Music has always been in Michael Elder’s life – from his youth
listening to the throbbing beats of his West Indian parents to
gigging as a drummer in R & B house bands. While he loved the
benefits and accolades of performing, it wasn’t long before he
became enamored with the management and production sides of
the entertainment business. In 1976, he joined the production
crew of Capitol recording artist Natalie Cole, making sure
that the singer’s nightly performances were tight from start
to finish. With a hunger to learn every aspect of the
business, he went on to work as Cole’s lighting designer from
1978 – 1980.
Next Elder tried his hand at tour management. The die was cast
and he has been orchestrating the lives, tours and business of
musicians ever since. He has handled administrative
responsibilities for the RCA Records group Machine (1980 –
1982); Specs/Capitol Records’ Silver Platinum (1982 – 1983);
Johnny Gill and Slave, for Underwood & Associates (1983 –
1985); Capitol Records’ BBQ Band (1986 European Tour); and
Daja, Regina Belle and The Manhattans for Worldwide
Entertainment (1986 – 1987). In addition, from 1983 – 1988, he
worked with Entertainment Services Group, producing national
concerts and talent competitions for Philip Morris, USA.
Well-respected as a production pro and tour manager, Elder
signed on as Director of Artist Management with Hush
Entertainment, Inc., a full-service recording, marketing,
management, promotion and publicity firm. From 1988 – 1994, he
served as point person for award-winning artists Najee,
Freddie Jackson, Eric Gable, Alex Bugnon, Mikki Howard and
others.
After Hush, Elder went on to make some noise on his own,
creating Eve Entertainment, Inc., a full service entertainment
company with Bugnon and Gable as clients, and later partnering
in the artist management company, All Access Entertainment,
Inc., where he directed the careers of the late smooth jazz
saxophonist George Howard, keyboard player Marcus Johnson and
the R & B group Pforte.
In early summer of 2005 Michael joined Carlos Keyes’ Red
Entertainment, as a booking agent. I am looking forward to the
experiencing the industry through the eyes of an agent.
Currently: Elder has moved on to head up MeEntertainment, a
talent agency with the focus on booking, management,
production, consultant and artist development firm,
representing world-renowned entertainers. The time is right
for this move; this is an opportunity to put more than 30
years of industry experience to use. |
Kelly began his career in entertainment while attending
college in upstate New York, his first gig was as a stagehand
for AC/DC at the Pepsi Arena in Albany, New York. Kelly would
go on to work on every major tour and road show coming through
the New York Capitol Region. It was during this time where he
discovered his passion and calling in life. Kelly returned to
his hometown of Brooklyn , New York where he began to work as
a production assistant on the Martin Luther King and Seaside
Summer Concert Series. This opened several doors for Kelly and
landed him work with New York based production companies Pro
Sho Productions and ultimately the concert production college,
See Factor Industry Inc. The experience over the years has
pushed Kelly from production assistant to production manager
and currently to ME Entertainment. |