As most of you have already figured out I have been on tour for the past 3.5 weeks. I meant to write this blog over almost a month ago (sorry Anthony) but its been virtually impossible. My schedule has been insane every single day and the satellite internet on our bus makes me long for the days of AOL 56k dial up. No joke.

We are currently in Montreal, Canada. Did Toronto last night and it was incredible. Probably the best show of the tour which is seriously saying something.

This tour has been one of the greatest experiences of my life. I am so lucky to be given the opportunity. I can’t believe I almost passed on it.

Back in the summer I was asked to jump on the tour and DJ but due to our newly formed company (Premier), a crazy summer schedule, and the short notice I wasn’t able to. Every time a new youtube vid appeared of one sold out House of Blues show after another I kicked myself in the ass.

When the winter started winding down and I was asked by Sammy’s management team to come do a couple shows including the insane Snowball Fest in Vail I couldn’t say yes fast enough. There they hit me with the offer of touring for the entire month of April with Sammy.

At first, the idea of living on a bus and occasionally out of hotel rooms wasn’t as appealing as you might think… (that’s a joke). I was again hesitant. Looking back I’m surprised Alex, Joey, and Mike weren’t like “f*ck this guy.” I told them I would have to think about it and talk to my girl, my business partner (thanks again Ant), club owners, and my pets to see if it would work. They told me over and over that it would be a once in a lifetime experience and having now done it for 4 weeks I can honestly say it really has been.

We started off in Kansas City, MO on March 31st. Since then we have literally not sat in one city for more than 48 hours. The days have blended together into a blur, I can’t remember what day of the week it is, and I now view showering as a luxury. Crazy. We have suitcases but I learned quickly its best to rotate clothes and shoes in a duffle bag which we keep on the bus and not in the bays under the bus and we live out of those.

The best thing about the whole thing has been the people in our crew.Sam has assembled a dream team from top to bottom. His Managers, Tour Manager, Sound and Lighting Tech, Head of Merchandise, DJ (me), and video guy are who is here day in and day out. Sam’s brother and some friends have rode with us here and there and stirred shit up. Seriously though this group of guys are some of the best I’ve met in a long long time. Asbolutely hilarious. It’s just non stop ball busting, sarcasm, and pranking. All the normal east coast stuff I have missed since setting up shop in Chicago a while ago. A good example that takes place regularly is every time I come in from a sound check there’s usually a new insulting sign hanging up in my bunk for me. It’s all in good humor though. This group of guys I’ve got to know through this will be friends of mine for a long time.

If you want an idea of what life has been like so far on this tour make sure you check out these videos here-

I have got to meet artists and people that I have admired from a creative level and also spun records of for a while. In Delaware we opened for and I got to meet Wale. Flo-rida was also on the bill. In Rochester – J Cole, one of my favorite new rappers played after us. In Jersey we played with Posner and LMFAO. At Lafayette I got to meet Waka Flocka (who by the way is one of the scariest guys I have ever been face to face with). In New Hampshire we played with Lupe Fiasco. (One of the best live shows I have seen in a while- guy killed it). I could go on and on. Its been insane how many incredible artists and their crews I have got to meet, network with, and take in from backstage. The experience has been incredible. I was talking with the President of Warner Music for 45 minutes on our tour bus at Bamboozle before I even found out who he was. I just thought he was some huge fan of Sam’s (which he was) who was friend’s with Sam’s manager (which he is). One of the soon to be biggest producers in music Bei Maejor has been on tour with us here and there. Guy is an absolute monster. I’ve got to sit in on makeshift studio sessions with him and Sam in the back of the bus while they knock out absolute bangers on logic. The guy is a genius. Mel Carter, Wu-Tangs manager is going to be coming on tour with us to end out this week and kick it! This stuff is crazy! The pinnacle of this all was probably Bamboozle last weekend at Giants Stadium in the Meadowlands. Sam opened the main stage at 7:00 and from the pic at the top of this post you can see it was bananas. It was the most nervous I have EVER been in my life deejaying. I don’t know how Sam was able to grab the mic and take the stage with the gusto he did. When I walked onto that stage in front of about 8 thousand people to setup my tables and mixer I was trembling. Once the intro dropped in and the place erupted I was just in awe at how crazy a show it was. We banged out a non stop 35 minute set that left the crowd blown away and screaming for more. After him LMFAO went on, followed by Wiz Khalifa and Thirty Seconds to Mars. I got to watch both shows from the stage like a groupie. (Check my youtube page in a few days to see the videos I took)

sam adams vermont higher ground 2011

sam adams toronto 2011

sam adams foxboro, ma 2011

sam adams university of delaware 2011

We’ve made friends with a group from Atlanta that has been touring with us for a couple weeks and opening up shows. They’re named Vonnegutt and are some of the coolest guys I have ever met. Big Boy (ya that Big Boy from Outkast) signed them to Purple Ribbon and they played Lolla last year. They do an awesome job opening up and really get the crowd hyped. Plus they’re a blast to kick it and party with.

As far as Sam’s shows go? Seriously, all cockiness aside, nobody is touching him. For an independent artist to be selling out shows all around the country and even in Canada with absolutely no major label support or radio play is unheard of. These major artists we have worked with on tour have come up after shows and openly expressed admiration for what the kid is doing and said how blown away they were at the crowds and energy at these shows. Each show gets better than the last which is crazy to think. We have fine tuned the set so well that the crowd has no time to catch their breathe and by the time Driving Me Crazy is over nobody wants the show to end. Sam’s stage presence and crowd control is seriously better than guys that have been touring for a decade. These shows are straight insanity. Kids going crazy from the second the intro video drops. They know every single word to every single song. They show up in home made shirts with signs. And they show up 4 or 5 hours before doors even open so they can be in the front row. You know how many artists and labels would love to have a following that is predominantly high school to college aged and heavily female?

The stage crews that come up to all of us after these shows with looks of astonishment on their faces and appreciation for what we just did at their venue is probably the best part of it all though. Its great surprising people and that’s all Sam has done since day one. The deck has been stacked against him from the start and yet he somehow keeps coming out on top and becoming bigger and bigger.

I cant go into details but things are going to get crazy this summer. With big surprises in store, incredible new music in the pipeline and waiting to be released, and Red Rocks Electronic Music Fest and Lollapalooza performances (more on this in another post) in store Sam is about to explode. It honestly couldn’t happen to a better person, harder worker, and somebody so deserving of it. The kid is so humble and grateful for all his success that you can’t help but root for him. He takes time to acknowledge every single one of his fans. I’ve never ever seen him blow anybody off or give them the cold shoulder. And most importantly, he genuinely loves what he does.

I am so blessed and I can’t wait to watch everything continue to unfold and be apart of it!

***As a side note, I am going to be doing an interview with Sam the last day of this tour for both the Premier blog and my personal blog. I am going to ask him questions that are sent in by his fans and that I have had for him too. It won’t be the same ten questions he gets asked in every interview like “Which artists inspire you?”. Its going to be funny and different so start sending your questions for Sammy in now. ALSO – I am going to film a typical day start to finish from my perspective this week on my iPhone and post it so look out for that.