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Welcome back. In this episode we’ve got Rob Ferre because we’re talking about how to be a good emcee at an event. And you are the master of ceremonies yourself. So, you guys definitely going to want to pay attention to this one. So, just to start. Let’s share a little bit with my audience of where your background comes from and you worked for Disney, you’ve done lots of events, your DJ Rob. So, talk to me a little bit about your background and and how you got into this MC space. -Yeah. So after college, I moved to Orlando Florida. And I wanted to go out there and work for Disney. And so once I got there, it took me a little while to kind of find my niche, to find my footing and I eventually got a job as a DJ out there. Which was a lot of fun. And then I also got a job later on working in the Nickelodeon hotel as a game show host. -So, what attributes helped you get those jobs? Like, it needed outgoing or…? -Well yeah, yeah. Basically you know, how I got my job as a DJ, I basically was at a talent show. And I did this funny, stupid, magic show and the guy that was DJing the show saw me later on and said, “Hey, have you ever thought about becoming a DJ?’ So basically, he saw my personality. He says, you know, “You can talk to an audience, you can entertain an audience. Your DJ.” I’m like, “Okay, sure.” And basically, his methodology was, if you can have if you can engage an audience and get them to come along with you, you’re a DJ. And so, his style was very interactive. You get in with the crowd, you do dances, you get people to come along with you. So, that was his style. And then I later auditioned for the Nickelodeon Hotel and I got the job there. -Mm-hmm. -So, how how much does that work as a DJ relate to being an MC. It’s you know, it’s a different environment but… -Right. And so once, I came back to Utah, started my business here. And here in Utah, there are a lot of events that are weddings. I don’t know if you know about this. A lot of people get married. Where I really hone my craft as a MC. As a master of ceremonies. Because in weddings, there’s actually are ceremonies. And so, I look at being an MC, master of ceremonies or a host in different lights. Because a master of ceremonies is more for a wedding. In Emcee, E-M-C-E-E, I would say that is more of a conference person or somebody that who is emceeing a gala, who’re emceeing a conference or or a meeting. And then I think the third one would be a host. Somebody that is hosting an event and we’re hosting in their own fun personality.
So, there’s different ways to go about it, yeah. -Question that I’m curious about is like… Because there’s… There’s good MCS. -Yes. -Bad emcee. -Right. What in your mind sets apart the good emcee from the… -Well, experience. You know, there’s a lot of emcees out there who haven’t gone through what I’ve done as far as you know the weddings and actual events. I would say the experience of it… Because a lot of emcees, they say you know, “I’m a good personality. I can speak on the mic I can engage an audience.” But there’s so much more to it. And because of the weddings that has helped me hone my craft and my skills to be able to work behind the scenes, get people set up, let people know what’s about to happen when it’s going to happen, where it’s going to happen. And so that’s kind of what an emcee does. They guide their audience as to where they need to be and what’s about to happen. So, I constantly do that at weddings. And it translated very well into the corporate world or into galas. And what I do for a corporate event is very different what I do for a gala. And so, there’s different types of events. And if you think you can just get out on the stage and be, “Hey everybody, let’s do this, let’s have some fun.” Your personality can take you only so far. There’s a lot of preparation that goes into it. And I learned that through doing a lot of weddings. Being prepared knowing who’s about to get up, who’s about to speak. So, MC-ing or being a master of ceremonies for toasts has helped me a lot. -It’s how you’re talking to a toast masters? -No, no. At a wedding? For toasts at a wedding. -Yes. So let’s say you’re at a wedding and you’re giving a toast, I’ll be introducing you. And that’s really helped me as I introduce people on the stage at a conference or at gala. And knowing who’s about to get up, how to introduce them, how to set the audience up for what’s about to happen. That’s what an MC does. -Okay, so I can see that that makes a lot of sense where you’ve, you kind of honed your skills on your craft at these weddings and it translates to the stage. What about somebody that’s beginning. Would you recommend they take that same paths? -No. -Is there another path that they can take you get this skill? -There’s plenty of different paths. And I’m also in the speaking world and it’s hard because, like how do I get the gigs? What do i do? How do I get into this? And one of the first events I emceed was a gala. And I did it for free. And I know that might be a weird concept for people to do stuff for free. But this is a great way to get started. Now here, is if you do it for free, don’t just wing it. Don’t just phone it in. Be prepared so all those people in the audience are going to be like, “I want to pay that guy.” Right? I want to use that person. I want to get more of that. And so maybe just starting with a fundraiser, a gala, a non-profit event. Those are happening all the time. And when I say the word nonprofit, they often don’t have a lot of money to go towards these events. And so that is one way I tell people to get started. And that’s how I got started emceeing galas what I did my first one for free. And I was able to donate my services, as I say, “Waive my fee to help them create this event.” -Cool. So one of the ways that I love learning new things, stepping in a new skill sets is by finding somebody else who’s done really well at it. -Yeah. -And just studying them. Are there people that have been great examples to you that you’ve been able to just study and emulate? -Well, it’s interesting. I actually… A lot of my training came from the DJ world. There was this, there is this man. His name is Marc Ferrell who actually trains other DJs to be master of ceremony. And I’ve taken all three of his mastery courses. Master of ceremony and his bronze silver and gold. -Okay, cool. -And they’re great courses. And what he’s really taught me is the power of your welcome. And the power of your welcome is how you set the stage and tone for what is about to happen. And everything kind of goes off from there. But when it comes to corporate events and galas, that’s a different animal. So, I’ve used a lot of those that skill set from the wedding world into the corporate world. But I’ve also adapted my style and learned some things and give to that. So Marc, is one of them. Another one is Jason Hewlett who is a great mentor. Who I’ve watched emcee events. Have also seen perform and I think what works really well for Jason Hewlett is letting his personality come through. But also he does a little bit of his show. And different bits within it. But here’s the other thing is I actually am a student of watching what people do on the Oscar’s, on the Tony’s. What are those hosts doing? What are the good ones really doing? Because if we… And we can go to the classic one like Billy Crystal. He comes out and he sings and he dances and he… He does some of his bits. And he does his personality and Jon Stewart once hosted the Oscar’s. He didn’t sing, he didn’t dance but he did some bits, right? Same with Jimmy Kimmel. He doesn’t sing and dance. So, if you watch these award shows, you can see that they bring their personality into it but they don’t do something that isn’t authentic to them. And so, I think if you have a certain skill set, if you have something that is unique that you can bring to the platform, that’s a great way to do it. But those two men have been real big mentors of mine who’ve helped me as far as being a great master of ceremonies. -Alright. Well, on the topic of a good MC are there any final tips that you have for our viewer here on YouTube that wanting to know how to… How to become a great emcee. -Okay, well the first step is preparation. Be prepared. Don’t just step into a situation thinking that you can just wing it, do it. Talked about that earlier. If they have a script, get the script in advance. If they give you the opportunity to collaborate with them and go over the timeline, that’s one thing.
So, one is preparation. 2, once you start, your welcome is the most important thing. You got to either come out with a bang, command an audience. Because the worst is… Let’s say you’re at a gala, everybody’s eating, everybody’s talking. How do you get their attention, how do you get people to pay attention, how do you get people to shut up. Alright? And so, that’s a very important thing. And so, start honing your craft and start knowing how to do a great welcome. “Ladies and gentlemen welcome to Hero TV with your host Nate Woodbury.” “Yeah!” And everybody’s applauding and cheering. You got to give people the opportunity to applaud and Cheer. So, look at how people are doing it on TV. Look at their applause lines. And so… And then the third thing is, know how to transition, know your segues, how to get from one point to the other. Always be prepared to go on stage to follow a presenter. The last person who just spoke, never let there be a gap. Always be ready to go. -Thanks for watching today. I hope you found this information from Rob Ferre helpful. Be sure to subscribe. And are there any other resources or places you’d like to direct people to learn how to become a good MC? Well, they can always contact me, I’d be happy. I do some coaching, I do some training on that too. So how do they find you? Go to robferre.com. R-O-B-F-E-R-R-E. .com. Alright, awesome. We’ll see you tomorrow.