What started as a simple tune—and a 7th grade friendship—has developed into a high-tempo anthem, carrying the nation along with a pulsating beat. “We’ve just kind of known each other forever,” explains 48-year-old Christy Phillips. “It’s crazy what we’re doing now. I’m kind of the yin to Casey’s yang, which makes this a beautiful partnership.”
A middle school service club first set the stage for Christy Phillips and Casey Reid, yet after graduating from J.L. Mann and Greenville High, respectively, the two drifted apart for more than a decade. But like a timeless tune you can’t get out of your head, they reconnected in harmony, and Eleven Events was formed. “Yep! The name is from Spinal Tap,” Reid admits with a chuckle. “We’re an experiential marketing team. We do really unique event design, planning, and production. Live music has always been a passion, whether for corporations, brands, or pure entertainment. It’s a unifying thing. It brings people together.”
Reid’s love of music first brought her to MTV, where she worked on awards shows with hundreds of artists over the years, including Eric Clapton, Destiny’s Child, and Stevie Wonder. She recalls, “I was standing there in the eves with Madonna and her security team, and I thought, ‘How crazy is my life right now?’”
Phillips, meanwhile, was keeping the beat in event planning, first with Manheim auctions in Atlanta and then Erwin Penland in Greenville. In 2009, Reid returned home to Greenville and started her own business. By 2012, it had grown significantly, and the duo decided it was time to get the band back together, building Eleven Events into a full-service event-planning agency. “Casey has a brilliant background and was creating these genius ideas,” reveals her partner. “Back then, she was ahead of her time in unifying marketing and music. Now, these are things people do all the time.”
‘Larger than life’ Events
Eleven Events hosts about 100 events a year, serving some dozen clients, from Verizon and BMW to Wyche Law Firm and Old Edwards Inn & Spa. With Reid’s knack for live music production and Phillips’s strategic approach to corporate gatherings, the two create “larger than life concepts.” Eleven Events has reinvigorated local, nonprofit fundraisers with events including Senior Action’s Dancing with the Carolina Stars, Greenville Humane Society’s Mutt Strut and Greenville Zoo Tunes.
The high-energy team also creates destination experiences and festivals, including last month’s Bear Shadow Festival in North Carolina. “It’s been written up in Rolling Stone and voted one of the top festivals in the country,” Phillips reflects. “And that was just us. Me and Casey. It’s crazy. We built it out of the Highlands Food & Wine Festival to extend the shoulder season in spring. We love doing festivals and corporate events, that are so fun, people don’t want to leave. Those moments often include music.”
“Live music has a special power,” says Reid. “It creates an emotional bond, an emotional imprint. What we do is so rewarding. Music is a great unifier.” Bringing old friends and the community together, as one.
Party tips
- Know your audience and the audience you want to attract. (These may not be the same.)
- Provide a mix of music. It should not all sound the same, but must all go together.
- Listen to the playlist from start to finish. It should create a journey, with highs and lows.
More party tips
- Create a 360-degree experience at your home or venue.
- The entry point must provide pop.
- Don’t forget sights, smells, and sounds. All should have a “wow” factor.
- The culinary experience should marry well with the vibe created by the music.
- A signature cocktail can create new energy.
- Sprinkle photo-op moments that secure an emotional connection across the event.
