Photographer Henry Hargreaves was inspired by the crazy (when taken out of context, of course) riders of some of the “biggest acts in the world,” like Nine Inch Nails, Nine Inch Nails and Busta Rhymes, to create a photo series of the food, drinks, and other items required in these contracts. He says that found them interesting because they offer “a glimpse into their larger-than-life personalities.” See all his photos in this series at VICE.
A rider is a contractual proviso that outlines a series of stipulations or requests between at least two parties. While they can be attached to leases and other legal documents, they’re most famously used by musicians or bands to outline how they need their equipment to be set up and arranged, how they like their dressing room organized, and what types of food and beverages they require.
…I decided to focus on the quirkiest requests and shoot them in a Flemish Baroque still-life style because I felt that there was a direct connection between the themes in these types of paintings and the riders: the idea of time passing and the ultimate mortality of a musician’s career as the limelight inevitably fades—they only have a short time in which they are able to make these demands and have them fulfilled.
Nine Inch Nails: Two boxes of corn starch
Axl Rose: Fresh Wonder Bread (white), Dom Perignon
Billy Idol: One tub I can’t believe it’s not Butter!, Pepperidge Farms Soft Baked Nantucket Chocolate Chip Cookies
photos by Henry Hargreaves with prop styling by Caitlin Levin
via VICE