Crew Q&A: Ryan Mcilravey

We recognise that crew members are the backbone of the live entertainment industry, which is why today we launch our Crew Q&A series to hear from some of the industry’s finest and some of the unsung heroes of the events world.

Ryan Mcilravey has toured with the likes of Lewis Capaldi, Twin Atlantic, Chvrches, Frightened Rabbit, Jack Savoretti and Circa Waves.

He now owns FE Live PA Rental Company and works with a pool of freelancers as well as full time staff to deliver audio for UK live events and global touring artists. We grabbed 5 with him to discuss life in live production…

What inspired you to work in audio for live events?

I actually started off wanting to do lighting before I realised they don’t use subwoofers! I’ve always enjoyed the fine details with complex audio productions. Lots of tiny things that in their own right don’t seem important then add up to make something huge.

There’s a testimonial on your website which refers to some strange requests or ideas that have been sent through to you – what has been the strangest?

We’ve been asked to mic up some pretty strange things before when we do television work – including a circular saw for a live comedy show or someone’s hands…

In 2011 your company won awards from the Princes Trust – what do you think got you to that point?

We’ve always had a really great team that work with us at FE. Dedicated full time staff obviously play a huge roll in the day to day running of the business and a lot of our more specialist projects that take a long time to deliver. However perhaps even more important is the huge pool of freelancers we work with on a daily basis that we try and make feel part of the team no matter how much or how little they work with us over the years. One big team effort helped us grow and improve to the point we started to win regular awards for our achievements – and we still do to this day!

Industry tech is constantly being updated. How do you keep up with it all?

I’m lucky enough to get regular ‘sneak peaks’ at new products or technology standards that may be getting adapted soon which helps stay ahead of the game a much as possible rather than reacting to changes once they become popular.

What’s the one item when you’re on the road that you can’t live without?

Good quality strong coffee at least 5 times a day. Definitely a cliché but ask anyone who tours and they’ll probably agree!

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