Musicians are barely getting a slice of music industry revenue, largely eating off of live performances instead. For ‘Tour Tales,’ we dig into the rider requests, delayed shows, diligent preparation, and future of touring by talking with the multitude of people that move behind the scenes. Record executives, photographers, tour managers, artists, and more all break down what goes into touring and why it’s still so vital to the livelihood of your favorite artists. What happens on tour stays on ‘Tour Tales.’
Anthony Coleman has only been deejaying for five years and has already become a Reebok ambassador, played at the Roots Picnic, and has been the official DJ for Lil Yachty for the last two years. A meteoric rise such as his is not without its fair share of sacrifices.
“It’s hard to have consistent people in your life when you can’t be consistent in one place,” Coleman, who goes by stage name Anthony Somebody, told REVOLT TV. “But, like Drake said on ‘Redemption,’ ‘Who’s going to save you when you need saving?’”
On this edition of Tour Tales, Anthony recalls people falling from the sky at Yachty shows, the rapper’s improvisational turn up, and things he’s gone through to deejay around the world.
How did you link with Lil Yachty?
Basically, Coach [K] had been following me on Instagram for two years. This art guy in Atlanta called Chilly-O tried to link me with Coach at first because Yachty wanted to do shows and stuff. Coach always heard about me and kept his ears out for me, and it kind of went from there. I started deejaying for Yachty two years ago.
What was your first show with Yachty?
Rolling Loud [Miami 2017]. I’m not going to lie, I messed up a lot. I had to adjust on the fly. I went from playing parties for myself to deejaying for an artist and you have to learn to differentiate the two. It was difficult at first. When I got there, the set up that I wanted wasn’t there. Then, last minute, I was playing off my laptop because they couldn’t get me the right equipment. I was dropping the songs in the wrong way. It was bad. From there on out, I got this routine where I try to get to the show as early as possible. I personally wrote my rider out and sometimes fly with production just so I can get everything right ahead of time.
Shows are an unstable environment. The weather can be bad. The turntables could break. You have to have troubleshooting methods to keep the show going.
Any instances where you had to employ those methods to keep the show going ?
I remember one time we were in New Zealand… I told the tour manager, ‘Yo, I need to get a new laptop because the bass was so heavy, it knocked my laptop down and broke it.’ He didn’t take me serious, so at the next show, it cut off. At first, people were mad at me. But, I waited until after the show to tell them, ‘I asked the tour manager to take me to Apple as soon as we landed. He didn’t make it a priority.’ So then, I had to make sure that was a priority of mine.
What’s the craziest thing you’ve seen in the crowd at a Yachty show?
Someone jumping from the second floor of the building, landing on their face and getting up to keep partying. This was in New Zealand. You just keep going when you see that.
What’s on Yachty’s rider?
It’s like pizza, candy and salad. It’s stuff like that.
Your chemistry with the rapper has developed over time. Do you two communicate onstage? How does that work?
We communicate a lot. When we first went on tour, there were a lot of rehearsals. As we’ve been doing more shows, we’ve begun to learn each other and really get each other’s patterns.
What are some spontaneous things you’ve done at shows?
There were a couple of shows where there was a barricade and that sort of messed up the energy, and flow of the show. So, I guess, Yachty got everybody who had priority and the special needs people at the show out of that area and into another part of the show. Then, out of nowhere, he said, ‘Everybody rage.’ Everyone went to that area [he opened up] and it created a different energy for the show.
What’s the hardest part about being a DJ on tour?
Keeping emotional connections while you’re deejaying. It’s hard to have consistent people in your life when you can’t be consistent in one place. So, you spend a lot of your time pleasing people. But, like Drake said on ‘Redemption,’ ‘Who’s going to save you when you need saving?’ That’s the biggest thing. There’s family members, loved ones, girlfriends that want things from you that you can’t provide. It has nothing to do with deejaying.
Are there any life moments you had to miss out on because you were on tour?
My mom got married and I couldn’t go. My little brother had a baby and I couldn’t make it. The girl I was dating, I missed her birthday. This was all while I was on tour with Yachty.
What are some normal things you and Yachty have done on tour?
We went shopping together. Buying clothes is how we bond. We were in Chicago and he bought me a couple of jerseys. We were in Tokyo and he said, ‘Pull up. Let’s get these pants.’ We went to the BAPE store in Tokyo. Then, we went to a private location and he said, ‘I have access to the 2019 fall collection. Tell me what you need and you can go in, and get what you want.’ When you’re fashionable cats, that’s just what you do. He’s an artist and a lot of people try to get something from him. So, he has to develop that trust for you. Until he trusts you, he doesn’t have to do anything for you.
What is your end goal when it comes to being a DJ?
There was a point in my life when I was doing other things. Catch my drift? I wanted to stop and the homie stopped me. He said, ‘I’m not going to keep encouraging you to do that. I’m going to need you to DJ full time.’ Now, I’m always motivating myself to keep doing that. I went to school for history and I wanted to get into politics. But, I started to think, ‘Are kids going to listen to the guy in the suit and tie, or the kid who traveled the world?’ That’s where the influence comes from. Nothing is a final stop. Everything is an add on to what you do. So, I’m not a DJ. I’m Anthony and I just happen to deejay.
More from Keith Nelson Jr.: