Team Ez Entertainment: A Guide on How to be an EDC Performer

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It is an obvious statement that the EDM industry has been on a serious incline over the past 5 years. Since the beginning of this rise, it has been every fan, journalist, promoter, and DJs motive to find out everything they can about this industry. The structures of successful show production, the theories of fandom and their fashion, and the reasons why some Producer/DJs become mega famous have all been analyzed, diagnosed, and reported on. Today, we basically know all the answers to the most thought provoking questions about the industry. However, there is one community within the EDM industry that hasn’t been explored in extreme depth before—the performers. It baffles my mind that there has never been a close look on these outrageously outgoing and creative people that are a big focus at every EDM festival, whose job is to create and sustain an illusion while entertaining the public.
Instead of starting off my research on a smaller scale I decided to go bigger—in fact, I’m going huge. This year at EDC Vegas I signed up to follow one of my favorite performance teams: Team Ez. The infamous go-go dancer MsEasy conducts Team Ez, which is a collection of go-go dancers, stilt walkers, aerialist, jugglers, and so much more. MsEasy has done so well that she and her team has become a household name. Every girl wants to be her, every guy wants to be with her, and getting on her team is a difficult task.

This year, I really wanted to tap into what it takes to be an EDC Las Vegas performer—or I mean, THE EDC Las Vegas performer. Team Ez is the glue that holds EDC together—they are the painted faces we all associate the festival with because they’re the EDC clown troop. With names like Peezy, Plurpies, and Wedgie they are there to emphasize the fun and free environment that Insomniac wants to produce. Only a few can make it on to Team Ez for EDC and I have finally dialed in to what that is, how to do it, and what it takes. With words from MsEasy herself and my own observations, I am going to give you a list of 10 things on what it takes to be an EDC performer, from the clown perspective:

1. Have the ability to perform.
Whether you are a dancer, stilt walker, or an actor you will need to be the crème de le crème of your kind. When everyone is in their clown makeup, they have to be the clown until it comes off. The Team Ez clowns have to talk in high pitched “clown” voices, act all silly and goofy around fans, be able to make jokes on the spot, and make different funny faces for each fan photo. It sounds like it could be easy but there really is an art to it. Having the ability to perform is hard to come by and it takes a lot of time and skill to perfect it to the level that Team Ez requires. MsEasy proclaims, “It takes a special kind of person to embody the passion of character acting that the members of Team Ez possesses. You can’t take yourself too seriously to clown around and each member has to ‘become’ their clown alter ego.”

2. Have a personality.
I think this falls hand in hand with having the ability to perform. Having a fun and outgoing personality enhances their performance. Good energy is necessary because it helps create and sustain the playful atmosphere. If you are shy and timid, this is not the job for you—unless your job is to be perceived as shy and timid!

3. Be prepared to work long hours.
Team Ez had to be at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway at 2PM Friday and Saturday and at 3PM on Sunday. They had to practice choreography for the “Night Owl Experience” with all the other performance troops. Then, they had to get ready and MsEasy had to prep them on how to be a good clown. Lastly, they have to be fully prepared for when the gates opened around 6:30-7PM. “The days can be up to 14+ hours long with our company being onsite till the gates close at dawn each morning,” MsEasy says. From my understanding, the performers got done each night around 4AM and had to take off their clown makeup before they left, which left them in the horrendous EDC traffic around 5-5:30AM and not making it to bed until 7AM. They wake up after a couple hours of sleep and then repeat.

4. Have great physical endurance.
Not only do you have to be prepared to work long hours on minimal sleep, you have to be ready to work your body to the point of exhaustion and still endure it all. The girls and guys do get to take hour breaks here and there but when the clown troop is off to make its rounds it goes for as long as three hours—having to hit most of the stages and interact with fans along the way. Spending a couple of hours with them was exhausting for me and it is hard for me to imagine dancing, stilting, and goofing around on top of that! This job is not for the faint of heart.

5. No partying allowed.
When some people think about being a part of the largest EDM festival in the U.S., they think that it is all glitz and glamour with little work and mostly play. But, the fact of the matter is that being a part of Team Ez is the opposite. The performers are not allowed to drink or take any drugs while they are performing or during the festival weekend. When the members of Team Ez are not performing, they need to keep the team’s reputation in good order. Team Ez is the best in the business and is held in high respect with promoters around the U.S. You will get cut for gaining a reputation of being a “party girl” or “party boy.” Just like any other job, it has to be taken seriously.

6. Have passion.
Having a passion to perform is a attribute that is necessary to become apart of Team Ez. If you don’t have passion the blood, sweat, and tears wouldn’t be worth it in the end. All of the Team Ez performers exude passion and I think that is the number one quality of this troop because enthusiasm is contagious. The girls and guys love what they do and how they make people feel. And, on the other end the girls and guys of EDC love to interact with them and it makes them feel more apart of the EDM movement. MsEasy states, “We feel honored to be able to do that for people on an individual basis. Our ability to interact so personally with the customers and give them something to remember is what I love most about our clown team.”

7. Be a team player.
The performers need to be ready to stand on their own two feet to enhance the team to fan experience for everyone. At any moment in time, they might need to hop in on a group of fans together to play off the other teammate. When I was on the grounds with them on Sunday I overheard one of the clowns say “Oh, your bra is so pretty and sparkly,” and another clown jumped in immediately saying “but why can’t we see your butt? I think raver girls should let it all hang out!” The clowns that are dancers also need to know how to play off another member when dancing on stage. Also, there are specific choreographed moves made just for the clowns. When one dancer sees another dancing a certain routine out of their peripheral vision they need to adapt quickly. If one clown didn’t act the part it would make the illusion seem weaker so it is extremely important to be a team player.

8. Need to be a quick learner.
Every year there are new clowns coming in to the Team Ez EDC family. Being able to adapt quickly into the clown persona is extremely important. As I mentioned above, it one clown is falling behind on their acting abilities it will make the whole team not look as powerful. But, since MsEasy is really great at what she does the team is always on point on bringing their A-game the whole time. From what I hear, she teaches everything from how to pose in front of a camera, to dance choreography and acting, and how to interact with the fans. It is an overwhelming amount of information to remember. If you can’t adapt and keep up then being an EDC clown is not for you. Learn quickly, adjust quickly, and react quickly.

9. Be tough.
You do have to be tough in the physical sense but more importantly you have to be tough in the emotional and mental sense. It takes a lot of courage to stand up and perform in front of over 100,000 people. I’m sure every now and then some of the performers of Team Ez get a weak stomach because of the large crowds. But, what sets them apart is that they push through it and in the end they are rewarded with great feelings of accomplishment.

10. Being Ez is not easy.
This is the best way I can describe MsEasy and her team. Being Ez is not easy. Behind all of the fun, glitz, and glam there is a lot of work and effort put into it. You know the saying “work hard, play hard?” Team Ez is all about doing it all at the same time. You need to work hard to muster up the energy to endure the pain and the long hours in heavy caked-on clown make up. But, when the clowns are out and about they are having the time of their lives creating memories for themselves as well as everyone around them.
Throughout this article, I have commenced some missing pieces about the performance troops—specifically Team Ez—at our favorite EDM festivals. I have found that hanging around MsEasy and her team over the EDC Vegas weekend has been an incredibly humble experience. It takes a whole lot more work to perform at EDC than I thought. For a typical average person like myself I find some of their work excruciating. Nevertheless, they hold their ground and they have a lot of fun doing it. Insomniac does it right when it comes to festivals because they are all about “the experience.” By adding a gaggle of performance troops, including Team Ez, it really enhances the EDC experience. I believe everyone should take a moment to appreciate how much work these troops put in just for us, the fans. EDC is our mega-carnival rave dream world and it wouldn’t be the same without the performers and the infamous Team Ez clowns.

For future Team Ez hopefuls MsEasy has some words for you: “Any potential EDC hopefuls should make a clear demo real of themselves to submit that shows their act and ability clearly. Secondly, have a professional resume that is uncluttered and informative. Thirdly, represent yourself well on this resume by backing up your application with accredited studies and performances under your belt. Woody Allen once said, ‘80 percent of success is showing up.’ He was right! Work towards it and submit your information to be considered. You can do so here: TeamEz@MseasyDoesIt.com!