Music has been the heartbeat of my life for as long as I can remember. As a tyke in Australia, as soon as I could reach up to the keys, I would play my grandma’s piano my family had in our house. In 1986, a visit to a pawnshop outside Melbourne changed my life forever. I laid my eyes on the coolest thing I had ever seen – an electric guitar. When I saw it, I fell in love with how it looked and felt in my hands, and from there the trajectory of my musical career skyrocketed.
With Savage Garden and Lifehouse, I experienced the thrill of having a worldwide No. 1 hit, playing sold-out shows in the biggest arenas in the world like Madison Square Garden and major events like the closing ceremony at the 2000 Sydney Summer Olympics and ball drop in Times Square on New Year’s Eve. It all stemmed from my positive attitude. I’ve always felt an undying confidence my opportunity was going to come, and that’s due to the confidence I have in the power of hard work.
I developed a tenacity and “work harder than everyone and never-give-up” attitude playing basketball when I was younger. It instilled in me the importance of having the drive to always improve, and it was the catalyst for me making it in this business. I’ve always felt the opportunity of a lifetime is only relevant for the lifetime of that opportunity. You must be prepared for that opportunity so that when it comes, you don’t waste it, as it might only come around once.
Landing in Las Vegas was an accident. I had come to the city to play a show with Lifehouse. Afterwards, I stayed and cruised around on my bike. A week turned into two, then three and so on, until I found myself trying to engrain myself in the city’s music scene and local venues. As I figured out this town, my trajectory changed in a positive way and about five years ago landed me at the doorstep of a new rocking venue, The Barbershop Cuts & Cocktails at The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas.
The exciting challenge of curating a venue like that, being in control of who stands on that stage and what comes out of those speakers, became my focus. The Barbershop became something I’m extremely proud of and take very personally because so much time, effort, love and talent has gone into that room. It’s something I believe the artists who stand on that stage should be proud of – it’s a product that’s second to none anywhere in the country, let alone Las Vegas.
The Barbershop is unique in how it sounds, feels and looks. It’s the best-sounding small room in town, and the production is very specific to the space. When the end result is so good that you can see it on people’s faces, it’s a rewarding feeling because you know we’re representing the brand well. The bands who play there get an exceptional experience because they’re delivering an exceptional experience.
Everything in Las Vegas has an expiration date, as there’s always a new shiny toy in town. I still feel like we’re the shiny toy after five years because it’s a team effort. My aspiration is to keep The Barbershop fresh and cool and always find ways we can improve the experience inside the speakeasy. Being diligent and keeping that work ethic of always progressing is key. If you’re standing on that stage and not trying to figure out what you can add to tonight’s show or the next one, then your time is going to expire, and you won’t be cool anymore.
In the music industry, especially in Las Vegas, it’s all about being diligent and staying fresh and exciting by doing new, cool things.
