Meet Shaun Jay | Magician and 3D Designer

We had the good fortune of connecting with Shaun Jay and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Shaun, is there something you can share with us that those outside of the industry might not be aware of?
Most people aren’t aware of how much TIME is spent behind the scenes. For instance, it often takes several years to create a new piece for my show. Years….Yes, you read that right! What people see on stage is the culmination of what I’ve been working on for 19 years of my life compressed into 45 minutes. They are seeing the very top of the iceberg that’s peeking out from the surface.

Not only does the creative process take time, but the BUSINESS side of show business takes a tremendous amount of time.

The following is just a short list of all of the tasks that are necessary to run my business that take up time:

Marketing, outreach, follow-ups, phone calls, emails, web design, graphic design, video editing, social media posts, newsletter content writing, filming podcast episodes, editing episodes, designing new props for my show, packing props, repairing props, driving to and from venues, traveling to conferences that cater to my industry so I can learn new skills, and more!

People see and remember the show, which is the final product. Everything mentioned above is what they don’t see.

The same is true for my 3D design business. People assume that I can just press a magic button and instantly have a finished design. Definitely not the case!

This is why businesses have to charge a certain amount in order to make it worth their TIME and MONEY that the business owners have spent in order to bring the customer the finished product.

Regardless if it is a product that can be experienced (a magic show), a custom 3D design, or a service of any kind, it all takes lots of time behind the scenes to become that trusted “expert” that clients love and want. Some business owners don’t spend that time and expect the results to be the same. That never happens because most of that crucial work is done behind the scenes and underneath the surface.

One of the most commonly asked questions by prospective clients is, “Why do you charge so much if you’re only going to be on stage for just 45 minutes?”.

The answer is quite simple. It’s taken me 19 years of my time and tens of thousands of dollars of my money to create what the client experiences in those 45 minutes!

What should our readers know about your business?
Since I am a professional magician, the business is me. I am the product. Since I am my own unique individual with my own personal collection of life experiences and way of being, it is easy to set myself apart from others. Clients hire me because they enjoy me as a person. Being a professional magician has blessed me with many amazing experiences and friendships simply due to my career choice. Usually, I am hired by corporate event and meeting planners. Their main concern is to produce memorable, fun, unique, and interactive experiences…all while having the least stressful event possible.

This is where I come in to play.

Whether it be increasing interaction by breaking the ice during cocktail hour or presenting a fun and interactive keynote onstage, I am able to help ensure that the event attendees first and foremost have fun and move into a more relaxed state of mind. Secondly, I work very hard to ensure that each event is memorable and in turn, makes the event planner look awesome! It truly is a win-win for everyone involved.

Another aspect that sets me apart is my other facets of my career. I am a creative consultant for one of the world’s most respected inventors of magic tricks. Through the magic of 3D design and 3D printing (my other business), I am able to prototype and bring to fruition some of the most creative and stunning magic illusions which are then sold to other magicians across the globe. This puts me in an advantageous position, helping me to think in different and radical new ways. This way of thinking allows me to solve event planner’s problems in ways which they may never have even thought of before. I also use these skills to create new illusions for my own show. In fact, there are several pieces in my show that use props that I designed using CAD software and 3D printed on my personal printers.

Prior to becoming a magician, I was and still am a musician. Being musically inclined allows me to have a natural rhythm with almost everything that I do. This natural rhythm allows me pick up on the rhythm and pace of others and helps me to quickly adapt to situations on the go. For instance, many performers have a scripted show. Although I rely on scripting, I have very little fear of things going wrong due to my ability to quickly adapt and think on my feet, allowing me to improv when necessary and have some amazing byplay with my audience. add to the production value of my show as I specialize in hand percussion and freestyle rap which get interwoven into my show along with the other above mentioned skills. The musical skills along with the other above mentioned 3D design and printing allows me to bring very unique experiences to my clients that that can’t be found anywhere else.

I got into magic when I was 12 years old and started as a street performer (busker is the technical term). This was a great training ground for me and helped me accelerate my growth as a performer due to the sheer number of shows I was doing every weekend. 7 shows a day on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. That’s 21 shows a week. This allowed me to connect with all different types of people from all walks of life and has served me well over the years.

I have to give my mother full credit for allowing me to pursue my passion and turn it into a business. In fact, she was the first person who really pushed and vouched for my success. From driving me to shows before I had a license to helping brainstorm business ideas, she always had my best interest in heart. Due to her immense support, I would certainly consider it a family business.

It certainly wasn’t easy and still isn’t easy. When I decided to pursue a career in the performing arts, my stepfather was very much against it. He would frequently make his opinions vocal and would get into heated arguments with my mother. It was always viewed as a “passing hobby” and that I should “get a real job”. I can now say that after being in show business for almost twenty years now that if an artist is doing it right, it definitely is a real job. It is a difficult job. There is a LOT of hard work that goes on behind the scenes that nobody sees. Now that I am making a full time living with all of my passions, he is finally understanding that it is possible and respects me more than he did when I was growing up.

I overcame these challenges by first getting mad. Real mad. I was mad at my stepfather. I was mad that there was so much push back. I was mad that people weren’t taking me seriously and were jealous of my skills. I then channeled this anger and frustration into an extreme work ethic that has allowed me to “prove him wrong”. Of course, my mother’s support was a big part of the equation. It was nice to have someone that understood me and that I could talk to. Although that is what helped to propel me to where I am today, that is not my purpose behind everything that I do. I believe artistic expression has a lot to do with it. Both my mother and father are natural artists so I couldn’t help but grow up around the arts. My mother is a photographer by trade. She did, however, tell me that when she was little, she wanted to be one of the following things when she grew up: a photographer, a veterinarian, or a magician. I became the magician and she became the photographer!

Being self employed and running multiple businesses have allowed me to learn the importance of hard work, persistence, and to never let someone else dictate your dreams or career path. I’m all about teams. In fact, it takes a team to be successful. You, as the business owner, have a big advantage if you can figure out how to be self reliant. Self reliance is a beautiful thing as it is usually the ONLY thing that will carry you through challenging times. Since we all are flawed humans, it also helps to have some type of spiritual foundation as well. All of these things combined together can certainly help a business owner weather the rocky road ahead.

I’d like the world to know that my brand and story are 100% genuine. What you see and hear is really what you get. Everything that I do that extends from my business is an extension of who I am as a unique individual. Whether it be performing on TV shows like Masters of Illusion on The CW Network, or building props for viral videos like the giant “Ryan Trahan Penny” that Ryan delivered to MrBeast at the end of his 30 day challenge YouTube series, people will remember me and the legacy of astonishing accomplishments that seem to follow me along the way.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
If someone came to visit me in Raleigh, NC, I’d take them first to the NC Museum of Art. It’s a lovely place with so many things to see and do there. Not only do they have two different indoor museums (classical and modern), they have an amazing outdoor park with outdoor art installations and a trail that goes for miles.

Another day, I’d take them to Falls Lake and we’d rent a canoe and go boating out on the lake!

Since NC has access to both the mountains and beach, I’d try to hit up both while my friends are in town. Maybe a few days at the beach and a few days in the mountains? That might be stretching it but hey, this is what makes North Carolina amazing! The outer banks have beautiful beaches and sand dunes. In the mountains, we would visit the Blue Ridge Parkway in Asheville and stop to see the beautiful overlooks and greenery. The overlook at Blowing Rock in Boone NC is truly magical and must be experienced to be believed.

I don’t drink so bars would be skipped.

There are numerous amazing restaurants, too many to count for all types of foodies, so it would depend on what my friends and I would agree on.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
My Mother: For always supporting my passions and helping and encouraging me to turn them into businesses.

Michael Creech: For being my original mentor, sharing so much real-world wisdom that has served me well.

Jeff McBride: For helping me to take my show and career to the next level.

Tobias Beckwith: For being incredibly supportive and sharing deep business wisdom that has helped guide my career in the right direction.

Website: https://shaunjaymagic.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/shaunjaymagic/

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shaunjaymagic/

Twitter: https://mobile.twitter.com/shaunjaymagic

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/shaunjaymagician

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/shaunjaymagic

Other: 3D Design Business: https://utilitygaffs.com Making Magic Podcast: Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/making-magic-with-shaun-jay/id1567396550 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/5di7oMwVwB1D4ddCxEa3Pg Video Interviews: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLRNzAWYLU_NC-tUIlbTa_TJnCQehJpkCC

Image Credits
Lara D.