US-based Brandon Fitzgerald began working in live events as a 20-year-old IATSE Local 22 stagehand. Fast-forward a decade and having toured most recently as Head Rigger for Lainey Wilson and SZA’s respective tours, he has experienced the highs and lows of life on the road.
“Coming off the road is an adjustment. When you think about the nature of our industry, time management and logistics immediately spring to mind. We are such an adaptable group of people, used to working under pressure. Where the transition becomes difficult is the lack of hard schedules and deadlines, which we are so accustomed to on the road, are no longer there when we are off it,” Fitzgerald said.
“Your adrenaline drops, and it can become difficult to adjust to and navigate everyday life, which can cause a rift in relationships and friendships. You find yourself wanting to go back because that organised chaos of work is a comfort, which provides structure and purpose,” Fitzgerald explained.
“It can be hard to see the warning signs. Families back home want to bring you back into life and catch you up on everything you’ve missed, which can be challenging without preloading,” The Roadie Clinic’s Courtney Klimson said, referencing personal coping mechanisms and additional post-tour tips drawn from Tamsin Embleton’s Touring and Mental Health: The Music Industry Manual (Chapter 30, p573).
“Although this varies on the individual and their circumstances, it is suggested to avoid making plans with friends or family for at least the first 48 hours to allow yourself to get grounded again and figure out what that baseline is outside of the chaos, energy and adrenaline of a show day,” Klimson noted.
The first thing Fitzgerald does when he returns from a tour is rest. “After that, I try to get my life into some semblance of structure. A lot of people I tour with are friends and colleagues, so we check-in with each other, and we’ve created a support system to help keep us mentally afloat as we transition into our next project,” he said, referencing the compounding anxiety associated with being a private contractor. “Unless you have something immediately lined up, following the end of a tour, the anxiety of where your next pay cheque is coming from kicks in.”
Protecting your professional brand, building a vast network, while also making good financial choices on the road are ideal ways of overcoming the anxiety of waiting for your next gig, according to Klimson, who pointed to helpful resources such as Giggs, a professional career platform for live event production personnel, and financial advisors, Life’s Jam.
“I would also venture that more than half of roadies are on the neurodivergent scale, so it’s a case of educating friends and families on how best to support those coming off the road, safely,” Klimson remarked.
Having been diagnosed with bipolar disorder, one of the things that prevents Fitzgerald from burnout is adequate sleep. “I’m usually the first person in and the last to leave a venue. However, there are moments throughout the day where I will find ways to recentre – meditate, do yoga, take a nap, and make sure I’m eating and hydrating to account for the lack of sleep. I always find a way to decompress to keep myself in a good headspace because the job is very demanding, and if you don’t take care of yourself, you can break,” he explained.
Moving forward, Fitzgerald believes the industry can do better to support its workforce. “If you’re working on a complex show that is on the road for a long time, there is no option to not turn up to work if you are sick or in pain, so I think tours should be more mindful of creating spaces and incorporating nuances to make the crew’s lives more pleasant because that’s how you retain crew. If they are protected, they will always want to come back, but if they are being treated like a commodity and not a human, they will leave – not only a production, but the sector,” he said.
The more that we are aware and are educating touring personnel and their support teams, the greater shift we will see in attitudes and working conditions. “I have seen the evolution over the past decade,” Klimson noted. “We now have wellness practitioners and mental health providers like Amber Health touring with artists. There’s more hope with artists entering the touring circuit and supporting their workforces. Contrarily, on smaller tours, it’s about remembering the humanity and putting human-centred leadership at the forefront.”
Words: Jacob Waite
Photos: The Roadie Clinic and Brandon Fitzgerald
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