EVAmore
Booking a show may not seem too crazy… until you try to do it yourself.
What started as two college freshmen wanting to book shows and help a few of their musician friends morphed into EVAmore. The booking process needed to be simplified. Who knew it would take two college students, Channing Moreland and Makenzie Stokel, to finally start a company to do it.
Started only nine months ago, EVAmore is already making waves. The two 21-year-olds were even nominated for Young Entrepreneur of the Year by NEXT Awards, an annual event recognizing businesses that are impacting the Nashville area.
“As a young college student, you never know how others view you, so, it is very humbling for other people to tell you that you are doing something good,” said Stokel.
EVAmore helps streamline the booking process by connecting event planners to musicians in an online data base. Planners can create event profiles with criteria like budget and artist type before being matched with different artists in the area. Everything from communications to payment are then mediated through the service.
“It’s really an exciting time in all industries alike with people coming up with these new ways with tech,” said Moreland. As evidenced by services like Airbnb popping up, new technologies and online databases have created innovative paths for future companies.
“We produce events, create venues and empower artists to do even more,” said Stokel. “We wanted to build a beautiful platform where people could instantly book entertainment.” By directly connecting the two parties, Moreland and Stokel allow problems in the booking process to be eliminated.
EVAmore was not the first business venture for Moreland and Stokel. The booking and show production the two did as freshmen was under their first business, What’s Hubbin'. It was during their work with What’s Hubbin’ that they saw another business direction.
“We saw how difficult the process was,” said Stokel. “We saw a problem and looked for how to go about fixing it.”
After deciding to create a business that focused on booking, Moreland and Stokel applied to be a part of the Nashville Entrepreneur Center’s Project Music to help them get their business off the ground.
“That was the big turning point,” said Moreland.
After being one of the eight startups accepted in over 100 applicants for this 14 week music tech accelerator program, Stokel and Moreland gained access to advisors and mentors, and were challenged by an intense curriculum that included weekly pitches for their business. The two were not only the youngest in the program, but the only females as well.
The intensive program helped Stokel and Moreland develop themselves and be prepared for whatever challenges—public speaking, pitches or otherwise—would come their way.
“After the hell we went through,” said Moreland, “we’ll do anything.”
Heather McBee, director of Project Music, certainly saw this growth in them. “They came in as two wide-eyed college students, but they left the program as two young business women.”
Though Project Music has certainly helped Moreland and Stokel with their business development, that doesn’t mean it’s kept them from making a few mistakes. Stokel recognizes that there were certainly times when things did not go as planned.
“Anything you can think for what not to do, we’ve done it,” said Stokel. “Outsourcing in India? Yeah, that was terrible.”
Terrible or not, they got through it, and through their mistakes Stokel and Moreland learned a lot along the way.
“We just had to jump into it,” said Moreland. “We had to make all those mistakes, learn quickly.”
As a team, Moreland and Stokel have been happy with their dynamic. Roommates during their freshmen orientation, the two have lived together, worked together and apparently “can’t get enough of each other.”
“We have similar values, have always seen things the same way and saw the same problems,” said Stokel. “And it’s nice because we both have different strengths and weaknesses.”
Stokel works primarily with artists and marketing with universities, while Morelan works more on the big-picture aspects of the company, working towards partnerships and sponsors.
Artists working with Stokel and Moreland get to see this dynamic first hand.
Chase Bader of Waker, formally known as Koa, a band connected with EVAmore, admires the hard work Moreland and Stokel are willing to put in.
“I think as an artist, you know, we work really hard at what we do, so that’s something that draws me in,” said Bader. “They want to meet in the middle and make something great.”
As EVAmore moves forward it will be exciting to see what great things are made through this innovative company.
What started as two college freshmen wanting to book shows and help a few of their musician friends morphed into EVAmore. The booking process needed to be simplified. Who knew it would take two college students, Channing Moreland and Makenzie Stokel, to finally start a company to do it.
Started only nine months ago, EVAmore is already making waves. The two 21-year-olds were even nominated for Young Entrepreneur of the Year by NEXT Awards, an annual event recognizing businesses that are impacting the Nashville area.
“As a young college student, you never know how others view you, so, it is very humbling for other people to tell you that you are doing something good,” said Stokel.
EVAmore helps streamline the booking process by connecting event planners to musicians in an online data base. Planners can create event profiles with criteria like budget and artist type before being matched with different artists in the area. Everything from communications to payment are then mediated through the service.
“It’s really an exciting time in all industries alike with people coming up with these new ways with tech,” said Moreland. As evidenced by services like Airbnb popping up, new technologies and online databases have created innovative paths for future companies.
“We produce events, create venues and empower artists to do even more,” said Stokel. “We wanted to build a beautiful platform where people could instantly book entertainment.” By directly connecting the two parties, Moreland and Stokel allow problems in the booking process to be eliminated.
EVAmore was not the first business venture for Moreland and Stokel. The booking and show production the two did as freshmen was under their first business, What’s Hubbin'. It was during their work with What’s Hubbin’ that they saw another business direction.
“We saw how difficult the process was,” said Stokel. “We saw a problem and looked for how to go about fixing it.”
After deciding to create a business that focused on booking, Moreland and Stokel applied to be a part of the Nashville Entrepreneur Center’s Project Music to help them get their business off the ground.
“That was the big turning point,” said Moreland.
After being one of the eight startups accepted in over 100 applicants for this 14 week music tech accelerator program, Stokel and Moreland gained access to advisors and mentors, and were challenged by an intense curriculum that included weekly pitches for their business. The two were not only the youngest in the program, but the only females as well.
The intensive program helped Stokel and Moreland develop themselves and be prepared for whatever challenges—public speaking, pitches or otherwise—would come their way.
“After the hell we went through,” said Moreland, “we’ll do anything.”
Heather McBee, director of Project Music, certainly saw this growth in them. “They came in as two wide-eyed college students, but they left the program as two young business women.”
Though Project Music has certainly helped Moreland and Stokel with their business development, that doesn’t mean it’s kept them from making a few mistakes. Stokel recognizes that there were certainly times when things did not go as planned.
“Anything you can think for what not to do, we’ve done it,” said Stokel. “Outsourcing in India? Yeah, that was terrible.”
Terrible or not, they got through it, and through their mistakes Stokel and Moreland learned a lot along the way.
“We just had to jump into it,” said Moreland. “We had to make all those mistakes, learn quickly.”
As a team, Moreland and Stokel have been happy with their dynamic. Roommates during their freshmen orientation, the two have lived together, worked together and apparently “can’t get enough of each other.”
“We have similar values, have always seen things the same way and saw the same problems,” said Stokel. “And it’s nice because we both have different strengths and weaknesses.”
Stokel works primarily with artists and marketing with universities, while Morelan works more on the big-picture aspects of the company, working towards partnerships and sponsors.
Artists working with Stokel and Moreland get to see this dynamic first hand.
Chase Bader of Waker, formally known as Koa, a band connected with EVAmore, admires the hard work Moreland and Stokel are willing to put in.
“I think as an artist, you know, we work really hard at what we do, so that’s something that draws me in,” said Bader. “They want to meet in the middle and make something great.”
As EVAmore moves forward it will be exciting to see what great things are made through this innovative company.