I just spent 4 days on a boat. Go ahead, sing along…
I was fortunate to be one of the nearly 50 people who attended the Social Fresh Cruise. However, while we had an amazing time, we were not the “main attraction.” Far from it. A large chunk of the cruisers were part of the Second Annual Rick Springfield Cruise (Warning: Reggae version of Jessie’s Girl automatically plays). Nope. That wasn’t a typo. I did just write “Rick Springfield,” “Second Annual,” and “cruise” in the same sentence.
Rick Springfield
When I first heard that the Rick Springfield was going to be on our ship, I had to actually Google him. I could not recall who this dude was. I was blinded with a pages and pages of a now 60 year-old guy with long 80s hair who was often shirtless. Rick Springfield. Famous for “Jessie’s Girl” and a few other tunes (I think, although I couldn’t recall any other songs he was known for).
So, we were on a cruise with Rick (freaking) Springfield. Rick was joined by Richard Marx, Mark Goodman (MTV, VH1 & Sirius/XM Radio), Doug Davidson (Young & the Restless, Paul Williams), and Brandon Barash (General Hospital, Johnny Zacchara). But that’s not all. As mentioned above, Rick Springfield was flocked by hundreds of raving groupies.
Fans Versus Groupies
I intentionally didn’t call the Rick Springfield posse “fans” as that word is not really strong enough to describe them. Fans buy albums. Fans go to concerts. Fans talk about artists and swap music.
Groupies drop $1200+ to spend 4 days on a boat with Rick Springfield. Groupies don “Jessie’s Girl” and “Rocking with Rick” t-shirts. Groupies rush the Lido Deck of the Carnival Destiny to get their picture taken with Rick Springfield (or their iPhone signed by him). Groupies decorate their doors like teenage girls who pretty up the inside of their high school lockers.
I can’t make this stuff up. Check out all of my Rick Springfield pictures (and a few more).
Why Groupies Rock
My fellow Social Fresh Cruisers and I spent a portion of the 4 days on the ship cracking jokes at the expense of Rick Springfield and his groupies. Nothing malicious, yet we did mock them. We hummed “Jessie’s Girl” and took pictures of Rick decorated doors and women who were decked out in Rick gear. We were in awe at the hundreds of middle aged women who were in line to see and take pictures with Rick.
However, after having a few days to reflect, I’ve decided that I love Rick Springfield and more importantly, I love his groupies. Imagine a guy who has one famous song 20+ years ago who still has a following strong enough to justify an annual cruise to celebrate him! I mean, people dropped over $1,000 to spend 4 days with Rick (freaking) Springfield. Rick. Freaking. Springfield.
Think about your own business. Do you have groupies who rave about your product or brand? Do you have people who pay well above “market value” for your products or services? Do you have groupies who have been with you throughout the years and will follow you on land and sea and to foreign countries? If not, ask yourself: If Rick Springfield has groupies, why don’t I?
I hope that when I am 60 years old (or when the company I work for has been along that long), I have Rick Springfield-like groupies.
I wish I had Jessie’s Girl…
DJ Waldow
@djwaldow
