Friends! This Thursday, October 27th we have a really special event for you. Rise2Shine & Marilyn’s Mission is collaborating to bring their 1st Annual MONSTER MASH @ MARS Fundraiser to help alleviate the suffering of young underprivileged children, locally and in Haiti. Our local favorite Superstar DJ’s Clarkie and Dirtyhertz will be gracing the decks & providing us with some great tunes for the eve! The event will be held at Mars Bar, SF located at 798 Brannan St and will run from 9:00pm-1:00am. Costumes are optional and there will be some other fun stuff in store including a Raffle & great prizes! For more information and to RSVP, you can visit the Facebook Event Page.

Marilyn’s Mission has been supplying household necessities to children and families in need for 13 years. They work in conjunction with Holy Family Day Home, a day care center for homeless and low income children, and many other charitable organizations. Many people want to be charitable around the holidays, but the people who need it most, are in continuous need. Marilyn’s mission strives to supply all year round.

Rise2Shine (R2S) is a 501(c)(3) Non-Profit organization established to help alleviate the suffering of young children living in impoverished developing countries worldwide, with a current focus on Haiti. R2S concentrates on helping the forgotten children, those children from six months to five years of age. These children live in abject poverty and are too young to attend public school, resulting in minimal access to essential food and educational services.They are super excited to finally announce the grand opening of their flagship location in Fond-Parisien, Haiti on 11-11-11 (only 2wks after this fundraiser).

With your help, we can all make this possible. To ensure a better future for our children, please RSVP today and come out and show your support! Suggested donation $15! You can also make donations on the Rise2Shine website here.

We’re hoping that we get to the point where Sean Parker, the Napster co-founder and Facebook founding president calls us as last minute to pull together an event that warrants over 300 facebook “likes.”  He was celebrating the arrival of his latest venture, Spotify, the European-based music-streaming service that launched in the United States earlier this year and quickly picked up more than 10 million subscribers. Stanlee Gatti was the lucky planner that was hired to produce this incredible last minute event. He says that his crew had to pull the whole thing together in less than two days. “I got the phone call at 12:08 a.m. on Monday night.”

The graffiti theme continued inside the warehouse where soaring Rye Bar cocktail stands and bars teemed with every top-shelf tipple imaginable. All the better to pair with the bounteous McCall Associates buffet stands groaning beneath sushi and lobster bars, spit-roasted suckling pigs, pounds of fresh-sliced proscuitto and Parker’s personal favorite, Mac & Cheese copiously sprinkled with just-shaved truffles, six pounds of the pungent tuber which McCall Executive Chefs Lucas Schoemaker and Josip Martinovic had flown in from France. Amid the exhuberant extravagence, a few whispers about a potential bubble burst wafted upward to the warehouse ceiling bumping into towering chandeliers. “This isn’t old school because the first tech boom was never this good,” observed one partygoer, with a joking aside. “This is about kings and artisans of the court. So it’s more like medieval school.”

Spotify allows users to easily play music and share it with their friends in real time via their Facebook profiles. The collective hope is that increased access and exposure to new music will result in a boost in sales for record companies and maybe an incentive to subscribe to the full-fledged versions of the services on offer.

“What we discovered is the product consumers were willing to pay for was convenience,” Parker said. “Solving the piracy problem can’t happen unless you build a service that will compete with it. The party drew many Silicon Valley and music industry luminaries, including the managers of Top-10 pop acts such as Eminem and Bruno Mars. Zuckerberg made a brief cameo in the pit during Snoop Dogg’s raucous, expletive-laced set while socialites, including author Danielle Steel and former Mayor Willie Brown, mingled with guests on the long white couches that lined the room. (Lady Gaga was rumored to be making an appearance, but that didn’t happen.)

For the entire SF gate article, read here.

In the event planning industry, it is vital to have a good stock of vendors and partners in other related industries in order to produce great events.  One of these vendors must be a DJ you have worked with and whom you know will provide the right kind of atmosphere for various events.  In case you don’t already have a good DJ, here is a set of guidelines by which you can narrow down your search to find one who’s right for you!

1. Consider the DJ’s reputation in the industry: Do a little sleuthing and see if other event planners have used the DJ’s services and have graced him or her with good reviews.  Also check to see if the DJ’s customer reviews are available online and if they are positive and numerous.

2. Review the DJ’s contract thoroughly: As with any vendor you are potentially hiring, know exactly what you are signing.  Read all the find print.  Is the contract vague or does it give detailed information about the services provided?

3. Check to see if the DJ carries full liability insurance: Coverage of at least $1,000,000 is expected.

4. Ask about the DJ’s policies: How will the DJ dress for the event?  Where will the equipment be set up?  How does the DJ stand on drinking at the event? etc.

5. Consider the DJ’s overall attitude and listening skills: It should be the DJ’s primary concern to understand and correctly interpret what exactly the client wants for their event in terms of ambiance and music, and carry these wishes out to their fullest ability.  If their attitude suggests otherwise, look elsewhere.

What kinds of things do you look for in vendors?  How about in DJs?  What are some signs that a vendor is right or wrong for your company?

To hear the rest of these great tips, click here!

Tonight is another installment of Yuri’s night at the Academy of Sciences this evening. Featuring none other than our SF fav dj collective, The Space Cowboys. Yuri’s night is an annual celebration of humanity’s achievements in space. The event takes place each year in April, to commemorate Yuri Gagarin’s first flight into space in 1961, as well as the first launch of the US Space Shuttle in 1981.

The night will include a lecture by Mary Roach, author of Packing for Mars, and best known for her novels Stiff, Spoof, and Bonk. Other activities range from a screening of Dawn of the Space Age in the Planetarium, a Tour of the Night Sky with SF Amateur Astronomers, various visuals throughout the academy, and of course the amazing Space Cowboy DJs!

The Space Cowboys will also be hosting a free event after Yuri Night at MILK on Haight Street.

Purchase tickets to Nightlife here:

https://www.calacademy.org/event_tickets/index.php?d=April+7%2C+2011

ABCey Events is excited to be involved with NextAid again for Ladies of the House, an event geared towards raising awareness and money for NextAid’s work in Kenya and Sierra Leone and honoring National Women’s History Month this March. “Ladies of the House” will take place March 31, at Public Works SF from 7:30pm to 2:00am. This event is produced by Digital Bliss Productions and Boutique Electronique Records, two unique San Francisco based music production and promotions companies that are also thrilled to collaborate with NextAid in this important fundraising event.

For over seven years NextAid has rallied music industry leaders and enthusiasts from the electronic dance music community to action, channeling the positive energy from the dance floor to sustainable development projects that support orphans and women in Africa.

“Ladies of the House” will feature leading women DJs and electronic artists from San Francisco including DJ Icon (Illeven Eleven Records), DJ Dulce Vita (Opel Productions), Tamo (Angels of Bass/Space Cowboys), DJ shOOey (Space Cowboys) and Marissa Guzman LIVE (Juicy Lucy Records).

Other partners for this event include The Space Cowboys, Opel Productions, Nitevibe, Angels Of Bass, The Women’s Recording Mission, Sexyvisuals, ABCey Events, and Illeven Eleven Records. Each with its own strong following, they are joining forces to ensure that “Ladies of the House” will have a wide reach to a diverse and sophisticated audience.

In addition to the massive talent in the main room, there will be a second room upstairs dedicated to projecting footage of NextAid’s sustainable development projects for women and youth in Africa, food, raffle prizes, massages, and other activities to pamper the soul.  The event will also feature and onsite art gallery show by various artists and visual effects by: sexyvisuals- www.sexyvisuals.net.

We’d love your support, so please purchase your tickets at www.nextaid.org.  And remember, Public Works is 21+over! If you cannot make it, Please consider making a donation! http://nextaid.org/donation.htm

Last week Apple revealed iTunes 10, which included a new logo and a new social music network called “Ping“. Ping allows you to “follow your favorite artists and friends to discover the music they are talking about, listening to and downloading.” – Apple

Ping is a combination of iTunes, Twitter and Facebook. It is a lot like Twitter where you can follow your friends or your favorite artists.

Ping allows you to:

• follow your favorite artists and become a part of their inner circle
• Read artist’s news feeds
• Find out what music an artist likes and learn songs that they recommend
• See pictures and status updates from your favorite artists (and you can join in our their conversations)
• You can also access Ping through your iPhone and iTouch
• You can also follow your friends and learn about what they are listening to who they like.
• See what artists are playing near you and who else will be in the audience too (over 17,000+ concerting listings)
• You can even buy tickets to concerts directly from Ping

I recently downloaded iTunes 10 and I am very impressed with how easy it is to use Ping! I look forward to learning more about it and to hear about what others have to say about it.

Have you tried Ping yet? Do you think Ping will be a great success?

Apple Lovers Unite! Get ready as Apple is holding an invitation only event for reporters, bloggers, and analysts here in SF on September 1st at the Yerba Buena Center. If you were not among the elite chosen ones, you can tune in with the rest of us to hear about some of their exciting new products. This event is expected to be geared around Apple’s devices such as the iPod/Pad, Apple TV, and iPhone. There is also a small chance that we finally see the Verizon iPhone get announced. The rumor mill is running like crazy on this one, but it could be a bit too close to the Apple iPhone 4 launch to really see this product.

This is what we’re hoping to hear about:

• New iPod touch: With a back-facing camera for still images and videos and a front facing video camera for FaceTime video calls.
• Lower-cost iOS-based Apple TV – possibly at $99
• 99-cent TV show rentals
• 7 inch Ipad
  
• Cloud-based iTunes service

Which of these products will you be purchasing? And, more importantly can someone get us on the list?!

It’s that time of the year again…time to slide on your cowboy boots (only the most fashion forward ones, of course – we’re talking about Austin here), and perk up your listening ears, because SXSW is here.  We’re so excited to be attending the Interactive Conference in Austin, TX for our first time ever. We’ll be seeing all of the new films, listening to all the live bands, and checking out all the new gadgets and technology available, and of course, reporting back on everything that’s going on to you guys.

Each year South by Southwest (SXSW) conquers the film and music screenings by providing viewers with the most desired gadgets, eclectic music, and exposure of the hottest, up and coming creators. A staggering expectancy of over 12,000 people to attend the festival leads it to be single handedly one of the largest and highest revenue-producing music festivals in the country.  With the availability of listening to new bands, seeing new films, and testing out the newest technology…what’s holding you back from going?

Here are a few of the most talked about and anticipated events of the festival:

The Official SXSW Interactive Kick-Off, Sponsored by Ustream – Limited to the first 500 badge holders; experience the live performance of the Gym Class Heroes, Fall Out Boy’s Pete Wentz, and other special guest appearances.  The atmosphere itself is enough to want to attend…so get there early and see the show!

Mozilla SXSW Happy Hour Party – only available to the first 250 guests – so hurry up and don’t miss it!  Join Mozilla for drinks and appetizers at Cedar House and learn what’s going on in the world of web today.

Diggnation LIVE at The Bigg Digg Shindigg – Digg and Revision3 are performing live and for free at the well-known Stubbs BBQ on Saturday, March 13.  It’s going to be a combo of old school beats with new age rhythm.

All the events are within the same eight days with 1,400 reported artists playing in over 80 venues.  The overall focus of the festival is new directing talent which goes hand and hand with creative technology and innovative ideas.  Having the creative talent meet the potential consumer of film, song, album, video game, or website.  Click here to find out more information about each event; including times, places, and who is involved in each performance. Are you going to SXSW this year?  If so, what are you most excited for?

From musicians twittering their every move and thought to artists like Nine Inch Nails releasing their entire album for donation based download, the music industry has become irrefutably intertwined with technology. The SFMusicTech Summit is a full day seminar followed by a cocktail reception where the leaders in technology and music will address the changing world of the industry and how it affects the consumers, the producers and everyone in between.

Whether this is evolution is positive (fans can now interact more directly with the artists they love, and local artists are able to gain a following without the giant recording company middleman) or negative (do you miss the old days of perusing the record store?), one thing is indisputable – it’s happening, it’s happening fast, and the greatest power through all of these changes is knowledge. Come get informed! Speakers include:

Beats for Boobs (http://www.beatsforboobs.org), will host its 6th annual fundraiser on FRIDAY, OCTOBER 23rd @ 111 Minna Gallery, 6 p.m. – 2 a.m. Beats for Boobs is an annual fundraising event that raises community awareness for breast cancer through a collective celebration of art, fashion, food and music.

This year will be the biggest yet!! B4B hopes to raise over $25,000. (Last year Beats for Boobs raised over $16,800 for the breast cancer cause). How are they doing this? With YOU, YOU, AND YOU!

What else are they up to this year?

- This year the event will be held on a Friday for the very first time.
- Beyond the four walls of their home away from home, 111 Minna, B4B’s is hosting an array of entertainment and performances in the Minna alley which we will be taking over in full this year also for the first time!
- Loads of FOOD, EDUCATIONAL GAMES, FASHION, ART and BEATS to boot for the boobie!

Please take a minute to peruse and join (if you haven’t already) the FB fan page. You can see photos from past years, videos, and loads of detail and updates as to this year’s goals and event details. We also have a list of the organizations to whom funds will go from this 100% volunteer and charitable event!

Become a Fan: http://www.facebook.com/beatsforboobs

“GREEN IS THE NEW PINK” is the theme this year! Knowing that environmental toxins are one of the leading causes of disease, cancer, birth defects, asthma, and reproductive harm, Beats for Boobs will help educate people on how to reduce exposure in their own lives and live at a higher level of health & wellness. The best cure for breast cancer is prevention.

Why wait in line when you can pre-purchase VIP Tickets and VIP Packages on their website: http://www.beatsforboobs.org. Music, food, fashion and live performances will be provided by the following sponsors, contributors and volunteers who make this annual event possible: