Building a Better Tour, with Chris Gratton

Hustle Like U Broke

Chris Gratton is a roadies' roadie. A live event production mogul, Gratton has been a tour director, tour producer, designer, production manager, and every job in between. A student of the school of hard knocks, Gratton's passion for music and theater came at an early age, fueled by a similarly inclined family, and has built that passion into a career spanning more than three decades. He's worked with Justin Bieber, Kanye, Janet Jackson, Limp Bizkit, Linkin Park, Ariana Grande, and countless others. What sets Chris Gratton apart from many in the industry, are his efforts to build new institutions to support the concert techs he relies on. A member of the board of directors for The Roadie Clinic, an organizer behind #RedAlertRESTART, and a driving force behind upcoming fundraisers for the music industry, Gratton has made it clear that he wants the industry to do better and will put in the work to make sure it does. In our discussion with Chris we talk about how he has personally defined a healthy work-life balance, tour standards implemented on the newest Bieber dates that may permanently raise the bar for crew care, and the need to blow up the status quo in the resurgence of the music industry.