EVAN TYLER: Starlight Music CEO
Celebrity Weddings
New York wedding event mogul Evan Tyler is enabling clients to plan the music for their weddings with the click of a button through his new website platform. Tyler has played the weddings of Kevin Hart and Eniko Parish, and The Jersey Shore’s Mike “The Situation” Sorrentino and Lauren Pesce. He has also performed for Jimmy Buffet, Clive Davis, Michael Douglas and Catherine Zeta-Jones.
2020 was a rough year for the event industry. Pandemic restrictions halted all wedding events, forcing CEO/President Evan Tyler to re-strategize his business plan. “One of the few things that helped us out, was that we are an elite boutique versus some of our competitors that were scaled much larger with overinflated infrastructures.” Evan told PARK, “Starlight was able to keep everyone from our family on the team and put programs in place to assist them with finances, getting unemployment, getting vaccinated, etc. I also made the choice to personally speak with every client and assist them through the difficult process of rescheduling.”
Revolutionary Online Booking Technology
Out of the pandemic brainstorming sprang Evan’s novel idea to move the entire process of booking live bands online. His new platform, launching in March of 2022 as Starlight’s new website, allows users to instantly see which bands are available for their date and their pricing. The clients can shop, choose, customize and book their band with the click of a button. “None of my competitors have tried to do what we’re doing,” Evan told PARK, “The software is very complex, but the short version of the software is that we’re giving clients instant access to what bands are available and what they cost. Certainly, no one in the upscale market has done this; most websites for bands serve as just brochures.” Evan believes the new software will revolutionize the way wedding planning is done. “All a user needs to do is to provide us the event date, the venue, and event type. Then the software will immediately calculate the available bands, the pricing, allow the user to share the results with family, download proposals on every band, customize the bands on the page, add a percussionist, add string performers, remove a band member, or even book the band by going directly to contract using digital payments and e-signatures.” There will still be an option to book various length Zoom demos with Evan (The CEO).
Passion for Dance & Entertainment
Evan Tyler has had a passion for dance and entertainment since his early teenage years. As a young boy attending bar-mitzvahs in New York, he always lit up the dancefloor with his spirited attitude and dynamic moves. DJ companies began taking notice of Evan’s high-energy performances and recommended he audition as a professional dancer. “I got started when I was 13 after attending bar/bat mitzvahs where the DJ companies took notice of the short Jewish kid who could dance,” Evan told PARK, “When I was 16, I got hired by my first bar mitzvah company and now I was getting paid to go to events.”
After over 15 years of gaining experience as an event producer, salesman and performing at over 1000 events, Evan decided to create his own entertainment company. “I started Evan Tyler Productions in my living room, and eight years later in 2016 acquired an elite company with over 30 years of roots in the industry. The company grew exponentially over the next few years, into what is now called Starlight Music,” Evan said, “We focus primarily on live music, finding the best talent and providing a customized experience for our clients.”
Interactive Presence on the Dancefloor.
Evan’s decades-old passion for dance and for producing top-tier entertainment shines through in his work at Starlight. The company offers a variety of full-scale bands that perform different
genres and can adapt to any theme. From acoustic rock to R&B to Country to Top 40 and everything in between, Starlight has it all. What’s truly remarkable about the productions are the quality of the musicians and the versatility of their performances. The musicians seamlessly mix from genre to genre without missing a beat. Starlight’s homepage shows one of Starlight’s vocalists covering a Rihanna song that sounds indistinguishable from a Rihanna live performance. In addition to quality, the versatility of the bands and musicians has allowed Starlight to tailor experiences to any of the client’s needs. “We can offer full-scale show bands with dancing, lighting, choreography, or keep it simple with a high-energy party band.” Evan told PARK, “Some clients want continuous nonstop dancing that is twice as long as a Taylor Swift or Billy Joel concert, so we bring a secondary group of musicians that rotate seamlessly with the primary band to make sure the energy never stops. Sometimes we’ll combine dance bands with specialty acts such as French Jazz for the quieter moments. Our products can go out as small as 8 pieces and go up to 27 pieces. We use trumpets, trombones, electric violins, percussionists to enhance the bands and increase their interactive presence on the dancefloor.”
Leave the Past Behind
Evan concluded, “Our new system is designed to move the live music industry into the future and leave the past behind us. Technology has evolved and it is time that my business evolves with it. Our clients live and interact in a world that is entirely different than that of 20 years ago. They want to shop online, at their own pace, do much of their own research, and all of that without a salesman hovering over them. Our new website and platform will put everything at their fingertips. Our customers will get to determine what type of a Starlight Experience they would like for their wedding.”
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