Lighting designer and director Matt Guminski is out on the road with singer/songwriter JoJo. In 2004, “Leave (Get Out),” her debut single, reached number one on the Billboard pop songs chart, which made her the youngest solo artist to have a number-one single in the U.S., at 13 years old. We spoke to Guminski about JoJo’s current Mad Love tour during the artist’s sold-out Feb. 19 tour stop at the Regency Ballroom in San Francisco.
“I have a background in playing bass, so picking up most genres of music was very easy for me, I just locked in with the rhythm section and grooved like another member of the band. Using my theatrical design aesthetics, I was able to come up with some pretty diverse looks. Tours coming though my venues often commented on how in-tune with the band I was. Most asked for my business card and said they’d pass my name around.
“After a few years of that happening, finally I got the call to interview as the touring LD for Neon Trees. That was almost six years ago. In that time, I’ve branched off and worked for such artists as CeeLo Green, Jon Bellion, Young the Giant, David Garrett, and now JoJo. I’ve also served as lighting director for bands like Maroon 5 and Bush. All while still being able to do my first love, which is theatre, in my down time.
“For JoJo, fellow lighting designer Charles Ford recommended me for the gig. I was contacted by her production manager, Liam Clifford, shortly before our first show. I was tasked to design the show in 36 hours, which was a daunting task, given that I was in tech for another show. Luckily, we had a blizzard that same night, which cancelled tech and allowed me to design, render, bid, and lock everything down on the same day. It was a very unique learning experience which ended up paying off really well in the long run.”
This was a “very different process for me,” Guminski explains.
“Usually, I have time to pre-viz a basic show and have production rehearsals, but I came into Show One pretty blind, with just my palettes and basic show flow programmed. I was punting the first few shows while programming as much as I could before doors each night. Three of the four fixture types on the rig I had never worked with before, so the first day I actually got to play with them was show one. Each day I learned a bit more about what the fixtures could do, so it was pretty much guaranteed that this design was going to grow and evolve as the tour progressed.
“On these one-to-two bus and trailer tours, chances are, I’m a one-man lighting team — lighting designer/programmer/operator/tech. I always have said that to be a great lighting designer, you need to be a great tech. You must know the technology, know its limitations and know how to utilize them to their highest potential. I find myself learning things on a daily basis and strive to learn and grow my craft every day.”
The venues for the tour varied in size, and the house rigs were going to run the gamut for Guminski.
“I would be dealing with everything from a 120K to a full moving light rig daily. I wanted the touring rig I carried to be able to stand up on its own and be able to fit onto some very small stages. The design needed to have a pop look but have a rock feel. With the short turnaround, I was limited to what Christie Lites had immediately available in its Seattle shop. Luckily, they just took arrival of the Martin MAC Axiom Hybrid, which I’d been dying to get my hands on. It gives me the opportunity to have a Viper-looking show in a small package, filling the venue with beautiful and punchy aerial effects. I have four Axioms on top of my truss towers and four on their cases upstage, in between the trusses. As an accent light, I went with the Elation ACL 360i. It’s a bright fixture that is fast and mixes some beautiful colors. Each truss has three fixtures in an opposing zigzag configuration. I pixel-mapped them several times throughout the show, and it lends itself to some dynamic looks.
“This has been my first experience working with Christie Lites. Besides taking a little while to wrap my head around their color coding and the metric cable lengths, it’s been a breeze. The gear is top-notch, and the customer service goes above and beyond.
“I love side light and went with the Elation ZW19 LED Wash for floor side light to help sculpt the artist and her band, while being able to pull them out from the rest of the rig. I have three fixtures on either side of the stage running DS to U.S., and they fill the space evenly.
“Recently, I have been exploring the use of two-cell blinders behind the band as a silhouette effect as well as adding a tungsten element to a mostly LED rig. Carrying dimming for eight fixtures isn’t logical, so I made the move to the LED Blinder, mostly the Elation Cuepix WW2. I have two offset on each truss to provide an abstract Blinder light wall effect. I’ve used the Cuepix WW2s on several tours now, and I’m really impressed at how bright they get. Honestly, who doesn’t love a strobing LED blinder?”
Crew
- Lighting Designer/Director/Programmer: Matt Guminski
- Production Manager/FOH: Liam Clifford
- Lighting Co: Christie Lites
- Christie Lites Rep: Michael Ferguson (Seattle)
Gear
- 1 High End Systems Hog 4 Full Boar w/wing
- 8 Martin MAC Axiom Hybrid fixtures
- 12 Elation ACL 360i fixtures
- 8 Elation Cuepix Blinder WW2 fixtures
- 6 Elation ZW19 ZoomWash LED fixtures
- 2 Ultratec Radiance Hazers w/Versa fans
More JoJo 2017 Mad Love tour photos by Steve Jennings:
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