Today we’d like to introduce you to Parker Marshall.
Hi Parker, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
About a decade ago, I had a very stressful job in Los Angeles working 13 hour days with no weekends. I’d relieve the stress by going out and dancing every night of the week (soberly). I’d get the dance floor going very early in the night, and DJs would let me know their schedules so I could hype up their set. One DJ owned a wedding company and booked me out as a hype man under the title “professional wedding crasher”. It became my weekend side gig, (after I left the crazy job) where I’d get a mini vacation by dancing all night at strangers weddings.
After COVID I came back to northern Michigan where I’m a real estate agent, but I missed dancing and night life. So my LA DJ friends gave me lessons remotely. Now, today, I’ve been voted the best DJ in northern MI three years in a row and my company performs 50+ weddings a year, along with local residencies, special events, and charity fundraisers. I have four DJs who work under me, and I also book musical talent.
In 2024 I opened a pastry shop with my wife in Petoskey called Pistachio, but in truth it is her baby. She bakes everything and I eat everything. She makes everything in house from scratch and our specialty is macarons.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
It has been a smooth road except for this past year when we had a baby in the middle of peak season.
As you know, we’re big fans of Parker Marshall Entertainment. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about the brand?
We specialize primarily in DJ services for weddings. We are known for having really crazy dance floors, specializing in fun multi-generational DJ sets that typically ends in weddings guests hobbling home, drenched, thinking: “What did I just experience?”. A lot of people have the expectation that the reception dance can be lame, and we try to amplify it into a euphoric high with a consistent energy where guests dance all night in celebration of life and the couple.
I’ve trained my DJs from the perspective of a dancer, (as I was a dancer before I became a DJ) and I think that sets me apart from other entertainment companies because I am intimately familiar with what would be defined as the “consumer experience”. I think deep down, a lot of us psychologically want to let loose on the dance floor, but have a resistance because of insecurity, and my job is to eliminate that so people can enjoy themselves.
I think what I’m most proud of is having the wedding couple come up to me (on their wedding night) to tell me that I made their dream come true. That the dance was everything they wanted. Especially for the brides, I know many who have fantasized about this moment their whole life, so to realize their dream is very rewarding work. It’s also very meaningful to know that I helped create this wonderful happy memory to look back on. The transition into married life needs an appropriate sendoff because ultimately it’s a celebration and making it get to the point of jubilation is a responsibility I take very seriously.
We love surprises, fun facts and unexpected stories. Is there something you can share that might surprise us?
I have a music library which consists of 23,806 downloaded/purchased songs (46 days, 3 hours) (most of which are actually music videos). My favorite thing to do is organize my music library, and I’ve created a tagging system which allows me to use a smart crate system to create a set which would normally take days of digging to assemble.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://parkermarshall.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/djparkermarshall/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/djparkermarshall
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/parker-marshall-a922a019/?skipRedirect=true
