Tom Thompson is the founder of RubyArts Events and the creative force behind the RubyArtsMusic Experience™, RubyVision™, and RubyArts Signature Shows™.
With more than 25 years in the music industry, Thompson has built a career at the intersection of live performance, artist development, event production, and audience-centered entertainment. He was the longtime manager of jazz icon Kermit Ruffins, former manager for blues artist Tab Benoit, and co-founder of the award-winning Basin Street Records, where he worked with a roster of acclaimed New Orleans artists including Henry Butler and the Rebirth Brass Band.
A past winner of OffBeat Magazine’s Manager of the Year award, Thompson’s background as an artist manager, booking agent, and live event producer spans everything from intimate jazz clubs to major festivals and arena-scale events, always with a focus on creative excellence and audience connection.
In the corporate and private-event space, Thompson has been involved in the planning and execution of entertainment for the NFL, NBA, Microsoft, the New Orleans Saints, the New Orleans Pelicans, and high-profile figures such as Peter Holt, owner of the San Antonio Spurs, and Paul Fleming, founder of P.F. Chang’s. He produced Fleming’s 50th birthday celebration in Napa Valley, California, and brought the Kermit Ruffins Big Band Orchestra to San Antonio for Peter Holt’s daughter’s wedding celebration.
Thompson also played a key role in the entertainment production for the 2008 NBA All-Star Game, which featured performances by Harry Connick, Jr., Dr. John, Trombone Shorty, Rebirth Brass Band, and Kermit Ruffins. Earlier, in 2007, he booked the entertainment for the White House Congressional Picnic during the George W. Bush administration.
Bridging the worlds of creative production and show-site operations, Thompson also brings a decade of experience in the tradeshow industry as an onsite representative for a global service provider. This background is central to the RubyArts approach; it ensures that every show is executed with the operational precision, technical reliability, and "client-first" professionalism required for high-stakes, high-impact entertainment.
With RubyArts Events, Thompson creates premium, cinematic music experiences that serve the client, elevate the room, and leave a lasting impression.
Tracey Freeman is a two-time Grammy Award-winning producer and sound editor with over 30 years of experience across studio, stage, film, and television. He is best known for his longtime collaboration with Harry Connick, Jr., producing multiple acclaimed albums, including the Grammy-winning Songs I Heard.
Freeman earned his second Grammy for producing Rebirth Brass Band’s Rebirth of New Orleans, which won Best Regional Roots Music Album. He has received a total of four Grammy nominations and one Tony nomination throughout his career.
A New Orleans native, Freeman has worked with iconic artists such as Kermit Ruffins, George Porter Jr. of the Meters and the Neville Brothers, Trombone Shorty, and the Rebirth Brass Band. He also produced music for the soundtrack album for Jon Favreau’s The Jungle Book and NBC’s Annie Live!
Freeman and RubyArts founder Tom Thompson are longtime collaborators. Freeman produced numerous Kermit Ruffins albums during Thompson’s tenure as Ruffins’ manager, establishing a creative partnership that continues through RubyArts Events™.
As sound editor for RubyArts Events™, Freeman designs the audio continuity, pacing, volume consistency, and flow that support the RubyArts Music Experience™.