This interview with Ethan Maccoby and Alex Badanes, the founders of Burwoodland and its flagship event Gimme Gimme Disco, is part of Hypebot’s In The Trenches series. In the Trenches is sponsored by venue, festival, and promoter marketing solution Bandsintown PRO, and features the unsung heroes who make live music happen.
Ethan and Alex started producing events in 2015 with Emo Night Brooklyn, the kind of party they wanted to attend themselves: a room full of people singing loudly to the music they grew up with. Since then, their empire of live entertainment has sold more than 2 million tickets across 5,000 events in 250+ cities and 10 countries. The company's events have generated $30+ million in ticket revenue and an additional $24 million in local economic activity.
Last month, their flagship event, Gimme Gimme Disco Fest, returned to New York's The Rooftop at Pier 17 to bring partygoers an all-out bash of sequins, bell-bottoms, platform shoes, and tunes from ABBA, Donna Summer, Cher, and the Bee Gees to dance to. No headliners, no major touring acts, it's an audience-focused event that's replicable everywhere, and guaranteed fun.
Now, please enjoy our conversation along with photos from last month's Gimme Gimme Disco Fest in NYC.
Hypebot: Hey guys, thanks so much for taking the time and congrats on the latest edition of Gimme Gimme Disco Fest. Are you still reeling from the event? How was this year’s festival?
Ethan and Alex: "Thank you so much! We absolutely loved Gimme Gimme Disco Fest this year. We really leveled up on the visuals, the disco ball head dancers and the live music aspect. Rooftop at Pier 17 remains one of our favorite venues of all time. It’s such a gorgeous rooftop with the perfect view of the city and river, and no better place to celebrate your favorite genre."
H: What I’ve always loved about GGD, and what I assume most people love about it, is that it’s somehow grandiose and feels like the same kind of energy as a house party at the same time. How did you actually approach building that?
E&A: "We really let the crowd’s natural energy build it. People of all ages dress up, dance, groove, sing, and just that raw energy itself really builds the show into what it is. We just provided the space and the outlet for it. It’s also amazing to see how disco really brings together people of all generations. You have people that grew up during the '70s and '80s attend, as well as 20 year olds whose parents introduced them to it, all singing and dancing together. It’s so special."
H: Were there bumps along the way of growing this thing?
E&A: "There are always challenges when growing an event like this. Sometimes shows don’t sell as well as you’d hoped for whatever reason, perhaps because of the market, or timing, etc."
You also can’t make everyone happy with the playlist. Too much ABBA, not enough ABBA, we’ve heard it all! Everyone has different opinions on what songs should be included. That’s what's beautiful about the event too — everyone is so passionate about the genre, but gimme gimme disco tries to make it accessible to both the biggest fans and the casual fans that might only know the big hits."
H: When did the model become replicable outside of Brooklyn?
E&A: "After the first GGD in a smaller venue was a hit in Brooklyn, we quickly took it national. Our relationships with other venues and promoters across the country, built from working on other events, like Emo Night Brooklyn, allowed us to book GGD in city after city. Disco is so beloved everywhere, so we were confident it would translate outside of NYC."
H: What are you doing now that took time to learn and integrate? In other words, what’s changed?
E&A: "When we first started gimme gimme disco, it was pretty basic. Blasting our favorite tunes in a small room with essentially a laptop and an aux chord. Since then, we’ve really focused on building up production — dancers, incredible visuals that match up and change with each song, disco balls, props and fun giveaways for the guests that show up early (like boas, necklaces, disco glasses, etc)."
We’ve hired incredible DJs that put on amazing sets and can really work with the crowd. We learned how often to come back to each city, how to structure the playlist. We’ve learned to give space to guests that get so excited they come up on stage to sing and dance. It’s really been a magical ride, and we are still learning, evolving and iterating after each show."
H: What is it that you truly love about live music?
E&A: "What I love most about live music is what it does to a room full of strangers. You can have people from completely different backgrounds, different beliefs, different lives, and for a few hours none of that matters. Everyone’s just connected. Through a shared love of music."
Music has this power to bypass everything else. It changes your mood instantly, it makes you move before you’ve even decided to, it turns people standing next to strangers into people singing the same words together. That connection is the whole reason we do this. You can’t manufacture it any other way."
H: Do you think live performance and touring is essential for artists today?
E&A: "Yes I do think it’s essential. Getting people together in a room is just so special and can’t really be replicated while you’re at home scrolling on your phone. It’s so important to bring people together in person to connect, meet, interact."
We’ve seen from our events that people have met their best friends, wives, husbands, partners at our events. That’s just something that wouldn’t have happened at home listening by yourself."
H: This whole model is based on the ability for digital marketing to find related interest audiences in specific music markets. What ‘go to’ tools, strategies, or platforms do you use to market these events?
E&A: "Marketing isn’t easy, but it’s one of the key ingredients to building a long term successful brand. Our organic socials are probably the biggest driver of marketing for our shows — mostly Instagram and TikTok. We like to build communities locally, with local DJ, local promoters, local photographers that also help spread the word. We try to get our events listed on local publishing sites to get discovered."
Of course, paid advertising is also a key ingredient. We definitely work hard to fine tune ads on Instagram and Facebook and other platforms so that people can discover us. Sometimes we will partner with influencers, brand ambassadors, or other co promotion tools to help get the word out."
H: What does a typical day look like for you?
E&A: "Every day is honestly very different, which is what I love about this business. The beginning of the week is typically focused on announcing events, fine-tuning marketing for them, and making sure all the pieces are in place to execute great shows."
Later in the week, the focus shifts to execution: checking in with venues and promoters, confirming production and DJ logistics, and putting out the small fires that always pop up before a show."
I also meet with our booking team to ensure we are focusing on the right markets. And the best part is getting to go to the shows and seeing the fruits of our labor — the magical experience of people coming together over a shared love of music."
H: What’s your typical lunch order?
E&A: "If it’s a quick one I’m picking up a salad from Trader Joe’s and sit in Domino Park. If it’s a sit down I love trying any local restaurant in Williamsburg. There are so many good spots around our office!"
Learn more about Gimme Gimme Disco and Burwoodland. And follow Gimme Gimme Disco on Bandsintown.
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