Meet Mark Peace Thomas of Awesome Entertainment

Today we’d like to introduce you to Mark Peace Thomas.

Mark was born in Manchester, New Hampshire, where he developed a love for music by discovering his family’s various music collections. Mark spent hours listening and learning about music ranging from Perry Como to The Beatles. He eventually started his own music library, which reached over one thousand albums by his early teens.

Mark formed Double DJ Music Service at age sixteen with his twin brother Jon. Their first professional job was for their Central High School “Toga Dance”. Mark attended all his classes in full toga, with a 45 vinyl record hanging from his belt, to promote their first professional appearance. The dance was such a huge success that Double DJ was asked to handle all of the upcoming school events. Positive word-of-mouth began to spread and soon Double DJ was providing music for house parties, birthdays and weddings.

He moved to Pasadena, California, in 1984 to study acting, dance and voice at The American Academy of Dramatic Arts. Mark remained an avid record collector and began to get involved in local bands as a singer and songwriter. Four years later, Mark set sail on Holland America Cruise Lines as Disc Jockey and cruise staff member. His responsibilities included entertaining passengers seven nights a week in the nightclub and hosting various events (pictured at left: comedian Rick Starr showing his love for DJ Mark Thomas during the “Wipe Out” drum contest aboard Holland America’s Nieuw Amsterdam).

Since 1988, Mark has also worked for Royal Cruise Lines, Princess Cruise Lines, and Norwegian Cruise Lines in the Caribbean, Mexico, Hawaii and South America. In addition, Mark has entertained at many fine Los Angeles area establishments.

Mark returned to dry land and landed in Studio City, California, where he started Awesome Entertainment DJ Service while working for Black Angus Funbars.

Years later, he surprised two hundred of his peers at the 1997 American Disc Jockey Awards by shaving his head onstage and becoming “PEACE!!” (The disc jockey formerly known as Mark Thomas). The “peace symbol” originally appeared in Awesome Entertainment promotional materials to parody The Artist Formerly Known as Prince.

Great, 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?
It was tough my first 5-6 years in business because I did not know how to run a business or price myself. I even had to pretend to be my car insurance agent when I bought a Ford Van because I could not afford the insurance at the time. I had heard of a company Sharing $750.00 and thought they must be something really special. I would later find out that they were charging an amount that would support them. I went back to cruise ships around 1991 for a couple of years to travel and re-group. Upon my return, I helped start The Los Angeles Chapter of the American Disc Jockey Association. My goal was to raise standards and find good sub-contractors and my friend, John Stephenson, gathered most of the first ten members and wanted to get rates higher. He already knew it was difficult to make a living if DJs were not charging enough. My rates went from $350.00 per event to $1,500.00 in about 3 years because of the education and idea sharing my fellow entrepreneurs were sharing. I had never imagined how fast I could improve the quality of my service while commanding more money! Whenever I meet young people looking to get into a business, I always urge them to join “meet-up” groups and associations since it is the fast track to learning… and earning! I volunteered my time and I talked to hundreds of DJs across the country and met DJs from Australia, Mexico and Europe at trade shows. The toughest part is that I was a volunteer for the association so it was comparable to running TWO businesses but only being paid for one. The benefit is that I brought other people up with me and I quadrupled my income.

Alright – so let’s talk business. Tell us about Awesome Entertainment – what should we know?
I am known for my easy-going emcee style and ability to manage games, dances or activities when a client is dealing with a “shy” audience or there is a delay with another vendor. My theater background taught me to “roll with the changes” so when an unexpected circumstance arises, I engage the guests so they are happily distracted and usually do not know there is a problem. For instance, it is common that photographers will need more than an hour to shoot photos of the newlyweds after a wedding ceremony, especially if they are going to another location. I keep in touch with the photographer so if the grand entrance is scheduled for 6:45pm but I know the photographer may not have the wedding party to the venue until 7:00/7:15pm, I will entertain the audience with a dance contest, trivia or something pre-approved with the client. This avoids guests sitting around waiting and getting bored, or focusing on the meal that hasn’t come yet. I am proud that my company is known for attention to detail and clients are often put at ease when I go through the timeline three weeks prior to their event. My service includes music programming (DJ), emcee’ing (MC) and event direction (where I inform, guide and direct both behind-the-scenes and on the microphone). My goal is to be energetic but natural. I think what sets me apart is that I am not afraid to take chances with music and can usually work in nearly any song or playlist created by the couple, or their friends and family.

Is there a characteristic or quality that you feel is essential to success?
My listening skills and ability to implement each client’s individual plan in an honest, upfront manner is my success formula.

Pricing:

• DJ/MC without any planning services is $995.00 up to 4 hours. Requires a coordinator. Client provides the timeline.
• DJ/MC/Event Direction with planning services is $1795.00 up to 5 hours. I plan timeline (or review coordinator’s game plan and adjust for entertainment purposes. I also provide an initial meeting to give client various options.

Contact Info:

• Address: 22835 Cove View St.,
  Canyon Lake, CA 92587
• Website: http://www.awesome-entertainment.net
• Phone: Office: 626-793-1877 or 951-244-8300
• Email: [email protected]
• Instagram: www.instagram.com/djpeacetwo
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DJMarkPeace/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/djpeace
• Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/awesome-entertainment-canyon-lake

Image Credit:
Mark Thomas
Eileen Dougherty
Poetry in Light

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