Hello again my excitable friends! The new 311 fan spotlight has arrived. This week let us meet Jason & Shay Perlman!

Jason is the one who found 311 first thanks to his older brother. “My brother gave me a toboggan he got from a show so I wanted to check them out and was hooked.” Shay became a fan thanks to Jason and she tagged along to a couple of shows with him and listened to them in the car. It wasn’t until her first cruise in 2015 that she was fully hooked.

Show count for Jason is somewhere between 50-60. First show for him was July 26, 2001, in Charlotte, North Carolina. For Shay, she believes she’s in the 20’s for show count. “I have a horrible memory and wasn’t really into them the first 4 or 5 shows I went to (and when I looked back, those set lists were fire and I got so mad at myself). My first show was summer of 2006 in Virginia Beach, VA.”

As far as favorite shows, for Jason he chose the beach show during the second cruise. “Floating in the ocean during the show was awesome.” Shay chose the 2017 cruise as her favorite event. “Every time Jason and I got separated on the boat, the best and most random things would happen so I had a ton of fun stories.  And of course Jason passing out drunk at Mr. Sanchez is one of my favorite stores to tell.”

Favorite song for Jason is “It’s Getting OK Now.” “Helps me get through, it’s like a shot of adrenaline for me.” Shay said at the risk of sounding cheesy, she picked “Amber” as her favorite song. “That was one of the first songs my son sang along with and his “Whoa-oh”‘s were really cute! So it means the most I think on a personal level.  But Wildfire gives me chills every time I hear it.”

One of Jason’s favorite lyrics is “The only thing I can prove is there is no proof.” Shay chose the lyric “You can pray to your god but your god can’t fix.” “Sorry not sorry if it’s controversial lol but I just feel it’s captures the times we live in – It’s up to us to fix what’s wrong with our world. I hear that line as a call to action.”

Jason was born in Lake Ronkonkoma, New York. He moved to North Carolina when he was 10 years old. Shay is an original North Carolina girl and she grew up around Hickory. They now live in Kernersville. Jason works in the catering industry and Shay writes root cause analysis document bulletins for a financial services company.

Some other bands that Jason loves include Pigeons Playing Ping Pong, Tool, Rancid, Weezer, Sublime, Rage Against the Machine, Incubus, and Red Hot Chili Peppers. Shay said that RDGLDGRN, Ballyhoo!, and Dirty Heads are the only recent artists that she listens to on a regular basis. She typically listens to artists from the 90’s such as Yellowcard, My Chemical Romance, Foo Fighters, Britney Spears, NSYNC, HIM and CKY.

Interesting fact about Jason is that he fell off a 20 foot cliff when he was 14. He fell right beside jagged rocks and didn’t get hurt! Shay said her interesting fact is that she was on TRL and met Carson Daly when she was 15!

Something that makes Jason unique is that he’s played and beaten approximately 5000 video games, many of which he still owns. Shay’s talent comes in being able to make anyone like Brussel sprouts! “Everyone who has ever tried them hated them before but loved mine. It’s a requested side every holiday dinner now.”

Guilty pleasure for Jason is a unique one – he loves going to the dentist! “Even with all the scraping and poking. No pain, no gain!” Shay’s guilty pleasure is “Keeping Up With the Kardashians.”

They each have their own messages to the band. Jason would like to say, “Bring 311 Day back to Nola, there is more magic there.” Shay would like to say to Tim, “Sorry I awkwardly screamed in your ear after our group photo last cruise; I was not at my personal best in that moment and I’m sorry if that hurt your ear or startled you!”

Their combined message to all the other fans is this:

“We’ve met so many amazing people thanks to this band and community. We’ve made so many amazing memories and friends that we’re so thankful for and we love you guys!”

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There you have the story of Jason & Shay Perlman! Much thanks to them for sharing their story and to all the readers out there! May you have a fantastic week! Go kick some butt!

Much Love – The Runt

Welcome back friends out in 311 nation! Who’s ready for the new fan spotlight? Let’s read all about Randall Pink a.k.a. 311 Jesus!

Randall always enjoyed 311 but he was what he called a fair-weather fan. He liked what he heard on the radio and he would see them when they performed at local festivals, but he didn’t buy into them fully until he was older. “When I consider what drew me to their music I would have to say the Fans/People/Family that follow the band so  closely we have so much fun and I don’t know what I would do if I hadn’t went on the 2017 311 cruise!  It is also just such a positive and cool message in most of their music.”

Keeping track of his show count hasn’t been top priority for Randall, but he believes he’s somewhere around the 30 mark. His first show was at Edgefest #19 back in 2009. He was really there to see Korn but knew some of the hits that 311 had.

Favorite events or shows so far he said it’s a tie between two. The first is the 2017 cruise. “It was so special in so many ways. I met so many people who have since become my family and also that was the start of 311 Jesus!” His second pick was the Weenie Roast this year. He took his daughter to Los Angeles and as they landed they lucked into tickets to the show so he was able to take her to her first 311 show!

One song that Randall really loves is “Good Feeling.” “I had a really cool moment with my daughter at that festival I took her to this summer.” He also loves a ton of lyrics, as most fans do, but one of his favorites is simply, “Don’t stay home.” It’s also another one of his favorite songs.

Bedford, Texas, a suburb of the Dallas/Fort Worth area, is where Randall grew up. He said his parents sent him to private school to “keep him out of trouble.” He went to Harvest Christian Academy from 7th through 12th grade and played football, basketball, and was also on the track team. After high school he didn’t know exactly what he wanted to do so he started taking random classes at his local college, Tarrant County College. Then life drastically changed for him at the age of 20-21. “I had my daughter Haley 2 months after turning 21.  Her mom and I got married and gave it a try for about 5 years but we realized we it wasn’t working and that we could still be great parents to Haley even if we weren’t together, fast forward 15 years and wow I have  a sophomore cheerleader FML!!”

Randall’s journey into the 311 world came later in life and he said it was super random. “My best friend Jordan Fain had an extra ticket for the Tribal Seeds and Slightly Stoopid Concert and my eyes were opened I fell headfirst into the music going to as many shows as I could.  That next year went to Cali Roots and saw 311 in 2014 Amazing, jumping to 2016-17 I always had a good group of friends (Banana Brigade) who would always talk about this “311 Cruise” and how it was life changing well I was finally financially stable and made it happen and that is where 311 Jesus began and my life was changed, made so many friends who have become family and we visit each other around the country.  We are now One Big Family!” As far as funding his 311 addiction, he was working as a server and bartender when he got a tremendous opportunity. “Eventually got lucky and took a chance at a new craft brewery that was hiring I fell in love with beer and worked my way up to taproom manager.  Little did I know that one of my regulars had his own brewery and two years into my craft beer he recruited me to be AGM/Event Manager of his new location, and now I have been working for Four Corners Brewing Company in Dallas for 2 years on October 2nd and absolutely love what I do!”

Something people don’t know is that before he worked at the brewery he obtained a degree in radio, T.V., and film as he was hoping to be an actor or work in sports radio. Right out of college he got a cool job helping run live sports for a small T.V. station. “However the only catch was it was overnights and most of the broadcasts were from the other side of the world!  Lots of Table Tennis, Badminton, and Soccer although it was cool doing some of the World Cup Qualifiers for the men and Women.”

Aside from being the 311 Jesus, Randall said he has other talents. “Got some pretty sweet dance moves and can sing a bit as well!!” Guilty pleasures for him are poker, the show” American Dad,” and he loves video games. “PS4 gamer tag BuddyChrist_311.” When not listening to 311 he likes the tunes of Rebelution, Stick Figure, Fortunate youth, Ballyhoo, Passafire, Iya Terra, Dubbest, Slightly Stoopid, Tropidelic, Leon Bridges, The Bones of JR Jones and Ries Brothers.

Randall’s message to 311 is this: “Keep going down the path you are on, the direction you are taking the music is amazing and so incredibly positive and uplifting.”

Randall’s message to all the fans:

“I love you all and if you see me at a show in my robes come on over and let’s take a photo and become family!!”

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What a fun story from Mr. Randall/311 Jesus! Check out his Instagram account jesus_randallpink and he also has a Spotify playlist called 311 Jesus Guides You! Now go have a blessed week and continue to be amazing!

Much love – The Runt

Hello again friends & excitables! It’s that time where we introduce the latest 311 fan spotlight. Here we have the story of Kyle Perman!

Growing up in the 90’s, Kyle heard 311 on the radio and instantly fell in love with their sound. He loved the energy of their songs and thought it was just different and amazing!

For show count, Kyle is somewhere in the 30’s. “I wish it could be way more but my job sometimes does not give me the luxury of going to as many shows as I would like.” One of the best experiences he had was going on the 311 cruise. “It was the time of my life meeting all the amazing people discovering new favorite bands and of course 311 I was freaking out when I did meet and greet picture.” He said other than this, one of his other favorites was when he was stationed in Guam and they performed a show over there.

While obviously Kyle loves the entire 311 catalog, he said one of his favorite songs to listen to is the live version of “Paradise.” “It just makes me think of going to paradise and listening to my favorite band with a drink in my hand.”

One of Kyle’s favorite lyrics is the ever popular, “Stay positive and love your life.” “I honestly believe that I struggle with anxiety and depression and living by this quote along with 311’s positive music gets me through my day.” He also really likes the lyric, “From chaos comes clarity.” “With all the negative things going on in the world, people need to live by these quotes.”

Allen, Texas is where Kyle was born and raised. After high school, he joined the U.S. Air Force and has been serving for 14 years. “I have been all over the world I’ve been stationed in Delaware, Guam, Texas, and currently Oklahoma city.  So I use the military to fund my 311 addiction lol. I try to go to every show that I can if I’m not out on duty somewhere in the world.”

Interesting fact about Kyle is that aside from being in the military, he also teaches golf lessons and plays in professional mini tours. He said he probably should have gone full time pro but it just wasn’t in the cards for him since he is married and has a child. He loves his family and needed a stable job to be able to provide for them. He said that golf can also be considered one of his guilty pleasures!

Kyle said that while he mostly listens to 311, he has found some other great artists because of them. Some of his other faves include The Norm, Tropidelic, The Interrupters, and The Skints. He also loves I Prevail, A Day to Remember, and he said since he’s from Texas, he does enjoy some country music!

Kyle has these words for the band: “Thank you for always putting on outstanding shows and continuing to put out great music 28 years later, I hope you never stop.”

Here is his message to all the fellow fans:

“Thank you for being my second family I love all you guys I can’t wait to see y’all at shows and OTMFB! Stay positive love your life!”

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That’s the story of Kyle Perman my friends! Hope you enjoyed the read! Have the best week you can and always stay positive and spread the vibes around!

Much Love – The Runt