Kevin Lyman, founder of touring music festivals such as the Vans Warped Tour and the Mayhem Festival, came to the UNM on Wednesday night to speak with a crowd about how to live life and refuse to give up, even after failing. “I’ve been invited to different campuses to talk,” Lyman said before the lecture. “It’s not just about Warped Tour … it’s also about running small businesses, being an entrepreneur and pushing boundaries and finding your own way through life.” He also talked about his past work at local punk shows in California; having the opportunity to see bands like Black Flag and the Ramones; his tenure as a stage manager at Lollapalooza in the early 90s and taking bands such as L7, Sublime and No Doubt out on the first Warped Tour in 1994. Lyman also held discussion sessions with the audience, speaking about his involvement in picking out the bands that go onto his tours.
At the end of his lecture, Lyman and UNM Special Events held a raffle for two sets of Warped Tour tickets to Las Cruces in June as well as a pair of tickets for the Mayhem Festival at Isleta Amphitheatre on July 6. Right after the raffle, Lyman stayed in the SUB Ballroom to talk with students and fans about the upcoming Warped Tour as well as up-and-coming bands.
