SH: So what’s it like managing one of the biggest bands of now?

Chip Schultz: Just for the record, I’m not the manager; I’m the dude in charge of them on tour. It’s a little bit of a handful, but these are some of the best guys I’ve got in touch with business-wise. Of all the bands, I’m happy with who I’m with.

SH: Do they ever escape from you?

CS: You know, sometimes. Stuff like this "Ronnie and Max, they venture off" but eventually, they’re like animals from a house. They venture a little way, but eventually they come back. They do what they need to do.

SH: Some time away.

CS: Of course, everyone needs his or her time away. Especially in the sun like this.

SH: What exactly does the tour manager do?

CS: All the financial aspects. Pretty much everything that needs to be done. These guys go a half an hour on stage. Me, I wake up at 7 in the morning, and I go to bed at 4 in the morning. It’s kind of stressful, but you know, I love these guys. Anything I can do for these guys, I do.

SH: So, why be a tour manager?

CS: Because I can’t play music I guess. (Laughs) I don’t know. I have a good head on my shoulders.

SH: Do you listen to music though?

CS: Oh of course. I’ve always loved music. Just the hand/eye coordination. I tried the strings, drums, everything. I even tried a tambourine - that shit didn’t work either. So, yeah pretty much, I was blessed with the opportunity. I always was like, "I don’t know if I can. I have to finish up college," and getting tired of all this stuff, so I was like, "I’ll just drop everything and see how it is." And, honestly, I’m so happy, I never look back.

SH: You were in college?

CS: Yeah, I’m currently down at UNLV. I’m kind of taking a break, obviously, but I’m halfway done with school right now.

SH: Have you ever been to Vans Warped Tour as a kid?

CS: Yeah, they stopped coming to Vegas in ’05, because we’re all from Vegas and kind of bummed me out. But ever since I was a kid, ever since 2000, I used to come.

SH: 7th year.

CS: 7th year? Hell yeah, I went for a good 5 years before they stopped coming to Vegas, and I got too lazy to travel. It’s crazy. To think of the bands that were here before, and where it is now.

SH: When I went, the headliner was Me First and the Gimme Gimmes, Pennywise, the Ataris headliners. And there was no one there. Can you believe it’s sold out this year?

CS: It’s just crazy to see where it’s gone. I know. They were turning kids away because our merch thing is over by the main stage. And, literally we’re just chilling over there, and we see five kids hop over the fence and run across the racetrack and they said, "It’s not really sold out motherfuckers!" and they just ran across the fucking grounds.

SH: Guess how much tickets are going for?

CS: 35?

SH: $200.

CS: Get out of here. They got to be sharking these. Holy good mother of God! That’s so good though; you can’t ask for something like that. Kevin Lyman said probably at the end of the tour they’re going to see about 600,000 kids throughout all of Warped Tour, which is amazing. It’s over half a million kids. To say that the music industry is going downhill is completely fucked; that’s not true at all. Honestly, not playing music is probably the best part of my job. When they take the stage, and I get to watch. They’re crazy – they’re all intense and they sing every word. They give their whole heart and soul on stage, and it just hits you - goddamn, I love what I’m doing. I love being on stage watching some of my best friends being on stage, doing what they do. Honestly, being able to touch kids in this way, it’s unbelievable. And, that’s what I’m so happy about. You wake up every day, and you’re like, "Damn, I get to see this every day of my life." It’s fucking awesome!

-Magic Stick Mish