NASHVILLE In recent years, the sound of country music has changed significantly, reaching new audiences outside of its traditional heartland. The evolution of the music genre has been propelled even forward, with artists such as Beyonce releasing country-inspired albums. Catching up, the world of live country music is getting a creative overhaul fueled by US design studio COUR. Serving as the show director for country music star Jordan Davis, COUR has helped create a contemporary new look for his “Damn Good Time” North American tour.
A departure from the traditional live country music show, COUR has collaborated with Jordan Davis to help redefine the country music aesthetic for his “Damn Good Time” tour. Rooted in a modern arrangement of plywood risers, the stage design focuses on natural and rustic materials. Rather than going overly distressed, pine plywood sheets and cut planks bring a fresh aesthetic edge to the show’s stage design. Serving as a set extension for the show, specially created video content provides nostalgic photo moments and a colorful desert drive-through journey for the fans. To produce the show’s stunning visuals, the COUR team used a mix of 2D, 3D and filmed elements shot at Joshua Tree National Park.
To create the show, COUR incorporated a big emphasis on live IMAG capture. show Director Emily Buckner Pierce kept a warm, nostalgic look for the IMAG feed using physical lens filters and media server effects to bring a cinematic feel to the stage. With a split chevron downstage video wall, the team were able to have two separate feeds playing at the same time to give Jordan’s performance a beautiful composition of multiple angles at the same time.
Emily Buckner Pierce, Show Director at COUR, said: “We were mindful not to let any aspect of the show overshadow him. These two principles guided every creative choice. To prioritize his presence, we treated camera feeds with cinematic quality, ensuring no distortion. In terms of content, we aimed to honor classic country themes like trucks, bars, and fields, elevating them aesthetically with tones of the southwest. We traveled west to capture footage, viewing the content backdrop as an enhancement to his storytelling. Our aim was to avoid veering into "music video" territory, where fans might focus on the LED screen instead of Jordan's live performance”.
Pushing the boundaries of show design, Jordan Davis’ new tour represents the new modern aesthetic in the country space and a shift from its conventional past. Hot off the heels of their design work on Noah Kahan’s 2023 “Stick Season” tour, COUR proves that country music can compete with the world of pop, rock and hip-hop to deliver state-of-the-art and innovative live experiences.
Based in Nashville, COUR is one of the world’s leading creative studios renowned for crafting captivating visual experiences in live entertainment and fashion. Specializing in creative direction, production design, and content creation, the team has contributed to some of the most thrilling live productions in recent memory. Among COUR’s impressive portfolio within the past few years are projects such as Billie Eilish’s 2019 When We Fall Asleep tour, Paramore’s 2023 North American Tour, Suki Waterhouse’s 2024 Coachella Debut and Balenciaga’s Fall Winter 2024 Show at Paris Fashion Week.