Jayson Befort

by Sarah Locke

Photo by Dan Florez

September 2012 Issue

If you sit down to discuss music with Jayson Befort, you’ll notice an instantaneous twinkle in his eye. He lights up and is eager to share. Should the discussion turn specifically to local music, that twinkle turns into a full-blown glow, as though an internal switch has been flipped on. Before you know it, he’s beaming from head to toe.

It’s plain to see where this man’s passion lies - it’s undeniably in the support and growth of Jacksonville’s local music scene. But don’t jump to any conclusions regarding the role Befort may play in it, and whatever you do, do not call him a promoter.

“I think overall, I’m more of an ambassador to local music,” Befort explains. 

Truth be told, Befort participates in a little bit of everything. His efforts include a hodgepodge of managing, booking, hosting and promoting live music. To sum it up, he pretty much dedicates himself to doing whatever it takes to build positive momentum within the music community, and yes, sometimes that includes a little bit of promotion. 

“I’m a promoter in the private sense for bands,” he clarifies. 

“If I book a band for a show, I do my best for each individual band. I don’t just promote the night alone. I think when people think of a promoter these days, they think college night; they think of putting flyers on someone’s windshield, stuff like that.”

“I’m not about that, but I will still put a flyer on your front windshield,” he jokes. “I’m more about promoting a living work of art, which to me is local music. It’s not something on the wall; it’s something that’s social in the town.”

Befort says he has always been this passionate about music; it’s not just an interest or love affair that evolved over time. He’s consistently gone to great lengths to remain immersed in the scene, doing whatever he can to make his presence known. 

Befort recalls some of those particular “lengths,” including some clever and comical, if not entirely legal, efforts.

“My buddy and I flew all the way out to California to go to Epic Fest out in the middle of the desert, and we went to Papa John’s on the way and got a bunch of empty pizza boxes, and faked our way through the back gate as delivery guys.”

Befort continued, “I’d also look on Craig’s List and look for ads for backstage passes to shows, and if people said they had them to sell, I’d ask for pictures as proof and then go to Kinko’s and make my own.” While his methods may not be exactly by the book, Befort’s crafty determination and creative “problem-solving” have certainly paid off.   

“The secret to doing what I do is knowing people in the right places,” he says.

Over the years, his efforts (legal and otherwise) have resulted in a slew of valuable contacts and connections to the right people along the way.

Befort says one of the most memorable contacts he’s made along the way also happens to be one of his idols, Tom DeLonge. DeLonge is the guitarist and lead vocalist for both Blink 182 and Angels and Airwaves.

Befort recalls the meeting of the minds: “When I was working for NASCAR, I was backstage at a Warped Tour when Angels and Airwaves were on tour, and a buddy of mine who worked for Virgin Records asked if I wanted to go meet him. I remember instantly becoming like a 13-year-old little girl.” 

What happened next was even more unexpected - the band was heading to a nearby theatre after the festival wrapped up to check out the new “Pirates of the Caribbean” movie, and they asked if Befort wanted to tag along.  

Befort and DeLonge have remained solid friends ever since. Befort even provided DeLonge and his NASCAR-loving father first-class tickets to a particular race a few years ago.

DeLonge is one of many mentors who’ve helped Befort learn the ropes of the music business, helping to lay a solid foundation for a strong and successful local music community.

“I’ve learned everything from making my own flyers to ordering stickers to advertising,” Befort says. “I’ve been studying it for a long time, and now I’m starting to slowly build my own little music scene, because really, there is no local scene anymore.”

Befort emphatically continued, “Everyone pays $30 to go see some giant band, but there are bands playing here every week and people won’t even go pay $5 to go see them. They don’t even have to pay for parking, or $9 for a beer. I just don’t get it.”

He went on to say, “People seem to forget that the big bands that you see on TV were once local bands too.”

Two local acts that Befort proudly represents are the band Get Out Driver and solo artist Mark O’Quinn. Get Out Driver has opened for Red Jumpsuit Apparatus (RJA), and will also be opening for FUN this fall. 

Befort is one busy man, taking on one project and business venture after the next, but you’ll never see him stress, or even flinch. He accepts every challenge with a smile on his face, knowing that any experience is good experience. 

The most recent addition to his plate was the opportunity to begin closely working with and booking the new and improved Brewster’s MegaPlex, located in the Town and Country Shopping Center in Arlington.

Bruce Cataldo, owner of Brewster’s Pit and Pub, recently closed the doors of his Beach Boulevard location and teamed up with the existing space’s owner, Tom Fisher.

The MegaPlex includes three venues in one, housing live music on the local, regional and national levels. What used to be Plush, Leopard Lounge, and Rain are now The Edge, The Roc Bar, and The Pit.  

“Bruce came to me with the Rock and Roll Social Night for The Pit, so Monday nights will be more of your old school Jacksonville music scene. It’ll be a lot of people in their twenties and thirties coming out to listen to more of a rock and retro mix.”

The Pit will also be home to “WreckRoom Wednesdays,” hosted by the Wrecking Crue and DJ Craig Terrace of Jacksonville’s very own international touring act, Evergreen Terrace.

The Wrecking Crue is a social club that Befort created, comprised of Jacksonville’s service industry community, as he’s worked in the industry off and on for a number of years. The club hosts bar crawls, bowling leagues, and everything in between. 

“On Mondays, I’ll have more original local acts, and Wednesdays will be more geared towards covers to pertain to the college kids.” He continued, “Within the next year, I’d like the Wrecking Crue idea to be something steady and recognizable,” he says.

He also mentions building more local music festivals, like his WreckFest event this past Fourth of July.

“I’d like to do three or four of those a year. I had about 500 people show up for that, and it was completely free, with six local bands on the bill.” 

“They all loved it and praised the idea of giving them a stage to play on without making it difficult and saying ‘you’ve got to sell this many tickets to play with this band,’ or something like that.” 

“If there’s not anything going on Monday, Tuesday or Wednesday in this town, it’s not going to hurt anything to let a band play for free in front of people who are going to buy booze.”

Befort goes on to explain the concept behind all of his events being completely free. “My whole idea is to give bands a stage where they can promote themselves for a free show, a free night.”

“And I give away free beer too,” he adds. “I have a ticket that looks like a concert ticket but it’s still free entry at the door. I figure if I give you something physical that has some value to it like free beer, the chances of you coming out are a little better.”

“Right now local bands aren’t worried about making money, they’re worried about making sure people see them and know who they are, and that’s what I do.”

“The difference between a cover band and an original local band is that a cover band shows up, plays a gig, and gets paid either way. They don’t care if anyone shows up because they’re getting a guarantee. But at some venues, the local bands may not be getting anything at all and all they simply want is eyes on them and as many people there as possible. That’s my ultimate goal.”

Befort adamantly clarifies that all of the talent he books gets paid, regardless of how big or small the turnout may be. 

“Down the road, I also hope to have one or two more people helping me with this legitimately full-time that are just as passionate about doing all of this as I am,” he adds in closing.

For more information on nightly events and a full listing of upcoming concerts at Brewster’s MegaPlex, visit www.brewstersmegaplex.com. You can also check out the Wrecking Crue on Facebook.