White Bear Lake’s Gary LaRue seems to be able to do it all. After switching careers and finding his niche as an entertainer and disc jockey, LaRue has had more success than ever. As a DJ, he performs at various weddings and private, corporate, birthday and anniversary parties. So what makes him different? “Most DJs, for dinner and cocktails, play background music,” LaRue says. “I entertain live; during cocktails, I’m singing. And I don’t just stand there and sing; I roam out among the people. It’s a lot more interactive.”
LaRue’s performing abilities have allowed him to be successful in more areas than one. His band, Gary LaRue and His Rat Pack Band, performs hits from the Rat Pack era, with timeless music from artists like Dean Martin and Frank Sinatra; he actually plays Frank Sinatra when acting for a nightclub show, A Rat Pack Revival. He has a photo booth called We Got Framed, and a vintage ice cream tricycle, on which he becomes the Street Treat Peddler, where he has a microphone and sings his own music as he pedals up and down the streets.
“I asked myself, ‘How can I make money singing and being goofy?’ ” LaRue says.He found his solution with Rat Pack Entertainment and the reaction has been great. “People just responded really well to what I do and how I do it.”
