The Live Show Intensive · Cohort 01 · Aug 15 – Sept 12, 2026

The Live Show Intensive.

For MDs · Playback Engineers · Church MDs · Session Musicians · Programmers

Four weeks inside the operating system of a modern touring production. Async modules, two live Q&As, and every template we use on the road.

Reserve your seat — $997 or 2 × $499 See the curriculum
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Built From
BEYONCÉ · MARY J. BLIGE · TEYANA TAYLOR · KELLY ROWLAND · KHALID · 50 CENT · GLORILLA · DOECHII · FUTURE · LATTO · AYA NAKAMURA · BEYONCÉ · MARY J. BLIGE · TEYANA TAYLOR · KELLY ROWLAND · KHALID · 50 CENT · GLORILLA · DOECHII · FUTURE · LATTO · AYA NAKAMURA ·
Why this exists

Most people building live shows learned in the field.

You watched the MD next to you, took notes on your phone between soundcheck and doors, and pieced it together across ten tours. There was no manual.

This intensive is the manual — four weeks, pre-recorded modules you can run at tour pace, two live Q&A sessions, and real templates, rig diagrams, and session files from the actual road build.

What's included

Every asset from the road build.

Not a course library. The working files.

12 pre-recorded modules — ~8 hours of video walking a live show from first pitch to last encore.
The Live Show Playbook — 90+ page PDF, the written companion.
Ableton session templates — playback skeleton, click/cue routing, backup rig.
Rig diagrams + patch lists — the actual documents from touring builds.
Tour Budget Template — the spreadsheet used to price the run.
Artist / Venue Advance Template — the advance document.
Two live Q&A calls with Emmett (both recorded for anyone who can't attend).
Private cohort channel — 20 seats, working professionals only.
Certificate of completion on The Walker Group letterhead.
Lifetime access to modules and files after cohort close.
Curriculum · 4 weeks

Twelve modules. Two live Q&As. One playbook.

Modules drop every Monday. All pre-recorded so you can run them at your own pace. Two 60-minute live Q&A calls inside the cohort window, both recorded.

Week 1 · Drops Aug 17
The Pitch, The Rig, The Budget
  • 1.1 What the MD actually does — the seven-role stack on a modern show
  • 1.2 From pitch to green-light — how a show gets scoped and sold
  • 1.3 Rig design 101 — main / backup / emergency stack, cabling philosophy, documentation from day one
  • 1.4 Tour budgeting — the Tour Budget Template walkthrough, per diems, programming fees, negotiation moments that matter
Live Q&A #1 · approx. Aug 22 · 60 min · recorded
Week 2 · Drops Aug 24
Programming & Playback
  • 2.1 Session architecture in Ableton — track layout, colors, grouping, naming conventions
  • 2.2 Click, cues, and comms — click bus design, cue systems, talkback and IEM structure
  • 2.3 Backup rig & show continuity — auto-fallover, recovering mid-song without the audience noticing
  • 2.4 File management on the road — version control, naming, touring drive vs. studio vs. archive
Week 3 · Drops Aug 31
Rehearsal & The Band Room
  • 3.1 Running rehearsal — room booking, call sheets, the arc from Day 1 read-through to Day 5 dress
  • 3.2 The setlist arc — reading a set as narrative, where energy peaks, transitions, interludes
  • 3.3 Working with the artist — taking a note and translating it to eight musicians. When to push back. When to shut up.
  • 3.4 Leading a band — managing musicians better than you, setting expectations, delivering hard notes
Live Q&A #2 · approx. Sept 5 · 60 min · recorded
Week 4 · Drops Sept 7
The Room, The Road, The Encore
  • 4.1 The advance — working with the promoter's tech rep, what the tour manager needs from you
  • 4.2 The show day — load-in through encore, line check, soundcheck, the half-hour, doors, show
  • 4.3 When it fails on stage — click drops, monitors cut, in-ear dies. How to recover. How to protect the artist.
  • 4.4 Building the career past this tour — what to say yes to next, turning tours into IP, pricing yourself up
Cohort close · Sept 12 · Final resource drop
Format

Async by design. Live where it matters.

Cohort dates
Aug 15 – Sept 12, 2026
Modules drop
Every Monday
Live Q&A
Two Zoom calls · recorded
Time commitment
~3 hours per week
Delivery
Private cohort portal + Ableton downloads
Seats
20
Fit

Built for working professionals. Not for beginners.

Who this is for

  • Working MDs who learned on the job and want the framework they never got
  • Playback engineers ready to move into music direction
  • Church MDs producing at concert-level scale
  • Programmers and session players who want to understand the whole show
  • Assistant MDs building toward their first tour

Who this isn't for

  • Beginners without live-performance experience
  • Anyone looking for a certification that guarantees a gig — this is not that
  • Anyone expecting daily 1:1 coaching — that's Executive Advisory
Who you're working with

Emmett "Trill" Walker — music director, playback engineer, founder.

Music direction and playback engineering behind live productions for Beyoncé, Mary J. Blige, Teyana Taylor, Kelly Rowland, Khalid, 50 Cent, GloRilla, Doechii, Future, Latto, and Aya Nakamura. Arenas, stadiums, broadcast, residency.

None of this came from a course. Church basements, tour buses, rehearsals where the margin was zero — that's where the framework was built.

The reps don't have a shortcut. The framework does. That's what this intensive is.

From the room

What working MDs said about the last cohort.

Real quotes only. These slots fill after Cohort 01 closes.

Reserve · 20 seats

One door. One cohort.

Paid up front. Stripe receipt is your invoice. Payment plan available on request.

Cohort 01
Aug 15 – Sept 12, 2026 · Async + 2 Live Q&As
The Live Show Intensive
Four weeks inside the operating system of a modern touring production.
$997
20 seats · pay in full or 2 × $499
  • 12 pre-recorded modules (~8 hrs of video)
  • The Live Show Playbook — 90+ page PDF
  • Ableton session templates + backup rig build
  • Rig diagrams, patch lists, comms maps
  • Tour Budget + Artist Advance templates
  • Two live Q&A calls with Trill (recorded)
  • Private cohort channel + lifetime file access
  • Certificate of completion
For MDs · playback · church MDs · session · programmers
Reserve your seat — $997 or 2 × $499
FAQ

Honest answers, no fluff.

Is this live or pre-recorded?
Both. All 12 modules are pre-recorded so you can run them at your own pace. Two live Q&A calls happen inside the four-week window, and both are recorded for anyone who can't attend live.
Emmett is on tour Oct 1 – Dec 1. Does that affect the cohort?
No. The cohort runs Aug 15 – Sept 12 and finishes three weeks before load-in on the Latto x Doja US Tour.
What if I can't finish in four weeks?
You get lifetime access to the modules and files. The cohort channel stays open through Oct 1.
Do you offer refunds?
Full refund inside the first seven days if you haven't downloaded The Live Show Playbook or the session templates.
Is there a payment plan?
Yes — two payments of $499, seven days apart. Email hello@thewalkergroup.studio to request.
Can my employer pay?
Yes. Ask for an invoice at checkout or email hello@thewalkergroup.studio.
Will I get a certificate?
Yes — a completion certificate on The Walker Group letterhead. It is a signal of the work, not a professional license.
I want the materials but can't commit to a cohort. Options?
The Live Show Playbook ($497) bundles the PDF and every template. If you upgrade to the Intensive within 30 days, the $497 credits toward the $997 enrollment. See the Shop.
What if I need something bigger — a tour build or full production?
Custom engagement. Use the main inquiry form. From $5K.
Reserve — $997