Today we’d like to introduce you to Jordan Miles Rosenheck
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
Oh boy, how far back does one go with this question…I suppose you could argue I got started as a kid, imagining-up all sorts of wild worlds, car designs, architectural concepts, entire city plans, inventions, and more. That natural curiosity for art, design, and invention got more refined when my high school art teacher encouraged me to take on AP Art. I continued to paint and try new things from that point through college. It got more serious on a professional level in college when I joined a music festival as their Creative Director, branding the festival, designing their shirts, et al.. While in college…I had attended my first Coachella, and had decided then and there that one day I would design a concert that played on that stage…I even told my friends amidst peak festival euphoria (a true millennial coming-of-age moment) “I’m going to do that one day”…I saw it as the most incredible canvas an artist like myself could work on…a full-blown concert production. We end up coming full-circle to that, but it was a bit of a journey to that point.
Out of college, I began working in Music at CAA in a non-creative role, and realized quickly I wanted to be more involved in creative. I pitched CAA on creating a new creative role for the music department, overselling my skills, and fortunately it worked out. I met the opportunity with really honing my graphic design toolset, my campaign thinking, and got to work on (or pitch on) a lot of really big music partnership campaigns with some of the biggest artists in the world – a la Katy Perry, Kanye West, Maroon 5, Daft Punk, and more.
While at CAA, I had my “15 mins of fame” moment when I pitched an activation/campaign using the infamous Google Glass with one of the biggest electronic artists at the time to show the world its potential. We ended up flying out to TomorrowWorld Festival in Atlanta and streamed the perspective of a headline electronic act in real-time to fans around the world. It made a big splash, and was lauded as the most innovative use of wearable technology (at the time). That was nearly 15 years ago! Interesting how we’ve come back around to that moment with today’s big push of wearable glasses, however I think the market is still having a tough time adopting it. We shall see.
From CAA, I joined a music startup called Boomrat as Creative Director. We were acquired by Live Nation. Live Nation then absorbed our company and I was offered a role with Insomniac, which was also Live Nation owned. I worked with Insomniac, doing creative on the largest music festivals in the world, including EDC in Las Vegas. From there, I co-founded a tech startup with the Boomrat founder, which was a platform for connecting with and hiring vetted professionals, called ‘ppl’. We partnered with NeueHouse, a premium coworking space and community, which essentially absorbed our platform.
From there, we come full-circle back to that original dream from that first Coachella. I started my own creative studio, called RedYellowBlue, focusing on creative work in the music and entertainment space, with the goal of somehow getting into concert and experience design, directing music videos, building/branding worlds, etc. . With a bit of preparation-meeting-opportunity, and good timing, I was connected with an up-and-coming artist by the name Gryffin to Creative Direct the brand. Fast-forward one year…Coachella 2019…one of the biggest stages in the world…record-breaking attendance…a concert spectacle designed and directed by yours truly. A narrative-driven concert experience named Gravity, after the album. It was lauded as one of the breakthrough shows of the year. It was a pretty remarkable experience. Even had all of my friends and family I told I would do this in the crowd for it. It was a real validation that if you dream it can do it. The Gryffin brand and project grew in exponentials that year and during that campaign.
Since then I’ve gone on to creative direct major recording artists, direct/produce tons of music videos, design several world touring shows/experiences.
Right now, I’m working on my most ambitious project – an immersive musical experience called Opera, designed for new age venues like Sphere and the others that are assuredly on the horizon.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
No. I’m not sure any interesting road is a smooth road. If you’re growing, there are growing pains.
It’s the trial-and-errors, learning how to listen to your heart, dealing with let-down, dealing with the unexpected or the out-of-your-control, managing your expectations, keeping realistic while allowing your visions to be grandiose, working with what you have, pushing through when you don’t think you can, so much more. It’s the constraints and limitations, but that’s also where much of the magic happens.
The most struggle or tension I have ever experienced is building what I’m building now with Opera. It has also been the most fulfilling. Opera is extraordinarily ambitious, both its storytelling and production. It’s like working on a million piece puzzle with no flat edges and every individual piece of the puzzle is a puzzle within itself! Developing your own genre of musical cinema, introducing an original IP, for venues that didn’t even exist yet when you started it is a crazy thing to do. Add to that, the subject material I’m taking on deserves to be honored with a very serious amount of TLC and relative accuracy. No matter how accomplished you are, when you’re doing something new and big, some people will think you’re crazy, and you will at times agree with them. The struggle can be in moments like this. That long winding and super intimidating road ahead. You have to constantly remind yourself of the “why”, honor your creative urges and vision, and continue putting one foot in front of the other. If it continues to give you energy, use it and follow it. Surround yourself with people who encourage you to keep going and/or stay connected to you throughout your own hero’s journey 🙂 Listen to inspiring stories and/or podcasts. Also remember, you are making your work as a gift. and that the true success comes when you’ve gotten it out of your body, not when it becomes a market success…that is something different and MUCH less in your control.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I have trouble defining what I do with one title. Sometimes I’m a concert and/or show designer. Sometimes I’m a Creative Director and world-builder. Sometimes I produce, direct videos, build brands, design graphics, etc.. At the core, I create things, build worlds, and tell stories that often take on an audiovisual form.
I am most proud of what I’m building now, an immersive musical experience by the name Opera. It is a project that has been simmering in me for years, inspired by a vision I had for a concert that told stories…something the whole family could experience. A modern Fantasia of sorts. I broke ground on it last year, and it has since grown into something more alive and itself than I could have ever anticipated. It has really pushed me to new heights creatively and challenged me a great deal. It is unlike anything I’ve ever seen, and in my opinion, will be the most entertaining and original thing people will have experienced in a long time. I can’t wait.
What matters most to you? Why?
Originality, Integrity, Warmth, Elegance, Curiosity, Work Ethic…
Originality: Nothing is truly original. Originality to me is the constant collision of different ideas giving birth to something new. A set of decisions that keep taking shape into something like a river continuing to fork into its own direction. But all of the water still comes from the same source. Deep down, the artist knows the difference between stealing ideas vs. colliding ideas. I always strive to offer something I haven’t seen before and take that ride down the river.
Integrity: Are you being honest with yourself, your art, and what you are offering? Are you honoring and living within your values?
Warmth: I don’t know. That’s just how I am!
Elegance: Beyond aesthetics and personal taste…elegance to me is continuity, clarity, simplicity…breaking an idea down to its essentials. It is creating something that is undeniably itself. Something evergreen. Evergreen is becoming harder and harder to find, but when you see it and feel it, you know it.
Curiosity: Dig deep. Try to see and understand the patterns around you.
So much is important to me but those are good ones!
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.redyellowblue.co
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jordanmiles/
