Tour Manager Roundtable: Ask Us Anything (Production Live! Panel Recap)

At Production Live! 2025, three tour production veterans convened on stage to answer questions from the audience: Marty Hom, Luis Soto, and Rebekah Foster, while OVG chief content director Ray Waddell guided through the session.

Waddell kicked things off by asking each panelist how they got started in the game.

Luis Soto said, he started out of necessity. He used to be a history teacher, and started working the club circuit setting up DJ equipment. When he began to make more money doing that than through teaching, he knew where his future lay.

Marty Hom started because he’s was a music fan. He said he used to be the first in line to see his favorite artists during his high school years, then became a promoter rep working with artists like Luther Vandross, New Edition, and others, then a production manager, and, finally, tour manager for the first time in 1985 on a Bill Withers tour.

Rebekah Foster, a 2025 Women of Live honoree, started as audio engineer, first in the studio then live, working with hip hop and jazz legends like Queen Latifah, Boogie Down Productions, Outkast, Sarah Vaughn, Sonny Rollins, Dizzy Gillespie and more. Budget cuts led her to become determined to learn everything, which led her into tour and production managing.

Then the floor was given to the audience. Below are the most interesting questions and responses. Several questions revolved around how to break into the industry, how to build relationships, and just generally get one’s foot in the door.

All panelists agreed that this industry still was “all about relationships, who you know, and the friendships you’ve created,” as Hom put it. One way of doing that was to start with the baby acts, the artists trying to get a foot in the door, who need help in all areas. “Believe in these bands, foster the relationship,” said Hom, and it would pay off down the line.

One student from Japan, studying at Berklee College of Music, said he was about to take a band from Boston on tour in the UK. “None of us have any experience touring the UK,” he began his question, “what could go wrong?”

Soto said to prepare the band for the different experiences they’ll undoubtedly have in a foreign country with a different culture. “Make them feel like you’ve got a plan and answers to all the questions they might have,” he said.

Foster likened the role of tour manager to “a giant baby sitting job in a way.” So, she said, “make sure there’s plenty of communication, and that you have all the information ready.”

She then reminded the student that they’d require a carnet for all their gear, which, unlike the temporary ETA visa needed since 2025, he didn’t yet have.

At which point Hom said, he would give him his contact information after the panel, as there wasn’t enough time during the session to give a comprehensive answer.

One audience member from Australia had to deal with touring crews that didn’t comply with local legislation, for instance regarding crew safety. She wanted to know, how to approach the international tour manager in such cases.

Foster said it should be made clear in the pre-production that if the crews did not comply, there’d be no gig. “Even if the arena is mine for the day, I’m a guest in your house,” she explained, “so play hard ball.”

Hom suggested putting a list together of all the things that crews had to comply with, and make somebody sign it. He pointed to many festivals nowadays, that make you sign a waiver that allows them to stop the show at any time for crowd safety reasons.

Another student trying to make it in touring wanted to know about the panel’s experience making a career in this industry as people of color.

Foster, who for a long time was the only black female engineer in the industry, said “it’s not changing as much as it should be. There are still loads of barriers to break. Take a look at the Taylor Swift crew. That’s the face of the industry.”

And she added, “keep knocking on that door. I’ve been harassing Jake Berry for 30 years. Show them your work ethic, and what you can bring to the table.”

Hom agreed: “Stick with it,” he said.

What is one thing a new tour manager should do, and one they should never do, was another question asked.

Soto said, “you have to have a solid work ethic, and be mindful of people. Don’t have an ego. Be kind to people, leave an impression every time to establish your relationships. If you don’t love what you do, it doesn’t make sense doing it.”

Foster said, “If you’re having a bad day, leave it where you have to leave it, don’t let it affect your crew,” and “‘please’, ‘thank you’, ‘you’re welcome’ go a long way.” And she added, that a large team meant you had to deal with many different personalities and needs.

Hom encouraged the audience “to bring empathy, and compassion to the table,” and concluded that there was “no right or wrong way to tour manage. Everybody develops their own style.”

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