ABOUT US
Jan Buys: Chairman
Born on June 25, 1962 in Heusden. Like for so many from that generation, one event industry job led to another for Jan. He started in one of the many large discotheques in Brabant in the mid-80s. There he came into contact with live performances and soon realized that his passion lay in this market.
After the rise of dance music in the late 80's early 90's, he saw that this industry was moving at breakneck speed from the countryside to the club circuit in the cities. That is why he sold his disco (now owned) in the early 1990s to work as head of catering at Popcentrum 013 in Tilburg. At that time the first building in the Netherlands built purely with this function. After a year of running the catering industry there, he became general manager, making him responsible for the production, maintenance and box office departments in addition to the catering industry.
In 2008 the Trudo Strijp-S housing association in Eindhoven started redevelopment and events could largely help determine the identity of this area. A board member of 013 was also director of this housing association and Jan was now also active as main producer of the STRP festival at Strijp-S in addition to 013. As a result, Jan started working as Program Manager Strijp-S at the housing association on 1 January. The first year was charged with the renovation of the Klokgebouw as a new event location and after that with the profiling of Strijp-S through a cultural program. In 2014, housing associations were prohibited from facilitating other than their original core tasks (as a result of the Vestia affair). That is why Jan took over the operation of the event halls at Strijp-S from Trudo in January 2015 and has since then been operating them from his independent company, Klokgebouw Cultuurhallen BV.
In addition to the above main tasks, Jan has always held a few unpaid ancillary positions. For example, he twice founded a department of Horeca Nederland, was on a municipal crime prevention committee for years, in the quality circle of the municipality of Tilburg and was a board member of Poppodium W2 in Den Bosch. Gave hospitality advice and leadership during various festivals. And is currently also chairman of Reuring Strijp-S, an association that stands up for the interests of Cultural Institutions and Horeca at Strijp-S in Eindhoven.
Kim Bloem: Secretary
I was going to become a music teacher, but after graduating school music at the Conservatory of Utrecht, I wasn't sure if I wanted to teach full time. That is why, also at the Utrecht School of the Arts, I went on to study Art and Media Management.
In 2001 there was an internship on the curriculum and that's how I ended up at MOJO, the programming department of the North Sea Jazz festival. After the internship I was allowed to stay to book more jazz in clubs and theaters. By building up an international network, it didn't stop with jazz and soul, and more and more tours came my way. In this way I have expanded my roster (list of artists I work with), and in the meantime I am the booker/promoter of small and large shows; from new talent in the small halls to Drake in the Ziggo Dome and Beyoncé in the JC ArenA. I am also part of a team of programmers from the North Sea Jazz festival and Stadspark Live.
As a booker/promoter you are responsible for making the deal with the artist's agent, ensuring that an artist plays as much as possible in the right venues and contributing to building an artist's career.
Robbin Gielen: Treasurer
Whether it was because of her father's record collection, or the fact that Robbin grew up in the village where Doe Maar was founded, she was surrounded by music from an early age. It wasn't until she was in high school that that interest really grew. After several years of insistence, she got drum lessons, followed by her own drum kit. Towards the end of HAVO she exchanged doing homework for going to concerts. She concluded this period by organizing her own festival: Imagine, without realizing it this was the beginning of her network.
Robbin exchanged the Brabant country for a study of music at the Academy of Pop culture in Leeuwarden. At the end of the first year, her drumming career was ended early due to an injury. With her experience and contacts from organizing Imagine Festival under her belt, Robbin decided to explore the business side of the music industry. She did an internship at Zwaardvis Music in Eindhoven, organized the open Frisian Championships Hide and Seek, worked on an anniversary video for the 25th anniversary of Eurosonic Noorderslag and eventually graduated with a two-year festival activation for KWF Kankerbestrijding for which she founded her company Indigo Atlas.
Her HBO Bachelor of Music brought her to Dox Records in Amsterdam, where she soon started working as a PR & social media manager. But when the opportunity to tour Europe with Anneke van Giersbegen as a merchandiser, the choice was quickly made. In the years that followed, the collaboration with Anneke and her management grew Strictly Creative and she eventually strengthened the management team. In addition, Robbin worked as a project manager for a talent development platform within Pop In Limburg, culture policy executor at the Municipality of Deurne and in collaboration with colleague Wilfried Damman as a management team for various (international) artists. She has been sharing her knowledge since 2015 as a music business teacher: until 2021 at Summacollege – Metal Factory and since 2021 also at the Herman Brood Academy. On a management level, she charts the course for Stefanie Janssen and the Icelandic band Arstidir, whom she also supports hands-on. She is also involved in the production of events for Oxfam Novib, among others.
Lotje Horvers: Tour manager
I am Lotje (39), a tour manager from Amsterdam. I have been active in the music industry for over 20 years. As a teenager I started booking local bands, and after high school I chose to study Music Management in Tilburg. Since then I have worked in all kinds of roles in live music: from wardrobe employee to stage manager. But I mainly work as a tour manager, handling logistics, finances and day-to-day operations on worldwide tours. In recent years I worked with other other M83, Robyn, Röyksopp, the Knife and Fever Ray.
My work came to a complete standstill during corona. I then started mentoring young women who also wanted to become tour managers, and was regularly asked to participate in music industry panels and webinars. It was often about diversity and inclusion. After some time I got tired of talking about it endlessly, it was time for action!
During the many panels, the conclusion was often: change has to come from the top and the bottom. In terms of diversity, this means: parties that hire crews for tours and stages must make their vacancies more transparent and offer equal opportunities to people with similar skills. In doing so, they must create a work culture that welcomes everyone. And there must be sufficient supply from below to put together a varied crew.
I decided to focus on the latter, and wanted to show girls that stage technique is also an option for them. When I called Jessica she was immediately enthusiastic, and since then we have been working hard together to contribute to diversity and inclusion in Dutch stage technology!
Jessica Dassen: Production Manager
I am Jessica (43), production manager from Eindhoven and I have been organizing concerts and events since I was 17 years old. I started with the Cultural and Social Education course and then specialized in everything that has to do with events.
I mainly work as a production coordinator at Dutch stages and concert halls, but I also organize many business events and (art) exhibitions. I worked for The Rolling Stones, Guns 'n Roses, Bob Dylan and Nick Cave, among others.
In recent years I have focused on sustainability: both for the planet and for society. From the music industry I want to make the world a bit more beautiful.
Lotje approached me in the spring of 2021 because she was looking for a partner to help launch the Dutch version of the 3T project.
I was immediately enthusiastic because I know how difficult it is to put together a stage crew that does not only consist of men. During many (zoom) meetings and telephone conversations, we quickly came up with the idea of organizing professional days to ensure that more girls are going to choose this super fun profession!