Source: iOne / Getty
Name: Kam McCullough
Occupation: Entrepreneur
Location: Los Angeles
How We Know Him: He kicked off HennyPalooza, a touring day party that became quite the thing to attend.
Why We Chose Him: After a few strategic alliances he made parties his business, morphing his signature brand into DussePalooza—a popular go-to event.
What’s Next: Expanding the DussePalooza brand.
IG: @koolestkidout
“Yeah we should have been doing something with those guys. Let’s get them in building.”
Those are the words Jay Z told Lenny Santiago, a trusted friend, and one of the forces behind Roc Nation about working with the crew behind HennyPalooza. It would eventually become DussePalooza with Hov’s backing but the humble beginnings was what helped catapult the party to what it is now.
It all began in founder Kam McCollough’s NYC apartment building on a December night in 2012 where friends were ordered to come through with either a bottle of Hennessy or fried chicken. With his friends and him tired of the club scene, they needed to do something different.
While social media wasn’t as massive seven years ago as it is now, McCollough still hashtagged “#Hennypalooza” to the text and e-mail invites. “It was a fun thing, just something we were going to play around with. I thought nothing of it,” he told Forbes in 2014.
From there it grew. From The Wick and Well, a decently sized venue in Bushwick to going on tour and selling out venues that can fit 1,500 heads. But the biggest cosign came during a Washington D.C. tour date when Wale and Pusha T wanted to see what all the Palooza fuss was about. Not only did the two stars like vibe, but for an even bigger stamp of approval, Pusha T gave an impromptu performance.
“It’s funny. People ask me, “Did you ever see it becoming this?” I say, “Obviously not, or that never would have never been the name to begin with [laughs]” he reminisces.
Now, renamed as DussePalooza, since a partnership with Hennessy didn’t come to fruition, it’s influence in the party space has just continued to grow with each event. Performers like Nipsey Hussle, Pusha T, and Cam’ron take what is already a unique experience of nothing but good vibes, amazing music and –most importantly– an open bar to new heights.
Whether it be Brooklyn Mirage, Coney Island, Atlanta or Houston, you can find a member of the Palooza team hyping up the crowd, getting sturdy on stage or elegantly aiming water guns filled with Dusse at anyone who paid the $35 entrance fee.
The space of customized parties that aren’t stuffy, themed brunches and the works, DussePalooza has created an environment and experience that you wont want to forget or simply drank too much to remember.
Oh, and sometimes, Hov himself pops up.
