My Music Row Story: Gulf Coast Jam’s Rendy Lovelady

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Rendy Lovelady. Photo: Mike Fender

Gulf Coast Jam Co-Founder Rendy Lovelady has built a career as a manager, concert producer and entrepreneur, helping shape the careers of artists across multiple genres. He spent 13 years working on the road with artists including Fleetwood Mac, Van Halen, Mötley Crüe, Bon Jovi, Michael Sweet and Stryper, gaining firsthand insight into the demands of touring and the music business.

As a manager, Lovelady represented artists including Dino, Carmen, Jars of Clay, Danny Gokey, Marty Stuart, Michael O’Brien, Shelly Fairchild, Love & Theft, Justifide, FLOORD and The Kicks. He was also instrumental in discovering and developing Grammy-winning country group Little Big Town.

Lovelady later expanded into concert and festival production, producing Tennessee River Run and founding festivals including BamaJam, Gulf Coast Jam, SandJam and SpringJam. Now in its 14th year, Gulf Coast Jam has grown into one of the Southeast’s largest country music festivals. The event has earned recognition from Billboard, People and Music Festival Wizard, while its 2023 and 2024 editions sold out ahead of the festival dates.

He has also supported voter registration efforts through Rock the Vote and his 2002 Love Your Country, Vote campaign. His commitment to the military is reflected through Gulf Coast Jam’s annual military initiatives and enlistment ceremonies. In recognition of his support, Tyndall Air Force Base named him Honorary Commander of the 601st Air Operations Center.

Lovelady earned his undergraduate degree from Mississippi College and a master’s degree from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary.

MusicRow: Where did you grow up?

I was born in New Orleans, Louisiana and lived there through high school. 

Tell me a little bit about your upbringing.

My father was a Southern Baptist minister, and my mother worked for South Central Bell. I was raised a preacher’s kid and basically ate, drank and slept football, thinking that was going to be my life’s calling. I also used to play drums in a local rock band in New Orleans. 

When I was a kid, I went to work for Messina Presents in New Orleans. I swept floors and pulled cables and did whatever the Messina brothers needed me to do. In high school, I worked with them on promoting some shows. 

Where did you go to college?

I went to college in Mississippi and played college football.

How did you decide to go into the music business full-time?

After college, I went back to New Orleans to work for the Messina brothers, which was Pace Concerts at that time. I worked as a promoter rep. I also started going into different roles in touring from tour manager to production manager too.

I did some work with Van Halen, Motley Crue, Fleetwood Mac and Bon Jovi.

What was after Pace Concerts?

After 12 years on the road I started my own management company, Rendy Lovelady Management. 

Was the management company how you got to Nashville?

I started the company out of New Orleans but eventually moved to Nashville. When I first moved to Nashville, I was mostly in the rock world. Jars Of Clay was my first client and we had a very successful run. 

All the years of experience from road work prepped me to be able to represent my client from all different aspects of reality. Also my work as a promoter helps me understand both the agent and manager perspective. I tried to get wins for everybody. 

How did you end up breaking into the country scene?

Karen [Fairchild] and Kimberly [Schlapman] were friends of mine. We sat down and put together a vision and started Little Big Town. We played in clubs and traveled everywhere playing shows. They were absolute troopers. They wanted it bad and went after it. I was with them for 15 years. 

After your management company, how did you move into the festival space? 

One of my management clients was Darryl Worley, and he created the Tennessee River Run festival. I worked with him on that for a while, and then became a part of the BamaJam enterprise out of Alabama. Bama Jam eventually turned into Gulf Coast Jam, which is where I am now.

Tell me a little bit about those first days of Gulf Coast Jam.

BamaJam had some legal issues come up with the property. So my business partner, Mark Sheldon, and I started looking for a place to move BamaJam. Looking for places that were willing to host a four-day event was a major undertaking. 

Panama City Beach became a real strong possibility once we looked at our ticket sales and realized a lot of them were coming out of the Panhandle. So we went there and it was a different kind of festival because it wasn’t a festival that included camping or anything like that. We started a festival that is a tourism-based festival.

We were able to create a package where they will come and stay four to five nights in Panama City Beach, as well as come to a festival. They really welcomed us.

Now we are going into our 15th year, and Panama City Beach is now known for being musically based because of Gulf Coast Jam. We always say our fifth headliner for the festival is the beach.

How has the festival grown over the last 15 years?

The last four years have been our biggest, most successful years, and it’s prospered and grown to where it is now. We have people attend from all 50 states. and nine countries, averaging around 26,000 people per day. 

What do you do day-to-day for the festival right now?

Principally my job is to book the talent for the show and then run the entire backstage production area for the show.

What have been the biggest changes over the last 15 years?

The show itself. We just had Post Malone this year, and he bought his whole entire stadium production with him, and it actually mesmerized my crowd. I’ve been in the rock business, country business, production business, show business for 40 something years, and his show was one of the best shows I’ve ever seen.

Even the direct and indirect support are bringing a whole semi-full of production. Their shows have just gotten so much better. The element of show business and country music is through the roof. We have attendees on our survey mention they aren’t even country music fans, but they love Gulf Coast Jam. It’s a huge compliment. 

Who have some of your mentors been?

Louis Messina and Charlie Messina. When I was first learning and young and didn’t have a clue, they had a large influence. Mike Duncan and Mike Krasky both played huge mentor roles as well. Joe Galante as well. He is a part of my ownership team with Gulf Coast Jam, which feels full circle.

In the agency business, John Huie as well. He and I broke Jars of Clay and Little Big Town together. I call him brother and friend, and he played a huge influence in my life. 

What’s some of the best advice you’ve ever gotten?

Joe Galante told me “Just make sure you represent the business well.”

What’s a moment that your little kid self would be proud of?

My greatest pride is the pictures of my family. I want my legacy to be not the fact that I have done this business for 40 years and have all this success. I want my legacy to be that I was a good man, I believed in my faith, and I believed in his family. 

Madison Hahnen
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