Tour and production managers David ‘5-1’ Norman and Gabi Parra have teamed up to form a new tour consulting firm, Tour Forensics. Norman and Parra, who are based in Atlanta and New York, bring a wealth of experience in tour direction, logistics, tour accounting, budgets, show settlements, staffing, vendor allocation, routing, travel coordination, hospitality, charter jet bookings, and executing domestic and international work visas and immigration paperwork for top artists.
More details from Tour Forensics (www.tourforensics.com):
Long time tour manager David ‘5-1′ Norman and production extraordinaire Gabi Parra have been touring globally with some of the music industry’s top talent for over 30 years. Their combined tour backgrounds read like a who’s who of the music industry. Prince. Fall Out Boy. Alicia Keys. Avicii. Earth, Wind & Fire. John Legend. These are just some of the many artists who have trusted their domestic and international tours to Norman and Parra.
Now with three decades of experience under their belt, this power duo is taking their expertise to the next level by launching Tour Forensics. The new startup promises to be a one-stop-shop for artists, managers and record labels, as Norman, Parra and their support team draw from their extensive experience in tour direction, logistics, tour accounting, budgets, show settlements, staffing, vendor allocation, routing, travel coordination, hospitality, charter jet bookings, and executing domestic and international work visas and immigration paperwork.
“I’m incredibly excited about this new venture, using all that I’ve learned as a tour director, tour manager, production manager, tour accountant and promoter rep, to bring my years of experience to the next generation of artists, labels and management firms,” says Norman. “Being able to use our knowledge and strengths to collaborate and help other artists get their tours off to a great start is truly an honor,” adds Parra.
With touring now the top source of income for musical artists, having a team of seasoned professionals is essential for any artist wanting to streamline their tours and maximize their revenue streams. Tour Forensics specializes in providing support services to tour and production managers, major and indie record labels (and management), as well as artists directly. Given the varied nature of each production, Tour Forensics promises to tailor their services to each client’s particular needs.
According to a recent Wall Street Journal article, hip-hop and R&B are dominating the record business, yet still have a long way to go in the touring realm. This is where Parra sees Tour Forensics having a competitive edge in the industry. “I’m particularly excited about working with the groups of people who are typically underserved and who need this type of organization process the most. I think it could mean a whole different type of touring for them and it would be incredible to be there from the ground up,” Parra says. Like the hip-hop and R&B markets, Parra also sees huge growth opportunity in the Latino market, with her bilingual skills proving to be an essential asset for any international tour group.
Having just completed work with their first client, 6x Platinum Australian CAA artist Dean Lewis, Norman and Parra are already moving right into a tour with BET’S The Next Big Thing star Durand Bernarr. Tour Forensics looks forward to utilizing their experience, knowledge, and access to an extensive network of touring professionals to take artists’ tours to the next level.
About David ‘5-1’ Norman
With over 25 years of global touring experience, David Norman has covered the globe managing tours spanning North America, Europe, Australia, Asia, South America and South Africa from many of the world’s top artists covering all genres of music. Norman has been a featured speaker on a variety of panels at the Tour Link Conference, the IMFCON Conference, The Hubb at CAA in Nashville, as well as the University of Georgia Music Business Program, and has written numerous professional articles about his time in the touring industry. Born in the UK, Norman has lived in the United States for most of his life. He currently resides in Atlanta, GA.
About Gabi Parra
Gabi Parra is a tour production specialist with over 15 years in the business. Having began as a runner and stagehand for a wide array of artists like Elton John, Bob Dylan, Blue Man Group, Lil Wayne, and Tom Petty, Parra would go on to work events for the Democratic National Committee, Superbowl and Glastonbury Festival. For the past 10 years, she has served as the lead production coordinator and assistant for Earth, Wind & Fire. Parra also has experience working in the corporate world as a production coordinator and is bilingual in both English and Spanish. She currently resides in New York City.
