Sherilla Gordon puts class, work into events

Garfene Grandison, Gleaner Writer

Sherilla Gordon has always had an interest in events, and having worked for a media house where she often did event reviews, was curious to find out what promoters went through to create the perfect party experience.

Balancing the classroom and work experience, Gordon tells The Gleaner: "I also recently graduated at the top of my group (event planning) with upper second-class honours from UTech. Now, I am the administrative and public relations executive at Lawless Events, the promotional group responsible the for Secret Crush, Summer Bar-Raage, Marco Polo, and Winter Bar-Raage events. I also manage a young upcoming disk jock, DJ Mario".

How long have you been in this field?

A little over a year.

Where have you studied?

I spent seven years at the Immaculate Conception High School and, after that, enrolled in the School of Hospitality and Tourism Management at the University of Technology, Jamaica (UTech), majoring in event Planning and Entertainment Management.

Why this career path?

Well, it kind of grew on me. I entered Utech hoping to be a chef, but after being exposed to the entertainment industry via Jamaica Observer's TEENage Magazine, my focus shifted and so did my major. And then during summer last year, I was recruited to join the Lawless Events team.

How was the process when you first started in this career field?

Wow! Being relatively new to the field, it was all a learning experience and also an opportunity to put into practice all I had been studying. It took a lot of energy and work not just from me, but also Marvin Lawrence (CEO) and Fabian O'Hara (VP) to get Lawless Events to where it is now.

What are you currently doing to further develop your ambitions for your career path?

Firstly, I'm trying to keep an open mind and think outside the box with the staging of each event. I also try to visit other promoters' events to observe what they are doing and to see how Lawless Events can improve on our own events. On the DJ management side of things, I observe trends in the industry and look to other managers for inspiration. I also do research to see what's happening in the rest of the world and to come up with different ideas. I like to Google, from party ideas to various artistes' management avenues.

What do you hope to achieve in 10 years?

Ultimately, my aim is to further build the Lawless Events and the DJ Mario brands. I also want to gain as much experience as possible, so I can advise young promoters on basic tips of event planning and manage a couple more DJs and well as recording artistes. I'm also working on starting my own event planning and client services company.

What drives and inspires your career path?

I would have to say my love for properly executed events and my love for music. They inevitably walk hand in hand. You can't have an event without music or some aspect of entertainment, so being interested in both is motivation to achieve greatness in both fields.

What do you have to offer as the future of the next generation?

I offer positivity, determination and inspiration to others who may have doubts about what they can achieve.

Do you consider yourself to be revolutionary, how do you plan to change the game or your field?

Hmmmmmm... revolutionary? Maybe not, but I defy the odds and so far, I have proven that working part-time, being a part of a promotions group with a minimum of four events per year, being a member of the UTech Students' Union Exec, having an active social life and still graduating at the top of my group with high honours is gravy. But only if your name is Sherilla Gordon. How will I change the game? Well, the game has already been changed. Females in the industry are becoming more recognised, because at the end of the day we are the glue behind everything.

Besides access to education, what do you think needs to be done in order to transform youth in Jamaica?

I believe that in addition to education, youth in our society need to be driven and intrinsically motivated. It all starts from within but, nevertheless the opportunities need to be present in society so at least they will know that what they are working toward is in fact achievable.