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Tidal Waves

By Karen Barbier

Tyler Renaudin (left) and Chase Feehan (right) get paid to have fun by acting as DJs at parties near their Houston, TX homes.

CHASE FEEHAN loves to party and play music, and, now, he gets paid to do both. Chase is owner of Tidal Waves, a mobile DJ business that has captured the party scene near his Houston, TX home. How did he get the idea? "I had a friend who was a DJ at parties and I always thought that would be fun," explains the 15- year-old freshman at Memorial High School. "I listen to a lot of music."

Composing an Idea

Chase proposed the idea to his mom, and, with a little help in the form of start-up money from his parents and a strict promise to repay it, he started the business. That was a year and a half ago during the summer before Chase entered the eighth grade. He says that he had to buy quite a bit of equipment, including really good speakers, a dual CD player, a mixer, an amplifier, lights, a mirror ball, a microphone, and a fogger to create a nice effect with the lights.

Once he had the equipment, he knew he could succeed but he also knew a little help couldn’t hurt. In walked Tyler Renaudin, a good friend since first grade. Tyler agreed to be Chase’s business partner and started drumming up customers and helping put on the gigs. "Tyler gets a percentage of our payment," explains Chase, "depending on the party and how long it is. We work together. Some nights he does a lot and, other nights, I take over."

According to Chase, most of his business has been at parties given by teens like him, but occasionally he gets calls for other special events. "I was asked to DJ a 50th birthday party," says Chase. "I collected songs my parents, as well as the person giving the party, suggested and put a list together."

Making Notes

Chase explains that before each gig, he writes notes about the songs he is going to play and leaves a little time on his list for requests. Payment differs from one party to the next, but Chase says he and Tyler usually receive $250 to $300. On the side, Chase practices his own music (he plays guitar and drums) and hopes someday to form his own band. When asked what he hopes to do when he finishes high school, it is
no surprise that Chase says, "I know I want to go to college and major in music."

Whether he is performing it or playing it, Chase knows that music is in his future.

Marketing Music

Chase’s sales and marketing strategy includes word-of-mouth advertising, passing out a whole lot of business cards, and advertising in school phone directories. In addition, Chase gives out Tidal Waves logo T-shirts at his parties. "I give my hosts T-shirts and I hope they recommend me to their friends," says Chase. "I also give out prizes at the parties for things like best dancers, and some of my prizes have my name on them."

What Does It Take to Party?

Chase says that he knew he could DJ after he saw some other friends do it, but he realized he would need some equipment to get started. With financial help from his parents and a determination to repay the loan with the money he made, Chase went on a shopping spree.

"I looked at the stuff my friends who are DJs have, and I went to the store and messed with the equipment a little," says Chase about the process he went through to decide what he actually wanted to purchase.

Here’s the equipment list that helped Chase start Tidal Waves:

• two JBL TR225 700-watt speakers — about $500 each;
• one QSC power amp — $800;
• one Gemini dual CD player — $500;
• one Denon scratch mixer — $500;
• one power outlet center — $50;
• two Martin lights (different colors) — $80 to $100 each;
• two other mood lights including a strobe — about $180;
• 12-inch rotating mirror ball and spotlights to hit the ball from different distances (an eighth-grade graduation gift);
• light panel to control lights — $50;
• two tripods — about $15 each;
• fog Hog fogger for atmosphere — $200;
• numerous CDs (Chase and Tyler combined their collections and bought the rest at varying prices through mail-order offers.);
• one Odyssey CD case — $60; and,
• one Odyssey rig to hold everything — $180.

His total expenditures were about $4,000, and he’s happy to say that he has just about finished paying for it all.

Chase loves playing his own music and hopes to form his own band.

Chase (left) and Tyler (right) Mobile DJ