by Betsy Fischer, M.Ed.
The First Meeting
It all started at the 2011 Mobile Beat Las Vegas Show. Jean Steinmetz of C&C Entertainment in Cincinnati, Ohio, successfully gathered together a group together for an early morning breakfast meeting. According to Jean:
About 20 women were in attendance, and it was a chance for us to meet, network, and share ideas about our industry. It should be noted that this was the first-ever women’s gathering that was actually officially sanctioned by a trade show. Mobile Beat included the meeting on their official program schedule, and I know we all thank Ryan Burger for that.”
Continuing the “Conversation”
During the meeting, Anna Huynh of Dancenhance Entertainment in Fayetteville, Arkansas, volunteered to create a Facebook Group. She sees the group as a great support network.
“Female DJs are truly unique. My goal for the Facebook group is to have a venue for women to get to know each other and share ideas. There are ladies of all different ages and stages in their careers in this group. New DJs will have the opportunity to find role models in the FEM. Here, they will share information which is more relevant to women than the info they would find through other industry groups.” - Anna Huynh
The Female Entertainers Meetup on Facebook garnered nearly 50 members in its first two weeks of existence and is now in full-swing. Huynh is one of its most active participants.
Defining the Group
Pro Mobile DJ Founder, Stacy Zemon, attended the breakfast meeting and is an enthusiastic supporter of FEM, for whom she wrote the description:
“This is an international networking group for women performers of all kinds. Informal ‘Meetings’ take place via our Facebook group. Members are invited to share ideas, information, challenges and opinions on various subjects with each other. Group members include industry leaders, experts, newcomers, and everyone in between. Live meetings are also held annually at the Mobile Beat Show, International DJ Expo, and other venues to be announced.”
FEM Topics
Topics on FEM have included light-weight equipment, what women wear to their gigs, favorite DJ software, leadership, the assets of being a female entertainer, etc. Frequently someone asks a question, looking for group members to provide an answer.
To join FEM — Female Entertainers Meetup, click here.