By Nicole Evatt
SANTA MONICA, Calif. (AP) --Celebrated composer Hans Zimmer is hitting the road again with his career-spanning concert tour, which he describes as a little bit cinematic and a little bit rock 'n' roll.
"People came thinking it's going to be sort of a bit stodgy. … It's going to be the pretentious composer sitting at his big, black, grand piano," the Oscar winner said of his tour, "Hans Zimmer Revealed," which kicked off in Europe earlier this year.
"It's a very, very different way of presenting music," Zimmer said in a recent interview at his recording studio in Santa Monica. "I come from rock 'n' roll so I had to sort of go back to my humble beginnings."
So Zimmer enlisted Pink Floyd's lighting designer Marc Brickman to set the mood for the energetic show.
He looked to his favorite concert-going experiences, ranging from David Bowie at London's Earls Court in the 1970s to taking his 10-year-old son to his first concert – by The Rolling Stones.
"You're supposed to aim for something that people will remember for the rest of their lives and all the good shows I saw did exactly that," he said.
Zimmer also leaned on friends Pharrell Williams and The Smiths' guitarist Johnny Marr to help him overcome stage fright.
"Those two were pretty much the main offenders going, 'You can't hide behind that. You got to go out there. You have to go and do it.' And so they sort of set the tone and they were sort of my mentors and teachers in this," he said of Williams and Brickman, whom he worked with on "The Amazing Spider Man 2" score.
Audiences can expect classic renditions and a few fresh reboots of some of Zimmer's most popular film scores, including "Gladiator," ''The Lion King," ''Pirates of the Caribbean" and "The Dark Knight Trilogy."
"When you play 'Lion King,' you suddenly realize that that was part of so many people's growing-up music. A lot of it has been the soundtrack to their lives. Some of it we're fairly radical about," Zimmer said. "There's an energy that comes even with some of the pieces I didn't realize. I didn't realize that 'Pirates' is basically an all-out rock 'n' roll onslaught."
After his successful run across Europe, Zimmer announced his first U.S. performances. He'll stop in Los Angeles, San Francisco and Las Vegas in April before visiting Australia and New Zealand and finishing with 21 more European shows.
"There's an energy you can get from American audiences that you can't quite get anywhere else," Zimmer said. "Most of this music came because this town gave me a chance. And so we sort of all feel we want to go and actually do this as a thank you to L.A. That's why it has to be about this town."
Mike Pierantozzi joins Movers+Shakers as exec creative director
Creative agency Movers+Shakers has appointed Mike Pierantozzi as executive creative director. In this new role, he will help guide the creative direction of Movers+Shakers’ socially-native campaigns. Pierantozzi will report to co-founder and chief creative officer Geoffrey Goldberg.
With nearly two decades of experience as a copywriter, creative director, and multi-platform storyteller, Pierantozzi brings a wealth of knowledge from his work with major brands including Kraft, Unilever, IBM, and Walmart. He has led the creation of award-winning campaigns for agencies like Red Tettemer, Ogilvy, The Brooklyn Brothers, TAXI, Saatchi & Saatchi, and most recently, Vayner, where he spearheaded culturally iconic work for Planters including “Death of Mr. Peanut.” He led the National Down Syndrome Society and Luvs account, whose “First Kid. Second Kid” campaign was awarded by the Effies, ADC, Clios and LIAs.
Outside of the office, Pierantozzi practices what he teaches brands. He’s gone viral multiple times on his own TikTok account, featuring comedic interactions with his son and a trombone. He’s accumulated 15K followers on TikTok.
“Mike brings a rare and awesome combination of deep social and platform experience, a keen eye for excellent storytelling, and a humble and kind approach to leadership,” said Goldberg. “Mike’s got a knack for turning brand stories into cultural movements, making him the perfect fit for Movers+Shakers. He’s got the kind of bold vision and attention to culture that fits perfectly with our mission to push creative boundaries and drive industry firsts. Plus, as a creator himself he has the innate ability to make people stop, laugh, and share--which is exactly what we’re about.”
“I’ve... Read More