Adam Blackstone

The Man Behind the Music

Check out Adam Blackstone on the New Theme for the Queen Latifah Show!

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Check out Producer Adam Blackstone and Singer/Songwriter Aaron Camper as a part of the new theme for the Queen LaTifah Show!

“On Monday, Latifah’s new syndicated talk show premieres (check local listings for times). It’s the reason for her whirlwind media tour, which includes appearances on David Letterman and morning shows. She retains an upbeat demeanor about it all, but you sense a bit of prevailing frustration. She’s ready to wrap up talking, and get to, well, talking. Her first guest on Monday is John Travolta, followed by Will Smith, Sharon Stone, Jamie Foxx and Jake Gyllenhaal. She’d love to have the president on, as well as Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie, Coldplay and Kings of Leon.” -USA Today

AXS TV’s ‘Skee Live’ Taps Music Industry Veterans for Creative and Production Team

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4:35 PM PDT 7/23/2013 by Kimberly Nordyke


Music industry veterans Matt Alonzo and Adam Blackstone have joined the creative and production team of AXS TV’s upcoming SKEE Live as director and live music director, respectively.

SKEE Live, an hourlong weekly music and culture series hosted and curated by DJ Skee, premieres at 10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT on July 30 on AXS TV, which was developed by Mark Cuban to feature live entertainment.

The Hollywood Reporter has the first look at the show’s trailer, above.

Alonzo will set the tone and creative vision for SKEE Live segments including “Up Close,” “Off The Top” and “Spotlight” featuring top athletes and musicians. In addition, Alonzo is leading the overall show creative team to guide the look of the show including set production, graphics and lighting.

Alonzo has directed music videos for the likes of Pitbull, Odd Future, The Game, Far East Movement, Chris Cornell, Ice Cube, New Boyz, Xzibit and Tyrese. His video “Fly Like a G6” for Far East Movement gained international attention when it was nominated for best video at the Japanese MTV Video Music Awards.

Alonzo’s big break came in 2008 when he filmed and edited a Lil Wayne concert that amassed more than 10 million YouTube views.

As live music director, Blackstone will oversee the weekly live performances from the Conga Room in addition to his role as band leader for the SKEE Live house band, Skeetox.

Blackstone most recently served as music director for two of the year’s big tours — Rihanna and Maroon 5 — and is currently in Maryland for the “Legends of the Summer Tour” featuring Justin Timberlake and Jay-Z. He has crafted live shows with artists across all genres, including Demi Lovato, Kanye West, Eminem, Chris Brown and Janet Jackson.

Additionally, Blackstone has toured with John Legend and Pharrell and served as Jay-Z’s musical director and collaborator on various albums and DVDs.

Musical Director Adam Blackstone Stuns with 3 of the Grammy’s Biggest Performances

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As musical director for Justin Timberlake’s first nationally televised “comeback” performance, Adam Blackstone had a lot on his plate. Not only did the “Suit & Tie” performance rise to the occasion with a huge standing ovation, but he managed to throw two other amazing performances into the mix of the night as well. As musical director for Maroon 5, he orchestrated a mash-up performance with Alicia Keys and performed with the new single “Stay” with Rihanna. Quite a night indeed!

FUSETV Exclusive: Rihanna Musical Director Talks Concerts – 777 Tour Day 2

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We’ve only seen the Mexico City and Toronto legs of Rihanna’s 777 tour, but for each performance, both the singer and band appeared loose, limber and unafraid to play with the conventional structure of the singer’s biggest hits. According to Adam Blackstone, Rihanna‘s bassist and musical director, that’s exactly the plan. “We’re going to keep it loose this whole week,” Blackstone tells Fuse. “We’re going to go with the flow. We got a couple of surprises up our sleeve. We know what the fans want to hear and there’s so much to choose from that we’re able to dibble and dabble into her catalog. New York will be different than Paris will be different than London.”

Blackstone revealed that the major mechanics of the tour were hatched as late as early October, with setlist construction falling to Rihanna, Blackstone, keyboardist/co-musical director Omar Edwards and Roc Nation President Jay Brown. “My role is to put her hits in a sequence that could relate to the people immediately,” says Blackstone, who’s worked with Kanye West, Jay-Z and Maroon 5. “We’re not doing a long show in relation to a tour or stadium show. We wanted to inspire the people immediately and consistently.” The bassist admitted that paradoxically, Rihanna’s numerous hits—9 No. 1s on the Billboard 100—actually makes it a tougher process to construct the nightly set.

With 200 journalists all clamoring to get near the singer (us included!) to discover the “real” Rihanna away from the cameras and glitz, Blackstone says it’s hiding in plain sight. “She’s exactly the same person away from all of that. It’s very weird that she’s the same, but I think that’s why people connect with her. She’s a very down-to-earth girl; she’s a 24-year-old girl growing into her womanhood and it’s exciting to see the evolution of where she’s come from seven years ago to this world superstar phenomenon. She’s so humble and eager to learn, but she knows what she wants. She’s a boss in her own right.” …CONTINUED

See more at: http://www.fuse.tv/2012/11/rihanna-musical-director-777-tour


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