Excitement is in the air with the announcement of quality international metal and alternative rock acts, Secrets, Dance Gavin Dance, Fit For A King, Our Last Night and  Hands Like Houses coming to South Africa in 2018. Potchefstroom Herald spoke  to Craig Atkinson of Jam Packed Productions –  the company who made this all possible. Read more here on how this massive tour was put together and what fans can expect from the horses mouth:

1.  Jam Packed Productions have created quite a buzz of late with the announcement of big international rock and metal bands that will be coming to our shores over the next 18 months. How did Jam Packed Productions start and what is the main goal of the company/organisation?

JamPacked Productions started in 2014 doing small corporate shows and parties. Nothing to serious, it was always like a side project. No real advertising or anything. The two founders of JamPacked Productions Genevieve and Craig started working closely with the organisation Rocking for Rhinos. We decided that we would do Gauteng/Cape Town shows to raise money for the rhinos. Our first event in 2016 was actually a nightmare. the show was planned perfectly, however, the attendance was unbelievably poor. We pretty much broke even. At that point we decided, we either go big or go home. Thats when we decided to bring Our Last Night. We sold out all 3 shows and raised 440K for the rhinos. That feeling was the best feeling in the world. Our main goal for 2018 is to raise One Million Rand for the rhinos. Thats our target. Not all our shows are Rocking for Rhino shows, however, we will donate profits to the organisation to hit that target.

2. How did you guys manage to get those bands such as Dance Gavin Dance, Hands Like Houses an Fit For A King to come to our shores? It must take a lot of effort scheduling and finance wise as these bands seem to constantly tour or record? 

It takes a lot of emails and Skype calls to get everything signed off. The bands were super keen to come to SA so it made it a lot easier working with them to get deals signed. We have an amazing angel investor that believes in our product, he has financed all the tours.

3. What was the biggest motivating factor in getting these particular international bands to SA? Was it purely be fans demands/requests?

I watched each of these bands live while I was on tour, they literally blew my mind. I only found out how big they were in South Africa after the announcement. I knew they had fans, but our launch campaign went pretty much viral. I wanted to ensure that our clients get a rad show for their money, you are in for a treat.

4. Jam Packed Productions will be looking to raise a R1 million for Rocking 4 Rhinos. Where did the awareness for rhino and wildlife conservation start for you and how do you believe that music can be a powerful tool in creating awareness and positive change?

Myself and my partner have always been very passionate about wildlife conservation. The Rhinos being at a high priority purely as they will be the first to go extinct if we do not make a change real soon. Rocking for Rhinos was founded by Gareth Putter in 2012 already, we supported that event by attending. We fell in love with what they do and how determined they were to save the rhinos. We then decided we would start our Johannesburg team.Live music leaves you with an emotion that cannot be replaced. Our international bands unite the community not only in music but also in standing together as Africans and making a difference together. We have had so many people reach out to get involved after the Our Last Night tour.

Craig Atkinson of Jam Packed Productions

5. The Our Last Night shows in January were a big success. Do you feel that that experience created a platform for more bands to join in to this amazing “conservation meets music” concept?

100%, many bands have asked to get more involved on a personal capacity. We know some people are just trying to get on stage with an international act. But we have had some genuine bands say they want to help regardless if they play the event or not. Those are the bands that stood out for me.

6. I see that fans have the ability to spend time with these bands just by joining the mailing list. I think this is a great incentive to create even more hype for the tours. Was one of the goals to create an interactive experience for fans?

Yeah, they bands love meeting their fans and just hanging out. Its impossible to meet everyone, therefore we thought well lets give someone and a buddy an opportunity of a life time.

7. What would you say are the most important aspects to keep in mind when organising tours of this magnitude? Do’s and Don’ts?

If you going to do a tour on this magnitude and go in half-assed, you going to lose a ton of money. Make sure you have calculated everything. From flights to sweets as they all add up. Make sure you are hosting a band that are rad humans. You will be spending a lot of time with them, so do your research before booking.

8. What can we expect as music fans from these upcoming shows? This will most certainly also give local bands the opportunity for some exposure?

The bands are going to give fans a performance of a life time. They have been hand picked from many internationals. The local bands will have a blast, and get the opportunity to hangout with the bands and learn what it takes to be recognised as an international act and not just a local act. We hope we can help the locals grow as musicians because we have some amazing bands in South Africa.

Jampacked Productions