ROCK THE BELLS: Behind the scenes for Eazy-E

A worker checkes the lighting for a hologram performance for this weekends Rock the Bells concert on Friday, Sept. 6, 2013 in Devore. (Stan Lim/Staff Photographer)

I’ve been fortunate enough to cover a number of special events and festivals during my tenure at The Press-Enterprise, but I had the opportunity to do something really special on Friday night–I spent the evening being a fly on the wall, or in this case, on the field, for the final preparations in advance of Rock the Bells’s San Bernardino kickoff.

I want to extend a very special thank you to Guerilla Union for allowing us to tell an infrequently-seen part of the story. This is the second blog about the behind the scenes experience. You can also see Stan Lim’s photos from behind the scenes over at PE.com. You can also read about Eazy-E’s performance with Bone Thugs-N-Harmony here at the Audio File.

We started to gather around 8 p.m. on Friday night, posting up along the back barricade of the VIP pit in front of the main stage at San Manuel Amphitheater in Devore where thousands of fans would be standing Saturday night.

The stage floated down and a test pattern appeared as workers spent hours testing and tweaking lights and more.

Suddenly, the N.W.A. classic “Straight Outta Compton” played over the speakers at half-volume. The house lights are still up, but the magic is getting closer as security comes by to lock up the phones of the lucky people watching.

Before the show, at festival founder Chang Weisberg’s final pre-fest meeting with the staff, the head of Guerilla Union warned the staff not to take photos. It is all about the element of surprise for the fans. He also directed them on how to work with the staffs behind the technology.

“The hologram team are kind of like headliners,” Weisberg said.

By 9:10 p.m., the house lights are off and 20 minutes later, we get our first sounds of Eazy-E. The “Whassup L…” is cut off before he can finish the A for Angeles. Eazy-E’s widow, Tomica Wright, has come down to the pit, noting that she hears that familiar voice.

Next up are the bone rattling tests of various frequencies, the low-end version of the high pitches that drive dogs crazy. The vibrations shake the stage where Eazy-E will perform so the technicians calibrate the sound. It feels like I’ve been swallowed by a sonic whale or it could be a weird scene out of “Lost.”

Chang Weisberg, founder of Rock the Bells and head of Guerilla Union, watches as a crew sets up the stage while Chris “Broadway” Romero, V.P. of Animation and R & D for Play Gig It, works on his computer as they prepare to test a hologram featuring the late Eazy-E from NWA, the evening before the concert on Friday, Sept. 6, 2013 in Devore. (Stan Lim/Staff Photographer)

At 10 p.m. we see our first hologram on the stage, a woman with long blonde hair twirling and dancing. Those watching a few people down from me joke about her signature moves as she dips and bends.

About 20 minutes later, the dancer is gone and Eazy-E is in her place. Two workers stand next to the hologram in order to size him appropriately. I can’t help but think of Mike Teavee in the original “Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory” after he travels through Wonkavision.

Weisberg, who has been working with the family and AV Concepts and Play GIG-IT to bring this to life over months, watched the hologram on the big stage.

“Oh my God, there is Eazy…E,” he said.

He and Wright walk around the pit in front of the stage, examining Eazy-E from every angle and taking notes.

Meanwhile, DJ Yella, who was in N.W.A. with Eazy-E, steps on stage to rehearse “Straight Outta Compton” and “Boyz-N-The Hood” with the hologram.

At this point, the three dozen or so people in the pit move closer to get a better look at the performance.

This isn’t like Tupac Shakur’s hologram at the 2012 Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival–Eazy-E isn’t as static. He’s moving and performing and interacting.

Soon, Eazy-E’s protégés, Bone Thugs-N-Harmony, are on the stage to rehearse. Weisberg said they had been practicing in a theater with holographic capabilities, but that it was not as large as the stage at San Manuel Amphitheater.

Bizzy Bone asks that someone take a picture so he can post it on Instagram. But with the no camera rule for the night, he accepts the promise that someone will snap one for him on Saturday.

After running through “Foe Tha Love of Money” with the hologram, Wright suggests that Bizzy and Krayzie Bone swap places as to not interfere with the hologram. Bizzy moves around more on stage.

They practice again and again in preparation for Saturday night’s performance.

And after Kid Cudi finished his Saturday night set to end day one of the festival the work started all over again, this time preparing for ODB’s performance with Wu-Tang Clan on Sunday night.