The Feat Of FireAid, Part 1: Rocking The House

Los Angeles, CA (March 10, 2024)—Throughout January, southern California was hit by a series of raging wildfires that tore through the L.A. metropolitan area and San Diego County, burning more than 57,000 acres of land. By month’s end, 29 people had been killed, more than 200,000 had been forced to evacuate, and more than 18,000 homes and buildings had burned to the ground or been severely damaged. It will take years and upward of an estimated $400 billion for the region to build back, but for those who lost their homes, livelihoods and communities, the personal impact is incalculable.

Reacting to the disaster before the fires had even been contained, the music industry did what it often does best, as it brought together an army of artists and professionals to hold a giant charity concert that would raise money for those in need. Envisioned only days after the fires began, FireAid was held Thursday, January 30, presenting more than 30 top artists in a massive six-hour benefit concert that was broadcast live on 28 video and music streaming platforms.

Performers included Billie Eilish, Jelly Roll, Green Day, Katy Perry, Rod Stewart, Stevie Wonder, Stevie Nicks, Sting, John Mayer, Joni Mitchell, No Doubt, Pink, Dawes, Olivia Rodrigo, Lady Gaga, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Anderson.Paak and many more. Garnering an estimated 50 million viewers, the show generated more than $100 million in only a few days, allowing the FireAid Grants Advisory Committee, led by the Annenberg Foundation, to start awarding grants in mid-February.

The show itself was so large that it had to be held simultaneously at two L.A. arenas, the Intuit Dome and Kia Forum, alternating between venues for much of the broadcast. Events of that magnitude typically take months to set up, but hitting January 30 was a must, as most of the artists involved were in Los Angeles that week for the Grammy Awards. As a result, FireAid was not only a massive fundraising success, but also a herculean accomplishment for the production team members behind the live sound and broadcast—many of whom were affected by the fires themselves.

ROCKING THE HOUSE

“We were reached out to on January 15, with a vague idea for a show that was significantly smaller than what we ended up doing,” chuckled Mark Dittmar, vice president at Firehouse Productions, Red Hook, N.Y. “We had two big shows coming up with the SNL 50th anniversary and the NBA All-Star game, and then this jumped in front of them, so it made for a very challenging time to pull everything together.

“Two days later, we had to take a blind guess and put a giant pile of hardware on a semi to send to our West Coast shop without knowing what the show would be like or what artists would be involved,” he continued. “Then we had to start putting together a crew—about 40 people per venue. We started prepping in the shop, loaded in on the 27th, still hadn’t talked to all the bands, didn’t know how much space we needed or what connectivity we needed. We just had to roll with the punches as best we could.”

Ultimately, Firehouse provided all live sound gear and crew for the Intuit Dome and Kia Forum except the latter’s P.A., which was provided by Clair Global’s ATK Audiotek and Eighth Day Sound. Sourcing audio crewmembers was a challenge in itself, not only due to the large number required, but also because many pros were already working on the Grammy Awards broadcast or events taking place around it. Nonetheless, roughly a third of the audio team came from the Los Angeles area, making the event’s success a particularly personal goal for many.

All involved were anxious to do their part—Dittmar and Simon Welsh, who were audio coordinators for the Intuit Dome and Kia Forum productions, respectively, saw that firsthand. “Every aspect of a show that you would normally spend two to three months working on, you had to spin up in under a week,” Dittmar said. “Everyone dove in. It was impressive to watch a bunch of pros come together and cut loose, doing what they do best—not working with a lot of paperwork, just with, ‘Hey, let’s get this done.’ That’s how it was; I remember telling my whole crew on day one, ‘Everything in the speech I’m giving you might already be false; you’re just gonna have to roll with it and ask me lots of questions!’”

Nearly identical audio systems were fielded at both venues in order to simplify things, so all mixing desks were DiGiCo models, with Quantum 338s at the FOH positions and SD7s for mixing monitors. A giant Riedel Bolero wireless intercom system was built for both arenas and then networked between them, resulting in 65 Bolero units at both sites; there were roughly 300 channels of splits per venue, as well. Shure Axient Digital and Sennheiser D6000 and EM-3732 wireless systems were employed for wireless mics, while some Shure analog wireless handled guitar amps, and Shure PSM 1000 IEM systems were also used, all resulting in RF wranglers coordinating more than 100 frequencies.

FireAid Issues First Wildfire Relief Grants

At the Intuit Dome, Firehouse hung a JBL VTX V25-II line array system for the main, side and 270-degree P.A. hangs, bolstered by G28 subs on the ground. Meanwhile, at the Kia Forum, Eighth Day Sound and ATK Audiotek prepped and deployed a donated d&b audiotechnik KSL P.A. Stage monitoring at both sites was based around IEM systems, proprietary Firehouse F12 wedges and d&b J8 sidefills.

As January 30 drew closer, FireAid began to take shape. Each venue had an A/B turntable stage, allowing for a fast tear-down and setup on one side, while performers played on the other side, before the stage turned 180 degrees and the process started again. Unsurprisingly, the arrangement required considerable support; each audio crew included two front-of-house and two monitor engineers, a production mixer, three P.A. techs, three A2s per side of the stage, a floater A2, monitor system techs, in-ear monitor wranglers, a wireless mic team and more.

Artists came through to soundcheck as they were available, not in show order, so no changeovers could be rehearsed. “Bands brought in their own engineers, so we were working with them to quickly do file integrations—again, all of this is stuff that you normally spend a while advancing,” said Dittmar. “I think the single most challenging part was that there was no dress rehearsal; we never practiced a single set change. Stevie Wonder was by far the tightest one, and that was a bit of a heart attack to do in seven minutes.”

One logistical hurdle didn’t involve the production at all, but rather, the audience. As originally conceived, the show would have started in both venues at the same time, switching between the arenas throughout the six-hour timeframe. However, the Kia Forum and Intuit Dome are only a mile apart, so there was a staggered start in order to ease traffic congestion in the surrounding area. As a result, the Kia Forum began first, tackling the first two hours of the show until the Intuit Dome joined in, allowing the broadcast to alternate between venues for two hours, before finishing off with two hours solely at the Intuit Dome.

Throughout the marathon that was FireAid, the crews stayed on point, working hard to ensure that the lack of dress rehearsal wouldn’t result in a shaggy show. “I was definitely on pins and needles, but it went really well,” Dittmar admitted. “There were certainly some jokes of, ‘Gosh, maybe we shouldn’t rehearse anything in the future.’ All these teams of people do large shows, so we are not unfamiliar with the scale, but this amount of prep time was definitely not normal, and it really makes you pay attention.

“Also, there’s a higher reason that you’re there; you’re not just there doing a gig,” he added. “You’re trying to do good and help the cause out, and I think people definitely behaved differently on site. There was more of a sense of community, not even just among the audio team, but guest engineers coming in as well. Everyone was very cordial and very, very accommodating. interdepartmental was just amazing. We work with great lighting and scenic and video teams all the time, but it was just a bit more in lockstep to get it all done. That said, it was exhausting because of the amount of focus that we had to pay for that period of time. When the show was done, our crew was definitely cooked!”

COME BACK TOMORROW FOR PART 2: STREAMING TO THE WORLD