For those of you who have NOT been to an event at Saddles lately, you owe it to yourself to do so. Ashley Steele and her crew have done some AMAZING work that you simply will NOT want to miss. Most recently they have added the Saddles Haunted House. Now, when you have been a resident of the grid as long as many of us have, you think you have seen it all. But I am telling you. Check out Saddles this month and you surely WILL have “Seen it all” Haunted House….Haunted Train Ride…Spooky Circus…This place has it. I managed to Catch Ashley the other day while she was freshening up some of the blood splatters at the Haunted house, and managed to ask her a few questions about this latest addition to Saddles.
Josh (Thomas1 Bellic) (JB): I have seen some phenomenal horror sims during the Halloween Season. But the build you have this year’s is certainly among the best. Was it a fascination with horror movies as a child? Out-of-body experiences after eating tainted edibles? Just where does that inspiration come from?
Ashley Steele (AS): Saddles Haunted House was a complete staff project, from the initial ideas, to the final finished project. This whole area was built by Saddles staff and friends. We were called Ashley’s Oasis. After a short break, we opened back up as Saddles Canyon Country, Saddles Live Music / Saddles C (later renamed Saddles) DJ Aurrie started with me in 2015 and has remained to this day. 😊
JB: Why did you decide to build this? And what sets Saddles House of Horror apart from the dozens of other Halloween builds out there?
AS: Saddles does holiday-themed events. We like to keep it fun for all guests, and I, along with my incredible staff, try to make that happen each and every day, always focusing on the guest experience. I am not sure about all the other great builds out there, but I do know that Saddles Haunted House will make you jump out of your skin. It’s fun and enjoyable for all. Bring your friends. Bring your family. Bring your friends’ families. Ya’ll come now, ya hear?
After a
harrowing visit to the Spooktacular attractions, you are going to want to get
grounded again and Saddles is the perfect place for that as well. Home to some of the Best DJs on the Grid, I
was fortunate enough to be there and catch a set by Aurrie Lynne, the Saddles’ featured DJ of the
Month for October. I caught up with Aurrie as she had just
wrapped up her final set of the evening, and she graciously consented to answer
some of my questions.
JB: How long have you been doing this?
Aurrie
Lynne (aurrielynne.maesar) (AL): I have been a full-on DJ since early 2014 but
also did a lot of DJ sets occasionally for friends' clubs the previous 2 years
or so along with 4 years of Hosting. I
have been involved in the SL club scene of many types of venues and genres for
a long time.
JB: What made you get started in this job?
AL: I became seriously invested as a DJ,
when I had a full REGION for 3 or so years, with 5 clubs on it, and had to
often not only manage, but also host, and later DJ on short notice for a
variety of genre’s, building up a lot of music... I also started taking regular
/ perm DJ sets in some friend’s clubs I had hosted at, with Rock/Pop and
Country. I was in the process of going 100% as an SL DJ, when I joined Ashley’s
Oasis and was slowly ramping down my region.
JB: How many clubs are you currently hosting
at?
AL:
I got out of SL for
about a year as a DJ (only occasional sets
for friends), and was an active DJ in other
virtual world platforms like SANSAR, but now I am back, I Currently do sets
@Saddles and @A Little Honky Tonk Bar spinning mostly Country and some Rock,
getting back to my roots as a DJ. I also hosted a live Singer Friend.
JB: What genre of music do you play, and do
you have a favorite?
AL: I had done a lot of
EDM/Dance/Trance/House mixing at AEG clubs for over 5 years. I will likely start doing some of that music
again somewhere, TBD. So, I like a lot
of Music, I have played almost all of it at some point, and I think my current
plans favorites wise are locked into Rock/POP/Dance/Country/EDM, and a mix of
Trance and House music for Live Mixing. I use a Pioneer DDJ1000 to live mix and
plan to do live mix shows in SL again soon.
JB: Do you have your own group?
AL: I had a very active group tied to my
clubs, but they are pretty much shut down now, and just a list to find old
friends. I have not found the secret to making a DJ group work for me or
keeping folks there. Some DJ’s do it well, but that did not work well for me,
so I did not put a lot of focus on it, you have clubs that are nervous
about DJ’s who are growing their groups vs the Venue, it’s a sticky balancing
issue at times. I have one, of course,
for those who want to see my schedule.
JB: How many different venues do you play?
AL: Venue-wise, you have seen the MAIN
ONEs that were significant for me, but I have played in over 18 clubs over the
years, some come back for a bit and die, and some started up and shut down a year
or so later. I tend to have a lot of friends who want to start up a club and ask If I will help them get going, I used to do it more than I do now, but MY SL
time is more limited right now, due to RL work/project commitments. But I will
often do openings and help for a few weeks, for a good friend.
JB: Do you normally work with the same
Host, or do you change it up from set to set?
AL: I work with many hosts, but I will say, that a good Host makes the SET, and you can be a great DJ, and your set is going nowhere without good Hosting, especially if you are solo with no host. I can DJ and Host at the same time (not ideal but doable), so I am less impacted by that, with my hosting experience. At the end of the day, it’s still the HOST/DJ team that makes a set memorable and fun. I know DJ’s who never hosted, and really can't do well unless a good one is provided.
JB: The best DJs are usually good-looking, friendly, and outgoing…at least the good ones are. And as a semi-celeb, you must have people looking to hook up, don't you? How do handle the Fans who may want more from you than just your music?
AL: I am open to friendships, for the sake
of those who want to follow and have no groups left, but also, want to be
actively informed when I am doing a set. So, on one level it’s not quite
friendship, but I also get to know some, and we become friends, and that is key
to networking as well. You do get those
who want more and might use the fact a DJs open to adding, but I handle that as
I would as a normal SL person.
JB: How would you advise someone who wants
to get into your line of work What would
it take?
AL: Above are many tips to not be
repetitive, The bottom line: it takes time, practice, and getting out there and being
seen and heard, and it can be a long grind, with many not-so-great sets, to
improve and to start to get any recognition.
JB: Is there anything else you would like to
share with our SL Readers?
AL: Clubs, DJ’s, Singers, Live Performers,
Hosts, and staff, all put forth a huge amount of effort to provide a great
experience. There are yes, real costs and fees that have to be found/recovered
from tips and donations as well, but the most critical of all is just supporting them with your time and
attendance. This is huge, to all of us
in this business. We want and desire for you all to have a great time and
experience. So much so that you want to come back for more.
JB: Do you have any Social Media sites? Twitter, Snapchat, etc?
SURL: http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Saddles/187/121/3002 (Saddles Halloween Venu)
SURL: http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Saddles/187/121/3002
(Saddles Country Club)
https://www.facebook.com/people/DJ-Aurrie-Lynne/100022283060737/
So, there you
have it folks. For the Best in Haunting
Entertainment that will leave you “screamless” or to dance to the mellow rock
tunes of the DJ of the Month, Aurrie Lynne (aurrielynne.maesar), head on
over to Saddles Canyon Country Halloween at the link above. You’ll be glad you did. And tell ‘em Josh sent ya.
Be there! Aloha!
JB.
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