Giggs Podcast

Giggs
  • 5.0 (11)
  • Arts
  • Weekly

The Giggs Podcast, hosted by Nikki Sanz, Founder & CEO of Giggs, the #1 community and career platform for the live event industry, dives into the world of touring and live events to share the good, the bad, the ugly, and the unbelievable moments of gigging life, along with invaluable lessons learned on the road.We’re here to fill the gap in content about what it truly takes to work on the road. Our episodes explore every discipline within the live event industry, showcasing big wins, hard-learned lessons, and everything in between. We honor the pioneers of this industry, offering invaluable insights from the older generations who shaped modern touring.Whether you’re an aspiring tour manager, a seasoned backline tech, or just passionate about the live event scene, this podcast is for you. Join us as we take you behind the scenes to explore the highs and lows of gigging life.

  1. 22h ago ·  Video

    #74 Barry Podob | Ozzy, the Rolling Stones, and the Hotel the Biggest Tours Trust

    After Ozzy Osbourne was kicked out of Black Sabbath, he moved into a West Hollywood hotel called Le Parc. To this day, people book rooms and ask for "Ozzy's old room."  Barry Podob has spent nearly 25 years booking the music and entertainment business there, hosting artists and crews for everyone from the Rolling Stones to 5 Seconds of Summer, and he never planned on working in hotels at all. Nikki Sanz sits down with him to talk about why the biggest tours trust a 154-room, all-suite hotel over the big brands, how he earns the trust of people who get recognized everywhere they go, and the philosophy behind it all: protect the guest, not the hotel. What you'll learn: How a career detour after 9/11 took him from a New York ad agency into hotel sales with zero experience, and from 35% to 85% occupancy in his first yearThe "Who's Booking Who" list of 400 bands that built Le Parc's entertainment businessWhy he Googles every name on the rooming list and writes a "group resume" for every tour that checks inWhy bus drivers get the best room in the houseThe morning more than 100 fans showed up outside the hotel for 5 Seconds of Summer, and how he handled itBarry Podob Bio: For nearly 25 years, Barry has booked entertainment groups at Le Parc Suite Hotel and the other West Hollywood hotels in the Springboard Hospitality collection, including Le Montrose, The Chamberlain, and Hotel Ziggy. He works in Area Sales for Music and Entertainment and is a 10-time Top Dog Award winner who has hosted artists and crews across rock, pop, hip hop, country, and more. A New York native who was at Woodstock in 1969, he has lived in Los Angeles for 30 years, calls himself a country music freak, and has written three novels, including The Azure Lady, plus eight cookbooks. Join the #1 community and career platform for the live event industry: https://www.giggs.live/ Stay up to date: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/giggs.live Youtube: https://youtube.com/@giggs-live LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/giggs-llc/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@giggs.live Host: Nikki Sanz

    #74 Barry Podob | Ozzy, the Rolling Stones, and the Hotel the Biggest Tours Trust

  2. Oct 20 ·  Video

    #73 Jacob Trunzo | Show Day with NEEDTOBREATHE's Production Manager & FOH Engineer

    What does a production manager and front of house engineer do on show day? The Giggs team spent a full day with Jacob "Trunz" Trunzo on NEEDTOBREATHE's Long Surrender Tour at FirstBank Amphitheater in Franklin, Tennessee, following him from morning load-in to doors. Along the way, Nikki Sanz meets the crew behind the show, from rigging and lighting to the PA and the tour bus, and sees how a touring production handles a tight stage, a hot day, and a front of house console that fails hours before showtime. For the best experience, make sure you listen to this one with video on Apple, Spotify, or YouTube. What you'll learn: What a production manager handles on show day, and how one person runs production and mixes front of house on the same tourHow touring rigs work, including bridles, trim heights, and why the rig changes from venue to venueHow a systems engineer tunes a PA so the mix sounds the same in every seatWhy NEEDTOBREATHE's front of house mix leans on analog character and low latencyHow a lighting designer runs a show with no video and every cue fired by handWhat happens during line check, and how the crew swapped a console before doorsWhat life on the road looks like for a tour bus driverFeatured Guests: Jacob "Trunz" Trunzo, Production Manager & Front of House EngineerJohnathan Rickard, Lighting Designer & DirectorDalton Brandt, Head RiggerZach Johnson, Systems EngineerGreg Tribble, Bus DriverJoin the #1 community and career platform for the live event industry: https://www.giggs.live/ Stay up to date: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/giggs.live Youtube: https://youtube.com/@giggs-live LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/giggs-llc/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@giggs.live Host: Nikki Sanz

    #73 Jacob Trunzo | Show Day with NEEDTOBREATHE's Production Manager & FOH Engineer

  3. Oct 6 ·  Video

    #72 Tyler Cain | What It Really Takes to Get Hired as a Stadium Touring Musician

    Tyler Cain's first paid music job was at Busch Gardens Williamsburg, dressed like Pinocchio, playing the chicken dance next to an 87-year-old oompah singer for $12 an hour. The real assignment: catch the singer when he fell down the stage steps. Years later, Tyler came back to the same park to play the amphitheater with Colbie Caillat. In between came two decades on the road and in the studio with Darius Rucker, Shaboozey, Gavin DeGraw, Big & Rich, Billy Currington, James Otto, and Ashley Monroe, plus Bold Music Group, the experiential music company he built with his wife, Meghan Linsey. It's also where Nikki got her first job in Nashville, after Tyler and Meghan watched her outwork a room full of CMA Fest interns. Tyler and Nikki get into the indie label that collapsed under an FBI investigation when he was 21, the vacant studio that became his first production credit, the 3-year-old in Arkansas who asked if his band were clowns, and why he's recording on tape with no click track now that AI makes perfect easy. What you'll learn: Why the FBI questioned him in an apartment with no furniture, and how that label's collapse put him on a radio tour with Ashley Monroe the next dayHow an empty studio at Wrensong and an engineer friend's borrowed gear became his first production job, a six-song EP for Ashley MonroeWhat it looked like to watch "Just Got Started Lovin' You" take James Otto from empty rooms to sold-out shows in a couple of weeksThe filters that shrink the pool of working musicians: talent, then showing up on time, then showing up prepared, then being someone people want aroundWhy every tour he's had came from a friend's call except oneHow Bold Music Group started as a way to cover studio rent with four shows a weekThe Planet Fitness trick he uses on tour, and how he handles the post-show comedownFeatured Guest: Tyler Cain is a Nashville-based artist, producer, musician, and entrepreneur who's worked in the studio and on the road with artists including Darius Rucker, Shaboozey, Gavin DeGraw, Colbie Caillat, Big & Rich, Billy Currington, Chingy, Aloe Blacc, and Shaggy. As an artist, his own music has racked up millions of streams, and as an entrepreneur, he co-founded Bold Music Group, one of Nashville's go-to spots for high-end, immersive music experiences. His latest release is Generations, an instrumental EP from Tyler y Zoro, his project with legendary drummer Zoro. Follow Tyler Cain: Website: https://tylertheproducer.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thisistylercain/ Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/7xmVA0jnh2yjM3S642J1Bd Tyler y Zoro, Generations EP: https://open.spotify.com/album/60GPHSvKkXvNvqpZtmdqyD Sponsor: MOC is looking for new volunteers to help share the joys of live music. Volunteer Guides are the friendly faces who host the programs as volunteer musicians perform hopeful songs to put a smile on the faces of hospital patients, families, and caregivers. To learn more about becoming a Musicians On Call volunteer, visit https://www.musiciansoncall.org. Join the #1 community and career platform for the live event industry: https://www.giggs.live/ Stay up to date: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/giggs.live Youtube: https://youtube.com/@giggs-live LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/giggs-llc/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@giggs.live Host: Nikki Sanz

    #72 Tyler Cain | What It Really Takes to Get Hired as a Stadium Touring Musician

  4. Sep 22 ·  Video

    Giggs Rewind: Ryan Whelpley | Kip Moore’s First Crew Member to Red Light’s Touring Director

    We're rewinding it back this week with a favorite episode from last year... Ryan Whelpley is a Touring Director at Red Light Management with over 20 years of experience in live production. He started out mixing front of house at Nashville's Wildhorse Saloon, then hit the road full-time tour managing the Gin Blossoms. For The Lost Trailers, he did it all: tour manager, front of house, production manager, merch, van driver. He ran pre-show carpentry and automation for Tim McGraw, then spent nearly seven years as Kip Moore's tour manager. These days, Ryan oversees budgets, vendors, staffing, advancing, and routing for a roster of artists at Red Light: anything and everything touring runs through him. What you'll learn: Why he budgets roughly $1,250 to $1,500 a day per truck, and $2,000 to $3,000 a day for a tour bus, when building a preliminary budgetThe Winnipeg scramble: a commercial flight delay, a police escort, and getting the band on stage with 15 minutes to spareWhy he'd rather sell out a 900-seat room for three nights than fill 80 percent of a 3,000-seat room onceHow six days a week mixing front of house at Nashville's Wildhorse Saloon became the foundation for everything that came afterHis rule for handling a crew member who quits or gets let go mid-tour, and why doing business properly matters more than convenienceWhy he thinks of his job as being a chameleon, adapting to each artist camp's spirit instead of bringing his own energy to itSponsor: MOC is looking for new volunteers to help share the joys of live music. Volunteer Guides are the friendly faces who host the programs as volunteer musicians perform hopeful songs to put a smile on the faces of hospital patients, families, and caregivers. To learn more about becoming a Musicians On Call volunteer, visit https://www.musiciansoncall.org. Join the #1 community and career platform for the live event industry: https://www.giggs.live/ Stay up to date: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/giggs.live Youtube: https://youtube.com/@giggs-live LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/giggs-llc/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@giggs.live Host: Nikki Sanz

    Giggs Rewind: Ryan Whelpley | Kip Moore’s First Crew Member to Red Light’s Touring Director

  5. Sep 15 ·  Video

    #71 Chris Rippy | Snoop Dogg's Fist Bump That Launched His Video Career

    Chris Rippy's parents gave him a Canon Rebel T5 for Christmas his freshman year of college. A few years later, he'd left school, moved in with a rising country artist to film his life on the road, and found himself backstage on a Snoop Dogg tour, double-booked to shoot two artists on the same night. Chris is a Nashville-born creative director, videographer, and photographer who has spent the last several years capturing the touring world from the inside. His work has appeared in CMT and People, and he's traveled the road with artists including Snoop Dogg, Darius Rucker, Chase Matthew, Cole Swindell, and Austin Williams.  On this episode, he talks with Nikki Sanz about the cold DM that got him hired within 24 hours, the year and a half he spent living and touring with Chase Matthew, and the week he came home from that Snoop Dogg tour and had to call his dad for rent money. What you'll learn: How a cold DM to Chase Matthew turned into moving in with him and touring for a year and a halfWhat separates being a fly-on-the-wall on stage from directing the shotWhy he had to call his dad for rent money after coming home from a Snoop Dogg tourHow getting double-booked for Snoop Dogg's opener turned into shooting Snoop Dogg tooWhy he didn't know what a retainer client was until it cost himHow Chris uses AI tools like Higgsfield, Nano Banana Pro, and Seedance to solve problems he can't fix on-siteWhy a nine-second video of his own hand became his most-viewed post ever, at 14 million views and countingChris Rippy Bio: Chris Rippy is a Nashville-born creative director, videographer, and photographer who has spent the last several years capturing the touring world from the inside — his work has appeared in CMT and People magazine, and he's traveled the world, on the road with artists including Snoop Dogg, Darius Rucker, Chase Matthew, Cole Swindell, Austin Williams, and more. He also helps other freelance visual creators with different courses and education content on social media. Sponsor: MOC is looking for new volunteers to help share the joys of live music. Volunteer Guides are the friendly faces who host the programs as volunteer musicians perform hopeful songs to put a smile on the faces of hospital patients, families, and caregivers. To learn more about becoming a Musicians On Call volunteer, visit https://www.musiciansoncall.org. Join the #1 community and career platform for the live event industry: https://www.giggs.live/ Stay up to date: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/giggs.live Youtube: https://youtube.com/@giggs-live LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/giggs-llc/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@giggs.live Host: Nikki Sanz

    #71 Chris Rippy | Snoop Dogg's Fist Bump That Launched His Video Career

  6. Sep 8 ·  Video

    #70 Ted Cohen | Why Artist Development Died

    In 1972, Ted Cohen talked his way through a crowd of 70,000 people and onto the side of the stage at a Led Zeppelin show in Atlanta. He had no ticket, no pass, and no plan beyond finding the tour manager. By Monday morning, the president of Atlantic Records had offered him a job. That's the version of the music industry Ted Cohen came up in. He spent the next five decades inside it: artist development at Warner Bros. and Atlantic for Van Halen, Fleetwood Mac, Prince, Talking Heads, The Who, and The Pretenders, then negotiating Warner's digital deals with EMI, iTunes, Napster, and Rhapsody as SVP of Digital Development. What you'll learn: How Ted got hired by Atlantic Records’ president before he’d even left the Led Zeppelin stadiumWhy he never gave Prince a single note of direction across years working with himThe stunt that had Van Halen roll into record stores in an armored car and a stagecoachHow he snuck Coca-Cola branding into a venue locked into an exclusive Pepsi contractWhy he calls himself a “forgiveness executive, not a permission executive”What artist development actually did for touring bands, and why the job doesn’t exist anymoreThe bar coaster he still puts on the table before every negotiationTed Cohen Bio: Ted Cohen has spent five decades in nearly every corner of the music industry — from artist development at Warner Bros. with Van Halen, Fleetwood Mac, Prince, Talking Heads, The Who, and The Pretenders, to negotiating the label's digital agreements with EMI, iTunes, Napster, and Rhapsody as SVP of Digital Development, to co-creating the Leadership Music Summit. He's made Billboard's Power 100 list three years running, founded TAG Strategic, and now teaches at the University of Tulsa. He's been in more rooms where the industry got built — and rebuilt — than almost anyone still working. Sponsor: MOC is looking for new volunteers to help share the joys of live music. Volunteer Guides are the friendly faces who host the programs as volunteer musicians perform hopeful songs to put a smile on the faces of hospital patients, families, and caregivers. To learn more about becoming a Musicians On Call volunteer, visit https://www.musiciansoncall.org. Join the #1 community and career platform for the live event industry: https://www.giggs.live/ Stay up to date: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/giggs.live Youtube: https://youtube.com/@giggs-live LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/giggs-llc/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@giggs.live Host: Nikki Sanz

    #70 Ted Cohen | Why Artist Development Died

  7. Aug 25 ·  Video

    #69 Accurate Staging | The Family Business Holding Up Travis Scott, Ye, Chevy Commercials, and Underwater Stages

    Accurate Staging has spent 25 years building the structures underneath some of the biggest names in live entertainment — Travis Scott, Ye, Zara Larsson — without most of the audience ever knowing the company's name.  Founded in 2001 by brothers-in-law Jose Cantu and Freddy Gomez, the company has grown from a single warehouse into facilities across Los Angeles, Nashville, and Atlanta, staffed by sons, grandsons, nephews, and decades-long employees who call each other family too.  Giggs went behind the scenes at their LA and Nashville shops to see how a company this size builds everything from a viral Chevy commercial to the rolling stage that carried players onto the field for the FIFA World Cup at SoFi Stadium — and even certifies its own crew to build stages at the bottom of a lake. What you'll learn: What it takes to launch Travis Scott onstage from a hydraulic "toaster"Inside the inflatable dome hiding a 32-foot scaffold structure that becomes Kanye West's rotating globe stageThe overnight scramble that built an NBA All-Star basketball court from 250 decks after a single 5 p.m. phone callThe behind-the-scenes story of a viral Chevy commercial build, including a custom track system built to roll five cars into positionWhy some crew members are scuba certified, and what it actually takes to build a stage structure underwaterWhat it took to survive months without pay after opening four months before September 11, 2001 and again during the COVID pandemicHow three generations of one family — including Jose's grandson Adrian — are running the company's next chapterFeatured guests: Jose Cantu — Co-Founder & COO Jose started welding stages for another entertainment company at 18 years old in 1986, building the first Mötley Crüe drum riser early in his career. In 2001, he and his brother-in-law Freddy Gomez left steady jobs to start Accurate Staging from a single warehouse — surviving a near-total business wipeout after 9/11 and going on to build for Kanye West, Travis Scott, and a viral Chevy commercial, among hundreds of other projects. Freddy Gomez — Co-Founder & CEO Freddy came from construction and design, with earlier experience at Showlites, before partnering with his brother-in-law Jose to start Accurate Staging in 2001. He worked every role in the company's early years — designer, fabricator, installer — through 20- and 30-hour days, and has helped grow the company from a single flatbed truck's worth of gear to a multi-city operation. Adrian Wexler — Project Manager & Executive Assistant Jose's grandson, Adrian grew up in the company's warehouses and has worked his way from painting decks and washing truss as a kid to leading Accurate Staging's operational modernization — including introducing Slack-based systems for job communication and site updates. Herman McDonough — Operations Manager & Crew Chief Herman has spent over 20 years in the live events industry, starting out building props for Las Vegas magicians before moving into staging. As crew chief, he oversees inventory, crew staffing, and job prep across Accurate Staging's LA warehouse. Johnny Cantu — Sales Rep Jose's eldest son, Johnny has been around the family business most of his life and has worked professionally at Accurate Staging for over 15 years, handling client relationships across touring, corporate, and festival work. Mike Munoz — Sales Rep Mike, a member of the Cantu family, has spent 16 years at Accurate Staging and leads major touring accounts, including work with Kanye West and Travis Scott, out of the company's Nashville facility. Joe Castellanos — Sales Rep Joe has spent 16 years at Accurate Staging, starting out cold-calling from a client binder before building a career in sales and project management. He still gets in the field with the install crew on jobs. Jake Lacher — Lead Project Manager & Technical Designer Based in Nashville, Jake came from a background in technical theater direction before joining Accurate Staging, where he now leads custom design and CAD work for touring clients including The Red Clay Strays and Zara Larsson. Join the #1 community and career platform for the live event industry: https://www.giggs.live/ Stay up to date: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/giggs.live Youtube: https://youtube.com/@giggs-live LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/giggs-llc/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@giggs.live Host: Nikki Sanz

    #69 Accurate Staging | The Family Business Holding Up Travis Scott, Ye, Chevy Commercials, and Underwater Stages

  8. Aug 18 ·  Video

    Ask Giggs #9 | What Great Crews Do That Nobody Notices

    On this edition of Ask Giggs, Nikki Sanz answers questions straight from the Giggs community on topics like when trying to look competent on a job site becomes the problem, how to know when to step in as a leader versus letting someone figure it out, and when to say yes or no to a gig. What you'll learn: Why pretending to know what's going on is the fastest way to look like "a big dummy" on a job siteThe line between stepping in as a leader and letting someone learn it the hard wayWhy the catering gig Nikki didn't want to take ended up leading to the gig that changed her careerWhy asking someone how they take feedback matters more than the feedback itselfWhat actually makes a crew member irreplaceableWhy one bad moment doesn't have to define your reputation, and where the real line isJoin the #1 community and career platform for the live event industry: https://www.giggs.live/ Stay up to date: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/giggs.live Youtube: https://youtube.com/@giggs-live LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/giggs-llc/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@giggs.live Host: Nikki Sanz

    Ask Giggs #9 | What Great Crews Do That Nobody Notices
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Ratings & Reviews

5
out of 5
11 Ratings

About

The Giggs Podcast, hosted by Nikki Sanz, Founder & CEO of Giggs, the #1 community and career platform for the live event industry, dives into the world of touring and live events to share the good, the bad, the ugly, and the unbelievable moments of gigging life, along with invaluable lessons learned on the road.We’re here to fill the gap in content about what it truly takes to work on the road. Our episodes explore every discipline within the live event industry, showcasing big wins, hard-learned lessons, and everything in between. We honor the pioneers of this industry, offering invaluable insights from the older generations who shaped modern touring.Whether you’re an aspiring tour manager, a seasoned backline tech, or just passionate about the live event scene, this podcast is for you. Join us as we take you behind the scenes to explore the highs and lows of gigging life.

Information

  • Creator
    Giggs
  • Years Active
    2024 - 2026
  • Episodes
    91
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © 2026 Giggs Podcast
  • Show Website
    Giggs Podcast

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