Last Updated on August 14, 2024
Antoine Fadavi may be young, but he’s been playing at the professional level for many years now, and his career became even more impressive when he was chosen to tour with King Princess, one of the biggest performing artists working today.
Fadavi talked to us about the many different facets of touring at this level, but let’s start with the story of how he started playing with King Princess.
Back in 2019, King Princess was looking for a new drummer. A drummer friend of Fadavi, Tosh Peterson, recommended Fadavi for an upcoming gig. From there, the King Princess management contacted Fadavi through Instagram and chose him for the tour.
Over about two weeks, Fadavi learned the full setlist for the upcoming tour, and then the band took off on the sold-out Pussy is God tour.
Not only was this Fadavi’s very first tour, but he also found himself learning more about the members of the band.
“King Princess and the rest of her band met whilst they studied at the University of Southern California. I was brought in with little awareness of their culture, so it was a major learning experience for me. They’ve become my best friends over the last few years of touring. It’s been really exciting getting to know them. They’ve taught me a lot.”
Fadavi is now a seasoned touring musician, as well as a burgeoning music director: organizing various aspects of live performances to make sure that everything goes smoothly and that the artists’ visions for their shows come through at full force.
With that in mind, let’s dive into what Fadavi had to say about his touring experiences so far.
Playing shows both big and small
To give just a taste of the kinds of shows Fadavi has been playing with King Princess, these tours have included dates at major festivals including Coachella, Glastonbury, and Lollapalooza, as well as performances on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert and Saturday Night Live.
As you’d expect, shows this big create a special kind of on-stage energy, and for Fadavi, there’s a level of hype and enthusiasm that lasts long after the show has ended.
“As soon as I get on stage, I’m full of adrenaline, and that’s a high that stays with me even for a couple of hours after the show.”
But does Fadavi still get nervous before a show? Short answer: yes, sometimes. But in Fadavi’s view, it’s about being prepared, not the size of the crowd.
“It doesn’t really matter whether we’re playing in front of 1,000 people or 20,000 people. If we’re well-rehearsed and prepared, ultimately that’s what’s going to make us less nervous before a show.”
Fadavi also pointed out that, in many ways, playing big shows can actually be easier at times, or at least less stressful. That’s because, for performances in large venues, every aspect of the logistics has to be on-point.
Still, smaller venues have their rewards, as Fadavi explains here.
“It’s sometimes more difficult to truly connect with the audience at a large venue since it’s such a huge crowd of people. You can make a 1,500 capacity show feel intimate because you’re able to see the whole room and everyone is fairly close together. Arenas, amphitheaters, and stadiums have a different energy to them.”
No matter the venue, the actual performance is at the center of it all. We’d like to change our tune now and talk about how Fadavi prepares for performances.
Getting in the groove
Learning a setlist can be a big task, especially when you’re not the songwriter. But Fadavi has worked out a system for learning songs that streamlines this process quite a bit. He also understands that he needs to leave room for aspects that might be changed later on.
“It takes me about an hour to learn each song. As long as you know the song form, the main grooves, and the transitions, you’re good. All the other details are going to get refined or changed during rehearsal.”
Fadavi listens through each song twice, plays through it, then makes notes on specific parts to focus on right away. On top of that, he might loop specific sections of the song to get them nailed down.
“After that’s done, I might film myself playing it once all the way through so I can watch it and take notes on what I could improve. It’s important to have a look at your performance from outside the drumset since you catch a lot of things you’re playing, or not playing, that are unnecessary or don’t necessarily match the vibe of the song.”
The remainder of the song prep happens with the rest of the band, but before that happens, every single member has to have their parts down. There’s really no time to catch up when the tour dates are approaching.
Once the tour has started, everything changes.
The touring life
For some musicians, touring becomes the focus of their entire career, and it probably goes without saying that not everyone is cut out for the touring life.
Gigging is one thing, but playing a different show in a different town almost every night is a completely different experience.
It requires a level of professionalism and commitment that some might find daunting, and of course, it also means being away from home for months on end.
Not only is Fadavi up for the challenge of touring, he really enjoys it.
“I love touring. You’re so high on adrenaline every day while you’re on the road that when you come back home and return to your routine, most things might seem dull in comparison. There are a lot of tips and tricks about touring that you learn throughout the years, it just takes time.”
Touring is an exciting opportunity for Fadavi. It’s a chance to see and experience new places while also getting to do something he loves: playing music and sharing it with thousands of people.
We’ve already talked about the performances, but what do touring musicians do between those performances? How do they take care of themselves while out on the road?
Fadavi explained that, while on tour, the band usually gets two or three days off per week, and those days are really important for recuperation and relaxation.
During time off, the musicians get to visit cities they’ve performed in, as well as other towns between performances.
To give a glimpse into what this downtime actually looks like, Fadavi shared one of his favorite tour stories with us.
One of my most beautiful tour memories was waking up on an early morning in May, getting out of the tour bus, and seeing the most vibrant green forest I’ve ever seen in Ashland, Oregon. We then walked to this local diner and had some waffles and coffee. Pure bliss. It’s lovely to meet the locals and explore different shops and neighborhoods that you wouldn’t ever see otherwise. So far, I’ve gotten to visit 30 of the 50 U.S. states. 20 more to go!”
Touring is hard work, no doubt, but it’s also a chance to have wonderful experiences like these. In a way, the band becomes a family, and that family is sure to remember these experiences both on and off the stage for a long time to come.
Finding time for even more
To close things out, we’d like to tell you about what Fadavi has been working on lately.
At the time of writing, Fadavi is on tour with King Princess through January and February, opening for Kacey Musgraves’ U.S. arena tour ‘Starcrossed: Unveiled.’
Later this year, the band is set to open for Shawn Mendes’ European arena tour from March to May.
Over the last few months, Fadavi had a break from touring, and he used this time to keep up with his music direction work for big-name artists in the LA area.
I’ve had a wonderful time music-directing some shows for Ella Isaacson and Little Luna in Los Angeles over the last few months. I also got to assist the music director for Lil Nas X for the Jingle Ball 2021 Tour rehearsals, working on Ableton Playback and AutoTune.
But that’s not all. Fadavi has some big plans for other projects throughout 2022, but wheels are in motion for these projects and he can’t share details about these right now.
If you’d like to keep up with Fadavi’s work, go ahead and check out his Instagram, @antoinefadavi.
In the meantime, Fadavi will continue to showcase his skills as a touring musician, enjoying his time out on the road, and giving his all during every performance.
