Check Out Elisabeth Ayres & Cedar Cloyd’s Story

Today we’d like to introduce you to Elisabeth Ayres & Cedar Cloyd.

Hi Elisabeth & Cedar, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
Elisabeth and I (Cedar) have always had a great respect for each other’s talents and styles. Before Course Control was formed, I had made a name for myself as a DJ in Seattle through college parties and nightclubs. Liz was an aspiring DJ and alma mater acquaintance I took under my wing. After playing back-to-back in the club several times, I recall there being little debate between us when we decided to join forces and launch what we hoped would be the most powerful DJ duo in the city.

Quickly gaining a reputation for our dynamic and energetic performances, we were given incredible opportunities to open for artists like Morgan Page, Bingo Players, Quintino, and even the Ying Yang Twins at Seattle’s most renowned nightclubs (Aston Manor, Foundation, Trinity, Vue, etc.)! In addition, a small handful of DJs are selected each year as the Pacific North West’s favorites and given a chance to play at The Gorge Amphitheater for Paradiso (now Beyond Wonderland), a position that we were honored with for a couple of years before we moved out of the North West.

When we perform together, the energy is electric and it’s like we bring out the best in each other. Always encouraging each other to improve while simultaneously awed at one another’s talent. After the closure of several clubs in Seattle, we were ready to take our love of performing to new heights and decided to strategically relocate to a city better primed for growth. Viva Las Vegas! With some exciting ideas, new music releases, and performances planned, we can’t wait to see what the future holds for Course Control.

We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
I (Elisabeth) think it’s safe to say since quitting our comfortable, well-paying jobs three years ago to pursue our joint passion for music, it has been anything but smooth. I believe Cedar started this path with cautiously aware naivety; understanding how hard it would be but no idea what the challenges would be. Where I started this path with intense, blind optimism. An “everything will work out”, kind of attitude.

Since moving from Seattle to Las Vegas, the biggest struggle has been keeping that same motivation we had at the beginning. Leaving Seattle to a new city, knowing no one and having little connections made us feel like we were going nowhere. Doing a task, seeing results, and being praised for it, as screwed up as it sounds, was something we were wired to expect. School, work, parents, etc., if we worked hard at something and gave it our all, we always saw results. But the music world is more nuanced than that. Putting music out into the world can mean literally nothing. Without any payoff. Thus, to keep our motivation, every failure has turned into a step. One step turns into another and Las Vegas has turned back into the bright city we knew it could be. Gleaming with opportunities!

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
Quite simply, we are a DJ and producer duo based in Las Vegas and we specialize in making people feel alive. I was going to say happy, but music touches us on so many different levels. It gets us through hard times, makes us get loose in the club, sing along in the car, or push through one more rep at the gym. Whatever it is, we make and facilitate vibrational acoustic energy (aka music) that makes us feel alive.

We are most known for our electrifying energy on stage and ability to get a crowd moving. People have said there’s a certain charm about us. I don’t really know what causes that charm, all I can say is that we love what we do and try to put as much positive energy into the world as we can.

Our versatility and aptitude for comprehending both the artistic and commercial aspects of the music business are two things that distinguish us from other DJs. Liz’s formal background is in business and data analytics, whereas mine (Cedar) is in Electrical Computer Engineering and software product management. So together, we make a hefty power couple both in the boardroom presenting a pitch deck and behind the decks in the club.

We are both extremely proud of the progress we have made in our careers so far; the songs we have released, the shows we have played, and the friends we have made. We are always striving to push ourselves to the next level! Having a wonderful time doing what we enjoy and extremely thankful for the chance to share our love of music with others.

If we knew you growing up, how would we have described you?
Cedar grew up in small town ALASKA. A place called Homer. Yes, the place with bears. His parents were avid outdoorsmen and gave him a childhood that’s hard to imagine. Fast forward to his high school homecoming and how excited little Cedar was. Regaled with stories from tv, he could not wait for the pulsing lights, vibrating bass, and the DJ that would entice them all. Unfortunately, his experience was anything but that. After witnessing an iPod hooked up to a speaker, he decided to take it upon himself to become the DJ that his school deserved.

Cedar, “I was an entrepreneur at heart! When I was roughly 10, my mom set aside a small portion of her garden and urged me to grow vegetables for sale at the farmer’s market. I mean, what could be cuter than a little 10-year-old selling peas and lettuce. I took the push she gave me and ran with it. By the time I was 13, I had expanded my growing operation and was raking in roughly one to two thousands dollars per summer selling veggies. Not bad for a 13-year-old! So what did I do with the money? Did I ball out with Nikes, buy a round of Fruit by the Foot for my class, and make it rain on the playground? Nope, I bought used clothes at garage sales, a few gameboy games, and saved all the rest. I always had the mindset that one day, I would want this money for something special. Well, that day came when I stood on the dance floor and stared in dismay at an iPod plugged into a PA speaker… So I did my research, invested everything I had into a mobile DJ rig, and taught myself how to DJ from youtube.”

Elisabeth grew up in the boring suburbs of Las Vegas. With dreams of being anywhere but where she was, Elisabeth left Las Vegas at 18 and swore to never move back. She now lives in Las Vegas (the irony is not lost on her).

Elisabeth, “Personality-wise, I was very simple growing up. Tell me I have to do something and I do the opposite. This led me to become a drummer, amongst other things. But the fuel that is my love for music came from my family. Although I had a complicated childhood, like most people, music was our shared joy. It flowed through the air to wake us up on Saturday mornings, it lulled me to sleep on long drives and gave me a haven to express myself when words couldn’t. I guess you could say music gave me a path to grow up and ever since then I have tried to continue on that.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.coursecontrolmusic.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/coursecontrol/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/coursecontrol
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCddBd01L_mBFX5Bgw7sE39A
• SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/coursecontrol