Iceland Airwaves Insider: Aubrey Kerr

You can’t be much more of an Airwaves Insider than Aubrey Kerr – one of three interns who are helping the festival happen. Here’s Aubrey’s report from Airwaves HQ.

I packed the night before I moved from Boulder, Colorado to Iceland. My bedroom was a complete disaster. It’s amazing how you can condense your entire life into a couple pieces of luggage, if need be.

I’m fortunate enough to be the current PR & Marketing intern for Iceland Airwaves. I had no idea what to expect when I arrived. From my point of view, having no expectations makes an experience more beautiful. Having no expectations means that you are completely open. It can be frightening because you’ll figure everything out as you move along. When it came to this internship, the only thing I was prepared for, was to go with the flow.

This will be my first year at Iceland Airwaves, and I’m looking forward to seeing Reykjavík transform. It’ll be interesting to meet these marvelous people from all over the globe, some with whom I’ve been speaking for quite some time. In one month, I’ll put a face to these names, and hopefully make some new friends along the way.

I was asked to describe what it’s like to be an intern at Airwaves. The festival is thirty days away, so, to put it simply, it’s crunch time. The three Iceland Airwaves managers are incredibly intelligent individuals. They are professional, strategic, accommodating, creative and dependable. These are people that genuinely care about putting on a great festival above all things. The office communication is constant and everybody runs through his or her ideas together.

What’s more is that the interns are there each step of the way, and every day is different. One day we’ll organize media and industry lists, the next Tine will send out contracts to Iceland Airwaves artists, then there’s helping organize the off-venue program (which is a massive project), putting the schedule together like a puzzle, all while tweeting, facebooking, blogging and staying connected to our fans. The work environment is fast-paced, authentic, and at times, very loud (in a good way). I think I speak for all of us when I say that every day feels like a Friday right now (Kamilla’s words, not mine).

To me, the most interesting part is how the festival seems to snag artists rising up to their fame – before they “go big”, so to speak. In some cases, Iceland Airwaves is what makes an artist “big”. Of course, this observation is debatable, especially with increased internet use over the years. It’s a lot harder to predict when artists’ hype will peak.

I’ve never been to Iceland Airwaves, but a piece of advice for those coming to Iceland for the first time is get out of the city and see things (if you can). Set aside time to get lost. The nature here is spectacular, and each time I get away I’m reminded why one should travel and try new things.

I may be leaving after the festival, but Reykjavík has become a second home to me. I have a feeling I’ll be returning here quite often. How lucky can a girl be?

P.S. For those of you coming to the festival, swing by the Media Center for a high-five, chat, or a hug. I look forward to meeting you!