The US office carries the same fully digital touring systems that are now standard XL issue in Europe. Bob Higgins’ career in the music business started as a Hollywood recording engineer. While working with a gold record line-up including Ronnie Laws, The Temptations, The Manhattans, The Gap Band, Earth Wind and Fire, and Minnie Ripperton, Higgins made the transition into video through a collaboration with The American Film Institute. He then moved on from music video producer, to international video crew chief for concert tours and foreign broadcasts. He spent 15 years at the forefront of touring video, primarily as a video director, working with artists including Stevie Wonder, Whitney Houston, Bill Cosby, Paula Abdul, David Bowie, Alan Jackson, Bon Jovi and Jimmy Buffett. Higgins left the road in the late nineties to work for a West coast-based touring video production company - where he met Barbara Riedling.
LA-born and bred Barbara Riedling first entered the entertainment business with Chris Mounsor in London, when Mounsor founded the audio company, Encore PA Ltd. At the end of 1993, Riedling re-located to the USA to join a business management company, handling tour accounting for numerous bands. She left that to move into the video production business – where she met Higgins. Higgins and Riedling supported the touring video needs for countless artists and large rock shows such as Ricky Martin, Ozzfest, Billboard Awards, Woodstock, Alanis Morrisette, Korn, Wango Tango, Rob Zombie, Santana, as well as Sheryl Crow’s world tour and her Live in Central Park TV special. When Higgins was approached by UK-based XL’s Chris Mounsor to open up the new LA office, he immediately seized the opportunity and asked Reidling onboard.
