Lighting designer Scott Warner put his grandMA to work on Grammy Award-winner Queen Latifah‘s nine-week Trav‘lin Light tour last fall. The tour, which kicked off September 29 in Dallas and ran through the end of November, supported Queen Latifah‘s new jazz CD of the same name.

Warner had previously used the grandMA to control LED lighting for the Pussycat Dolls, but this was the first tour where his grandMA controlled moving lights. A.C.T Lighting is the exclusive North American distributor of the grandMA.

“Having used another console for eight years I was initially reluctant to give the grandMA a try,” Warner recalls. “But after using the grandMA with the Pussycat Dolls and Queen Latifah, I would never considering working with anything else.”

Warner gave Queen Latifah‘s tour a vintage look with VARI*LITE 3000s, 5Ks and Pixel Par LEDs, the latter used to change the color of the singer‘s logo. “We had a lot of saturated colors but not a lot of movement with the moving lights,” says Warner who also programmed the grandMA. “It was a case of high-tech fixtures giving a low-tech look, and Queen Latifah was very happy with that.

He notes that, “with other consoles I have to figure out what to do. But with grandMA everything is there right in front of me — it‘s really easy, and it‘s never, ever crashed. I just did a one-off show with the Goo Goo Dolls; I walked in and did the show overnight. I could never have done so much in such a short time with any other console.”

With his purchase of the grandMA Warner believes he has made an investment that will last. “It‘s nice to have a console which I think is going to be around for many years,” he says. “Consoles change so fast — you’re always learning one you’ve never seen before. That’s why I was originally reluctant to buy my own grandMA. But once I realized I could customize it, I knew I needed it. Now, there‘s no going back. I couldn‘t think about using another console on tour.”

“We have enjoyed working with Scott and I appreciate his kind comments. One of the hardest things to do is facilitate someone‘s move from another console. This is due to the complex nature of the relationship between a designer/programmer and his control surface. Once Scott made the change, he found new ways of putting his vision on stage as never before. He is a welcome addition to the grandMA family,” comments A.C.T Lighting President and CEO Bob Gordon.

About A.C.T Lighting

A leading importer and distributor of lighting products, A.C.T Lighting, Inc. strives to identify future trends and cutting-edge products, and stock, sell and support their inventory. The company provides superior customer service and value for money to all of its clients. For more information call 818-707-0884 or visit www.actlighting.com.