The Loops

I'll never forget when I saw Mitch Hedberg's standup comedy LIVE at the Wiltern 7 years ago (R.I.P.) Everyone kept finishing his jokes out loud, and eventually, he got irritated and said, "Damn, I need some new material." So he walked over to a spiral notebook and started reading through it. Totally ignoring the audience. He smoked a pipe, drank a cocktail...after a few (long) minutes, he returned to the microphone.

"The Belt, or the Belt Loops....Who's the real hero? (we were silent) Take THAT motherf*ckers."

Whoa. Not only did I laugh, but my mind was blown. I did take that, Mitch. In fact, I take it everywhere I go.

In life, there are Belts and there are belt Loops.

The "belts" always make their appearance known. When you attend a big event, there's always a select few belts in the spotlight. The red carpet celebs. The high profile athletes. The f*cking Kardashians, everywhere you turn.

The belts are easy to identify in my line of work, too. They're on the stage, getting the screams and applause. They're in the greenroom, when everyone is trying to take pictures or grab an autograph. The belts are the ones people pay to see. The belts are the stars.

But where would they be without the "Loops"?

The Loops are the stage crew: showing up early, lugging equipment, setting up/breaking down, and dealing with bullshit of epic proportions.

The Loops are the sound engineers: making anyone sound better than they actually do.

The Loops are the lighting guy: forcing you dance more than you ever thought possible.

The Loops are the bartenders, servers, security, and hostesses who make sure everything is perfect for the belt and the belt fans.

The Loops are the bookers, the managers, the planners, the list-makers.

The Loops are the behind-the-scenes brains of the whole operation.

Without Loops, the belts would just hang around, without any attention, unable to perform. Without Loops, the belt would never get the credit it deserves.

So when you're at Saint Rocke this weekend, dancing your ass off to Mansions on the Moon, or seeing the legendary Leon Russell, please acknowledge The Loops.

Buy the sound men a shot. Shake the manager's hand. Tip your servers and bartenders well. Give the hostess a smile as you leave.

If you enjoy your time here: TELL A LOOP! The Loops don't do their looping to get rich and famous! They do it for the sole feeling of knowing fans appreciate it.

Your great time is the one thing that Loops care about most.

So the answer to you Mr. Hedberg, is: The Loops. They're the real hero.


KT