Patricia Gilbert began her career in Rock N Roll as a model for Charvel/Jackson Guitars and Ross Amplification in the 80’s. By the age of 18, Patricia went on to be the Artist Relations Representative for Japan-based Fernandes Guitars, working with great acts ranging from PANTERA to ZZ TOP. She later founded and became the CEO/President of Fernandes Guitars USA Division, specializing in building custom guitars for top performing music artists. Today, Patricia has combined her love of working in the entertainment biz with her passion for Real Estate and joins forces with Road Dog Group out of Las Vegas.
The Metal Den’s Randy “Rocket” Cody has conducted an exclusive interview with Patricia Gilbert for his loyal worldwide Den Headz.
Rocket: Where were you born and raised?
Patricia: I was born in Tachikawa, Japan and raised in Benbrook, Texas (a small town near the Dallas/Ft. Worth area).
Rocket: Do you recall your first rock concert?
Patricia: Yes, I remember it as if it were yesterday. At the age of 15, I was a photographers assistant and had the great pleasure of working with “Foreigner” and “Dio” in the same week. The experience changed my life forever.
Rocket: Who were some of the other bands that you enjoyed most while growing up?
Patricia: I enjoy and listen to ALL music but I am proud to admit that I am a product of the 1980’s music scene. While growing up I enjoyed bands such as Pantera, Queensryche, Dio, Motley Crue, Ratt, Dokken, Skid Row, Def Leppard, Firehouse, Foreigner…the list goes on and on.
Rocket: You modeled quite a bit first before starting with Fernandes Guitars, correct? Why did you decide to change careers?
Patricia: Yes I did, however, I did not enjoy the modeling business. It was something that my parents and friends suggested that I do from a very young age. I wanted to be known for my brains more than beauty. At 15, while working with the band “Foreigner”, I was able to be a part of the “set up and tear down” of their live stage and production inside Reunion Arena in Dallas, Texas (sold out capacity of 19,000 people). It was then that I realized the music business was my passion. I was fascinated by the entire process and the people were all super cool. I felt like I “belonged”. I still, to this day, credit the band “Foreigner” for leading me on my musical journey.
Rocket: How has your time in the music industry affected you – in a positive way – now that you’ve worked in it for so many years?
Patricia: Music is a way of life for me. It brings me up when I am down, gives me energy and keeps me young. It has enabled me to travel around the world. But the most positive thing is all the wonderful friendships I have made along the way. I have been so fortunate to meet and work with the greatest people. The best connections and friendships of a lifetime.
Rocket: You also worked in rock photography too, which is really cool. Is that something that just sort of happened by accident or did you always have an interest for that?
Patricia: It happened by accident. When I was a model, I had the great pleasure of meeting a friend who was a professional photographer in the music world. I worked with him as a model and did several photo shoots for Charvel/Jackson and Ross Amplification. One day at a photo shoot I told him that I didn’t really want to be a model and preferred being on the business end. That is when he asked me to assist with photography. When I was 18 years old, my photographer friend had moved to Japan and began working with Fernandes Guitars. He invited me to a NAMM show where I met the president of the company and began my new job as an Artist Relations Representative. A few short years later, I began and was head of Fernandes Guitars, U.S.A. Division. However, I do enjoy photography (more than ever) to this day.
Rocket: What would you say are the most popular rock venues right now in Las Vegas?
Patricia: Las Vegas is, most definitely, the entertainment capital of the world! We have The Joint at the Hard Rock Hotel, MGM Grand Garden Arena, Mandalay Bay Events Center, the House of Blues at Mandalay Bay, The Crown Theater inside the Rio, the Pearl Theater at the Palms Casino, Ovation inside Green Valley Ranch, Club Madrid at Sunset Station, Chrome at Sante Fe Station, Vamp’d, and the outdoor stages at the Fremont Street Experience in downtown Las Vegas. The list is seemingly endless…those are just a few of my favorites.
Rocket: Have you seen any good concerts recently?
Patricia: I go to as many concerts as possible. I love music! Recently saw Candlebox, Santana, Sin City Sinners, Gladys Knight, Steel Panther, and Cinderella. Like I said before, I enjoy ALL music and especially want to support local musicians.
Rocket: Very cool! Okay, now what is the Road Dog Group and how exactly are you involved with them?
Patricia: Road Dog Group is a Las Vegas company that focuses on two business lines. Their main focus is helping entertainment professionals through the real estate process. Road guys are on the road month after month and we’ve found that they were not getting the help they needed when looking for homes to buy, trying to sell their home or even finding a rental. We fill that gap and make sure our guys get the best real estate service possible. Our other line of business is Road Dog Services. To put it simply, we take care of homes and pets when the owner is away. We’ll go into a home and make sure the plants are watered, the mail is picked up, the animals are fed and well taken care of. We make sure the guys tasked with pulling the weeds are doing their job, that the house is secure and basically anything else the client needs done. Of course there are limits but our clients have found that more often than not we can help them and they don’t have to worry when they are out on the road. I am in charge of Business Development, promoting and marketing this amazing company.
Rocket: With the economy the way it is, how has that affected the home sale market where you’re located? I know Vinnie Paul just bought a house for super cheap in Vegas, and so many others are doing the same. I mean, of anytime, as I understand it, now is the time to buy, right?
Patricia: Housing prices in the Las Vegas area are now below what they were in 2000. Prices are certainly lower. We don’t like to make blanket statements about when is the time to buy because it’s all relative to the prospective buyer. We are seeing some great deals out there though. The biggest change we’ve seen during the past couple of years, besides price levels, is the amount of cash buyers vs financed buyers. Right now cash is king. That means that most of the deals going down in our neighborhood are investors. And some of those investors are road guys!
Rocket: What is the best way for potential buyers to contact you at Road Dog Group?
Patricia: The best way to get in touch with the Road Dog Group is by visiting our website: www.RoadDogGroup.com. On our site we have info on how to contact us, what we do and links to all of the properties we currently have up for sale. You can also find us on Facebook at http://www.Facebook.com/RoadDogGroup
Rocket: Thanks for rocking this out with me. Best of luck with it all moving forward. Go ahead and give thanks out to your biggest supporters.
Patricia: I would love to give a shout out and special thanks to Jason Stalter (Crew Chief for AC/DC and Prince), George Reeves (Stage Manager for U2), Bob Fry (Crew Chief for the Black Eyed Peas), Slaughter, Paul and Carmen Shortino, Dario Lorina, The Santana Band, Candlebox, Jeff and Ravinder Pilson, The Sin City Sinners, Nawgahyde, Steel Panther, all the true Road Dogs out there, and especially to you, Randy, and your wife, Hope Cody, for making this interview possible.
http://roaddoggroup.com
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