Interview of the Week: Joe Wrigley of Above & Beyond Events
Following the latest edition of EuroCham's Breakfast for New Members on April 4, Senior Communications Officer Stew Post caught up with new chamber addition Joe Wrigley, Managing Director of Above & Beyond Events.
The two discussed Wrigley's more-than-ten years' experience in Phnom Penh's event space and his inspiration to join the chamber. He also drops a few words of advice for anyone interested in entering Cambodia's competitive market.
Stew: You're a new addition to the EuroCham network, but you've been in Cambodia for years. Can you tell us a bit yourself, how you came to Cambodia and how you started Above & Beyond Events?
Joe: Yes, I never tire of telling this story! I often call myself the luckiest man in Cambodia, having arrived in the country in 2013 with only a rucksack on my back, an acoustic guitar in my hand and a half-baked plan in my head to become part of the live music scene in Phnom Penh.
Fortunately for me, Cambodian audiences and musicians were very accommodating, and I was able to develop very quickly as a performer and bandleader. I was ‘all-in’ on the Phnom Penh scene, playing as many gigs as I could and hosting two weekly open mic sessions. Things grew organically from there. After a few years I was getting more into ‘back-of-house’: booking concerts on behalf of artists and venues, supplying audio gear, and teaching music.
In the turmoil of 2020, with the bottom falling out of the live music scene, I made a strong pivot towards technical: audio editing and video editing. Producing podcasts, livestreams and videos, mixing sound for bands. The live audio thing started to gain real traction for me in 2022 and as the post-Covid music scene arrived I found I was getting hired more often as an equipment supplier and sound guy than I was as a performer… and I was loving it! Adding deep technical skills to my existing knowledge felt like completing a circle.
Above and Beyond Events is the name of my business. I’m not just a guy with a guitar anymore. I’ve put twelve years in on the music scene here in Cambodia and gained a wealth of experience in all aspects of live music. That experience and knowledge, not to mention the partnerships and contacts I’ve built up, puts me in a very strong position to consult on, plan, organise, work and execute live events in Cambodia.
Stew: As a new member, what inspired you to join the chamber?
Joe: I have to give credit here to [Chairman] Gabi Faja, who has given me much assistance and encouragement throughout the years I’ve been in Cambodia. Most recently he suggested that I take the step of joining Eurocham via the ItaCham chapter. As an Artist myself and something of an introvert, it sometimes takes a friendly nudge from a trusted person to guide me towards a good thing! Of course I can now see, having attended my first Eurocham meeting, a little bit about how the Chamber works and the positive potential it offers its members. Cheers Gabi!
Stew: There's no shortage of events firms in Phnom Penh, from wedding companies to businesses that specialise in corporate events. What sets Above & Beyond apart from the competition?
Joe: This is a well-phrased question! It is actually THE key question for me as a business. But finding the right answer took me a few years. I’ll give you three different answers.
The first one is wrong. "Because I can do it better." That isn’t enough. With the best will in the world and unlimited investment, I would not be able to out-perform a Phnom Penh wedding event supplier providing for a Phnom Penh wedding. That market is very well-defined, very large, and very well-serviced.
The second answer sounds better. "I operate in a category of one." you want to stage a specialist music event in Phnom Penh with specific requirements outside of the normal, your options are VERY limited.
The third answer is the correct answer. "It’s me." My clients are buying my experience, knowledge and hard-won wisdom. My approach, my track record, my results. It’s a good bet.
Stew: Can you walk us through a particularly meaningful event you’ve delivered—what made it unique, what obstacles you had to navigate, and what impact it had on the client or community?
Joe: The recent Dengue Fever ‘Return to the Kingdom’ gig, with Japan Guitar Shop playing a killer support slot, was a big one. On a professional level and on a personal level. I listened to Dengue Fever’s albums before I ever set foot in Cambodia. I watched my buddy Josh Bouw mixing Dengue Fever at The Exchange in Phnom Penh in 2016. I once interviewed lead singer Chhon Nimol for the Leng Pleng Gig Guide, back in the day.
In 2025 I’m setting up the stage, light and sound for the band at Chew and Bash. A unique experience!
The challenge was making the gig actually fit into the venue. More than 500 excited ticket holders at a rooftop bar on Koh Pich. A 6-piece band with full backline on stage, plus special guest musicians. At this gig, you want at least 40 square metres of stage to work with, but you can’t really have it, because every square metre of space that you take up with stage or rigging or boxes or barriers or technical staff translates into two or three less audience members being able to see the band. I’ll cut a long story short: we made it work!
The reward was seeing a lot of people in that venue glowing up with smiles as Nimol strutted on to the stage. There was a palpable feeling of love from the audience towards the band: ‘You’ve been away too long!’
Stew: Within the entertainment and events space, Cambodia is full of opportunities and challenges. If you had a few words of advice to share with someone interested in entering the market here, what would they be?
Joe: Don’t forget to attend your own event! Approach it the same way a musician approaches the stage. When showtime arrives, all the preparation work is done. Now you have to enter the moment. You have practiced and prepared for weeks or months for this moment. But it will not happen exactly as you imagined or planned. Timings will change during the event, people will ask you for things you did not expect to be asked for, and sometimes things simply don’t work.
The event schedule that we printed yesterday may not be so important right now. If your eyes are glued to a screen and a piece of paper, you will miss the things that are happening in real life in front of your face. Don’t let the event happen without you. Be here in the moment, do what you need to do, and enjoy it.
Interested in Above & Beyond? Reach out here - Email: joe@abecambodia.online Telegram: +85589798074
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