Tanya Rivers (Robbie LaTanya Rivers)... continued

Tanya quickly made her mark in the music industry and became noted for her expertise in working with musicians and taking care of business communications.  She established solid working relationships with radio stations, churches and performance venues everywhere she traveled.  Known for having an innate ability to deliver musicians on time for their scheduled performances, Tanya became a highly coveted professional.  Her grandmother soon began receiving constant calls and letters from other musicians requesting the opportunity to have Tanya work with them. 

Although Tanya loved touring with the musicians, her grandfather did not look favorably on the situation.  He feared she would drop out of school, so on her 16th birthday, he offered her the opportunity to head the record department of the family business, which included buying and selling with her keeping the profits if she was successful.  Additionally, he would allow her to open her own record store for which he would pay the rent until she was 19.  The prospect of having her own business and being able to select her own music was enough to persuade Tanya to give up touring at least temporarily. 

Within a year, Tanya and her grandmother had devised a plan to handle their own promotions independent of their church music department, which allowed them to bring in a wider variety of musicians, including blues, bluegrass and rock-a-billy for a festival.  Additionally, they brought in vendors for food and beverage sales.  With the risk of antagonizing her grandfather, they opted to hold their festival on a friend’s 45-acre parcel instead of on their own farm.   

Together with the profits of her record sales and her grandmother’s savvy PR techniques, they enlisted the help of a friend at a local radio station and began marketing their music festival.  They promoted the top genre artists such as Mahalia Jackson in the gospel spotlight, blues greats like Freddy King, Little Jack Jones and Big Mama Thornton, plus two jazz artists along with numerous local talents including female guitarist Ellie Mae Hunter, also one of Tanya’s own neighbors.  Miss Hunter, known for her uncannily powerful guitar renditions struck an emotional chord within Tanya that rang true blue rock-n-roll.  

Their music festival was an incredible success which led to more events and more artists.  Tanya gained credibility as one of the strongest promoters in the area with a commitment to do whatever it took to promote her artists, who loved her for her dedication and integrity.  She took care of everything from the big concerns to the smallest of details ensuring complete success of their performances. 

By 1964, Tanya’s preferred taste in music was changing significantly.  She had gone from playing old favorites and listening to the AM buzz to the audio waves of FM radio with songs filled with powerful guitar licks like those of the Kinks, Cream, the Rolling Stones, Led Zeppelin and Fleetwood Mac just for starters.  When she started stocking her record store with albums by these artists plus those of Sly and the Family Stone, Deep Purple, Santana and more, Tanya’s family thought she had surely gone mad. 

Realizing that she was headed in a new direction, Tanya’s grandmother suggested that she might find better success working in an area that would embrace rock-n-roll music.  Tanya was both hurt and disappointed at her firing from the family business.  She wanted to share her love of this newfound music within her current community but it was not well received.  

Not to be dismayed, Tanya applied for a job with Trans America Records soon thereafter and began cashiering in the largest record store in Dallas Texas.  Within two months, she had earned her way to manager at two of their stores, one in North Dallas and the other in Mesquite, Texas. 

Tanya soon realized that the vast experience she had gained in working for her grandparents would serve her well in her new management position.  During her management tenure at Trans America Records, she served as the buyer in addition to directing personnel for each of her stores.  She also handled the marketing and Public Relations end of the business, which included setting up meet-and-greet sessions and small in-store concerts with the artists.  Through the contacts she had established and maintained from her touring experience, she negotiated additional performances for many artists. 

Much to the dismay of the local community, Tanya worked diligently to secure performance contracts for new unheard of talent.  She was one of the earliest music professionals to have the opportunity to work with Jimi Hendrix and Janis Joplin before they achieved recognition for their musical genius. 

If there is any essential that Tanya brings to artists today, it is the genuine commitment to see each artist through just as she did in her work with Jimi Hendrix and Janis Joplin.  How monotone might be the musical tapestry of the past fifty years, had not Tanya known innately that what she heard was indeed kismet and destined to be legendary.   

Just as Tanya’s career in the music industry was burgeoning, she fell victim to the reality that rock music was not highly appreciated in the South.  With significant status in the community, her grandfather continually advised her to get a real job.  His advice became a demand when he received a call one evening that Tanya had been involved in a fight in a local club on the south side of Ft. Worth. 

In reality, Tanya was trying to restore peace in a club in which she had landed a gig for Jimi Hendrix.  It was apparent as beer bottles flew that the audience did not have much appreciation for Jimi’s repertoire when he shifted licks from playing the blues into a compelling rock-n-roll set.  There would be no further discussion about Tanya’s career in the music industry.  As far as her grandfather was concerned, it ended that night in Ft. Worth. 

Reconciled to the pursuit of a new career, Tanya began what became a noted 30-year career with telecommunications giant Pacific Bell.  She exemplified the same qualities of leadership in her new career as she had demonstrated in her work with Trans America Records and advanced consistently through the ranks from being a 411 operator to all the way to her final position as Translation Manager.  By the time she left Pacific Bell, she directed 42 telecommunications professionals in all capacities of their work. 

In November of 2000, Tanya moved to TelePacific Communications, for which she served as the Director of network Operations and was promoted to Executive Director by August of 2001. She continued to demonstrate an innate ability to lead in the direction of 2 managers, 25 technical associates, plus, the call center. Her contributions were significant in all major and priority accounts, particularly her finely honed communication and investigatory skills, which she used in negotiating and resolving concerns with clients in face-to-face field visits.  She was also a valuable member of the weekly report meetings with TelePacific’s CEO.     

Although Tanya achieved success in her newfound work in the telecommunications industry, she has never wavered in her steadfast love of music and her commitment to helping others achieve success.  Her decisive leadership earned her the office of President of Managers in Business in 2001, which is a mentoring initiative that supports the development of new supervisors in advancing leadership at SBC. In further recognition of her leadership contributions, the Los Angeles Women of the NAACP awarded Tanya their Joan J. Willis Leadership Award in October of 2001. 

Forever in love with rock-n-roll and heavy metal music, Tanya has been directly involved in the ongoing work of the International House of Blues Foundation for the past 13 years.  Her work is instrumental in helping support its programs demonstrating the significant impact of music upon modern culture.   

Tanya is a member of the Beverly Hills Museum of Television and Radio. She has also been a 22-year subscriber of the Hollywood Bowl. Her additional venue associations include VIP membership with the Kodak Theatre and PMC, which includes membership with the Greek Theatre, the Pacific Amphitheatre and the Anaheim Grove Theatre.  

Launching an enthusiastic return to the music industry, Tanya is currently working with the heavy metal band Prowler, jam band Highway Stars and The Howard Johnson Experience Band.  Her plans include promoting three concerts in 2007 as well as creating a yearly music scholarship sponsoring three at-risk youths.  She is also working on the development of a summer camp for youths who are interested in pursuing an education in music. Tanya has established a Music Club called TSS Music Connection, a group or 10 designed to inform and support Musicicians. 

Now after retiring of 35 Years in the TeleCommunication Business, Tanya has returned to her first love, the Music Industry.