Lou Medina, the talented caricature artist behind Drawing Crowds and Drawing Crowds Digital, shares his journey from a shy beginner to a beloved event entertainer, offering insights into the world of caricature art. He discusses the importance of creating memorable experiences, how his craft has evolved over time, and the joy of connecting with people at events.
Resources Mentioned:
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- Drawing Crowds: Website
- Alysse & Libby: Bios & LinkedIn
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Transcript
The following transcript is not certified. Although the transcription is largely accurate, in some cases it is incomplete or inaccurate due to inaudible passages or transcription errors. The information contained within this document is for general information purposes only.
Lou Medina [00:00:00]:
I remember I did an event in Bellevue. This is my very first gig that my brother helped help get me set up with. I remember going there, and I was so excited. But when I got there and I was setting up, I almost got sick. I had butterflies in my stomach. Because at that time, I was super shy. I’d never drawn in front of people, and I’d learned all this stuff on my own from books and videos and whatnot, but I’d never actually. I’ve never.
Lou Medina [00:00:28]:
I had never actually drawn live. So it was like, oh, my gosh, what do I do? You know, I’m so shy, and, you know, I’ve been drawn before. I love. I loved getting drawn as a kid at Disneyland. I always remember it. But in this industry, you can’t. You know, if I were just to sit and draw people and not say anything, I think people think I was kind of a jerk, you know, or.
Alysse Bryson [00:00:51]:
Just, like, more creepy.
Lou Medina [00:00:53]:
The guy did the cool drawing, but man didn’t say anything.
Libby Sundgren [00:00:56]:
So silent.
Lou Medina [00:00:58]:
So what I did is I love movies, you know, and I. I love reading. I love comics, all this stuff. So in my head, I. I kind of created a character that was kind of chatty and. And would talk up people and all this stuff, and I. So smart, that guy. It just was a.
Lou Medina [00:01:15]:
It just was an organic thing. I didn’t read up any psychology. I just had to. I had to figure out how to get over something because my back was against the wall financially. It’s like, you have to do this because you need to pay bills. And I had nothing else going for me at that time. So it’s like, how do I make this work? Okay, let’s create this guy. And just.
Lou Medina [00:01:36]:
I became that guy, sort of. So.
Alysse Bryson [00:01:38]:
Welcome to Beats Working Winning the Game of Events, where we share stories and strategies to turn any event or life moment into something unforgettable.
Libby Sundgren [00:01:48]:
Events are wild, and the people who work in them are some of the most resilient humans on earth. If you know, you know.
Alysse Bryson [00:01:56]:
So come with us behind the curtain for a look at their most memorable experiences.
Libby Sundgren [00:02:01]:
As they say, the show must go on, so let’s get on with the show. Welcome to Beats Working Winning the Game of Events. Today we are so excited to welcome one of our very favorite event partners. We’ve worked with him for years, Lumadina. He is the talent behind drawing crowds and drawing crowds digital. Oh, and he’s got Gunther with him. Gunther’s his sweet little pup. Just making a little appearance there.
Libby Sundgren [00:02:36]:
Lou is a caricature artist with A sharp eye and a light hand. Known for creating fast and fun sketches that really celebrate the best in people. I’m telling you, the things he can do with a Crayola fat marker. These caricatures are not like the goofy caricatures that you might get. Like, I don’t know, on the Waterfront, on the.
Alysse Bryson [00:03:01]:
In Street Fair, or Times Square.
Libby Sundgren [00:03:03]:
Yeah, no, there. You look so good in them. It’s like a photo booth caricature. I mean, I love them. I saved everyone that he’s ever given me. And, you know, he brings this really unique blend of art and entertainment to private events and major brands. So he’s worked with Starbucks, Microsoft, Nintendo, Brotherton, Cadillac, who I just was working with a few weeks ago. And I got to see Lou then.
Libby Sundgren [00:03:29]:
So twice in two weeks. How lucky am I?
Lou Medina [00:03:33]:
How lucky am I?
Alysse Bryson [00:03:35]:
This is so much fun. I get to sit here with Libby Lou.
Libby Sundgren [00:03:38]:
Libby Lou.
Alysse Bryson [00:03:40]:
The blend of both of you. Libby Lou. And we have been working with you, lou, for over 15 years, I think.
Lou Medina [00:03:47]:
Yeah, it’s been a while.
Alysse Bryson [00:03:48]:
Yeah. Can we start there? Can we start how Lou and I met? How do you guys feel?
Libby Sundgren [00:03:52]:
How did you guys meet? I don’t know if I know that.
Alysse Bryson [00:03:54]:
You don’t know that story. I know the story. Let’s see if Lou remembers. So I had somehow finagled my way into Comcast. Used to do these big annual parties for all their vendors. And they were really elaborate. They would fly in a lot of talent from different shows that they were promoting. They would have really cool experiences, like a caricature artist, for example.
Alysse Bryson [00:04:19]:
And I had gone to one of these events, like way back in the day when I did some work with an agency, an advertising agency out of Olympia. So I knew how fun they could be. And so now fast forward to I’m working in Seattle. And it was when we were at the magazine. Libby and I really wanted to go to this event, but, like, we weren’t a client, we weren’t a vendor, so we were not going to get on the list. And, you know, I kind of pride myself on being able to get on any list that I want to get on, right? Vip, baby. That’s right. Trying to be the Kevin Bacon of Seattle, you guys.
Alysse Bryson [00:04:57]:
Kevin Bacon of Seattle. So I got my way in. I can’t. I think I got my way in through an agency that put me on their list. And so I got my way in, and we were there. We were checking everything out. It was up at the New Castle Golf course on the east side of Seattle. It Was summer, I think I wanna say August.
Alysse Bryson [00:05:17]:
It was warm but not hot. It was beautiful. And Lou, I think you were working the booth that was like representing Nickelodeon, which would make sense. And you were doing your amazing caricature art. And I ran over. I don’t even know that I got one that night, but I was so excited. I was like, I have to have your card. We do.
Alysse Bryson [00:05:39]:
Because Libby and I were doing so many events. We were doing I don’t even know how many events a year of all different kinds, all different sizes, all different types. And I was like, we’re going to, we’re going to use you, like all the time. And so that’s. Yeah, that’s how I met Lou.
Lou Medina [00:05:54]:
Yeah. Great relationship. Yeah.
Alysse Bryson [00:05:56]:
Isn’t it a good meet cute. I love a good event. It is cute.
Libby Sundgren [00:06:01]:
So, Lou, you have been at so many events. Like I said, you do private, you do corporate or private? Corporate. Like the one that Elise kind of muscled her way into. What is one element in your planning that is a true must have for making your event experience unforgettable? And that could be the experience that you have at an event or that could be the experience that you’re creating for other people.
Lou Medina [00:06:28]:
Well, I think for me and for the event itself, when I’m doing caricatures, it’s all about location, location, location. Because I’ve been to some events where they put me in front of, like this was very early on and I, I remember distinctly it would say, barb Mitts for this guy said, oh, you, you’d be great right here. I’d love to have the air. I’m like, okay, I’m being naive. So I just set up right in front of the speaker. The DJ speaker could not hear anything. My ears were ringing after that, that night. And then I’ve been to other events too, where they’re like, oh, we just love to have you back here in the corner.
Lou Medina [00:07:09]:
So I learned to. This is a little bit of an aside, but I learned to bring lights with me because sometimes a venue will not have lights. Or like very famously at hotels, the lights, house lights will be on, but then they turn them way down. So again, it’s about location, where people can see. Usually events are at night, so if I, especially if I have my lightings, make sure people can see me and that they, you know, they line up in a good, good way where it’s not impeding traffic. So, yeah, and it becomes a better experience for me because I get more, more people sitting and becomes a better event for the people, because they can see the line and get to enjoy it. Enjoy the.
Alysse Bryson [00:07:53]:
There’s always. There’s always definitely a line when you’re there, Lou. Like, I’ve never been at an event where you’ve been there as one of our vendors, and there hasn’t been a line. And, you know, I just want to speak to. And we’re going to put some examples of your work because we, Libby and I, have such an archive, so we’re going to show them right here. But what I love about your work, Lou, is, I mean, we’ve all seen caricatures, you know, when we’ve gone to Times Square or the zoo, a lot of different places. But those. In my experience.
Alysse Bryson [00:08:26]:
I have one experience with my sister, we got them done in Times Square. And this was actually after I’d already worked with you, and I was like, oh, this’ll be great. I get these all the time. I love them so much. They’re so fun to, like, put on your fridge or your bulletin board or your office. And this one in New York Times, like, they drew two women that looked identically the same, and neither one of them looked at all like my sister or myself. And so I think what your real talent is, is you are really able to, like, at least zone in on one feature that really makes that person, person, unique. And also, you do it in a flattering way.
Alysse Bryson [00:09:05]:
And so it’s just like, it’s a double win. I just. That’s. My experience with working with you is, like, it’s just such a flattering and fun experience that you really. Do. You want to hold on to it and. And a memory is made.
Lou Medina [00:09:19]:
Thank you. Yeah. So one thing I do. I do tell clients is that just as you said, I. I am not. I create memories more than anything else. So that. Especially with weddings, you know, because there’s so many party favors that are edible or people just throw them away when they.
Lou Medina [00:09:37]:
Or eat them, you know, when they. When they get home. But the caricature, you can get one and look at it, like, 10 years later and remember that party or that wedding or whatever event. It was like, man, that was such a fun night. So it becomes bigger than me. It’s not just about me. It’s just about the experience and giving people memories. And also to speak to your assessment of my drawing, I really appreciate it.
Lou Medina [00:10:02]:
But when I started, I actually started doing profiles when I. Very, very beginning. And that’s. I don’t even. You don’t even see that done anymore. No, you don’t Rarely used to be done at Disneyland, stuff like that.
Alysse Bryson [00:10:16]:
Yeah.
Lou Medina [00:10:17]:
So that’s where, where I started. And then I decided to start doing front faces and that, that was a struggle. I guess what’s happened to, to me is as I looked around, seeing what doing, and decided I want to create kind of my own style. So I started studying animation design or character design for animation. And so I apply some of those principles to, to my caricatures. So when I look at someone, what I look at are like, I try to break somebody’s face down. Very basic shapes. Like, however basic I see it, I try to make it even a little bit more basic when I draw it.
Lou Medina [00:10:54]:
So it just worked with shapes, angles and distance. So even if you think of eyes real quick, so eyes could be like almond shape, right. Or whatever. They could be close together, further apart or upper down. They could be a little bit like that. So it works the same way with the rest of the face. Everything else kind of balances out, you know, that way. But I basically simplify.
Lou Medina [00:11:16]:
I call it sad. Shape, angle and distance is my method of drawing. But in a good way. In a good way.
Libby Sundgren [00:11:24]:
It’s a good, sad.
Lou Medina [00:11:26]:
Yeah.
Alysse Bryson [00:11:27]:
How did you decide that? A black Crayola marker, which is like, I love Crayola markers. I might go play with some this afternoon. Like, I love the color. How did you decide that that was like your pen of choice? And is it still your pen of choice?
Lou Medina [00:11:42]:
It is. I used to use some really expensive brush pens and I tried all kinds of like really high end pens and. And there’s two things. One is the expense and two is that I’m kind of rough on pens. So I was like really tearing up pens. It’s like, gosh, this is really, really expensive. So I started looking around and found through experimentation and seeing what other people were using. The Crayola bullet, I don’t have one right in front of me, but a bullet tip marker because it gives me a nice thin or thick line, good variance, and the ink is really good.
Lou Medina [00:12:17]:
They’re really easy to get a hold of. So yeah. And they’re very durable. They’re made for five year olds, so they’re made to take a beating. So yeah, I beat the heck out of my pens. And these things can really, really take a beating and keep on ticking.
Libby Sundgren [00:12:33]:
And they wash out of your clothes and your hands.
Alysse Bryson [00:12:35]:
They wash out. And I actually think they do. Another purpose beyond that as the experience, at least for me, I’m going to identify as a Gen X woman. I see Crayola And I am nostalgic. I think about my childhood, which I had a good one. I think about coloring and art, which makes me happy. And so when you see the Crayola brand, like, you immediately think fun and playful because they’ve done a really good job with their branding over the decades and decades and decades. So I feel like that’s part of your experience, too.
Lou Medina [00:13:05]:
That’s a great point. I’ve never. I’ve never thought about that. There’s a very positive, nostalgic, playful. You know, I don’t know if you say tone to Crayola or memories that are evocative when you see Crayola.
Libby Sundgren [00:13:20]:
What’s your favorite age? Speaking of the young ones, what’s your favorite age of person to draw? Or maybe just your favorite type of person? Maybe they could be young or old. But, like, who’s your ideal caricature model?
Lou Medina [00:13:35]:
You know, I don’t really have one because I approach every face the same way it used to be. Actually, when I first started doing front faces, I was very kind of scared or very timid of drawing women just because I love women. I think women are so beautiful and all shapes and sizes and everything. And I don’t know, I just used to have such a. Such a fear of drawing women just because I didn’t. I didn’t want to offend them or, you know, and I. I didn’t want it to go south on me. So.
Lou Medina [00:14:11]:
What. What I’ve. I guess this isn’t really answering your question. I don’t really have a favorite subject or favorite age or anything to draw. I just love drawing people in general. I’ll tell you what I do love doing. I. This is a bad way of saying it, but I like playing mind games.
Lou Medina [00:14:31]:
But I mean it. I’ll explain it. I mean, in a different. Different way.
Libby Sundgren [00:14:35]:
Yeah, yeah. It’s like a happy sad.
Lou Medina [00:14:37]:
It’s a happy sad. You can probably. Maybe you can libify this for me. But what started happening is I would draw everybody from, like, someone works at Microsoft to construction workers to plastic surgeons. And so in my head it was always, how do I. How can I connect with people? You know? And so the mind, or the mind game I play with myself is I always talk to people and try to find a connection with them of some sort. Like, the other day I was drawing a police officer, and he had this love of comic books. And it’s like, wow, you know, who’d have thought? Or I found, you know, connections with doctors who like animated films or, you know, this, that or the other.
Lou Medina [00:15:22]:
And it’s just a really neat way for me to connect with people on all levels. It doesn’t matter, you know, what age or what, what demographic or where they live or anything like that. It’s just really neat to see that we’re all connected in some way. You know, we can all find common, commonalities that we can chat with and have fun talking about. You know, I love that. I always found that fascinating.
Alysse Bryson [00:15:46]:
I love that. I think. And now I want. We talked about the pen. I want to talk about the paper now that you use. Because when we started working together, we started, I think, just with blank pa and I think it had maybe your logo on it, probably put our logo on it. But then over time, as we worked together more and more, we started to get really creative. Like when we worked with automotive dealers, you would draw the car ahead of time and we would put like, their brand on the license plate and then we would print those and then you would draw people into the car.
Alysse Bryson [00:16:16]:
And so as a salesperson, I would use that as part of my pitch to close a sponsorship. Like, we’re not just going to slap your logo on something. We’re going to create an experience with your brand and the guest that’s memorable and positive, and they’re going to go home with this great memento that’s going to, you know, that will end up on their fridge or whatever. So then in the future, when they think about your brand, they’re going to smile because they’re going to, they’re going to tap into that memory. So talk about different types of paper that you’ve used and then any ideas like around that that maybe bubble up?
Lou Medina [00:16:49]:
Oh, yeah. Well, I’ve had myself drawn before around the world actually, and in Vegas and here locally and stuff. And one thing I found is that a lot of people use like this regular, like printer paper, you know, and, and I, I’ve always not liked that because it’s so easy to wrinkle or rumple or fold, you know, especially if people are traveling, do a lot of events, you know, where people come in from, from across the country. So I, I started working with or experimenting with thicker paper. And I find that like a 80 pound or a hundred up to 110 pound card stock is super solid. And I just, it doesn’t wrinkle. You know, you can roll it, but you have to be careful with it. Otherwise, you know, it’ll go from roll to fold.
Lou Medina [00:17:37]:
But I found that, you know, a thick, nice, heavyweight card stock this works perfect for, for me. And not only is it great for me, it’s great for the client because it, you know, they find it easier to take home and doesn’t get wrinkled and all that. So I find that that’s, that’s my solution for paper.
Alysse Bryson [00:17:59]:
You, you do choose really good paper.
Libby Sundgren [00:18:00]:
I will agree.
Alysse Bryson [00:18:01]:
It feels, it feels lux and it feels good like I’m a person who also cares about paper. You, you become that way when you work for a magazine for a decade. And so yeah, you, you choose great paper.
Lou Medina [00:18:15]:
Oh, thank you. I just started worked with a new print shop too recently and that guy turned me on with some, even a newer brand of paper. I’ve been really excited about it. It’s great.
Alysse Bryson [00:18:26]:
Let’s transition to your digital offerings because I know that you’ve also done it. So when people get the drawing, they can get like an email or a text picture so then they can share it out on their social media. How has that transition been from paper to digital?
Lou Medina [00:18:43]:
Oh gosh. That’s a whole different kind of, whole different ball of wax in the sense that when I work digitally, I don’t know if you’ve worked with. This may be a little bit of inside baseball, but if you work with Photoshop, how you work in layers. So when I work digitally, I have to make sure that I put, I put stuff on layers. So I might have like one person here, one person there, or I might have ink here and color down here. So that’s been a huge transition is keeping track of where, you know, everything’s at in, in the drawing. So it takes a lot more thinking when I, when I do digital. But that being said, it is fun.
Lou Medina [00:19:22]:
It’s just a, it’s just a whole different process. But I, yeah, so I draw on an iPad which I’m actually using right now for, for this, for this great podcast. And I off I used to try to do email to email people stuff, but it was not working. So what I do now is I is thank goodness for Dropbox because I create a QR code and I’ll upload the files into a Dropbox folder and the client can download all those later on. And as far as the technical end goes, I bring my own router along with Apple TV so I’m able to stream the drawing onto a 32 inch high def monitor that’s raised 7ft in the air so people could see it.
Libby Sundgren [00:20:07]:
Literally.
Alysse Bryson [00:20:09]:
Yeah.
Lou Medina [00:20:09]:
It’s a gym. Yeah. So people could see it all over the place. And then I print on site too. I do These really nice 4×6 museum quality prints that are very, very, very quality. Really nice, nice prints. They’re so quality that the, the printer I use, it actually. It’s like an iron on.
Lou Medina [00:20:28]:
It actually burns the ink into the paper.
Alysse Bryson [00:20:31]:
Oh, wow.
Lou Medina [00:20:31]:
So you could spill. You could spill water on it. It won’t run. So it actually is like a dice. They call it dye sublimation. I don’t know if you’ve gotten shirts like that or dye sublimated. Yeah. So it’s kind of the same process.
Alysse Bryson [00:20:44]:
Sublimated heat transfer. We need to add that to the event glossary that we’re.
Lou Medina [00:20:49]:
Yeah, that’s. That’s a really cool thing because I. When I first started doing digital, I used an inkjet printer and it worked great. But the problem was storage. I would store. I remember storing my first printer and I never thought about this. The ink dried up and it just ruined the printer. I could not get that thing to work again.
Lou Medina [00:21:12]:
So I started researching printers. Yeah. So these dye sublimation printers, you get like, I can store it for a year or two or whatever and pull it out and it. This plugs in and starts printing right away. And they’re. They’re fantastic.
Alysse Bryson [00:21:27]:
Do you have a preference between digital and original, I guess we’ll call it?
Lou Medina [00:21:32]:
No, just because there’s. They’re two totally different. Different pro, you know, such a different process that I love both of them. The pen and ink on paper is faster than the digital. That’s about it. But they’re both. I both, you know, really enjoy doing both of them for. For different reasons.
Libby Sundgren [00:21:52]:
How long have you been doing this, Lou?
Lou Medina [00:21:55]:
Oh, my gosh. I’ve been doing this, I think about 30 years now. Yeah.
Libby Sundgren [00:22:01]:
Okay.
Lou Medina [00:22:02]:
Dating.
Libby Sundgren [00:22:02]:
So here’s. Yeah, here’s the thing. Events are insane. They’re tiring. The hours are not typical. It’s just kind of a nutty industry. It’s so fun, but it is also kind of nuts. So what is it about drawing and events that have really hooked you into this industry for so long? Because 30 years is.
Alysse Bryson [00:22:29]:
That’s a commitment.
Libby Sundgren [00:22:30]:
An old amount of time, but it’s a. It’s a big amount of time.
Lou Medina [00:22:33]:
Yeah. It’s a big chunk of time.
Alysse Bryson [00:22:35]:
Yeah.
Libby Sundgren [00:22:35]:
Why are you still in the game?
Lou Medina [00:22:37]:
Well, you know, to get. I’ll start at the beginning. When I. When I start. I never really. It kind of found me in the sense that I was. I moved up here. I was in the Navy and I was in California, and I moved up here because my brother had moved here.
Lou Medina [00:22:52]:
We’re both from California originally. So after I got out of the Navy, I moved here, started working, had a regular job, this, that and the other. And I found myself at one point where I’d lost a job, could not find work. And my brother, who actually will give you his contact information later, he’s a. He’s a musician. He used to. He’s a trumpet player. He leads a bunch of different bands.
Lou Medina [00:23:17]:
Yeah, he’s done a lot of events for corporations. He used to tour with Ray Charles for two years.
Alysse Bryson [00:23:22]:
Oh, wow.
Lou Medina [00:23:23]:
He’s done all this great stuff. Anyways, long story short, he told me, hey, because I couldn’t find work, I was living with him, kind of mooching off him at that time because I had no money. He said, hey, if you. You know, if you could learn caricatures, I could help get you set up. So, long story short, I taught myself how to do it in a couple of months. And then. Then he set me up with my first gig. And it just kind of grown from there.
Lou Medina [00:23:47]:
So fast forward to now. Now I’m really enjoying doing it because I don’t really have to think about it so much as the beginning. You know, in the beginning, it was like, is it really that angle? Is it. You know, it was too much. I was too much in my head. Now, I kind of. One of the reasons I also chat with people is not just to find a connection, but also to not think so much about my drawing. So it kind of.
Lou Medina [00:24:11]:
It kind of releases me from. From being too, you know, too in my head about it.
Libby Sundgren [00:24:17]:
You’re so good at that because, you know, when you are drawing somebody, both. I can say this as somebody who is drawn or someone who’s just standing there watching you. You really have just the most natural, like, consistent conversation with the people that you’re drawing. You are so good at making conversation with people that if you’re sitting there, you’re kind of like, what’s this like? Because you can’t see it if you’re drawing with a marker and paper. You know, you can’t see what you’re drawing, but you’re kind of like, what is this? This guy’s just, like, so chatty. He’s just, like, talking to me the whole time. What’s this caricature really gonna look like? And, you know, it is just. It’s such a cool thing to see when.
Libby Sundgren [00:25:01]:
When you turn it around and you’re.
Lou Medina [00:25:03]:
Like, oh, thank you.
Libby Sundgren [00:25:04]:
He was chatting with me the whole time about, like, something not even Related to drawing or what my face looks like. And he just produced the coolest, you know, memento for me to take home, so.
Lou Medina [00:25:17]:
Oh, thank you. When I first got my. Remember, I don’t remember. I remember I did an event in Bellevue. This is my very first gig that my brother helped help get me set up with. I remember going there, and I was so excited. But when I got there and I was setting up, I almost got sick. I had butterflies in my stomach.
Lou Medina [00:25:36]:
Because at that time, I was super shy. I had never drawn in front of people, and I’d learned all this stuff on my own from books and videos and whatnot, but I’d never actually. I’ve never. I had never actually drawn live. So it was like, oh, my gosh, what do I do? You know, I’m so shy. And, you know, I’ve been drawn before. I love. I love getting drawn as a kid at Disneyland.
Lou Medina [00:26:01]:
I always remember it. But. But in this industry, you can’t. You know, if I were just to sit and draw people and not say anything, I think people think I was kind of a jerk, you know, or just like.
Alysse Bryson [00:26:13]:
Or creepy.
Lou Medina [00:26:14]:
The guy did the cool drawing, but, man didn’t say anything. So what I did is I love movies, you know, and I. I love reading. I love comics and all this stuff. So in my head, I. I kind of created a character that was kind of chatty and. And would talk up people and all this stuff. And, I mean, that guy, it just was a.
Lou Medina [00:26:37]:
It just was an organic thing. I didn’t read up any psychology. I just. I just had to. I had to figure out how to get over something because my back was against the wall financially. It’s like, you have to. You have to do this because you need to pay bills. And I had nothing else going for me at that time.
Lou Medina [00:26:54]:
So it’s like, how do I make this work? Okay, let’s create this guy. And just. I became that guy, sort of. So does he have. That’s kind of where that was born from.
Alysse Bryson [00:27:04]:
Does your alter ego have a name?
Lou Medina [00:27:10]:
Lubo, I guess.
Alysse Bryson [00:27:11]:
Lubo, Yeah. I like it.
Lou Medina [00:27:15]:
Lubo letter.
Libby Sundgren [00:27:17]:
You created a good alter ego. You created a very friendly, very fun, like, very warm, inviting, just like a great alter ego, so.
Lou Medina [00:27:28]:
Oh, thank you.
Alysse Bryson [00:27:29]:
I would never have guessed you were shy ever, ever, ever.
Lou Medina [00:27:33]:
Oh, really? That’s good. My wife, when we first got together, she. She would ask me how. How is it you can go to, like, a grocery store or something and just start talking with people and. And they respond to you? I’m like, it’s my job, honey. It’s. It’s from work.
Alysse Bryson [00:27:50]:
It’s just my thing. Yeah, it’s just my thing. Well, and I have. Because we’ve done so many events together over the years. Like, I’ve had the witness on the reveal when. When, you know, you’re sitting there talking so naturally about whatever, and then. And you hold it up and you. And they finally get to see it, and the surprise and the delight is always like, I never get tired of seeing that because it’s so fun.
Alysse Bryson [00:28:13]:
We have a saying at work, P2P, that it’s not bragging if it’s true. So what?
Libby Sundgren [00:28:19]:
It’s. It ain’t bragging if it’s true.
Alysse Bryson [00:28:21]:
It ain’t bragging if it’s true. Sorry, I was trying to be grammatically correct by that.
Libby Sundgren [00:28:25]:
I know.
Alysse Bryson [00:28:26]:
It ain’t bragging if it’s true. Louis, so what is your most memorable event success, and why?
Lou Medina [00:28:31]:
Oh, my most memorable event. Like, single event event.
Alysse Bryson [00:28:36]:
Or it could have even been a guest. Like a memorable experience with a guest.
Lou Medina [00:28:41]:
Oh, gosh, I have a few, but one of them that just pops to mind, it was an event I did at the Renton airport. It was for a grad night, and they were flying like people in helicopters that night. So the event coordinator came up to me and said, hey, Lou. We had one of the parents bail on us. He doesn’t want to go up in the helicopter. But they need. I don’t know why they needed somebody in there. They said, well, do you mind doing that? I was like, yeah, man, I’ll totally do that.
Lou Medina [00:29:10]:
So I got this really cool helicopter ride at this event, and it was really, really fun. It was super memorable. Another one was actually, was this year, I did a Did caricature, beautiful Indian wedding, and it was so amazing. Everybody was dressed to the nine. Well, I wouldn’t even say dress. I’d say dressed to the 11. They were. They looked.
Alysse Bryson [00:29:35]:
Everyone forget the nines.
Lou Medina [00:29:37]:
Yeah. But the groom comes up to me and he says, hey, you are a guest of ours. So we want to make sure you eat. Make sure you eat. Okay. Make sure you eat. He kept coming back and saying that. So they bring out this beautiful spread of food, and I go out and grab a plate, you know, and I ate, and it was wonderful food.
Lou Medina [00:30:01]:
I loved it. I loved it. So later on, they bring out another spread of food, and the groom comes back to me. He says, hey, hey, did you eat? I want to make sure you’re taken care of. Did you eat? I Said, y. I ate. And he says, you ate before, right? Said, yeah. He says, oh, those were just appetizers.
Lou Medina [00:30:19]:
Make sure he gets some of this, too. That was amazing. Just even more amazing food. So, yeah, so I’ve had lots of experiences like that. I’ve been to, you know, private clubs up in the Columbia Tower Club, the Rainier Club, and just. Yeah, but those are a couple of experiences I can think of off the top of my head.
Libby Sundgren [00:30:39]:
That’s so cool, because you started as a vendor, you know, or as an event partner, and you really. In both of those instances, you really became a guest and, you know, and, you know, just someone participating in the event, not just, you know, providing a service for them. So that’s cool.
Alysse Bryson [00:30:58]:
That’s so fun. That’s so fun. What do you do, Lou, when somebody is really shy or timid in the chair? You talked about you being shy, which, again, I still. I haven’t seen that, but I believe you. But what do you do when somebody, you know, their friend drags them in and, like, they’re. They’re like, no, I don’t want to. I don’t want to. But they finally, somehow, somebody ties them to the chair.
Alysse Bryson [00:31:20]:
How do you. What do you do with someone who’s really shy or really nervous about being drawn? Because a lot of people don’t want to be drawn. They don’t want to be photographed. They don’t like how they look. That’s. That is a common thing that I’ve seen.
Lou Medina [00:31:32]:
Well, I usually talk about me being shy, or I’ll ask them, what do you like to do? Or, you know, know, it could be reading. Or sometimes people say, oh, I. What I like is boring. But I’ll ask, do you like to read? And they’re like, yeah, I like to read. What kind of books you like to read for? Usually people who are more shy. I’ll try to. I’ll try to talk them maybe a little bit more before, because they may be looking down a lot or looking away. And I like.
Lou Medina [00:31:58]:
I like to see them eye to eye. So I try to try to engage with them just, you know, a few seconds more to try to crack that. That eggshell of shyness. Just again, Lubo jumping in to try to find a connection with someone.
Alysse Bryson [00:32:13]:
Libby, Lou, you guys, dynamic duo.
Lou Medina [00:32:20]:
Libby, Lubo. How’s that?
Alysse Bryson [00:32:22]:
Libby, Lubo. Oh, my God. It’s getting better and better.
Libby Sundgren [00:32:25]:
Even better.
Alysse Bryson [00:32:26]:
Well, Lou, this has been so much fun. You know, we love you. We know we’re fat, we’re fans, we’re going to put all your contact info in the show notes, but can you tell our listeners there’s a lot of them where they can find you?
Lou Medina [00:32:38]:
Awesome. I really appreciate ladies and great to see you again and it was beautiful working with you again, Livy. I really appreciate it and hope you hope your boys love the drawing.
Libby Sundgren [00:32:49]:
Oh, they did. They loved it. It’s on the fridge.
Lou Medina [00:32:52]:
Oh, that’s awesome.
Alysse Bryson [00:32:54]:
All right, well, that’s all the time we have for today. Thanks for joining us for another episode of Beats Working, where we’re winning the game of Events. Thanks for listening to Beats Working, Winning the Game of Events, where we explore what it takes to make moments unforgettable.
Libby Sundgren [00:33:09]:
If you’re leaving with a little more inspiration, a little more perspective, and a big side ache from all of the laughing at our funny jokes, then we’ve done our job.
Alysse Bryson [00:33:19]:
Beats working is a work P2P production. If you’ve enjoyed this episode, please don’t forget to subscribe, rate and review us on your your favorite podcast platforms.
Libby Sundgren [00:33:29]:
Your support helps us keep the magic going.
