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Daniella Peters-Initiative Creates a Job

Professional Audio encompasses a wide range of jobs from Engineering to Research and Development, Audio technicians, Mixers, and the various positions at companies that provide services and equipment. These include things like; Management, Public Relations, Marketing, and Sales. All of these jobs require diverse skills and knowledge about your product and/or company.

SoundGirls recently talked with Daniella Peters of Rat Sound.

Daniella Peters is the head of the Sales Department and part of the management team at Rat Sound in Camarillo, CA. Having worked for Rat for the past 14 years, she considers the Rat team family. Daniella was no stranger to live events or the stage. Her mother was a performer, so she grew up around the theater. She also spent several years working for an international cosmetics company doing their live events and found working in the concert industry a natural transition.

Like many in the music industry, Daniella essentially created her job.

“I was 23 and I knew Jon Monson, Dave Rat, and Karrie Keyes. I pitched Karrie at the time to come and work for them doing PR. Back then, Rat was a lot smaller, and there wasn’t really a budget but I didn’t care, I just desperately wanted to work there. I would go to shows, takes photos of the crew and gear, and make sure each Rat tour was in the trades. After a year or so, Dave Rat said ‘this is great, but really we need to get you bringing in money in order to keep you.’ So we sat down one day and thought about it. We knew how to send large rock tours out and rent out gear, but we didn’t have a storefront, nor a real web store. Dave suggested selling all of the gear Rat used; microphones, speakers, and so forth. We could give unbiased advice on the best product for the job, and we had access to all these incredible lines that we used anyway. The plan was informal. We picked a product as a test. We chose the Audix OM7 vocal microphone. Both the Red Hot Chili Peppers and Pearl Jam were using it so it was a mic we really could get behind. The goal was to sell five mics. It seemed huge, did I cold call? eBay? Pitch to the bands we were working with? We built a simple web page with a single OM7 and a PayPal button on it, and the sales department was born.”

Two years later Rat hit a million dollars in product box sales.

Without a formal background in audio, Daniella gained most of her knowledge by learning on the job. She volunteered at KROQ shows, stints at HHB and Rock FM, and worked on the Coachella main stage audio team for Rat. “I’ve learned by watching and listening. I got lucky because I had other sales and marketing skills, which benefitted Rat at the time I was hired. Now I would say you need to have a strong interest and innate ability in audio to go far. It’s too competitive now otherwise. “

Successfully selling a product requires knowing the product. A good amount of research can be involved. Daniella gets to know the products through attending trade shows like NAMM, LDI, and AES, which she attends regularly and feels are the most relevant and useful for her position in sales. She also attends manufacturer demos and learns from speaking with her customers, clients, and bands about what they like. This gives her a feel for what is hot in the market. “Obviously the rental dept. has strong recommendations and opinions on new gear that comes out, and being a slightly larger company, manufacturers drop in pretty frequently to see us and keep us updated on what is new.”

Attending the trade shows offers more than just product info.

Daniella finds the trade shows a useful tool for relationship building, which that coupled with great service and reliability is what she finds key to making a successful sale. “Sometimes you have people who call in and tell you I just need it to be the lowest price. And you know they have spent 2 hours on the phone calling everywhere to save $5 on a microphone. On the other side of the coin, I must say, either way, a huge part of what I do, is having things get there exactly when they are meant to. Tours spend very little time in one place. If a band has one show a night, in a different city every day, then you need to be precise in getting what they need there exactly on time. Likewise, if they have something break mid-show or heaven forbid someone throws a beer on your console, they can email or call me at any time. I will do everything beyond my power to either advance replace or fix. We’ve sent an Atlas mic stand with someone on a plane one time to a band in Europe because they absolutely needed the MS 12CE and there wasn’t any to be found anywhere on a Sunday in that part of the world. It’s frustrating to get beat up on price although I understand it. It’s the fine balance between covering your costs, and you are paying for service too. I would like to think that my clients know if they have an issue they feel cared for and safe. I feel they are also my friends. When I had to go to travel to the East coast, I stopped in and met up with Welsh Sound for example. I went out with James’s wife and daughter, and we went to see a concert together where James was working which was so super fun. And then being out at Coachella, jobs or trade shows, you get to meet with people whom you’ve only met by phone. I feel like I know what is going on in their lives as they do mine. I’m not sure if that’s typical music touring industry or whether it’s a result of the world’s turn towards social media aiding this. Maybe a mixture of both.”

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Do you find now that most of the sales come to you via the website or do you still have to do a lot of the leg work like cold calling, and pitching to bands?
All of the above. Facebook has been a fun marketing medium for our box sales and gets a lot of interaction. We have loyal repeat clients. I find myself getting referrals now (shout out to Ron Kimball (Bad Religion), Kevin Sanchez, and Jason Bertok who give my name to everyone they meet), some pitching, some bidding. Having a touring side helps, if bands are out on tour, they get shot in my direction from Jon Monson. Getting to work shows like Coachella, I meet new and old faces each year. We have a fairly active web store, Amazon and eBay as well, although it’s constantly a work in progress in developing ways to bring people to the web store.

How important is social marketing in your job?
I update the Rat’s social media, although sometimes I lag depending on how busy we get. It feels like it should be a full-time job. For Rat’s sales division, social marketing has been paramount, for Rat Sound at least.
Daniella doesn’t feel that she has faced much sexism or discrimination being a minority (woman) in the audio industry. “I don’t know that I’ve ever lost a sale or client because of being a woman although I have gained some clients because I am a woman. Yes, women are the minority, and maybe I’m just oblivious but honestly, I’ve found everyone with whom I’ve come into contact with pretty cool and very respectful. I think that’s why I’ve stayed at Rat so long. Dave Rat is pretty clear that we are all a team. And male or female we all have our strengths and weaknesses but, as long as you work hard, it’s the collective that works. In this industry, I’ve found most people really easy to get along with. That being said, I am pretty feminine, I know my limits, what I’m good at and what I’m not good at. It’s that old phrase, better to be right or happy? Quite honestly, I think no matter which industry you work in there are always occasionally those who may be arrogant or ego-driven. That’s life in general. But I have done a lot of work on trying to not take anything too personally – from males or females. You just roll your eyes, keep your head down and move on.” Again, Daniella stresses that good relationships and reliability are keys to success. “It’s building relationships. You gel who you gel with, and you enjoy talking to some more than others. Screw up and you’re going to lose jobs.”

Can you tell us about one of your favorite long-term projects?
We did do one for the Thousand Oaks Civic Arts Center. We won the bid for their brand new L-Acoustics sound system for their two theaters, which was exciting for everyone here. They are such a landmark venue that it was a real privilege to be trusted with their project and build that relationship with them – especially being in such close proximity.

I think every project “takes a village”. While yes, I was the project manager, I worked with our general manager on this one. He has different strengths to the ones I have so we worked together.

A funny story; one of the first days we were on site, I met one of the Thousand Oaks Civic Arts Center team that two years earlier, turns out he had contacted Rat and we had actually met. It was late on a Friday, and he had needed a part, last minute for a show and he was stuck and calling round. It was small but important to him, and I had gestured “just take it, I don’t want any payment. But don’t forget to bring it back Monday otherwise I’ll hunt you down!” He had remembered. I think there was something Karmic in that gesture even though it wasn’t on purpose at the time.

Mail AttachmentFor anyone thinking about getting into audio sales or any career in general Daniella has some good advice: “Go for it. It does not cross my mind that you shouldn’t truly go for anything you want to do in life, and while you are doing that, you may find your life takes a direction you could never have even dreamed! Quite honestly, I didn’t have a fixed plan starting out. I started in the beauty industry, but over time realized I was gravitating towards music.

Get as much experience as possible. When I was younger, I sought out as many experiences as I possibly could and said yes, to any opportunity, no matter what. I had no ego attached to doing even the most mundane of tasks to gain experience. I built up experience and relationships until I stumbled into the role where I felt was meant to be.

Pay your dues, watch and listen, work hard, get creative!”

Must have skills include: Being organized and accurate. Be good with people. Be great with numbers. Don’t be a diva. Know your place in the food chain.

What gets you excited about your job?
Working with open-minded people. That goes for both clients and co-workers.
Also, new friends, I get to meet. I have met a couple of my best friends through NAMM, and the SoundGirls NAMM dinner last year was extremely fun.

Finally when you close a big sale that you’ve worked very hard on it must feel somewhat like finishing a successful show?
Yes, especially if you didn’t think you were going to get the job. Some can last over a year, quoting, re-quoting. The fact that someone trusts you enough to go with you, rather than elsewhere feels really great.

We’d like to thank Daniella for taking the time to talk to us about her position as head of sales for Rat Sound.
Daniella will be doing periodic gear reviews for SoundGirls.Org, you can find them here.

Two Weekends, Two Shows, One Festival

Last night we successfully completed our first weekend at Austin City Limits Festival. If it was a competition it would be safe to say we won or at least made it into the postseason. (review of show) It was a great show, the weather was not brutally hot or cold and it did not turn into a mud-fest. Both the audience and band brought it. This show at this festival should be put in memory books. Except we get to come back next weekend and do it all over again. Should be a piece of cake right? (more…)

Traveling the Long Road – Karrie Keyes

 

Beginning her career in live sound at the age of 18, Karrie Keyes has been the monitor engineer for Pearl Jam and Eddie Vedder for 27 years. She’s also spent ten years 1990-2000 as a monitor engineer for Red Hot Chili Peppers and has mixed a very diverse list of additional artists.

Aversion to Conformity

As a teen, Karrie wasn’t sure what she wanted to do, but she knew one thing – she wasn’t going to conform to society’s standards and soon found that the punk rock scene gave her the philosophy and ideals she found most suited her. “During my teen years, I rebelled against all things that sought to mold and conform me; school, church, societal norms, and expectations. I mainly hung out with two groups of guys as I found I related to them easier than girls. The commonality between the two different groups was music, one group mainly listened to rock music, and the other group listened to punk rock.” Karrie eventually began to hang out more and more with the punk rockers and during that time started dreaming about traveling the world as a writer. “I would have none of the trappings of society; no mortgage, no boss, no husband, and no kids. Each of the guys had similar dreams, but theirs revolved around touring the world as a punk rock band.”

“I watched and listened as they learned to play their instruments and write songs. They never once asked if I wanted to be involved and I did not have the courage to ask. I could be a spectator, a fan, a girlfriend. One day we went to a friend’s rehearsal space, and I saw a soundboard for the first time and wondered if I could run it? Our friend, Ben, was older and in a band that got paying gigs, he laughed at me and told me girls couldn’t run the soundboard. I wondered what other skills were needed to run it or if the only qualification needed was being a dude.”

“I then started to wonder what other jobs there might be in the music industry and had only a vague sense of what roadies did or what it took to put on a live show. I was in orchestras and band through school and knew I wanted to be involved in music but did not know how.” When Karrie inquired in high school about careers in the field, she was told that no one made a living in the music industry. “I wondered how that could be. I saw bands and artists all the time on MTV and thought – they must be making a living? I only had the vaguest sense of what it took for a band to make an album or to put on a concert, but I sensed Fleetwood Mac was not setting up their equipment and I was sure Van Halen was not just paying their roadies with beer and pizza. I had no idea how one would go about becoming a roadie, but sensed that being a woman would be a huge obstacle.”

After high school Karrie ‘half-heartedly’ enrolled in a community college where she did what any other 18-year-old with no idea of what they want to do does: “I worked part-time, showed up at some of my college classes, and went to punk rock shows.”

“As it is with so many things in life, my path would instantly change over a simple decision. The decision was- what punk rock show to go to Fear or Black Flag? The choice was pretty simple as my friends were going to Fear and I could get a ride – Black Flag was to be attended on a public bus that stopped running at 10 pm, which meant I would be stranded until the morning. Black Flag it was! I never did things the easy way!”, she laughs. “The show was a video shoot for the In My Head Tour and Painted Willie and Gone opened up. I managed to weave my way up to the front. Minutes before Black Flag went on, one of their roadies came over and talked to me and I explained I wanted to learn what he did, to learn to do his job! He told me to hang out after the show, and he would show me. Of course, I had no idea what he actually did. So I hung out after the show and he taught me one of the things he, as a sound engineer, had to do: wrap a mic cable. The next day I found myself in Palo Alto with Black Flag and by the time we returned to Los Angeles I knew what I wanted to do – Sound – and my new friend Dave was going to teach me. He inspired me not to give up. Shortly after Black Flag finished their tour, I started working every gig I could with Dave and Rat Sound. I eventually was able to quit my part-time job and never went back to school.

Working for the Underdog

At Rat Sound, Karrie started out at the bottom, loading and unloading trucks full of PA systems and working every show she could from punk rock to gospel and everything in between. This gave her the opportunity to learn all about the gear, how it works and how to troubleshoot. She found the hands-on time with the equipment and opportunity to try things that were not exactly the norm, were invaluable learning experiences. “I did everything – load in and load out, setting up the sound system, wiring the stage, and doing the set changes on weekends for like 20 dollars a show or something ridiculous.”

There were two partners in Rat Sound- Dave and Brian, who each had their system. Karrie worked for Dave. “Dave and I did every show by ourselves for years. Sometimes we would hire a third person, but for the most part, it was just the two of us.”

Rat was hired for many Goldenvoice shows, and Goldenvoice promoted most of the punk rock shows in Southern California. Rat first was hired because the punters could not climb the sound system. Goldenvoice and the So Cal Punk Rock scene were somewhat accepting towards everyone, and Karrie did not face obstacles because of her gender.  “The Heavy Metal scene of the ’80s in LA was not very inviting for women ‘roadies’, but for Punk Rock and Alternative, it was hardly an issue. In all of them, Rat, Goldenvoice, and Punk Rock, the common thread was; we were all underdogs working towards a common goal.”

What obstacles have you faced?

“Being a woman. I just worked as hard as I could. Working for a small sound company had its challenges as well, I was either proving myself as a woman or as a small sound company.” In her early days at Rat Sound, she ran into cultural bias. “I always had a difficult time working with Middle Eastern acts, who just could not wrap their heads around a woman in my position. It was just so against their culture. I use to get very upset, and I now realize it was probably very confusing and upsetting to them as well. When I started doing sound almost 30 years ago, I took a lot of heat from people. You just didn’t see women doing monitors, you still don’t, but I can say it has mellowed a bit. Either that or I just don’t care anymore and tune it out.” Karrie recalls that the core crews she’s toured with have always been respectful, and being a woman has not been an issue. “Although there is always the jerk on tour. I ignore them at this point, and often they are only touring with us for a short period. Usually, I don’t even know about it, as they would not dare say anything to me. I get more shit from the local crews.”

On tour with Danzig and Soundgarden 1990

 

What are some of the lessons you’ve learned throughout your career?

Karrie’s experience of mixing so many styles of music (Jazz, Metal, Country, Punk, Reggae) in her early days with Rat has helped contribute to her job mixing Pearl Jam, who is not your straightforward rock band. The five members have widely ranging monitor needs with each mix being completely different from the others.

“I still think the way to gain the most experience with live sound is by being on the ground and working as many shows as you can. Working for a smaller sound company affords these experiences. The diversity in shows provides you with so much experience when it comes to mixing. The sheer number of engineers you end up working with, and you get to see their ideas and processes working or not working.”

A terrible show in her youth would have devastated her, but now she realizes that you just can’t always have perfect shows. However, she does try to draw from the bad shows and analyze what she could have done differently. 

“I’m always learning”.

What are the benefits of working with the same band for so many years?

“You can keep evolving and perfecting. Eventually, you all know each other so well and navigating the other personalities becomes natural. However, you cannot become complacent in the job. You have to keep working on issues or progressing forward, whether by learning new gear, or learning new tricks, but you get to a point when you’ve really got it down and no longer need to be changing things and starting over with new gear. Sometimes it can get old when you keep hitting the same issues, such as the volume on stage. I am trusted so have more leeway to try different things – but I also know my band very well and don’t expand trying new things into areas that I know are not going to fly.”

Advice for those getting started:

My advice is just to keep going and not to give up – if one door is shut on you, try another door. You are going to knock on a lot of doors, but the ones that open for you – walk through and keep going.

Always keep learning- take advantage of all the online courses and information out there.

Network – find a mentor.

Show up when you say you will – be reliable, ask questions, and take risks

When you are given an opportunity, take it.

Hone your diplomacy skills – they will benefit you on the job and also help you navigate through any sexist crap that you are going to have deal with.

Career Highlights

The Untouchables were a popular Southern California Ska band; No Doubt often opened for them. It was my first gig as an engineer for the band. It was an important step as I took over for the ME as he moved to FOH. That organization not only gave me a chance but Rat Sound as well and always believed in us. The gigs were always full on and taught me how to work fast and to deal with the needs of ten musicians.

 

Social Distortion – I worked and was hired for many shows Social Distortion did in the Southern California area. They were one of my favorite bands and I spent a lot time pinching myself. Social Distortion taught me that one size does not fit all. Mike Ness wanted his mix to sound as if it was coming from FOH. It was not as easy to achieve as you think.

 

 

Touring with Fugazi -The best live band ever! Every show made all the driving, the Motel 6’s, the Denny’s, the gigs with no local crew, security, barricade, or catering worth it. Every single day. If their indefinite hiatus ever comes to an end, I will gladly climb back into the truck. It was a privilege.

 

Pearl Jam – VH1 Tribute to The Who

Again there have been so many gigs that were important, challenging, fun, and played through tears and pain over the years – but this one stood out. It was a marker of how professional our organization had become. How our team pulled together, dropped all ego, and did what we needed to do so the band could do what they needed to do. Anyone that has seen it knows that Pearl Jam nailed it.

 

 

Red Hot Chili Peppers – Woodstock III

While there are many memorable shows over the ten years I worked for them, Woodstock III stands out. This gig happened after I left their organization to be off the road for my daughters. This gig fell in between one of the firings of the ME and hiring a new one. I would always fill in until another engineer was hired. I remember being happy and relieved that I would not have to mix this show.

We had played the second Woodstock, going on before Peter Gabriel, who headlined. It was a complete disaster. We did not have a line check earlier in the day, did not have any monitor equipment and were stretched thin with a bare bones crew. I let the sound guys push me around and mix position was about 80 feet from the band.

Needless to say, I was not happy when I found myself being asked to do this gig. I made a few demands – we were bringing in our system (which is not uncommon now, but was not standard practice then) this made our production manager less than happy as well as production on the Woodstock end.

We only had one promo warm up gig before going in, so the mixes were not dialed, and the system was not set up to go into a festival. I worked thru the day doing whatever I could during other band’s set changes so I would be ready. The sound and production guys were awesome and helpful.

When the band hit the first notes, I knew I had nailed it. It sounded great, and I knew the band was happy. At the end of the gig, I discovered Pearl Jam’s site coordinator and stage manager was head production on Woodstock and had told everyone to help me and listen to me as I knew my shit. The sound crew came up after the gig and said it was so nice to see an engineer that knew what they were doing. And three weeks later at a band rehearsal, Anthony told me that the sound was perfect.

Find More Profiles on The Five Percent

Profiles of Women in Audio

Touring Life and Motherhood or How You Can’t Have it All

Note – I do know a few men in the industry who have sole custody of their children and face many of the same issues.

After the birth of my daughters, I took some time off and did not work at all. As reality sunk in, I came to realize that touring was going to be difficult if not impossible. I thought about going back to school and getting a teaching degree – still one of the professions that allows for a schedule to be with your kids. I eventually returned to Los Angeles and took on a general manager role at Rat Sound – which really was doing a bit of everything, similar to what I did before but kept me off the road.

It was pretty great for awhile – I was able to achieve a balance between work and raising my daughters. Then the Chili Peppers launched a 17 month world tour, which I turned down. It took a while for this sink in, as I embraced my new life – I came to really miss being on the road and I wrestled with this for a while – but there did not seem to be any option. I started to work local shows again, but this I found pretty difficult to balance – the long hours, the child care bill, trying to function as a zombie the next day.

Then I was offered REM and I was determined to do it – I did not know how I was going to make it work – but I knew I wanted that gig. After many discussions with the girls dad, we came up with a game plan to make it work. In the end, the gig ended up falling thru as they wanted a FOH and Monitor team, engineers that had worked together for several years. My team was Brett Eliason (PJ FOH Engineer) and he could not do the tour.

It ended up being for the best – as parents we had worked out what we were comfortable with, what I needed to be happy, and what we felt was best for the girls.

It basically broke down to:

And that is what we did for years – still do – but now they are self sufficient and I think look forward to us being on the road. The girls had an extended family that they felt safe with and were loved. It also made them independent. Plus they got to travel with us several times and got to see some cool places.

Of course, this would not have been possible without a father that was willing to be a full time dad. I think this made him a better father – and the girls were bonded to both parents. We both made sacrifices to do this – There were tours turned down on both sides, mixing challenges and experiences that were missed. Yet, when I was home it was 24/7 and for every championship softball game I missed – I was there for most of the season.

I guess what I am trying to share is that you can be a mom and have a career in audio. It is not going to be easy, but life is not easy. You might choose to work a constant theater gig over touring, or work part time doing local shows for a sound company. You might switch to an AV gig. Even with the sacrifices made – I always felt it was better than working a 9-5 job with the kids in daycare. And I still got the rush of working a live concert. Would I have followed the path I did without kids – I will never know.

I would love to hear how others have balanced this or are attempting to.

 

 

Gear Reviews

Dave Rat on the new EAW Anya Rig

Rat Sound – Coachella Q & A

Coachella

Coachella

SoundGirls.Org members submitted their sound related questions about Coachella. Rat Sound’s Daniella Peters and SG member, Jon Monson Head of Touring, and Dave Rat took time from their busy schedules to answer them. A big thanks to Rat Sound. (more…)

Coachella Music and Arts Festival – Two Companies that Did!

By: Karrie Keyes

On November 5, 1993, Pearl Jam performed the first music concert on the grounds of The Empire Polo Field. The site was chosen as the band embarked on a tour boycotting Ticketmaster, and the seed was planted for a large-scale music festival. Paul Tollet of Goldenvoice was the driving force in creating Coachella and six years after the Pearl Jam concert, The Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival was launched. (more…)

March 2013 SoundGirls.Org in the Community

SoundGirls.Org joined ​Step Up Women’s Network last week to host a career day “Behind the Scenes of Music Industry” at the Rox. Step Up Women’s Network is a non-profit that works to empower teen girls from under-resourced communities to become confident, college-bound, and career-ready. The afternoon explored the fields of Professional Audio and Show Production and was joined by Pearl Jam monitor engineer and co-founder of SoundGirls.Org Karrie Keyes, Rat Sound’s Daniella Peters, Exec producer of the documentary Foo Fighters: Back and Forth, Jeanne Elfant Festa, and sound engineer at the Whiskey a Go Go Ruby Zamora. Nikki Reed actress, producer, and songwriter joined in the group discussions and invited the girls to watch sound check for the evenings performance. Nikki Reed and Paul McDonald performed songs from their new album for an evening benefit concert for Step Up Women’s Network. (more…)

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