Giving Life to Live Events: Building Collaborative Creative Communities with Bloom

Music thrives in community, and Bloom Booking is making it easier than ever to build those connections.

In this episode, Bloom CEO Brandon Harris shares how his platform is breaking down barriers for performers and venues to collaborate and grow together.

From New Orleans' cultural hubs to 'third spaces' like cafes and community centers, we explore the environments—both physical and virtual—that spark innovation and connection. Brandon shares inspiring stories around his focus on teamwork and camaraderie (exemplified by Future’s track 4 da Gang), how Kendrick Lamar’s Black Boy Fly inspired his own personal growth, and the importance of just having fun with it (Gorillaz’ Clint Eastwood).

We discuss the future of live and virtual events, celebrating their potential to drive growth, creativity, and connection. Discover how Bloom Booking’s empathetic, community-first approach is transforming the live music industry, empowering artists and venues alike to thrive and grow.

If you're a music tech startup looking to tell your story in your market better, go to https://cold.inc to book a free, 20-minute call to discuss your go-to-market strategy.

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Transcript

Revolutionizing Live Entertainment Booking

Brandon 0:00

upcoming Clint Eastwood Gorillaz . I try to keep that song as a bop that it is so number one .

Tom 0:09

it is a bop . All right , I'm delighted to be joined here today by Brandon Harris . He is CEO at Bloom Booking . Brandon , great to have you on the show .

Brandon 0:27

Hey man , thanks for having us . It's truly been an amazing journey . You know , here we're at Bloom Booking . We're like Airbnb for live entertainment . We connect performers and venues to book anytime anywhere . We've successfully facilitated hundreds of events . Just this year we were able to finalize the product , make it monetizable so that our users can also get paid , and then from there , you know , we've just hit the ground running and just trying to build up just a solid brand awareness . You know , right now we've been able to establish a really good partnership with , like , full Sail University . We've been able to support artists in New Orleans , baton Rouge and Lafayette . So , you know , really making an effort to be that business tool that creators really need and can go to , just need some additional support .

Tom 1:13

Do you tell us how the process currently works ? So like , for someone who doesn't have access to Bloom , if you're an artist or you're a venue , how does booking usually work and what are you trying to solve within that industry ?

Brandon 1:25

Okay . So there's a few pain points on both sides . Typically , as a creator , you don't know what you don't know , you don't know who you need to know to get to where you're trying to go , and then , outside of that , you tend to be at the whim of people's kind nature . If you're trying to create people's kind nature , if you're trying to create , let's say , a podcast , you have to then either find a space or you have to invest heavily into setting up a podcast . If you're like a recording artist and you're looking to record a song , if you don't know how to record , if you don't have access to the programs , if you don't have access to the equipment , you're kind of at the mercy of whomever you know in your immediate circle that can say hey , look , I can help . So that's one of the first things that you kind of have to overcome as an artist is really being able to identify those opportunities and then being able to know how to connect with them and how to really establish a working relationship .

Brandon 2:24

On the venue side , what we find is they one . They struggle with a few things . They're also understaffed . They also have a plethora of people constantly trying to reach out to book with them . We find that they have multiple calendars across their phone , their Google page , and it just is kind of a very outdated way of doing it . And don't get me started on the people who have , like , physical books , right , the people who have those physical books they kind of like again , they're trying to pencil in times , they're trying to make their schedules work , and it's just it's time for an update , and that's where we really come in .

Brandon 3:05

The app allows for discovery on both sides . So an artist creator that's looking to connect with a space , the space can again be a live performance space . Users can also book podcast spaces . They can also book studio spaces . So now it isn't just live entertainment as much as it is a business tool that's creating the opportunity for them to get the resources that they need and do it in real time . We've built in a really intuitive negotiation feature into the app that allows for both parties to really be able to meet at a fair point and then from there , you know , just really start creating , because that's what everyone truly wants to do .

Tom 3:47

So I guess on the venue side , if you work at a venue , number one this makes it easier for you just to not have to do all that literal paperwork and messing with these different calendars and stuff . And on the artist side , what I found interesting is this seems to be aimed at emerging artists , or more of these artists , who probably don't have enough contacts or maybe don't have , like a booking agent or a manager . Is that fair to say ?

Brandon 4:13

For sure , Starting artists can definitely utilize Bloom , but then as you start to grow within the platform , we also can grow with you . So right now , one of our largest spaces on the platform is Celtic Studios . I'm not sure if you're familiar with Battleship LA or Twilight . Have you ever seen Twilight ? So it's a film studio that has like the capacity to fit like probably at most like maybe like around 10,000 people , you know . So for some of these larger artists who have a really large fan base right now , they would have a space on the platform that they can connect with and be able to leverage their audience to generate revenue not only for themselves but for the space as well .

Tom 4:59

Got it . So just a little caveat . A previous guest was talking about Lord of the Rings and I had to admit I've not about Lord of the Rings and I had to admit I've not watched Lord of the Rings . And also I've not watched Twilight . I mean , I've heard of it , I know it , but I've not actually seen it . But yeah , this podcast is more like exposing the movies I haven't watched before , more than anything else . But okay , if I'm hearing you correctly , basically this is a win-win for artists and venues to make money and do it in a more streamlined fashion yes .

Brandon 5:31

So it's a very motivating and sad story that I would like to share . There's a gentleman , uh , by the name of Rick . Rick has , uh , this beautiful bar . It was called Sophie Mays , right . So Rick spent time and energy into paving the floors . He handcrafted and built the bar .

Brandon 5:50

It was just a really great space that he named after his mom , sophie , and so he named it that because he wanted to create a place that could support people's creativity . It was like this kind of hidden gem , and so one day I was out and I happened upon him and you know , I was able to talk with him and we were able to do some events . So the specific events that we did there , they were poetry , so you know , we were able to bring in community members , they were able to share their literary works and really just connect as a community . And so Rick began to kind of ask , like he's like , hey , man , you know , like these nights that we're doing are really great , they're really helping boost my business . You know , like I want to do more of them and I kind of just need some help doing that .

Brandon 6:36

It's unfortunate at the time that we were still kind of heavily under development and in which case he couldn't use the platform , he didn't get the support that he needed to continue to provide the space to his community , and so , unfortunately , he had to close it . But now issues like that are kind of things of the past , because now what happens is he would be able to get on Bloom , he would be able to take those time slots that he has available . We notify every time there's a performance opportunity , and so now all of the creatives in that area or in surrounding areas will be notified , so now they can book that time slot . They can overall negotiate on bar splits , door splits , whatever agreement they want to come to , and now it supports both parties because the artists have the ability to bring in their fan base , the venue has the ability to leverage their space , and it's a win-win . We're trying to help create an environment for win-wins across the board .

Tom 7:35

Yeah , I think there's like probably tens or hundreds of Ricks out there who had a great venue and like couldn't sustain or couldn't find the right . You know people and talent to fill that . So I think that's great that you're connecting that . You mentioned community a few times . What does this idea of community mean to you in the context of live music ? What do you think it brings to a community ?

Brandon 7:59

Oh man , listen , for me I tell people my life's broken into three parts entertainment , technology and community . So at the core of everything that I do , I always have those three things in mind when we talk about community . I'm a I don't know a product of a single parent household , right ? So all I had was my mom . So if not for the community , you know , I would not exist . I would not exist in this fashion .

Fostering Creativity Through Community

Brandon 8:26

I should say .

Brandon 8:26

My ability to articulate , my ability to create , my ability to connect , it is truly stemmed from having a supportive community .

Brandon 8:34

When you think about the thing that separates your bedroom producer and the producer or an artist that we all know and love , it is truly that sense of community , how they've been able to be a part of our lives , support and provide value . And so my understanding and my goal is to say , because I've been a product of such a great creative community , I want to make sure that I'm constantly providing value , because I recognize the trajectory that my life would have without it . And so , when you think about not only the current existing creatives but those that are to come , if we can truly create a path for them that allows them to be creative , to teach them the skills of collaboration and also be able to monetize that , then I think that we're preparing them for the real future to come . So it's really an opportunity for creatives to connect locally and then , as they start building that fan base , start really looking at analytics , they're able to identify additional communities that they will fit into and can collaborate with .

Tom 9:47

That makes a lot of sense and I think it's for me , a part of this bigger issue of I think they call it third spaces , basically areas where people can come together and congregate that in today's society are increasingly getting taken away , like community centers or , you know , diners , cafes , those kind of places , and I think venues and bars are amongst that as well . So I think it's important that you're coming at it from this angle to try , and you know , keep that alive .

Brandon 10:14

There's something special about being able to go to a community center , a community hub , and really get to mingle . You know , I think about being a kid when I would go to the park . You know , I would go to the park and I would meet other kids in the neighborhood and then we would become friends and then our friendship would grow over time . Just this weekend I went to a studio and in the studio the studio had at least like five or six people , all from throughout New Orleans .

Brandon 10:45

And you think about it , if not for that studio , how would we all have been in the same space ? And then you start to realize that each of us in there have a different story , a different experience , but we're all being drawn together by the love of music . That's the thing right . By the love of music . That's the thing right . Music transcends sometimes common sense , where you have a kind of flow or a structure . But then those people who are able to identify new patterns and break those , we kind of resonate with that because it's innovation , by having a community that truly collaborates . I think that that's the key to innovation .

Tom 11:23

A hundred percent . So thanks , thanks for sharing that story . So we're going to spend some time now jumping into a few tracks , a few musical pieces that have inspired you throughout the ages . First one we're going to look at right now Future 4 da Gang from 2017 . Tell us a bit more about why this is important to you .

Brandon 11:41

I'll start with the song and then I'll go to future . He speaks a message of teamwork and camaraderie and in that I think that is something that's very important in anything that

Embracing Teamwork and Collaboration in Business

Brandon 11:52

you do . Right , when you think about business or you think about trying to accomplish a goal , you have to have a team mindset Right . If you go into it and you're thinking it's just me , I'm the one , I'm the lead player , it's not going to go far because there's only a finite point that an individual can reach . But when you take the approach of , okay , everything that I do is for the team , it changes your perception , it changes your sense of responsibility . I know , I think it kind of makes you mature a bit more .

Brandon 12:26

Right now , we have team members who , like this is what they do . You know , we have a team member who had a child with , you know , some disabilities , and I thought about it one day and I said this person and their family , like they depend on the work that we do . And so I as , like you know , ceo , founder , like I have to make sure that the things that I'm doing are not only for like myself , but it's for the team . Right , like I have to keep everyone at all times in mind and think about what are their strengths , how can I help them grow , what do they need ? And at that point it kind of makes you a little selfless , right like you have to to kind of forego your own desires at times for the , for the betterment of the team . So that's what that song kind of reminds me of and kind of like pushes me to do that's cool .

Tom 13:25

I think it's like an homage to uh , was it seth firkins ? Uh , he's a vocal producer who kind of put the auto-tune effect on you know his , his voice , and was pretty instrumental in in helping that happen . So I think what you're saying is absolutely true . It's not just about an individual . You're working together to create something bigger , paying the dues and having respect for that process , which is kind of cool . It does feed into that community spirit you're talking about with Bloom . It's like community all the way through from what it sounds like .

Brandon 13:58

And I think it has to be , you know , because the product is a representation of us , of us as a team . Imagine if you know your UI designer never actually talks to the developers , right ? Imagine if you know your product owner never talks to the UI . At that point , if there's no communication , if there's no collaboration , the product won't get done . And then you think about how that affects the public that's trying to use this product . They won't ever get it . And so , at that point , every step along the way , it requires collaboration . Us as like humans I'm not sure what everyone believes , but even at the core , from being a unicellular to multicellular , it required collaboration .

Tom 14:41

That's deep . So I like what you're saying with this . So let's switch a little to the business side with this . And you know , I've worked in a lot of environments where communication didn't happen like it should do , and it's so common in lots of very successful businesses , like sales isn't talked to , marketing , product isn't speaking to engineering , people aren't speaking with the users , with the customers , and all of that . So what's your tactic or what's your approach to how you maintain that collaboration within your team and within your business ?

Brandon 15:12

I think it goes to a little bit of the company culture . If you can create an environment where people like each other and they know what they have to do , and then you kind of create the space of oh so what do you think about this ? You know , what do you think about this ? It kind of naturally yields to people sharing their thoughts .

Brandon 15:30

If you take a builder's approach where you don't say oh no , that's stupid , but more of like , oh , ok , I like this , let me build on this , you start to create this environment where you support people and every thought is just the continuous building on each other . Thought is just the continuous building on each other and I think that that , at our core , is what we try to instill in terms of our company values to be a builder . If someone from another department or if someone from another function is working on something , you have the ability to build on what they're doing , even if it's just positive feedback , like oh , that's really cool . Like you know , I like that idea . Something as simple as that creates a really great environment and it goes a long way .

Tom 16:16

Okay . So to build on your thought , how does that in turn inform the product itself ? So you know , obviously you've got your team making the product , but then the product has customers . Right , You've got the venues , you've got the artists . Have you instilled that approach into actually how the product itself is operating ?

Brandon 16:41

I'm privileged to know a lot of the users , and I say that because it truly is a privilege to be able to know them , to be able to call them , to be able to talk with them and say like hey , like right now , this is something that we're doing and we would want to try this out . And they would say , yeah , like you know , like let's do it . And so that relationship again is from the years of doing events and working with them to where , like , they've established a sense of trust , to where , like you know , they're open to trying things , they're open to collaborating because , again , like , I'm a part of the community and at that point , you know , if I have a new idea or something new that we're trying to try out , it's like , okay , within our community , we have someone that we can talk to , that we can like test the idea with An example . Shout out to Nexus Louisiana . It's a kind of tech accelerator incubation space . You know , instead of us solely developing our product in isolation .

Brandon 17:34

I take walks , I pop in other people's office , I talk to them and then I like we converse . One of them they do like real estate . They were working on building a space for them to record podcasts . We saw a lot of our users . They wanted to be a part of a podcast . So then we were like , hey , look , you know , like right now , like how would you feel about putting the podcast space on the platform ? He's like , well , you know , I would love to do that , but I don't have the manpower to support something like that . We have the ability to support that . So it's like , okay , look , we'll help out with that . And so now , you know , you start to again kind of see that , just simply by listening , having an idea , building on it , allowing someone else to build on it , it just continues . It just continues to grow and bloom unironically , boom .

Tom 18:26

There you have it , folks . That's how you live the company values . There you have it , folks . That's how you live the company values . It's great to hear someone who's actually following through on , you know , the values that they instill in the business in real life , as opposed to it just being , you know , written on paper . So that's really cool . Okay , we can move on to your second track Now . This one was a bonus on the Good Kid m . A . A . d City LP from Kendrick Lamar . This is Black Boy Fly . Tell us about this one .

Brandon 18:52

This song is a special song for me , one because when I first heard this song shout out to my Aunt Gladys , she passed away . But when I first heard this song she was in the hospital and when during that time you know , for me also , growing up as a kid I wasn't always very like emotionally expressive . It's something that I definitely had to learn over time that time for me was really hard and this song always kind of brought out the emotional . It increased my emotional capacity to be able to express it . And in the song it's unrelated to her , it just kind of it occurred at the same time Her being in the hospital , me hearing the song , and me thinking about , like , what I'm trying to do in life , how am I trying to grow .

Brandon 19:41

And in the song , you know , he's kind of like breaking down how , really again , kind of the only path that people who kind of look like us know is either basketball , maybe some illegal activity in , or rapping . At that time it spoke to the feelings of confinement . But it also showed that as a successful artist even though he's more successful now than he was when he released it that album for him was like it was major , it was being played everywhere . Everyone was listening , everyone was talking about it . But it kind of spoke to me to say like hey look , you can fly and you can figure out a path that is not the norm .

Brandon 20:26

And I think that that's what I really started to try to carve out , right , I really started trying to figure out how can I fly , what is the things that I want to do and how can I be a role model to show others that there's another path that they can follow . It's kind of wild , but without that situation I might not have paid attention to that song . You know I might not have paid attention to that song . You know I might not have paid attention to trying to be a bit more . But with my Aunt Gladys , who she was as a person , she always required me to be more , to raise my level of standard of operation .

Tom 21:04

You know , like you can be more , do more , and I kind of took that to my heart and to my core and that song always kind of reminds me of those those moments so you kind of embodying that right now with that collaborative attitude or that collaborative approach that is not taking that kind of scarcity mentality about okay , this , you know , it's me or this other guy . You mentioned the emotional side of things or it kind of helped you unlock a bit of that kind of emotional awareness or emotional depth . Has that fed into your experience with Bloom at all , especially working with artists and venues , you're dealing with people at the end of the day . How has that affected things with the business ?

Brandon 21:48

One when you think of being able to be more understanding , right , the more that you're able to understand the person that you're talking to , the better the outcome will be .

Brandon 21:58

And so I think that a large part of being an empath I'm not a self-proclaimed empath , I'm not , like you know , one of those I just am able to feel more , I'll say honestly , because of the entrepreneur journey , right , the entrepreneur journey , let me tell you , sometimes it's very humbling , and in that you start to realize you have things that you're good at , you have moments when you're doing well and you have moments that you're not doing well but you still have to do what you have to do .

Connecting Through Virtual and Live Experiences

Brandon 22:26

It creates a sense of okay . Okay , I can't always expect people to be at the same level that I am emotionally or just kind of like being able to understand the opportunity that's being presented , but what I can do is take a step back and try to understand where that person is , meet them where they are , have an open dialogue and conversation about that , and then set out action items dialogue and conversation about that , and then set out action items . And so at that point I've learned to try to not it's kind of crazy but like to have no expectations . You have no expectations , but you create the opportunity and then after that you just are kind of amazed at the outcome . And that's kind of how I try to navigate the business aspect of Bloom , while also kind of again keeping in mind emotionally where people are , so you can utilize emotions to connect with people and by having no expectations but providing opportunities , you can then be amazed by outcomes .

Tom 23:32

Sounds to me like you're an empath . I appreciate it , man . I appreciate it . Self-proclaimed . Okay , cool , let's go on to the third and final track . So this one was Clint Eastwood by Gorillaz . Tell us about this one .

Brandon 23:50

This one was just like it's like a favorite song of mine . I just remember being a kid and the song came on , like the music video came on TV , like randomly , like one time late at night , probably , like on MTV videos or something you know . Like it took me back to when , like that was like a thing , right , like this was how music was introduced to the world , right , so it would be like upcoming , you know , clint Eastwood , gorillaz , you know , and it gives me a sense of nostalgia , but at that time it gave a sense of up next , what's to come , and like I think that by one being able to have that in mind , you start to realize that people want to look forward to something right , people want to know that something new is coming , people want to know that there's innovation happening and that it's creative . When you think about Gorillaz as a band and as a group , like they're so creative , right , like the music that they make was like drastically different , then you think about that video again as a kid , seeing that it was a wild experience , and so I really try to hold that song as a reminder to be creative .

Brandon 25:10

I try to keep that song as a bop that it is , you know , and just kind of jam out , have fun with it , you know , because it's a very fun song , especially when you watch the video , like they're like you know , just playing and then all of a sudden there's like these zombies , and it's like you know , and then they have the rapper , you know come in and so it's just a , it's just a fun song . So give people something to look forward to . Always lean into your creativity and , lastly , have fun with it because , like you know , what else is there to do ?

Tom 25:43

So number one , it is a bop and I remember when it came out as well , it was like , uh , it was the first time I'd seen a band . They were like cartoons and they were like characters and then when they did their first live shows , it was like they were projecting them onto the screen and I was like this is crazy . It's like a virtual band . So that's definitely innovative . But to bring that to you know 2024 and kind of what you're doing , I'd like to hear your thoughts around live events and particularly kind of connecting back to that virtual band idea , because I know there's a lot happening now in like the metaverse and like I think Travis Scott had a thing in there , and then I've seen some companies putting more stuff into games and having these virtual events . Like what's your take on that , speaking of like how things are moving forward ?

Brandon 26:29

I recently got my passport and I went to the Dominican Republic , and in going to the Dominican Republic it was crazy , but it was also very familiar . Right , the music was still being played , like I was able to sing some of the songs . The clubs were actually like pretty like mind-blowing , they had like lights and things everywhere . And so when you think about the virtual and you think about the live , they're both just experiences . If you have the opportunity to experience something that you want to experience , you just want to experience it . So I don't think we have to focus too much on which one is like better or like put them in competition as much as it is .

Brandon 27:13

We just need people to experience more . Right , like , people want more experiences . That's what helps them grow , that's what literally like expands their mind . And so for us , you know , we have an opportunity to connect people in real time , but we also have the opportunity to do that virtually , and so when you think about it , the platform in itself is a virtual space that's connecting them . I'm not a believer of this is better than this , as much as it is that both are experiences . If you're an artist who has the ability to have again kind of a live concert , let's do it . If you're an artist who just needs support digitally , if you're an artist who just needs support digitally , we support with marketing content . We support , like with these digital assets that you know kind of help them extend and connect with people and create that experience .

Tom 28:07

Yeah , I think I'm kind of the same mind . I think a lot of the time these things are put up in opposition to each other , like , oh , this is going to replace this , or you know . But actually it's all like you say , just different ways to have an experience , and it's going to be a little bit different if you do it virtually . It's going to be a little bit different if you do it live . It's going to be different in Dominican Republic versus you know Berlin or you know someplace like that right . So everywhere has its own flavor , has its own experience , and it's not necessarily about replacing . I guess it's about building .

Brandon 28:38

Let you say you've now got options to do it in more ways than ever before and I think , if you start to think of life like that , it becomes like an amazing experience . Man , like , right now we're , all of our venues are definitely located within louisiana , but our goal is to go beyond that . Correct me if I'm wrong , but you're in London . Yeah , correct , all right , so let's say you're in London and you have a passport . You're like , hey , you know , I want to go and I want to perform in Louisiana . You now have the ability to just find spaces that you can go and experience and collaborate with , and then , when you go there and you're actually connecting in amongst that culture and community , you still have that community back home that would want to stay a part of that , and so that's where you're not only creating an experience for yourself and creating an experience with this new community , you're creating an experience for your pre-existing community , and so now you start to think about it . We're trying to create interaction amongst those so that now those people get new experiences and new friends , new opportunities to collaborate . I want to share and shout out two producers , like music producers that I have never met in my entire life . It has only been a virtual online experience , but they have played an integrative part of my life One . His name is Street Wolf and I met him on Twitter . He liked a song of mine that I made and published and he was like , hey look , I like to make beats , you wanna rap on some of my beats ? And like I would spend hours like pouring thought and emotion into these songs and he would say like , oh man , I really liked this part . Oh man , I'm sorry that happened , but , like you know , this is a really great song and we shared those moments and it was virtual . Another producer , his name is Milan . I think his producer name is Milan Villa-Connor . Forgive me , milan , for butchering your name , but I always want to give him credit .

Brandon 30:43

In 2020 , during COVID I was unfortunately unable to do events . I just had a lot of feelings , a lot of thoughts . I came up with this project called SpaceX . He produced all but maybe one or two songs on that project . He was like , hey look , you know I have all of these beats that I've been working on . Would you like to like , do something with them ? So we were able to collaborate , create this album , and it was just a great collaborative engagement .

Brandon 31:12

Not only have I been able to do that virtually , you're able to do that in real time . But when you look at it , I've just created just a bunch of things that people can now experience . You have to understand and be willing to grow in the directions that are available . If you think of yourself as , I want to say , a flower , you know like we're all budding artists or budding creatives . Are you going to stop growing in one area just because you don't have like an opportunity , or do you want to grow kind of in as many areas as you can and , as a result , you start to see where your area of genius is and what works for you , and then you're able to kind of keep doing that ? I hope that that kind of like tied things together well .

Tom 32:04

Look man , it's been philosophical , cerebral , deep , so we've gone into a few things there . But yeah , what I've taken from it is basically increasing the opportunities for collaboration in order to build and grow and just give people , but then when you also factor in their creative mind , their unique experiences .

Brandon 32:37

You know , if you remove expectations , you can be prepared to be like blown away by the outcome .

Tom 32:43

Nice .

Discover Bloom

Tom 32:44

So , to wrap things up , where can people go to find out more about Bloom and maybe even sign up ?

Brandon 32:50

So people can follow us on social medias . Bloom underscore booking . If you want to follow us and download the app , bookbloomapp . If you're searching on mobile devices and want to download it , you can search Bloom booking . It's a nice little rose logo . Outside of that , we have developed an AI that you can call and is going to be being made available very soon . There's a song to go with it , so you can reach us at 225-399-7898 .

Tom 33:22

Nice , follow the rose and then look out for that . Brandon , it's been great speaking with you today . Thank you for your time and it's been great to hear your insights .

Brandon 33:32

Oh , man , thanks for having me and thank you for the work that you do for again , like this musical entrepreneur community , um , and thank you for just taking the time to listen , man awesome , thank you .