We are getting ready for GLAM Jam Summer Kickoff and today we are introducing Angry Talent Entertainment (ATE)! Dan Dan Laird shares more about ATE, the plans to return to GLAM Jam Summer Kickoff and more!
Dan Dan first… What is Angry Talent Entertainment?
Angry Talent Entertainment is a music agency designed to expand the experience of live music throughout the Lansing area and beyond by building up the opportunities they currently exist and seeking out more opportunities where live music could thrive.
Your work seems rooted in shaping what’s next — enriching the present to influence the future of music in Greater Lansing. Why is that forward-thinking approach so important to you?
One of the trickiest objectives as a musician is finding places to play. Knowing where those doors of opportunity are and how to get through them. In many cases, the best way to help musicians with that is to simply build new doors. Having a vibrant city known for live entertainment starts with building on what already exists rather than replacing it.
It sounds funny but I often think of the movie Pretty Woman where Richard Gere’s character expresses his dissatisfaction with never building or creating anything. I want ATE to create something and not merely slip into a role that could be filled by anyone. To do that, you find ways to be a part of the community, to be proactive, and to create spaces and events that people want to attend rather than stumble upon.
How do you believe live music helps build community and create lasting family memories?
Live music adds a vibrancy to any gathering. Unlike any other entertainment, there’s a societal understanding that you can let loose a little when you’re around it. It has the unique distinction of being a form of entertainment that could be a main attraction or something done on the side to enhance all of the other activities going on around it. Live music draws people together and that’s how memories are made.
Dan Dan Laird performing during GLAM Jam 2024
What types of live events can families in Greater Lansing look forward to throughout the year?
Keep your eyes peeled on the Angry Talent schedule of events to see regular performances at a number of venues in the area. ATE also assists organizations and municipalities like Lansing Lugnuts** and City of East Lansing to provide live music for their special or seasonal events. Certainly, don’t limit yourself to only Angry Talent events. Seek out those concerts in the park series or touring acts at Grewal Hall, too!
**Lansing Lugnuts has tripled the amount of music planned for this year. Folks can look forward to a great lineup of themed music nights like Yacht Rock, Country, and 90’s. In addition, there will be music for every Thirsty Thursday game.
How did your vision for Angry Talent Entertainment come to life, and what keeps it growing?
For a long time now, there’s been a major imbalance with all of the pieces needed to make a thriving music community. To fix that, it requires caring about the success of everyone involved: the musicians, the venues, and the community.
Musicians needed an advocate to end a trend of long shows for low pay and being told that’s as good as it gets by bad faith actors.
Venues needed guidance and connections to keep their rotation of music fresh and their events promoted so that live music isn’t only for the customers they already have but for the customers it can draw in.
And being part of a community means participating in it. How can we all use the skills we have to make the place we call home better? As a business, I’ve noticed that a large amount of its growth doesn’t just come from the services it provides. It comes from the community noticing that the business genuinely cares about what it’s setting out to do.
The community cheers on your success when you actively root for them, too.
You represent a wide range of talent, from artists to DJs to hosts. What do you look for when bringing someone into the Angry Talent family?
The biggest thing is finding the perfect match between the performer and the gig. Like any occupation, some performers are natural talents and could thrive anywhere. Some have a more specific wheelhouse and would be received better by certain audiences of different sizes or interests. And, let’s be honest, some aren’t necessarily ready for prime time but there are venues that support growing artists especially if they have a lot of support coming to see them.
But I’m open to helping anyone I can. The biggest problem is that there are more musicians than there are gigs. Add to that the fact that some venues have favorites that they want to see more regularly and it makes it difficult to help everyone as much as I’d like.
I don’t ask for a commitment from anyone. My role is to simply connect performers with opportunities. They certainly should not limit their performance schedule just because I’m not involved. Loyalty shouldn’t hinder their careers. They show their appreciation through word of mouth. As they help open doors for Angry Talent, Angry Talent can help open doors for them.
With that in mind, I’m lucky that I’m at a point where musicians seek out ATE. I get to discover new performers just by checking my messages. However, I do still keep my eye out for those performers who need that encouraging nudge. You’d be surprised how many people don’t realize how talented they truly are.
How do you curate a lineup of performers? There’s a strong energy behind your brand — bold, unapologetic, and intentional. How does that vibe translate into the work you do and the events you produce?
I want to make sure that venues value the performers for their time and talent. In exchange, I set out to treat every gig like it’s the most important so that each performance does have a worthwhile cost to benefit ratio for the venue, too.
That’s why I’m adamant about including marketing for each show and the month as a whole. For every one thing I know about running a restaurant, bar, or venue, I’m sure there are ten things I don’t know. With everything that goes into managing one, marketing of individual events often takes a back seat. That’s where Angry Talent goes the extra mile to take that off of their plates.
At the end of the day, I want the general public to know who is performing, when they’re performing, and where they are performing. Venues benefit from live music when it isn’t just for the customers they already have but when it’s for the customers it can potentially draw in. But the only way to draw in customers with live music is to let people know live music is happening!
We get the sense you’re not just reacting to trends — you’re helping shape what’s next. How do you stay future-focused while staying rooted in the local culture?
I’ve now lived in the Lansing area longer than where I grew up in the Detroit area. Most of my life as a musician has taken place here so I’ve seen how some things have changed for better or for worse and how other things haven’t changed that maybe should have.
We’ve lost a lot of stages over the years and a lot of our local talent travels elsewhere to share their skills. I want to change that and it starts with getting everyone on the same page. It’s those three pillars I mentioned before: The musicians, the venues, and the performers.
If this were just about making a side income, I could easily set up shop with a handful of venues and filter through the same handful of performers every month, book them, and call it a day. I think that sort of thinking has persisted too long and has contributed to a decline in our music culture.
I don’t just want to build a business. I want to be part of building a culture. This is my home and Angry Talent Entertainment gives me a unique opportunity to do something special as a contributing member of our community. In a way, I’m not reacting to trends. I’m trying to reverse them.
What do you think makes the Greater Lansing area a meaningful place for creative talent and entertainment right now?
We’re urban, we’re rural, we’re a community exponentially made more diverse with a college campus of students and faculty from around the country and world. We aren’t stuck with one genre of music or influence. We’re rock. We’re jazz. We’re country. We’re rap. We’re world music. We’re 80s. We’re 2000’s. Even those that don’t get as much access to stages, turn their homes into one night venues. Music persists whatever the circumstances and there’s already so much waiting to be heard.
Looking ahead, what can we expect from Angry Talent — any collaborations, events, or projects you’re especially excited about?
I’ve enjoyed collaborations like I’ve formed with Lansing Lugnuts where I can provide music for specialty themed games. I’ll keep hitting the pavement to see if more venues will open their doors to music, but I want to make Angry Talent more readily accessible to the general public, too.
That starts with making the public more familiar with the talent that already exists in our community so they can contact me already with a plan or preference in mind. I’ll be updating and improving the website where performers and bands can have a space to present their press kits so that I can tap into the market of one-offs and special events like private parties, municipal events, and maybe some more small batch collaborations with other organizations like I have with the Lugnuts.
The team is growing to give me the space to help the business grow. We now have a social media specialist to tackle all of the show promotions, a sound engineer specialist to help interested bands and venues build the perfect setup with levels so each song sounds as great as it’s played, and an additional venue communications and booking specialist. With the extra hands on deck, this will hopefully allow ATE to expand to new venues and try new projects like a possible podcast.
Would you share a memorable moment from performing at GLAM Jam Summer Kickoff last summer — teaser alert – someone from Angry Talent Entertainment will be at GLAM Jam Summer Kickoff 2025!
GLAM Jam is such a great event and I loved performing at it last year. It turns out that kids love getting their faces painted and that very popular line moved along right in front of the stage where I performed. No group of people on the planet can dance freely without any sense of embarrassment like a group of kids. It was like a reverse Kiss where the band was the only ones NOT wearing makeup.
Add a dancing Sparty to the mix and it was certainly one of the greatest missed photo ops.
This is great! Thanks for sharing so much about Angry Talent Entertainment and for joining us again this year during GLAM Jam Summer Kickoff! Unfortunately we just learned Dan Dan is taking one of his kids out west for a concert and will not be at GLAM Jam himself yet he is lining up some local talent to bring the summer time music!
Interested in learning more about Angry Talent Entertainment or know someone who is looking for live entertainers for an upcoming event? Click on their logo below or visit Angry Talent Entertainment on Facebook or Instagram.
More about GLAM Jam Summer Kickoff HERE
