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Atlantic City DJ Expo 2012

Continuing Education in Pursuit of Excellence

Rock The House Entertainment attends a variety of conferences and events all over the country each year. One of the most important trips is to the DJ Expo put on by DJ Times. This year the event was in Atlantic City and Matt, Shawn, and Travis had the opportunity to attend this conference and trade show with some of the best in the entertainment industry in attendance.

Being able to learn from the best in the country means our client’s events will benefit from a larger pool of experience. Upon their return to the office Matt, Shawn, and Travis debriefed the team on what they learned and how we can improve for our clients. This was Travis and Shawn’s first appearance at this conference and their experiences differed because of their unique backgrounds.

As a DJ and MC for over 9 years, Shawn was inspired by watching and listening to the top Masters of Ceremony in the country. Attending the DJ Times 2012 DJ of the Year Competition inspired him to plan on competing in future competitions. Travis recently started with the company as both a Client Cordinator and DJ. A big takeaway for Travis was just how different each client is and ways to get to know them better in order to create a more personalized event.

With over 400 companies and 2,000 in attendance, it was also impressive that Rock The House was able to give back to this community with our combined experience. Shawn even won the freestyle dance competition! One powerful quote from the event really impacted our team: “You have one chance to get the picture right, to capture the emotion, to create the signature moment”. This is why we are committed to always growing and learning…our clients’ events are THAT important.

The Knot Wedding Network – Cleveland Summer Spectacular

The Wedding Networking Event of Season

Every bride knows about The Knot. This wedding publication is everywhere and has been the national source for brides for wedding trends and ideas. Once a year, they put on an event in Cleveland as a Wedding Industry networking event and we were honored to be asked to help. This event was presented by Kirkbrides Wedding Planning & Design and featured many elegant details just like their weddings.

This year’s event was held at the Double Tree Tutor Arms Hotel which made the perfect early evening venue for networking, eating, and even some dancing. The hotel provided Cleveland dishes, desserts, and signature drinks from St-Germain. This was a really impressive looking event for a crowd who are not easily impressed. We provided a variety of lighting concepts including gobo designs on the floor and walls, uplighting, and a lighting designer who worked with the entertainment. In addition to event lighting we also offered our Photo Magic Green Screen as a favor to all the guests. Being able to network with the areas best wedding professionals at an event that we helped create made for a truly special evening.

Thanks to all the sponsors who helped make this event so successful:

 

Cleveland DJs Celebrate Their Own Bat Mitzvah

Northeast Ohio Event Entertainment Company Turns 13

Have 13 years gone by already? Rock The House Entertainment Group has grown from a handful of dedicated DJs in Cleveland to one of the biggest Event Entertainment & Production companies in Northeast Ohio in 13 years.

This year’s holiday party for our staff was a true coming of age event. In a year with many new full-time positions created, almost 1,000 events served, and many new part-time team members coming on board, we have a lot to be thankful for. Our holiday party really reflects the culture of the company. Awards were given and the year was reviewed but at the heart of this night…there was a family who make FUN a priority.
Our team includes experts in DJ / MC Entertainment, Lighting & Sound Production, Photo Booths, & Videography for Weddings and Bar / Bat Mitzvahs as well as Corporate & Fundraisers. If you are interested in YOUR next party being as fun as ours was for ourselves…contact us at www.RTHgroup.com

Rock The House Holiday Party 2012

Party For A Living / Live To Party

Once a year we get together to celebrate another year of successes in the only way we know how…with a blow out party. On paper, this event probably sounds like your holiday party. We had drinks, food, dancing, and awards. Sounds normal enough, right?

Well let’s break down the differences between our party and yours:

  • Drinks – Full open bar. Choices put together based on requests by our team. Jello shots.
  • Food – HUGE buffet by the Mandarin Seafood Buffet.
  • Dancing – Professional dancers competing to see who has the best moves.
  • Awards – Award winners celebrated with high-fives and Jello shots.

Our company culture is the cornerstone of our success. This annual event is a great example of what makes our culture so special. Attendees included DJs, MCs, Lighting Designers, Sound Technicians, Dancers, Mangers, Event Specialists, Full-Time Office staff, and (importantly) their significant others. Everyone, regardless of position, came together for our most looked forward to evening of the year. We love what we do so much and it definitely shows on nights like this. Our DJs were picking songs and our dancers never left the dance floor. This isn’t a job…it’s in our blood!

If you are looking for that kind of passion for your next event, see what we can do for you – Rock The House Entertainment Group

 

Governor John Kasich at Ground Breaking Event

Your Corporate Sound Solution

Rock The House Entertainment Group had the pleasure of being selected by Oakwood Village Mayor Gary V Gottschalk as the sound engineers on the groundbreaking event for the expansion of Maines Paper & Food Service on July 16, 2012. This was an important event for Ohio and especially the city our offices are based in, Oakwood Village. 100 new area jobs will be created here in Ohio because of the work Govenor John Kasich and Mayor Gottschalk put forth. Maines is one of the largest privately owned and operated companies in the United States with an annual revenue of over 3 billion dollars.

Mayor Gary V Gottschalk has been working with us more and more on a variety of projects that include our lighting design, sound engineering, DJ / MC entertainment, as well as our photo novelties. In fact, this summer we’ve been working with his office on a summer student DJ class for middle school students. Having this strong relationship has made it easier for us to feel more connected to the immediate community we work in each day.

Providing one of our elegant podiums as well as running the sound for important corporate events is an area we take true pride in. Our sound technician ensured everything from the live rendition of “America The Beautiful” to the governor’s speech sounded clear and professional to all the guests in attendance. The next time your company has the need for sound services in Cleveland, Akron/Canton, Columbus or anywhere in Northeast Ohio, remember Rock The House.

Transforming A Tent With Lighting

Kirkbrides North Canton Tent Reception

On July 7, 2012, Rock The House Entertainment provided lighting for a Kirkbrides Wedding Planners Reception inside an Everything Tented Tent in North Canton, Ohio. Those are the facts. Before that could happen, though, our teams worked together in heat of around 105 degrees for two days in order to get the perfect look our client was looking for. Creating a vibrant club-like atmosphere in the middle of a field doesn’t happen through magic. Our teams collaborated by working hand in hand to create a venue in tough conditions because we’re committed to creating the best event locations where and whenever our clients choose.

Kirkbrides really put together an exceptional team for a wedding reception. Setting up an beautiful outdoor reception venue for hundreds of guests is rarely easy but Kirkbrides knew who has the most experience doing it RIGHT and chose their partners accordingly. This is at the heart of what great event planners do. They know how to organize and coach a team of professionals that are right for the job. Knowing who has the experience, passion, and creativity necessary for the client’s needs is a difficult task that they don’t get enough credit for.

In addition to knowing who is needed to execute the functions of the event correctly, the Kirkbrides team did an excellent job with the myriad of details that this beautiful wedding had. Our lighting designer was on-hand for the entire event to create the specific vision of Kirkbrides and the client. In addition to our uplights, dance floor lighting design, decorative gobo lighting designs on the tent ceiling, gobo monogram on the dance floor, and generators for power, we also provided our elegant wedding reception chandeliers. These chandeliers are a great way to take an outdoor event to the next level of class as distinction.

Let us show you why we should be part of your team – Rock The House Entertainment Group

A Rock The House Success Story: Shawn Smutak

Entertainer to Client Coordinator

Nothing makes us more proud than seeing a team member grow with the company; and Shawn Smutak is a great example of that transition. Shawn has been with Rock The House since 2003, and has been a part of some really big transitions that the company made over the last decade. Some of these transitions include two different office expansions, expanding services (event production to include lighting and staging), exponential growth in employees, as well as the addition of a corporate entertainment and production division. These are just some of the ways Rock The House has grown, in-part because of Shawn.

Shawn started with the company as a dancer and DJ, and as Rock The House expanded it’s horizons, Shawn became one of the company’s most requested MCs over time. His ability to take control of an event, work with other vendors, and his commitment to customer service made him a natural leader on events. Beyond his growth in his role as an entertainer, Shawn has achieved an Associate Degree in Interpersonal Communication at the University of Akron with a Minor in Sales Management. It’s this training, coupled with his years of show experience, that made him the right choice for his next role at Rock The House.

Entertainer Rock The House

Shawn has been hired as a part of the full-time staff as a Client Coordinator. Because he has been the leader on hundreds of events with Rock The House, he is uniquely qualified to help guide our clients with their event’s needs. Being in the field as long as Shawn means that he understands what can be achieved and what is best for the integrity of the event. His recommendations come from the point of a true expert.

When asked what the most exciting part of this new position will be for him, Shawn did not hesitate. “The fact that I can now take part in the internal process of all of our events is exciting,” said Shawn. “Communicating with clients more frequently and building strong relationships is going to be really exciting.” We’re excited to be able to be at a point in our evolution that we can offer a real opportunity to our staff to be able to grow with us. Hiring from within is something that makes the management team at Rock The House really proud because it’s a great payoff for those who have sacrificed the most towards the success of our company.

rock the house entertainment

Rock The House in The Knot Wedding Magazine

Real Weddings Featuring our DJs and Lighting

Thanks to Corey Ann Photography, one of the weddings we worked on last fall (Amanda & Matt’s) made it into The Knot’s Real Wedding section! These beautiful photos must have really impressed the editors. For example:

djs-lighting-weddings

This red and black wedding was very stylized. Between Corey Ann’s amazing art and our lighting this was the perfect couple to feature in The Knot’s Real Weddings. In addition to our uplights and lighting design, our MC / DJ Entertainment team made sure this reception ROCKED!

Here’s the cover and the article.

cleveland djs lighting entertainment
wedding djs lighting entertainment

Click To See The Article

Check out more of Corey Ann’s beautiful photos from this exceptional Wedding Reception. In addition, these additional Wedding Reception Vendors contributed to this well received wedding:

Cake:  Wild Flour Bakery
Ceremony:  La Porte Methodist Church
DJ, Lighting & Videographer:  Rock The House
Florist:  Tina B Florals
Reception:  Springvale Ballroom and Golfcourse

Photo Locations

Oberlin College
Springvale Ballroom and Golfcourse

 

Corporate Event Entertainment

Summa Health Systems Summer Party

SummaCare donated money to help give the University of Akron this world class stadium and now their employees get to spend a summer evening at the venue to celebrate a successful year. InfoCision Stadium-Summa Field in Akron, Ohio is truly a beautiful venue for a corporate holiday party. SummaCare insurance secured naming rights to the field through 2029! Their employees had the chance to play games, listen to our DJ’s music, dance, dine, and share a great night with their team members. Our event specialist helped them design an event that was both casual and laid back which is perfect for a summer corporate event.

In addition to entertainment and food, guests had the chance to have their photo taken with our Green Screen Photo Magic. Our technician made the whole experience that much more fun by guiding the guests and giving them suggestions for the photos. Out DJs, MCs, and Photo Technicians have years of experience with corporate event production From the simple to the grand, we can put together the team for you!

City of Oakwood Village Summer Camp

DJ Camp Begins with Rock The House

June 19, 2012 was the first day of the City of Oakwood Village‘s DJ Bootcamp with Rock The House Entertainment. Our full-time entertainment lead, Eli, is teaching a group of 9 to 12 year olds from Oakwood Village the basics of DJing for a live event. Every week, the students who signed up for this camp will learn techniques Rock The House DJs use at each event. We were thrilled with this group because each attendee had a real interest in DJing. They had a great passion for music and were really paying attention. Often, with kids of this age, you would expect them to be looking at their cellphones but they came to really learn.

Eli instructed the students how to work as a team by matching sound levels. He also gave them a new perspective on DJ equipment. They began to understand that the DJ rig is more like an instrument than just an iPod and speakers. They picked that up when they had to transition between songs and monitor their levels. Graduates of this program will go on to DJ the camp’s August 10th Dance for all the students participating in the various activities provided by Oakwood Village. We were happy to help Mayor Gary V Gottschalk when he asked us to participate in this summer camp. Our company loves our community and being able to give back while also sparking passion in potential future entertainers is the perfect way to show it.