Kevin Mazur captures music legends, from Billy Joel to Prince to Taylor Swift

When Billy Joel played at a tribute for 9/11 first responders in 2001, a firefighter’s helmet sat on top of his piano.

Kevin Mazur put it there. The noted photographer visited a firehouse earlier in the day and borrowed the helmet to honor his father. Joel recalls the moment. “Seeing that dusty, dented helmet on top of the piano helped me remember the reason for the concert,” he said in a recent phone interview. “It was very emotional to sing ‘New York State of Mind’ under those circumstances.”

“Everyone thought it was my dad’s helmet,” said Mazur, but he had simply borrowed it from someone who wasn’t working that day. As a kid, Mazur wanted nothing more than to be a fireman. “My dad was my hero,” said Mazur, 63, who grew up in Lindenhurst idolizing his father, a New York City firefighter who retired before Sept. 11, 2001 (two members of his company never made it out of the towers). “We were always around firemen,” he said. “All my friends wanted to be firemen.”

It all changed when Mazur, who now lives in Babylon with his wife, Jennifer, got a camera for his 17th birthday — a gift that started him on the road to becoming one of the most recognized celebrity photographers in the world. “I was taking photography classes in high school,” he said, explaining that he started sneaking his camera into concerts (the first one was Stevie Nicks, because “I had a huge crush, like any kid in the ’70s”).

“I got the bug,” he recalled, and despite some discouragement from his parents, he decided to pursue photography. He studied art and design at Farmingdale State College, then took a job as a medical photographer at Brookdale Hospital in Brooklyn, still shooting concert photos whenever he could.

On the advice of legendary portrait photographer Annie Leibovitz, he took some of his shots to an agency, and a week later he got a call to pick up a copy of “People.” The magazine had published a photo of Joel. “It was my first published picture,” he said. “I still have the page.”

Fast forward to today, when Mazur and his crew are welcomed pretty much everywhere. He calls celebrities like Joel and Paul McCartney friends and has photographed, well, almost everyone and everything, from the Academy Awards and the Grammys to many recent Taylor Swift concerts. Is there anyone he hasn’t photographed? All he can think of is John Lennon and Elvis Presley — for obvious reasons.

In recent months, he’s racked up a lot of frequent- flyer miles, taking pictures at premieres for “Wicked” (in Manhattan) and “Moana 2” (Hawaii), the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show (Brooklyn), the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony (Cleveland), a Billie Eilish concert (Quebec) and the MTV European Music Awards (London).

‘I’m a team player’

What sets Mazur apart from many other photographers is that the people he photographs actually welcome his presence. Why? “I’ve just been respectful,” he said, sitting on a comfy sofa at his waterfront home. “When young photographers ask me how I got to where I am, I tell them it’s all about respect,” he said. “And not just the artists,” he added. “You never know who’s going to help you.” That means publicists, security guards, managers. “I’m a team player,” he said. “I work with everybody.”

“I consider him a friend,” said Joel. “He’s got class. You expect these photographers to be pretty aggressive, kind of in your face. They’ll do whatever they need to do to get their shot.”

Mazur is different, he said.

“He was never one of those guys, he was always polite and well-mannered. He’s just a nice guy,” Joel said.

If you had to pinpoint the moment Mazur’s career took off for the stratosphere, it was probably a chance meeting with publicity bigwig Ken Sunshine in 1983. Mazur had snuck backstage at a Talking Heads concert at Forest Hills, and saw a man drop a pile of papers. Nice guy that he is, Mazur went over to help. “He saw my camera,” said Mazur, and they started talking.

Life-changing meeting

Sunshine remembers being taken with the young photographer. “It’s almost like a novel,” said Sunshine, “we were basically nobodies.” But the two hit it off, said Sunshine, so he took a leap and offered Mazur a job shooting a luncheon for Paul McCartney.

“It changed my life,” said Mazur. “Remember, I was still going to be a fireman,” added Mazur, noting that Sunshine “taught me the music and publicity industries. He told me everything I needed to do.”

“Look what happened to his career,” said Sunshine, who now hires Mazur “for everything.” He describes Mazur as “different than a lot of the other photographers.

“He’s like a normal human being,” Sunshine said. “He’s not a jerk like so many people in the industry. He’s actually polite.”

Beyond that, Sunshine is quick to point out, Mazur is a talented photographer. “Forget everything I’ve said about his personality, his manner, his respect for the artist,” said Sunshine.

‘He’s brilliant’

“Look at some of his shots, he’s brilliant.” And he really works at it, said Sunshine. “Watch him, it takes a lot of physical energy,” he said. “He’s jumping around all the time, often lugging heavy equipment.” Mazur is a favorite with many of his clients, said Sunshine, among them Barbra Streisand, “who can be tough.” Mazur does all her concert photography and “she loves him.”

The fact that he’s not trying to stalk celebrities and sneak pictures of them makes him stand apart, said Sunshine. “A lot of these paparazzi types were pretty sleazy characters,” he said, looking back to the days before cell phones, when publicists tried to prevent unauthorized photos.

Paparazzi documentary

Mazur is clear on the subject. “I’m not a paparazzi,” he said. “I’m the guy they invite to their homes, into their dressing rooms, onto their planes.” But as the business of celebrity photography got nastier, Mazur was not content to watch it happen. His 2012 documentary, “$ellebrity,” deals with the culture, focusing in part on photographers taking pictures of the children of celebrities. “Paparazzi think these kids are fair game because of their parents, but they’re not,” said Mazur, noting that in France it’s illegal to photograph children without parental consent.

“It’s a scary feeling,” said Sarah Jessica Parker in the trailer for the movie, one of the many celebrities Mazur included in the 90-minute documentary (available on Amazon). Paparazzi would follow her when she took her kids to school, said Mazur. “It’s wrong.” Jennifer Aniston, Elton John, Jennifer Lopez, and Salma Hayek all appeared in the film. “Someone jumping over your wall,” singer Marc Anthony said in the film. “How is that not a clear line?”

Steering clear of all that aggression, Mazur said he just kept meeting people and “they hired me because I did a good job and I was respectful.” He eventually joined the staff of “Rolling Stone,” and in 2001 co-founded the digital photo agency WireImage. Kim Kardashian was a huge fan, said Mazur. “She once told me WireImage was the original Instagram.” That company was sold in 2007 to the media giant Getty Images, where Mazur continues to be one of the lead photographers.

Inside his Babylon home

Walking the halls at Mazur’s Babylon home, the photos demand attention. Sting, Prince, McCartney, Bob Dylan, Swift, Beyoncé compete for wall space. A picture of Frank Sinatra has a place of honor in what Mazur calls the cigar room, the photo taken at the crooner’s 80th birthday party at the Waldorf Astoria. “He always called me kid,” said Mazur.

His wife, Jennifer Mazur, has curated her own wall of photos in one hallway, many of them showing Mazur at work. They met in Hawaii, where she lived, and have been married 14 years. “It was intimidating at first,” she said, coming from a small town that didn’t even have a stoplight. One of their first dates was a book launch party at Prince’s home in Los Angeles. “If you were anybody, you were at this party,” she said, recalling famous names like Olivia Newton-John, Cameron Diaz, Sylvester Stallone. With their four kids grown (two hers, two his), she often accompanies Mazur on his assignments.

Michael Jackson shoot

Upstairs in an airy foyer, a photo of Michael Jackson is prominent. It is one of the last photos taken of him. Mazur was in Los Angeles, photographing rehearsals for Jackson’s upcoming tour, and he remembers people being concerned about whether the singer had enough stamina to make it through all those shows. “The first day of rehearsal he did 13 songs and he didn’t stop,” said Mazur. “He was going toe-to-toe with these 20-year-old dancers.”

Mazur went to London and was photographing an Elton John party when he heard that Jackson was dead. His first reaction — “just rumors.” But looking around the room, he could see it was true. “Everyone was looking at their phones.”

Mazur flew back home and photographed Jackson’s funeral for the family. “All those pictures, the gold casket, the brothers laying on it with the white gloves, those are all mine,” he said. “Like I always say,” said Mazur, gazing up at the haunting image, “my memories live forever. “