I’ve got some crazy, stupid big goals. I really wanna headline arenas. I wanna have such a big crew that we’ve got to have 20 or 30 buses on the road because that’s how big the show we’re putting on is.
My hair is brown with a tinge of red. The lights in NBA arenas are extremely bright, and that makes my hair look red.
Every time I go to a march or a rally, and I post it on Instagram, people will go, ‘I’m going to unfollow you!’ And I’m like, ‘I used to play arenas. I’ve lost a lot of fans. I’m fine with that. I’ve had people unfollowing me for years. You’re way behind the times.’
Through the history of rock n’ roll, you see lots of bands making the mistake of putting on the tights when they get to arenas. Don’t do that.
What I think happened to the new arenas is that you need some memories. I remember going when the Staples Center first opened and it was like, ‘OK,’ but a couple championships later, and all of a sudden it becomes your house. You have to stake claim to it.
As soon as we started playing sports arenas, we thought how great it would be if we could instead play to 25,000 people in our own way – a way we can control it so there’s not all kinds of company branding around the show – and do it in a way that celebrates the community.
You get to bring your own sound system when you play an arena, all the lights and visual stuff, which I think is really cool. There’s something about those old arenas, where it feels larger than life.
It’s nice to be in a smaller room. I like the big arenas as well, but at my core, I’m a live performer, so it’s nice to be able to feel the warmth of everybody in the room.
I’ve had a bit of experience at lots and lots of different arenas as it were, some of them completely creative, some of them quite technical. The interesting thing is, is that I found that the technical arenas actually are also very creative or can be very creative.
I’ve been fortunate. I get to write films. I get to write music in films. I get to play arenas wearing a wig.
I’ve done arenas, and sometimes it feels like you’re the only one in the room.
I can’t tell you the number of times I was one of the first people at the arenas or at TV, constantly trying to better myself. I can honestly say that my hard work paid off. My resilience paid off. My persistence paid off.
Ed Sheeran is a good mate of mine, and he just flies around the place doing every single bit of promo or gig or interview, and it’s no wonder that when you combine that with immense talent that he’s playing in stadiums and arenas around the world.
Pages: 1 2
