Insider Column 13

An insider's look at Townsend...
Chapter Thirteen


August 9, 2001

Did you miss me? Did you even notice that I took a week off? Oh well. Maybe if I took a month off you would notice.

In fact, I did not take the week off. I’ve been very busy managing Townsend lately. I’ve also been very busy preparing for the Moffett Air Show.

For those of you who check out our web site on a daily basis, you will notice that we posted this column a day early. I will have no time tomorrow to prepare my Insider Column. Both Wendy and I will be very busy starting at about 6:00 am Friday morning. She has to be at work very early to do a live TV interview relating to airborne astronomy and astrobiology, and I need to be at the airfield early so that I can start acting important. Don’t tell anyone, but, I get to fly on the Hawker Hunter tomorrow at noon. The Hawker Hunter is a two-seat British fighter jet used for training fighter pilots. Well, at least I think that’s what it is. I wonder if I’m gonna get sick?

We finally selected a record label and management company to work with. I’ll get back to that in a minute.

My interview with Matt is included in this column. It’s towards the end. I’m compelled to bore you for a while with uninteresting blather.

This weekend the guys are going to be very busy. We have the air show on Saturday and Santa Cruz on Sunday. I will not be in attendance during the Sunday Santa Cruz performance. Wendy and Julie will be managing the guys for the day. As I’ve mentioned in my column in the past, Julie does most of the real management on performance days. I kinda hang around and look semiofficial. On Sunday, Wendy can hang around looking semi official. I will be at the air show on Sunday looking official for NASA.

On Saturday I will not be able to spend much time with the guys. As NASA’s Director for the Air Show I will be busy trying to stay out of trouble. At times I will be riding my bike around the airfield. If you see me on my bike, do not distract me. During our air show two years ago I was distracted and I ended up being thrown over the handlebars. Not very dignified! If you see me and I am off my bike, stop by and say hello.

Regarding the air show, The Townsend Booth and stage will be located on the Southwest side of the airfield in front of the flight tower (Flight Operations Facility). Just look for all of the static aircraft displays.

By the way, do you know how many members of a boy band that it takes to screw in a light bulb? A one and a two and a one, two, three.

Did you get it?

Now, back to some very exciting and important Townsend business. Earlier in the week, we agreed to a deal with Spunout Records and a management relationship with Sound Management. Spunout Records is owned by Steve Harwell (Smash Mouth) and Robert Hayes (Smash Mouth’s manager) and others. The "record deal" is a joint venture between Townsend’s Management Group and Spunout Records to produce an EP album. It will include the original three songs plus two or three new songs. Sound Management is partially owned and totally managed by Robert Hayes. Robert has agreed to co-manage Townsend (the guys, not the business) with me. That’s great news because Robert will be a major asset in helping to bring Townsend to the next stage in its entertainment career. Of course this means that Julie will continue to do most of the real work in direct support of the guys. Wendy will continue doing the web site, Joy will continue working with our fans and supporting public relations. Now, let’s see, who did I forget? Oh yea, and I will continue to look official. So, do you fully understand all the ins and outs of Townsend and its management? No, no! Why not? Are you a little slow today? Let’s try this:

T Rex- Townsend’s Business Manager (until I can escape this madness) and Co-Personal Group Manager (for a little while longer)
Wendy- Webmaster, graphic designer and the important and cute Mrs. T Rex
Julie- Director for Marketing, Tour Manager, and Personal Publicist
Joy- Director for Fan and Public Relations + author of the All Access column

And now, for the interview with Matt...

T Rex: When you first got a call from Dom telling you that Townsend was looking for a fifth member what did you think and what convinced you to join the group?

Matt: Well what truly convinced me was not what Dom said but from what I heard from the fans. A group is nothing without fans. When I heard how highly they spoke of these guys, there was no way I could let this opportunity pass me by.


T Rex: How do you feel about Townsend's relationship with its fans? Were you surprised at first by the extent to which the guys like to meet and greet their fans?

Matt: At first I was a bit over whelmed. I got to meet almost all of them (the long time fans) the day after I moved down. But it put things into perspective. I got to meet them all on a personal level and not behind an autograph booth or on stage. It’s a different approach and I believe a better one. As far as the fans go, I love them all and couldn't see Townsend without them. We truly don't deserve them one bit.

T Rex: You’re being modest. It’s very obvious to me that Townsend loves its fans and the fans love Townsend.

Aside from the fans, what is Townsend's greatest strength? Where does Townsend need to focus its energies? That's just a nice way of asking what are their weaknesses.

Matt: Well, Townsend is a very high-energy group. Great vocals, excellent dancing and the ladies seem to love them. The only thing Townsend is lacking is stage experience. Once we get a few more concerts under our belt, there will be no stopping us.

T Rex: If it weren't for Townsend, what would you be doing now?

Matt: I would probably still be in Oregon working for my parents and dreaming of doing what I am doing right now. This is truly a dream come true for me.

T Rex: Occasionally, very negative comments are posted on the Townsend message board. How does that affect you?

Matt: Well with the good always comes the bad. You just have to see through everything and take it all with a light heart. Personally, I feel hurt when people write negative things. I don't understand why they do it. But I realize that everyone is entitled to THEIR opinion. Negative or positive.


T Rex: Townsend often speaks about how important family, friends and fans are to the group. I know that you have strong family values. I also know that you have many close friends. Townsend's logo symbolizes the importance of friends. Do you feel that Townsend's attitude about family, friends and fans will have any impact on its chances for being successful?

Matt: Well those three components are very high on the totem pole of success. I believe that they will play a huge role in helping us to reach our goals.

T Rex: You didn't have the opportunity to contribute as much to Townsend's first two songs (Understand This? and Just Say Goodbye) as you did the third song (This Night's for You). Based on your perspective, what are the major differences between the first two songs and the third?

Matt: Well I think what sets us apart on this song is that we collaborated on it as a group. Any time that we do something together it will always be stronger than an individual effort. This song shows a little more of our group style. Look for more songs like this in the future.

T Rex: How do you feel about our deal with Spunout Records?

Matt: It’s awesome!

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