Stephanie Mills Co-Headlining Road Heil Sound

Stephanie Mills is on the road with Heil Sound microphones for “The Queens” tour, a co-headlining concert series with Patti Labelle, Gladys Knight and Chaka Khan that launched in Las Vegas and will continue through October of 2025.

The Heil Sound microphone package includes PR22s, Handi Mic Pro Plus, PR40s, and PR31BW
s for drum applications, with vocals handled by RC37 capsules on Shure transmitters. Mills uses a custom gold finish RC35 capsule, while guitar amplifiers are captured with PR31BW
microphones and a PR40 on the bass guitar amp.

Elite AV Elements, based in Chesapeake, VA, is providing production services for the tour, with audio engineers Louis McKay handling front of house mixing duties and Courtney Gladney managing monitor mixing responsibilities. Michael Johnson of Elite AV Elements serves double duty as both crew chief and production manager for the tour.

The main system is headed by L-Acoustics K2 loudspeakers complemented by d&b audiotechnik wedges for stage monitoring. Both mix positions utilize Di Gi Co  Quantum
338 mixing consoles, as requested by McKay and Gladney.

“We are using Heil mics everywhere with Stephanie and everyone’s mind is blown by the sound,” says McKay, a long-time Heil Sound user, as is Gladney. “Working with artists of Stephanie Mills’ caliber requires microphones that can deliver consistent, professional results night after night and we get that from Heil.”

The logistics of managing four headline acts with individual bands requires some innovation. To ensure tightly executed set changes, the production incorporates a 40-foot revolving turntable on the stage, allowing the crew to set up one act while another is performing.