeling more and more of a draw back to the way things “used to be”? Back to when social media was actually just for fun and connecting with friends, back to “dumb” phones, back to blogging?

Fun fact: before I actually even got started working in music, my first baby step into the industry was a music blog. I was such a massive fan and supporter of local and/or independent music and wanted to give artists a platform who may not get as much airplay on pop radio or interviewed by the big media outlets, so I started a Tumblr. It was literally called Jen From Twitter (back when social media was fun, remember?) and I would purchase albums and concert tickets for the purpose of reviewing them, because I literally had no idea that it was commonplace for artists to provide review copies and/or tickets for free. It was just pure enthusiasm (and, yes, naïveté).

Anyway, I’ve been thinking about that a lot lately. And about how much I miss writing and sharing the things I love, the things I’m excited about, and the things I’ve learned over the last decade or so of working in live music. So, I thought I’d get started again. I may still have a smartphone and not enjoy social media as much as I used to, but I can at least start recording my thoughts here again, right?

 
An illustration of a Tour Manager action figure with purple macbook, tour laminate, iPhone, walkie/radio, and Pelican road case accessories. The Tour Manager has long brown hair, multiple small tattoos on her arms, a grey top, black jeans and boots.

Tour Manager action figure illustration by Edie Woolf.

 

For today I thought I’d start with an intro post, cause maybe you’re here but you don’t really know who I am! Sure, you can read my bio page (which is pretty great, if I may say so), but that’s more the story of what I’ve been up to; this is more of who I am (or at least a snapshot at this moment in time). So, without further ado, some fun facts:

  1. I’ve been working in the music industry for more than a decade, primarily as a Tour Manager, but I’ve done everything from booking to publicity to day-to-day management to photography to social media to… you get the idea. I’ve done a lot :)

  2. I moved to the Netherlands at the very start of the pandemic, and am based in Haarlem. But I’m back in Toronto often enough that there are still some people who are surprised to hear I don’t live there anymore!

  3. I have 30 tattoos (most of them from tours, a few of them even done backstage) but always forget how many there are and have to re-count.

  4. I spent a long time being “too cool” to be a fangirl but I became a swiftie in 2024 and it’s honestly so fun being part of a fandom!

  5. I drink more coffee than is reasonable (like 8+ shots of espresso on a tour day) and have since I was 13, but I have zero withdrawal and can stop drinking it for weeks or months at a time without issue.

  6. I’m a total introvert. I absolutely love being in the tour bubble with my tourmates, but when I do a bus shop I’m mainly just walking around pushing a cart in silence for a bit to get some time to myself and recharge!

  7. I’ve never successfully backed up a vehicle with a trailer, or driven on the left, but both are on my list to learn one of these days.

  8. I think fans play such a vital role in the concert experience - beyond being the ones buying the tickets of course - and I love getting to know them on the road! Some of my best friends are fans I’ve gotten to know over the years.

  9. I genuinely like flying, and don’t mind layovers. Airports have (almost) always led to adventure!

  10. I really want to help teach/mentor new TMs, and have a few things in the works to help provide resources and training. (Watch this space!)

  11. Touring has played such a huge role in me embracing my queerness more and more over the years, and it makes me so happy. In 2022 I did a tour where we not only had a 50/50 male to female ratio on the bus, but 5 of the 6 women were queer, and it was the absolute best!

(I feel like I should add a couple more things to that list to bring it up to an “even” 15, but also think it’s kind of funny to just stop there at 11… Sorry if that stresses you out ;)

If you’ve read this far, I’d love to know - what are some fun facts about you? How did you end up here? And do we follow each other on socials yet? I’m currently most active on Insta but also on Facebook and Threads occasionally. Come say hi!

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