What happens when four of Richmond’s hottest bands partner with one of the region’s top photographers and an oh-so-talented design team? Magical, beautiful chaos! EastCoast Entertainment agent, Stacy Schnetzka gives us a rundown of her amazing, whirlwind of a day. Grab some coffee and enjoy the ride.
5:30am Christmas came early in the form of today’s shoot – I’m too excited to sleep!
8:00am Artists need a little fuel in the morning…so, I stock up on some coffee and donuts and arrive at the insanely cool Paisley & Jade warehouse in Scott’s Addition. They have everything from sofas to chandeliers to antique décor to ANTLERS (no joke- check out the Harley Boone photo shoot for proof).
8:15am Meet with the talented Jessica Maida, our photographer for the day, and the Paisley & Jade crew (Morgan, Perkins, Mandy, Tyler, and Steven) and watch in awe as they transform the warehouse space into our first set, a Southern church-saloon hybrid with the perfect amount of style and sass for country specialists, Harley Boone.
8:50am It’s maybe a little bit early for our young country-rockers, but Harley Boone, spurred on by dynamic bandleader and diva extraordinaire (in the best way possible) Megan Browning, arrive ready to go.
9:00am Let the fun begin! Harley Boone, now sufficiently caffeinated, stays loose with some impromptu jamming, plenty of joking around, and the world’s coolest costume change, courtesy of lead guitarist Derek Hurst.
10:15am Harley Boone wraps up their shoot and returns to the real world, already discussing the set list for that night’s gig. With a little bit of time to spare, Jessica makes a quick trip home to edit the first shots of the day!
11:30am Jessica returns with the second early Christmas present of the day: the first edits! The photos are incredible, and we still have three more bands to shoot!
11:45am The Sandra Waller Trio (Sandra, Iris, and Robert) arrive early and looking SHARP. It is immediately clear that this is not their first rodeo.
12:00pm Where there once was a rustic church pew and antlers, we now have posh white furniture and a crystal chandelier. It’s the perfect fit for our sophisticated jazz trio.
12:30pm Iris and Sandra are my new shoe role models. How do you even walk in those heels?
12:45pm The Trio shoot continues with a little a cappella serenade. The video quality can’t do these three justice!
1:30pm We wrap up the second shoot and move to the next room, already transformed into an eclectic, industrial yet comfortable scene that just plain WORKS.
1:45pm The Mashup guys arrive with tons of their trademark energy and humor. We can already tell that this is going to be a fun shoot!
2:00pm With a little consultation from the ladies on location (Which tie do you like better? Do we have too many vests?), the Mashup men have chosen their outfits and are ready to roll.
2:15pm The easiest way to get our artists to relax is to have them sing, so we made sure to have Mashup to do the same! They don’t call themselves the Mashup for nothing- we are treated to a quick rendition of Just a Friend (Biz Markie) that morphs into What I Got (Sublime).
3:15pm The Mashup men are done! Off come the ties, and they head back out to the rest of the day. Meanwhile, the stage – a California-cool surf shack setting – has been prepared for our final band.
3:30pm Forest Hill arrives! They’re one of our newest exclusive signings, and feature our own fellow agent, Mason Owen…so naturally we’re going to tease him the whole time. Smile with your eyes, Mason!
4:00pm Our final shoot of the day begins. The coffee has long since gone cold, but these guys have plenty of energy (and killer harmonies) to spare.
5:00pm That’s a wrap! We say ‘goodbye’ to the musicians and start to decompress from the busy day…what fun this experience has been!
5:30pm I hate to leave the vintage wonderland that is Paisley & Jade (I covet their pink velvet sectional, ’Serra!’), but it’s time to head home. I have dinner to cook, dogs to take care of, and – best of all – countless talented bands to book!
Check out more of our favorite images from the day!
We cannot thank Jessica Maida Photography and the team at Paisley & Jade enough for the incredible work they did during this marathon of a photo shoot. Your creativity and talents are inspiring and it was an absolute pleasure to work with you!
