10.07.2024 | Elation Lights Up Raw Cereal’s Spectacular Designs for Two of Country Music’s Biggest Stars

Global creative and production studio crafts stunning visuals for two of country music's hottest acts - Morgan Wallen and Lainey Wilson-using Elation lighting.

Stepping into the world of Raw Cereal means diving into a realm of creativity and cutting-edge technology. The global creative and production studio with the intriguing name creates immersive live experiences for some of the world's best-known artists, with two of the hottest names in country music, Morgan Wallen and Lainey Wilson, thrilling fans with Raw Cereal-designed shows that include Elation RAYZOR series lights.

Raw Cereal
Founded in 2022 by Cort Lawrence and Anders Rahm, Raw Cereal (rawcereal.com) is a comprehensive creative studio based in Los Angeles, specializing in production, show, stage, lighting, and content design for some of the best productions worldwide. In the business for over a decade, Cort and Anders have worked with top acts like J Balvin, Kid Cudi, Machine Gun Kelly, All Time Low and Matchbox Twenty, as well as icons of music like Red Hot Chili Peppers, Metallica, Beyoncé, Coldplay, and many more.

"We see ourselves as a global agency, delivering creativity to clients worldwide," Cort Lawrence commented. "We offer both technical and creative expertise, and all the minute details that fall in between. We take our team anywhere the project takes us to get the job done."

The name "Raw Cereal" originated from a breakfast routine shared by Cort and Anders, who noticed the absence of cereal on the menu at a restaurant in Los Angeles where the two creative minds often met to share their mutual aspirations of building a creative and production studio together. The name embraces the raw potential of unprocessed creativity.

"We've always looked past convention to a more creative and innovative approach using cutting-edge technology," Cort shares, emphasizing that color is especially important in matching and complementing video in their designs. "Because we do a lot of video content, to have a company that really knows about true color, and gives us the flexibility and opportunity to access that color spectrum, helps our programmers and makes our jobs a lot easier."

Country connection
Two of Raw Cereal's hottest clients include country music's Morgan Wallen and Lainey Wilson, two acts whose stars are clearly on a steep upward trajectory. Both are out on extensive tours with video-rich designs with Elation lighting playing a complementing role in the visual look. "We're excited to be working with two of the most notable names in country music right now and are happy to be using some great lights as support in their designs," Cort remarked. "They really help us bring the show to life by capturing the essence of the music and creating custom looks for each song, which makes for a more captivating experience for the audience."

Part of Morgan Wallen brand
Morgan Wallen's "One Night at a Time" tour kicked off on April 4 with a sold-out show at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis. Raw Cereal has been with Wallen since 2022 and handles creative direction, production & design, show direction, and animation & content on the current tour. "When we first came into the Morgan Wallen world, he already had some Elation products touring with him so we knew they were already taking the right steps," Cort says. "The PROTEUS RAYZOR BLADE and PROTEUS RAYZOR 760 were new products and those lights had really become part of the Morgan Wallen brand and show. Those lights played well with country music and Morgan Wallen specifically so we took those into the next tour stops in 2023/24."

Cort added more PROTEUS RAYZOR BLADE L linear tilt FX bars to this year's tour for a total of 124 units, along with 40 PROTEUS RAYZOR 760 wash FX, all part of a larger lighting package. "Those two products were the most noticeable in that previous design and we wanted to carry them through to the current look," Cort said. "They really stand out and add character to the show."

Cleaner aesthetic
The initial inspiration for the stage and lighting design was to create something bold and open to allow for both spectacle and intimate moments throughout the show. The design includes several performance areas that allow the artist to get closer to the audience, including a 108-foot-long thrust stage that extends into the pit. Inspired by Wallen's previous tour, Cort simplified this year's design with a clean visual aesthetic that went heavier on video. A giant 235-ft-wide wrap-around LED screen hangs 30 ft above the stage to anchor the design. It's a groundbreaking scheme with Cort and his team the first to hang a video wall of this size in this format.

The PROTEUS RAYZOR BLADES line automated trusses that move in and out, with more RAYZOR BLADES lining the band set along with two other stage elements. The innovative use of automation allows the lighting design to evolve throughout the show, adapting to different songs and moments, and creating an ever-evolving look. The fixtures can function as a wash, strobe or FX light and 210° tilt rotation allows them to position dynamically during a show.

The PROTEUS RAYZOR 760 are spread across the rig and used for wash and keylight. "They are multipurpose fixtures and the SparkLED effect lets us put them wherever we need them and still get a great wash," Cort said.

RAYZOR with SparkLED
SparkLED, Elation's proprietary background twinkle effect found in all RAYZOR series fixtures, is an effect that the designer says lends itself well to country music and specifically Morgan Wallen. "Morgan's music is a crossover of hip hop, pop, and country; it's a new style that is unique to him with a lot of detail, deep beats and some dazzling effects. We like to dazzle the audience as well and they just love looking out and seeing the twinkle and sparkle."

Morgan Wallen's 2024 "One Night at a Time" plays North American dates throughout the summer before setting off for a first-ever string of European shows starting August 28 in Sweden. Lighting vendor for the Morgan Wallen "One Night at a Time" tour is Christie Lites.

Lainey Wilson
New to the Raw Cereal fold is 2023 American Country Music Awards Entertainer of the Year and 2024 GRAMMY Award-winner Lainey Wilson, who opened her massive 2024 headlining tour with back-to-back sold-out shows at Nashville's Ascend Amphitheater on May 31/June 1. Lighting vendor for the "Country is Cool Again" tour is Fuse.

A shooting star in country music, the singer/songwriter has toured Australia, Europe and the U.S., all in just a few months. "Lainey is a whirlwind of energy that has really caught the world's attention," Cort stated of the country singer's quick rise to fame. "She is hard working, has great music and a great band and we are proud to have been brought on as creative producer, lighting designer and show director for her latest "Country is Cool Again" U.S. tour."

Tried and True
Cort again uses what he calls the "tried and true" combination of PROTEUS RAYZOR BLADE L and RAYZOR series fixtures as part of a larger lighting package. "On Lainey, we again turned to the PROTEUS RAYZOR BLADE L and PROTEUS RAYZOR 760, but added in the PROTEUS RAYZOR 1960 with its larger face and greater power for big pops of color and wash across the stage." The 1960, a big brother to the PROTEUS RAYZOR 760, is a high-output LED wash and FX light with 18,000 lumens of power and eye-catching 19-cell front lens.

PROTEUS RAYZOR 1960
Lainey' set features an orange pickup truck center stage that rotates on a TAIT rotator and highlighted using PROTEUS RAYZOR 760s. The PROTEUS RAYZOR 1960's populate two horizontal truss on each side of the stage. "I think they're the most beneficial light in the show," Cort says of the 1960s. "Everything in the center is focused around the video wall but the negative space on the sides gives the 1960s room to breathe. They pop and with the dark background they really show their true colors." The linear PROTEUS RAYZOR BLADE L lights line a top truss with more units tucked below the video wall just behind the truck. More RAYZOR BLADE units work at ground level from each side of the stage.

Both the Morgan Wallen and Lainey Wilson productions are collaborative team efforts, and Elation is proud to play an important role. In conclusion, Cort reflects, "Elation has changed immensely over the last many years and now they have some of the best products on the road. We choose Elation because they are innovative and continue to push the boundaries and that fits in well with the Raw Cereal philosophy."

Morgan Wallen
Creative Production House: Raw Cereal
Show Director + Creative Director: Anders Rahm
Show Designer, Show Director, Creative Director: Cort Lawrence
Lighting Programmer: Tyler Santangelo
Production Manager: Chad Guy
Technical Director: Patrick Murphy
Stage Manager: Donnie Floyd
Technical Direction: Clear All Visuals
Lighting Operator: Zac Coren
Disguise Programmer & Operator: Jonathan Laosy
Content Creative Director: Natalie Hall
Artist Manager: Seth England / Big Loud Management
Artist Manager: Tracker / Big Loud Management
Lighting + Rigging: Christie Lites

124 x PROTEUS RAYZOR BLADE L
40 x PROTEUS RAYZOR 760
70 x SIXPAR 200IP

Lainey Wilson
Creative Production House: Raw Cereal
Show Designer + Show Director: Cort Lawrence
Creative Director: CeCe Dawson
Creative Producer: Jacob VanVlymen
Lighting Programmer: Tony Caporale
Lighting Programmer: Austin Schneider
Production Manager: Emily Waller
Stage Manager: Gerald "G" McDougald II
Lighting Operator: Mitch Mueller
Content: Director: Drew Best
Content Producer: Tara LaPlante
Artist Manager: Mandelyn Monchick / RedLight Artist Management
Tour Manager: Meg Miller
Lighting + Rigging: Fuse

42 x PROTEUS RAYZOR BLADE L
16 x PROTEUS RAYZOR 1960
4 x PROTEUS RAYZOR 760

Photos: Courtesy of Raw Cereal