Today we’d like to introduce you to Igor Lascani.
Igor, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
I was born and raised in São Paulo, Brazil. I was raised in a family that was fully composed by concert producers, artist manager, artist PR, and so on. When I say my whole family used to be part of the industry, I actually mean my WHOLE family; my father, my mother, aunt, uncle, godfather, and every single person I am related to was heavily active in the Brazilian music industry. I grew up in the backstage of concerts and have found out what the behind the scenes life is about early in life. I remember seeing all of those people waiting for the music to start, and once started it was an overwhelming feeling that I couldn’t describe, but I just knew that this feeling was something very special about everything happening around me.
That was my childhood, always seeing event planning and production from the perspective of those who actually are behind the scenes. It is very common in Brazil to take your kids to soccer games but in my family, this was different, and instead of stadiums full of people supporting their teams, I was in venues full of people supporting and appreciating their favorite artists. By the age of 14 I planned and produced my first event and it was called G8 a.k.a Group of eight. The weird name stands for me plus seven friends that were behind the scenes planning and organizing everything so the event could happen successfully. It was a barbecue in a private club called Adamus, in the Vila Mariana neighborhood in São Paulo. Each of my friends and I had a potential skill to contribute to make the event happen and at the same time we knew a lot of people, what was a key factor for the success of the event and in the day of we reached the venue capacity with an outstanding amount of close to 1.000 guests.
Let me mention that events in São Paulo work in a bigger scale then in events here, the city itself is home for over 12 million people. This was the first event I ever planned in my life and since I was only 14, I didn’t really care about making money or profiting from it. This event was actually something that we were doing for fun and since I was always behind the stage when I was a kid, I decided to join the group and help them to make it happen. The event went really well and it opened doors and opportunities for me in the city as a promoter. I was invited by the owner of the Orange Club in São Paulo to promote some nights in the club but due the fact I was only 14 I couldn’t do it. However, I realized that this could lead me to something bigger and greater one day. My friends and I reunited again to produce the second edition of G8. The event happened a year after the first edition and I didn’t know by the time, but that event was about to teach me some lessons. Exactly a week before our event the police shut down the club that we had previously used to produce the first edition because they found out that the venue was allowing minors in, and since alcoholic beverages were available, this was illegal.
So, this was the first real challenge that I ever faced in event planning: finding a new venue that we would be able to produce the event and not get caught again. After some search we found a venue that we could rent but the price they were asking was significantly higher than the previous venue but since we had less than a week to make arrangements we didn’t hesitate. Now the other challenge we had was to find a way to communicate with everyone that had tickets, and let me remind you that back in 2007 – 2008 we didn’t use any online platform to sell and manage tickets. Every single ticket of the 1.000 something available was hard ticket and I was also responsible for tracking the tickets, the money, and the promoter that had them. I remember writing the notes “Tickets 00001 – 00050 Jamal | Tickets 00051 – 00100 Pedro” and so on. We didn’t have Facebook but we had a social media called Orkut and that was the social media we used at the time. Now was time to let everyone know that the event was still going to happen, but in a new location. Phone calls to the promoters and ticket holders was all we were doing besides planning the final touches of the event. We had a crew of 20+ securities, 10 bar staff, 1 pagode band (pagode is a Brazilian music genre), 1 rapper, and 1 DJ. The event was made to fulfill everyone’s dancing needs. Both editions were also open bar, which means that you buy the ticket and everything is included, such as, food and beverages. Once we finally thought the event was ready and good to go, we noticed that we could have some rain and that would be an extremely negative point because the venue was outdoors and it had grass and dirt all over it.
Believe it or not, in the day of the event the rain didn’t stop for a single second, but what else can we do? Let’s move forward with the plan! The event was definitely not what we were expecting but this event taught me enough so I wouldn’t make the same mistakes. After that I got involved in the promoter industry in São Paulo and I joined some promoter teams that were responsible for filling up some venues that were alcohol free and had parties for kids from 12 to 17 years old. Some years go by and my high school graduation was close and I remember that a company that was specialized in high school graduations came to our school to offer their event planning services but since I was aware of how the industry worked I thought that what they were offering was not a good deal; just so you have an idea they were offering a package that each student would need to pay R$450 in exchange for five tickets and the students could get their money back if they sold that tickets. I wasn’t either convinced about the venue and attractions they wanted to bring to the party.
So, I decided to step up and make my own moves. Miryan Lascani a.k.a my mom introduced me to Marcus Buaiz, owner of the Royal Club in São Paulo, that was one of the finest clubs in the city and people like Ronaldo Fenomeno (soccer player), Anderson Silva (UFC fighter), among many other celebrities used to be the ones whose attended the club. I talked to Marcus and told him I would be happy to produce my high school graduation in his club so he put me in contact with the venue manager, they sent me a proposal, and my job now was to ask permission for the school to go to both high school classes that were graduating and pitch the project. Royal was a luxury club with a total capacity for 350 people, five VIP tables, and it was located in the middle of a building in Downtown, São Paulo. The party was costing us close to R$30.000 and this was the first event I would need to manage this amount of money and I was only 17 by that time.
After some minutes of presentation in the classroom my project was voted against the project of that company and by unanimous decision I won and I now had the responsibility to plan, produce, and promote our graduation party. I was extremely excited and this was not only my first important event but also the first time that the Royal Club opened its doors with a full open bar. I got three friends that I knew I could rely on to help me produce and organize everything, their names are Julia D’orsi, Thamiris Tesseroli, and Guilherme Stojkow. The job description was the same of when I was only 14 planning G8. The day had finally come and I was super pumped to host everyone. I remember walking around the club around 3:00AM and seeing everyone having a great time, dancing, and happy about our graduation. I also had prepared a surprise for everyone. I bought about 20 bottles of champagne and one massive five litter bottle of champagne and asked the 16 bartenders to stop serving the bar and come to the kitchen.
We put sparkles in all of the bottles, asked the DJ to play a Black-Eyed Peas song that was the hit of that time and then the 16 bartenders got into the club with all of those bottles with champagne cups to serve everyone. I also bought cups made of chocolate and we served everyone a dose of a chocolate liquor called Amarula. That feeling made me realize what really motivated me to pursue a career in event production: the emotion of seeing everyone having a hella of a good time, dancing, and smiling. And this feeling itself was what made all of my hard work pay off. After my graduation I was accepted at FAAP (University) and started to study Economics. I then talked to one of the guys involved in the athletic club and told them that I was an event producer and could throw an open bar party at the Royal Club. Everyone knew what that name was and I was rapidly involved with them producing another event at Royal. The event was scheduled to happen on December 14 of 2011.
It is common in Brazil to wear a specific color during NYE and we believe that the color you wear will bring the energy and intentions you want for the next year. So, this was it, I found the name of my next event: “Make a Wish”. The event description was telling everyone to wear clothes with the color of their wishes for the next year. The event was another great success, however, since this was all a hobby for me and I didn’t rely on the money to survive I was not really worried about making money and this was a huge mistake I made. The event comes to an end and I went to the manager’s office to pay for whatever it was missing. The club was costing me about $19.000 and we just made enough money to pay for it, however, the remaining amount that I bought in alcohol was missing so that was the first time I lost money in an event and I am not going to lie, that hurt a lot! It hurt more because I knew that this was my mistake, so I went home with that in my mind and it didn’t give me a break for quite some time. I tried to stay out of the event production world after this happened and tried to focus on my studies. However, everything happening around me was leading me back to event production. I got a job with Roberto Carlos to work on his Projeto Emoções in Alto Mar.
This is a four days and three nights cruise around the South Brazilian Coast. Roberto Carlos is one of the most famous romantic singers in Brazil and Latin America. In the first year I worked with him I was invited to work in the production team of the event within the cruise ship. I remember that I barely slept for four days and was on work mode the whole time I was there. I absolutely loved the experience and wanted to get more involved in it. I then had an interview with Suzana Lamounier, his personal assistant and got a job in his office as a sale representative to take care of the packages people buy to go to the cruise ship. I worked a year in their office and then was sent back to work in the cruise ship again. I wasn’t sure yet if this would be my future so I decided to try to work on something related to what I was studying. I then got an internship at IBM and worked with them for about 1 year but at the same time I was working as a promoter for the Royal Club, Outlaws Club, The Box, Ballroom, and many other events.
Until one day, I went to an event my mom was catering and I got to the venue super early and I was seeing all the production team setting up and that brought me a nostalgic feeling and some memories of when I was a kid. That same feeling, I couldn’t explain was attached to me somehow again. By the age of 19 I decided to get back at it and opened my own event planning and production agency called “Acid. Agency” with my friend Felippe Simonelli. Besides organizing and promoting our own branded events we also managed some DJ’s that were just starting their career. Opening that agency made me realize that my mission in this world is to create awesome atmosphere to bring people in and connect them with feelings and emotions through the power of music. Everything was going well for me and our company but my family was going through some hard times and to make everything worse my grandmother died in 2014 just two days before my birthday. It was a chocking moment for me and for my family and then they decided that was time to leave Brazil with everything that was going on with us. I was very hesitant in the beginning because I didn’t want to leave everything I was building behind and start a new life in a new country. On May 31, 2014 I produced my last event in Brazil called Sweet Deep and that was a great turning point in my life. We were competing with really famous clubs and parties in that same weekend including the White Party at Club Sirena, a 4.000 people event among others happening in the city and surroundings. Our event was a partnership between my company Acid., VIAAP, and Marlon Ceni.
We had just three to four weeks to promote everything and the total venue capacity was 1.200 people. We accepted the challenge, booked the DJ’s we believed in, and worked day and night to make this event happen. Let me remind you that we only had about four weeks to make it happen. By the day of the event we sold close to 300 tickets and having only 300 people in a 1.200 people venue feels extremely weird and empty. The event was planned to start at 6:00PM and go until 5:00AM. We had ten DJ’s in the line-up and the first hour of the event was open bar. By 8 or 9PM the venue was full and once the end of the night gets close, I was checking the numbers and we had close to 1,150 guests in the venue.
Walking around the venue and seeing everyone having a good time made me feel that energy and a sense of mission accomplished. It is funny that I always feel that in my events, one of the things that makes my hard work pays off is to walk around the venue, meet the people there, and see that everyone is enjoying their time. It is extremely fulfilling for me to have an idea, put it on paper, start working for it, and in the day of the event see everything becoming true. We also promoted the grand opening of the Pink Elephant Club in São Paulo when the Club was about to close its doors.
Other promoters said we were crazy to do something like that but joining forces with the right people we reached the venue capacity again. These events opened more doors for my company than any other event I produced and we were ready to start working on some bigger projects but due everything that was going on with my family we needed to leave the country and I needed to support them. July10, 2014, I get in the airplane to come to America and little I knew what I was about to face in the country. Besides working jobs that didn’t respect me because I am not from here and besides receiving less the minimum wage, I had the challenge to learn a new language, find out about, and adapt to a new culture. I first lived in Florida and I just didn’t identify myself over there. My life was upside down. I had left my country and everything I was building behind. Until one day after breaking relationships with almost everyone around me in Florida, I decided to come to California and keep pursuing my dream of becoming a notable event producer. Once I got to San Diego, it immediately felt like home.
However, I would still need face the same challenges. I could speak a little bit of English but not enough to start producing events again so I decided and promised myself that I would learn English no matter what and then every time I had a chance, I would start a conversation with someone with no hesitation in asking questions about the meaning of a word or if what I was saying was right, or if the person could explain what they meant. I’ve done door-to-door sales, construction work, painted houses, moved entire houses and apartments, taught people how to paddle board and drive boats, installed solar panels, delivered food, and worked for Uber. I knew everything I did was going to be temporary so I could get involved in the event industry here. Something that made myself never give up of my purpose was to always remind me where I came from and why I decided to come here. I also joined a Crossfit gym to not only get back in shape but also to train my mind that hard work pays off, and I started to work out 5 to 6 times a week for 2 hours a day from 11:00PM to 01:00AM, while waking up at 8:30AM and working until 7:00PM 5 to 6 days a week. I couldn’t afford a monthly subscription of a Crossfit gym at that time so in exchange to use the gym I offered to clean the gym 3 times a week. I am a man on a mission and when I want something, I work tirelessly to achieve what I want. Once I started going to events in San Diego the first nightclub, I went was Spin Nightclub. With the first steps within the club I felt something good inside of me and realized that San Diego, could indeed, be the restart of my journey as an event producer. I went to some festivals like Desert Hearts & LIB and noticed how different and passionate about music everyone in the scene is. That was an important factor for me.
In late 2017, I left my job as a Dock Hand and decided that was time to move on to do what I told myself I was going to do here: produce events again. That time my friend Ton Ayres was staying in my house before his flight back to Brazil. He already knew about my career and what I wanted to do here and then he showed me how to build a website and gave me some valuable designer insights. I then spent a whole month working on the website of the project Pineapple Live, which is my company today. Before Pineapple, I had written about three or four different projects but I didn’t feel they were the right ones.
Once the Pineapple name came to my mind, I had the same gut feeling of “yes, this is it!” that I always have when I am creating something and I feel it is the right one. Pineapple is not only an universal symbol of hospitality but also a fruit that originates from Brazil, so that is what inspired me to use the name. It was time for me to invest in me and in something I am passionate about. It took me a couple months to get the project up and running and then I was ready to get back at it. I had a meeting with my friend Milad from The Afternoon Umbrella Friends and proposed him to produce a party together because somehow in my mind Pineapples & Umbrellas go really well together.
The venue manager Megan Engler at El Camino received us really well and then we had our first event on July 22nd of 2018. I didn’t know what to expect because it was my first time working with this project and also my first time producing an event in a completely different culture than mine so I knew I needed to do a good job because that was my only shot and I needed to do it right. The Under The Umbrella event was a success and we reached capacity in the first day. It was good and better than what I expected but I had no future plans because this was only a pilot project. I then decided to call Milad again to join forces with me to produce the second edition of Under The Umbrella and again this was another success.
The year of 2019 came and I was focused, motivated, and ready to keep producing events and doing what I love to do the most. I found an angel investor for my projects and my first event of the year was called The JuiceBox. I invited Nathan Nabatoff, his wife Lindsey, and my ex-roommate Mario Golcanves to join me. They joined the party production with their own name as In The Bag Production. We all did a great job holding each other accountable and the party was a success. The Spin rooftop has never seen that many people before in a day party. That day I met Paige Dotson a.k.a Amavi Creations, which is our production lead today. She was vending in my event and her art got my attention so I went to talk to her and weirdly asked, “Did you make this?” she happily replied, “Yes, I did!” We chatted for a little bit and then I told her I would need help with my next project “Butterfly Effect” that was about to happen a month from then. I was also working as an intern with 5Group while planning the Butterfly Effect event and attending classes at Grossmont College. That was going to be my first night time event in San Diego as well as my biggest production here so far. I was very nervous as it is hard to do everything by yourself in the event world, and for a second, I thought that could be a huge mistake to produce an event that size when I was still very new and fresh in the San Diego market. I needed more help to make that event happen so working by my side was John Reynolds, the founder of Soul Work. John and I had our first meeting in a coffee shop and we immediately clicked with each other.
The night of the event came and I was curious to see the outcome and once again, working non-stop with passion and attention to detail made my event successful and it also paid off all of the hard work. We had a little over 600 people in the venue and that was a milestone for me in San Diego since the scene here is way smaller when compared to the scene in São Paulo. I kept true to my vision and produced in the sequence: Under The Umbrella 3, Eden with my friends at Soul Work, and Oasis at Quartyard. It all has been a great pleasure and a lot of challenges that I needed to overcome to get to this point. All of my events here went really well and they are opening doors for me like they were in Brazil. So, it doesn’t matter for me where I will be, I know this is my mission and I am here to accomplish it. 2020 has been a challenge for my team, my company, and me. It actually has been a challenge for everyone and in special for everyone in our industry. We produced a private event on January 25th at the Kous Kous Bistro in Hillcrest. This was an invite only event that was free of charge but you needed to have a name on the list to join. We did this to thank our friends, and close supporters for their continuous support with us. After that the pandemic hit and just a week before our major event of the year, Garden of Wonders, bringing Guy Mantzur and Unders for the first time to San Diego, we needed to cancel our whole calendar year. However, since this was not the first time I needed to deal with unpredictable challenges, I kept myself true to our vision and started producing some videos streaming some of our favorite local DJ’s.
My team and I are now focusing our efforts on a really cool project that I can’t share about yet but it will be launched soon. Our plans and goal as a team is to be recognized as an innovative company that finds creative ways to connect with our audience and this is what we will always do. I am deeply grateful for the passionate and creative minds that surround me at Pineapple Live. Ton Ayres is not only a friend but also the co-founder of Pineapple and our Art Director. Paige Dotson is one of my closest American friends and she is today our Stage Producer Lead bringing color and art to our events under her Amavi Creations alongside with Peter Judd. Peter is an outgoing and smart man has recently joined the team and is responsible for Project Management.” Terez Raver, John Reynolds (Soul Work), Myself, Paige Dotson, Gian Granito – a friend from Brazil that played in our private event called Tribe in the beginning of the year. Peter Judd, an outgoing and smart man has recently joined the team and is responsible for Project Management. Lucas Cartaxo, a Brazilian kind and creative soul is responsible for our media and is our Video Director. So, thank you all, deep from my heart I really appreciate all you do! As we like to say, we are Pineapple Live, a passionate crew guided by the beauty of art and magic of music. Join the movement & Live the experience! I can’t wait to see everyone back on the dance floor again!
Has it been a smooth road?
Absolutely not. Once my family started to struggle in Brazil our lives changed a lot. This is what made us leave Brazil and brought me to America. My first challenges in the country were not related to my work but related to my personal life. First, I needed to accept the fact that I left everything I was building in Brazil behind and would need to start over. Also, in order to open a company and be able to get to the same level I was getting in Brazil I needed to be able to communicate well and in order to do that I needed to learn English. Learning the language was my first goal once I got here, and then after that my challenge was to be able to understand how the market behaves, what the culture wants, and how I can apply here everything that the Brazilian events taught me. However, working with music and creating experiences are not only my passions in life but also my mission. So, this is what guides me to continue on this journey.
Pineapple Live – what should we know? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
I believe that my passion for music and connecting people is what really drives me as a professional and us as a company. At Pineapple Live we produce electronic dance music events that not only provide our guests a musical experience but also welcome them to an immersive environment, a story and a theme. We are all about creating welcoming atmospheres and let their imagination be taken by the story we tell when we are promoting our events. Our shows go way beyond booking a DJ and a cool venue. We invest a lot of our efforts in creating a 360 experience where our guests can immerse themselves and be part of it. I am proud of the talented team I have. Everyone working with me believes in the company’s mission just as much as I do. Everyone works with so much passion and this is what makes our events so special.
How do you think the industry will change over the next decade?
2020 had a big influence and it shifted our industry in all aspects. Events this year were almost inexistent. Live events were replaced for online events. I need to be honest that I am not a big fan of the digital world as in my opinion this will never replace what human interaction is. However, I believe and hope that life will get back to normal next year and then the industry should get back up again as everyone is missing to dance, and to have a good time. The electronic dance music industry tends to grow each year and if things get back to normal next year, we will see a significant increase demand for live events. We will keep ourselves true to our vision and create experiences for people to come and immerse themselves in the music and environment we curate.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.livepineapple.us/
- Phone: 6196489853
- Email: igor@livepineapple.us
Image Credit:
FlashBang
Lais Corveloni
Tanya Nesta
Connected Collective
Harmony Skye Photos
Camila Frade
Fabrizio Pepe Fotografia
Suggest a story: SDVoyager is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.
