Chubby
Chubby’s “Path”
My life started out typical but is sure has taken some strange turns. I was born in Youngstown, Ohio and was raised in the small town of Canfield, Ohio. My mom used to buy rock and roll records and play them for me and my brother Jeff. The first song I really remember hearing was Elvis “Jailhouse Rock”. After seeing the Beatles perform for the first time on The Ed Sullivan Show ((their first song was All My Loving and yes, I now have my tattoo commerating this historical event), I was permanently hooked on music. After graduating from Canfield High School in 1973, I attended Bowling Green State University (in Ohio) and obtained a degree in business administration with a concentration in accounting. During my college years, I never abandoned my love for music. In fact I worked for FREE as a DJ at the college radio station and always handled the music (along with my good buddy/roommate Termite) for the many parties I had with my BGSU friends (I really love all of you!).
After college graduation, I worked and lived in the Cleveland, Ohio area for a couple of years before accepting a transfer to North Carolina (I always hated cold weather!). In 1984, I and my family (wife Sue and sons David and newly born Brian) relocated to Charlotte, NC where I continued to work in the accounting profession but my love of music continued to distract me. I started a mobile DJ service, performing at pool parties, wedding receptions and class reunions.
In 1989, my life took a major turn. I heard about this new thing called karaoke and went to see it at a bar, in hopes of adding it as an “upsell” to my customers. I watched in total amazement as I saw ordinary people like me get up and sing in front of total strangers. That night I told my wife that I wanted to do karaoke as a business and stop my DJ work. I was totally hooked! The karaoke equipment back then was pretty expensive and there weren’t many song selections available. But I was convinced that his entertainment would get very big very fast. After being turned down for a loan by bank after bank, (I had a business plan…remember I was an accountant), my wife reluctantly agreed to second mortgage our house and I bought my first karaoke system in July, 1989.
I immediately got my first weekly karaoke gig (Sunset Bar & Grill on East Blvd in Charlotte). After that first night of karaoke, it was over. Over the next couple of years, I worked on expanding my karaoke business while becoming more and more torn between my “traditional” life (accounting) and my “off the wall” life (running karaoke shows). Somewhere in the mid-90s, Sound Choice (at that time a manufacturer of karaoke sing-along cassette tapes) sent one of their employees to talk with and get some “field” feedback from a working KJ (karaoke host). His name was Steve B. and to this day we have remained friends. Anyway, long story short, I wound -up going to work for Sound Choice, overseeing the design, launch and marketing of their CDG (compact disc with graphics) karaoke line. While I was at SC, they became the undisputed leader in the CDG market, bringing much requested songs from the past through the present. Man, I had some great times working there..
Yearning for something more, I left Sound Choice and decided to expand my mobile karaoke business. In the mid 90’s, my first wife Sue and I divorced (but we still remain friends to this day). Sometime in 1997, I met my future wife Trinity, a California girl who also had a passion for karaoke (you can read about her bio by clicking HERE). Trinity actually found me on the internet. One night I received and IM (instant message) from this unknown person asking “Is this the real Chubby?” I replied “I don’t know if I am THE Chubby, I am just A Chubby”… The rest is history. Trinity and I were married in Walnut Creek (outside San Francisco) in July, 1999. Trinity was instrumental in expanding Chubby’s Karaoke in the Charlotte market and we are currently the largest AND longest running karaoke entertainment company in the area.
Now the next part of the story. After visiting Cancun a few times on vacation, Trinity and I recognized that there might be some business opportunities for us in Cancun. Fortunately Trinity is as adventurous as I am and agreed to move to Cancun. Unfortunately our first try at business in Cancun was a complete failure from a financial standpoint. The good news is we made some awesome contacts (thank you Greg Lutz and ultimately Richard Sutton)….and after one year, we decided to get back to what we know bestKARAOKE! The contacts brought us to the Royal Resorts where we currently have taken their karaoke shows to an unprecedented success level. In November, 2007 we helped the Royal Resorts open Pancho & Willy’s where we currently run 5 karaoke nights per week along with 5 shows inside the Royal Resorts (which are open only to the Royal Resorts guests). In the fall of 2005, Trinity became the Manager of Special Events for the Royal Resorts, where she coordinates weddings on the beach, vow renewals, family reunions and other events.and believe me, she really has her hands full !!
Trinity and I split time between Charlotte and Cancun and we are very grateful to the many loyal karaoke friends in Charlotte who have continued to support our karaoke shows there. And we have met some GREAT “karaoke friends” here in Cancun. Additionally, we are exploring ways of expanding our business.
CHUBBY UPDATE!! Well, my career has taken yet another turn. Somewhere during the final months of 2006, I was asked to officiate a wedding on the beach. After doing some exploring, I got ordained on the internet (yes, I can marry couples in Las Vegas). Pastor Chubby did his first wedding in Dec, 2006. Since that time, I have officiated both weddings and vow renewals, bringing my own special ways to these special events. Just know that in Cancun, only Mexican judges can perform “legally binding” weddings so when I do perform as Pastor Chubby, I do so in only in a “spiritual way”. I am very grateful to God for giving me the insight and opportunity to be in involved in couples’ weddings and vow renewals. If you are interested in having me officiate at your wedding or vow renewal, please contact me.
