atum Neill: Serious Business, Elevate Hair, and Why Hairdressers Can Change the World**
He threw a rogue after party before anyone asked him to. That is just how Tatum Neill operates.
Recorded live at ABS Chicago with co-host Geno Chapman, Corey closes out the weekend with Tatum Neill, co-creator of Serious Business and founder of Elevate Hair. This one covers the origin stories of both, the current state of AI and what it means for the industry, and a full New Orleans survival guide for anyone heading to Serious Business in January 2027.
**What Serious Business Actually Is**
Serious Business started as a business conference and evolved into something harder to name... a personal development experience that fills cups you didn't know were empty. Mel Robbins has been there. Brene Brown has been there. But Tatum's advice is to just show up without looking at the lineup because the speakers always end up being exactly what you need. January 16-18, 2027 at the Sanger Theater in New Orleans.
**Elevate Hair**
It started as a salon jam session. Tatum missed the education lifestyle after years working in New York and started inviting the salon across the street to come hang out. Beer, wine, hair, music. Then he went rogue and threw an after party for Serious Business. Then it grew. Now Elevate is a brand neutral stage show with no talking, no sales, just artists in a full flow state with a DJ running the room. The biggest one drew 1300 people to First Avenue in Minneapolis... the venue where Prince filmed Purple Rain. The tape from Prince's last soundcheck is still on the back wall. Elevate Orlando is May 30th. More cities to follow.
**AI and Where It Is Actually Headed**
Tatum went to South by Southwest and came back thinking about the printing press and early film. Every disruptive technology looks clunky at first because we use it the way we used the thing before it. The first movies looked like plays. The first recordings were just a band in a room. We are at that same early stage with AI... using it like the old thing instead of discovering what it can actually become. For hairdressers the most immediate practical application is consultations. Show the client what they would look like with the cut or color before you start. In real time. On their face.
**The New Orleans Survival Guide**
Eat the gumbo at the airport before you leave the terminal. Emeril's is in one wing, John Besh's restaurant in the other. Get that base in before you hit the hotel. Your first drink will be a triple so treat it accordingly. Order a Dong Phuong king cake now because they sell out before January 6th every year. And know that Serious Business lands in the middle of Carnival season so there will be parades that Friday and Saturday night if you stay the full weekend.
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Find Tatum at @tatumneill on all platforms. Follow Geno at @genochapman.
🎧 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2lLnEgr3UFY7lFDixapkrZ?si=36231da1a5264815
🍎 Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/your-day-off-hairdustry-a-podcast-about-the-hair-industry/id1327156219
📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hairdustry
▶️ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@hairdustry
This episode is brought to you by Serious Business. January 16-18, 2027 in New Orleans. seriousbuisness.net
