Today we’d like to introduce you to Jason Broussard.
Hi Jason, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
The story of where I got my start can easily be traced back to my childhood. I spent a lot of time reading books with my mom, which gave me an early love for stories and helped me find new ways to explore my creativity.
In high school, I became heavily involved in theater. I went on to be nominated for both Best Leading Actor and Best Supporting Actor at the Tommy Tune Awards. After graduating, I studied theater at community college and worked on various productions at Theatre Under The Stars.
Eventually, I shifted from acting into DJing and music production, which I still do today. However, my story has always been about creativity, collaboration, and finding different ways to express myself. Acting allowed me to tell stories with other performers, and music gave me another way to create experiences and connect with people. Those same passions ultimately led me to become a Dungeon Master.
Dungeons & Dragons is now a huge part of my life. It feels like the game is experiencing a major resurgence, with more and more people looking for ways to escape, use their imaginations, and immerse themselves in other worlds. I’m very grateful that I regularly get the opportunity to create those experiences for people, whether they’re longtime friends or people I’ve only recently met. I’m constantly able to share these adventures with all kinds of players, and that’s something I truly love doing.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
A smooth road is never a fun road, so let’s start with that. Everything I do has its ups and downs, but that’s just life. Life imitates art, and art imitates life.
Getting started with Dungeons & Dragons was not exactly easy. You have to find people who are willing to pay for an experience without really knowing who you are or what you can offer. Thankfully, I was able to start by running games for friends, building up reviews through StartPlayingGames.com, and slowly earning trust through my online persona. Over time, that helped me attract more and more players.
At this point, I have posted more than 100 games online and served as Dungeon Master for over 100 different people.
The road is always full of ups and downs, especially when you step away and then try to come back. For example, I left for a while to work as an entertainment host for Disney Cruise Line. That was an incredible opportunity to further develop my creativity and artistic expression, but when you leave something behind for a while, you often have to rebuild some of the momentum you lost.
It is also a pretty oversaturated market. There are plenty of people trying to run games online, so a big part of the challenge is finding a way to stand out in a very crowded sea of fish, for lack of a better phrase.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
Currently, I am a professional Dungeon Master—and I use the word “professional” in air quotes because, really, what makes someone a professional? Is it just someone who gets paid to do something? Either way, I consider myself one because I’ve been doing this for multiple years and have created stories and experiences for a wide range of people from different backgrounds, age groups, and walks of life.
I pride myself on creating a D&D table that is inclusive and beginner-friendly while still giving more experienced players something engaging and worthwhile. Whether someone is playing for the first time or has been rolling dice for years, I want the experience to feel welcoming and cohesive for everyone at the table.
What I’m probably best known for is setting the scene and creating the mood. I come from an acting background, so I use a lot of different character voices to help keep players immersed in the world. I am also very focused on the overall production and presentation of the game. Maybe that’s the Disney in me, or maybe it comes from my experience as a professional DJ, producer, and performer, but I want every player to leave feeling like they got their money’s worth and, more importantly, like they were genuinely part of the story.
Dungeons & Dragons is a collaborative storytelling experience. In my opinion, three different forces contribute to that story. There is the Dungeon Master, who sets the scene and helps guide and moderate the action. There are the players, who move the story forward as the actual adventurers. Then there are the dice, which often seem determined to tell a story of their own.
One of the things I’m most proud of is maintaining a five-star rating across more than 36 reviews on my profile. I’m sure a lower review will come eventually—that’s just how these things work—but it means a lot to know that the people I have played with genuinely felt that they received something valuable from the experience.
I think what sets me apart is the wide range of experience I bring to the table. Acting, music, production, hosting, and live entertainment have all taught me different ways to engage an audience and create a memorable atmosphere. All of those skills come together when I run Dungeons & Dragons, allowing me to provide a fun, immersive form of escapism where people can tell incredible stories together.
Can you talk to us a bit about the role of luck?
The question of what role luck—good or bad—has played in all of this is honestly kind of funny because Dungeons & Dragons is a game built around rolling dice. You roll to see what the outcome will be, and life can feel very much the same way.
For me personally, a lot of what pushed me to start running Dungeons & Dragons professionally came from some bad financial luck. I needed to find ways to supplement my income, and I’m thankful that I was able to turn this into something that helps provide for me.
That being said, let me be very clear: you do not need to make money from Dungeons & Dragons for it to be valuable. At its core, I believe it is about living in the moment, expressing yourself, and experiencing a story with other people. I just consider myself fortunate that I have been able to continue doing something I love while also earning income from it.
I do think the word “luck” is a little strange, though, because I don’t necessarily like to think of everything as simply being lucky or unlucky. I believe a lot of it comes down to the power of manifestation—whether we are manifesting something good or unintentionally focusing on something negative. At the end of the day, what matters is what you do with the situation you are given and how you allow it to shape where you go next.
For me, the bad part was being placed in a situation where I needed to find another way to make money. The good part was discovering that I could use my own creativity, drive, and ambition to build that opportunity for myself.
Pricing:
- Average session $25 per person
- Average Private booking – $120 for 3-5 hours with a max of 5 players
Contact Info:
- Website: https://startplaying.games/gm/knotzmusic
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/knotzmusic
- Facebook: http://facebook.com/knotzmusic
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/knotzmusic
