|
|
|
|
|
|
Life as Personal Assistant to 'Sweet Baby James' Mt. Holyoke College Alumnae Quarterly - Winter 2001 Like many young professionals, Jessica Kusmin '93 starts each day by checking for fax, e-mail and phone messages in her home office. But she's not wondering who wants to talk to her. These messages are for Grammy-winning singer-songwriter James Taylor. "Anyone trying to find James goes through me, whether it's his manager, his agent or the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame," Jessica says of her job as Taylor's personal assistant. If James -- he's always James, not "Mr. Taylor" -- is in town, they meet every day. If he's traveling, she'll call to discuss issues such as the builders' progress on his Martha's Vineyard home, changes to his flight schedule, buying Christmas gifts or deciding which benefit concerts he should participate in. "I'm surprised now not 'rock star' he is," Jessa muses. "If I'm organizing his basement, he's there too, not off somewhere being a celebrity while I work. The most challenging part of my job can be getting him to delegate some of those tasks." She researches charitable causes, waits at his house for repair people, has autographed photos sent to fans, books studio space for recording sessions ... whatever he needs. Taylor employs a manager, a booking agent and a production manager to handle his tours, but Jessica does the rest. "My job is to see that everything else goes smoothly so he can focus on music," she says. "As a theatre major at MHC [Mt. Holyoke College], I specialized in stage management. I kept fifteen balls in the air and made everything come together just right. Now I use those organizational skills to stage-manage a life instead of a performance." The largest current projects are getting his new album recorded and released in time for a summer '01 tour, and planning his wedding to Caroline Smedvig. Jessica's been a fan for years. "I grew up listening to what my parents did: the Beatles, Broadway musicals and Taylor's music," she explains. Admittedly star-struck the first time she met James, it only took two or three visits before he became "just a guy," thanks to his talent for putting people at ease. "But knowing him well has not made me lose the sense of magic about what he creates," she reminds. "When I went on tour with him last summer, I'd hear an entire set night after night, and each time I'd get lost in it. Whenever I see him on stage, I'm just a fan again." She got this unusual job in the usual way -- being in the right place at the right time. While temping at Boston's Symphony Hall, she met BSO executive Caroline "Kim" Smedvig, Taylor's fiancee. Kim told her that James was looking for a personal assistant. Two interviews later, Jessica says her whole life turned around. There are moments of high stress and moments of quiet downtime, but it's a fun job, Jessica says. She had a long conversation with Billy Joel recently, spent the Earth Day 2000 concert with James, David Crosby, Carole King and Clint Black and saw Sir Paul McCartney induct Taylor into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame last April. "I love what I do, and am appreciated on a daily basis," she says. "He's one of the kindest people I've ever met." Clearly, Taylor knows when he's got a friend. |
||||