Egyptian. Cosmic. Paradise. Disco. How Observatory Designed the Visuals for Jamiroquai's Heels of Steel Tour

Four words. That was the brief. Egyptian. Cosmic. Paradise. Disco. Scrawled above a hand-drawn sketch by Jay Kay himself — a multi-level stage with pyramids, palm trees, animals and towers — and that was the starting point for one of the most creatively meaningful projects Observatory has ever undertaken.

Jamiroquai's Heels of Steel 2025 tour marked the band's first return to the stage in six years, spanning 14 dates across Europe and the UK from Barcelona in November through to the sold-out O2 Arena in London in December. For our Executive Creative Director Ben Sheppee and Technical Director Simon Harris, this one carried personal weight long before a single frame was rendered.

"Having performed in acid-jazz bands during the mid-1990s — heavily influenced by Jamiroquai's seminal tracks like Cosmic Girl — the opportunity to design for the artist decades later felt like a natural creative circle." — Ben Sheppee & Simon Harris, LSi Online, March 2026

A Visual Language Built Without the Music

One of the most unusual creative constraints of this project was that the visual content had to be developed almost entirely without reference to the music itself. Jay Kay's explicit direction was that he wanted to forge the connections between songs and visuals himself, during production rehearsals — and for that process to remain fluid throughout the tour.

"The biggest factor for us to consider at all times was that the music did not — and should not — inform the visual designs," Simon Harris explained in the LSi Online feature on the production. "Jay wanted us to create everything in a way that, during production rehearsals, he could make the connections between visuals and songs himself."

That meant building a library of material — thematically rich, visually diverse, emotionally coherent — that could be mapped to a constantly shifting setlist. A challenge requiring deep creative confidence and a willingness to work in a genuinely non-linear way.

The Stage: Pyramids, LED and Transparency

The physical design of the Heels of Steel show is built around a multi-level stage with stacked risers, four angular overhead 'V' trusses, and several independent planes of LED: six vertical columns, a main rear screen, and Jamiroquai's now-signature transparent pyramids. These became one of the most compelling creative tools available to us.

The transparent LED structures shifted throughout the show — functioning as solid monolithic sculptural forms one moment (neon geometries, UFO-like structures) and then dissolving entirely the next, becoming invisible to reveal the rear LED wall behind them. The effect was theatrical, surprising, and gave the stage a constantly shifting spatial quality that matched the energy of the live performance.

Lighting designer Vince Foster — who has shaped Jamiroquai's live visual identity for over 20 years — stepped back during the early creative phase, trusting Observatory to define the visual language before building the lighting around it. His feedback at rehearsals captured the result simply: "When I saw what they were developing, I thought: this is exactly what Jay wants."

Remote Workflow, Collaborative Spirit

Throughout the tour, Observatory maintained a remote workflow with Foster and show programmer Phil Leech, allowing the creative team to update elements as efficiently as possible as the structure evolved on the road. "The rehearsals were a key moment where the show took shape," said Sheppee. "We started tying specific looks to specific songs with Jay."

A Circle Completed

For a studio whose founder spent his mid-1990s playing in acid-jazz bands shaped by Jamiroquai's sound, this project represented something beyond a brief and a delivery. It was a chance to serve the music that shaped us — at the scale of a European arena tour. We're enormously proud of what the Observatory team created for Heels of Steel.

Read the full production feature: LSi Online — On Tour: Jamiroquai (March 2026). Lighting and video supply: 4Wall Entertainment. Photos: Luke Dyson.