Audience 194

For the International contemporary Live Music Industry issue 194 march 2016 UK £6.25 Europe €9.40 ROW $12.25

Dream team

Coldplay’s two-year live plan Live Nation steps into Africa Lollapalooza Berlin finds home Licence laws hurt Sydney There were people praying in the street … ‘please don’t let these bands play over here, they are evil’ Carlo Geniso of DG Medios in Chile

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Perspective

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Contents 6-20 World News Industry news from around the globe

24 City Focus: Oslo, Norway

Monthly insight into an international tour market

28-36 Market Focus: South Africa Featuring the main venues for international artistes

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40-51 Feature: Making It Happen Hailed as The Godfather of live music in Chile, Carlos Geniso tells his fascinating story

54 Events 71-77 Tour Plans Artistes, tour periods, agents

78 Festival News

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78 Language Barriers The trials and tribulations of tour manager Terry Tucker and his crew

News Editor: James Cox

Editorial Contributors Europe: Christopher Barrett,

Mike Gartside, Rob Sandall

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But greed spreads and those indulging want more – hey, it’s easy and no one need know.

Essential reading for industry professionals in more than 80 countries

Advertising: Gareth Ospina, Craig Swan +44 (0)20 7486 7007 gareth@audience.uk.com craig@audience.uk.com

The ticket is the first transaction in the process of a fan going to see their favourite artiste and that should surely be an honest and positive experience.

Dodgy deals and deception should be the last thing an artiste’s manager, agent or promoter wants between the act and their audience.

Design: Imogen Chester, Gigi Ho

Print: Stephens & George Ltd

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ISSUE 194: March 2016 AUDIENCE is published monthly from the UK by: Audience Media Ltd, 26 Dorset Street, London W1U 8AP, United Kingdom T: +44 (0)20 7486 7007 F: +44 (0)20 7486 2002 info@audience.uk.com www.audience.uk.com The opinion expressed by contributors to this publication are not always a reflection of the opinions or the policy of the publishers. Information on services or products contained within editorial sections does not imply recommendation by AUDIENCE. No responsibility can be accepted for errors or omissions. No part of this publication can be reproduced in any form without the written authority of Audience Media Ltd.

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audience • issue 194 • March 2016

contents

International festival activity

Whether it be exploitation of tickets for a teenagers’ cancer charity at London’s Royal Albert Hall, a damning report by New York’s attorney general, the UK Government reviewing the resale sector, or Bruce Springsteen tickets being touted at huge mark-ups minutes after they go on sale in Ireland, people are demanding transparency and controls.

The trouble is, too many people now know what’s going on and many of them really don’t like it. If it was only genuine fans offloading tickets they can’t use, then few would mind.

57-58 Production News

Publisher & Managing Editor: Stephen Parker

It used to be sporadic outbursts of outrage or exposure of the occasional scandal or scam, but now there seems to be a growing, widening intolerance to industrial-scale ticket touting and its facilitators and the manipulation of inventory by insiders.

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Live Nation make Big move into Africa SOUTH AFRICA engaging a number of acts and shows to Africa,” Justin tells Audience. “Through this Attie Van Wyk’s Big Concerts perform at this venue.” deal we promoted U2, Lady Gaga and Rihanna has sold a controlling interest to Live Nation Formed in 1989, Big Concerts, considered to amongst others.”

Entertainment (LNE), although the size of the be the market leading promoter, has Justin says with recent stake has not yet been revealed. produced more than 1,800 shows with investment in new stadiums In 2009, the two companies formed 400 international acts, and sells more and new arenas in the what they called a strategic alliance, than 400,000 tickets per year. pipeline, the time was right to making Big Concerts LNE’s exclusive Upcoming shows feature Roxette, make a deal. promotion partner for shows in South Rodriguez, Lionel Richie, Chris de “Sun International’s new Africa, with Van Wyk at the time telling Burgh, Josh Groban, Mariah Carey, Iron arena in Gauteng is a purposeAudience, “This isn’t an acquisition, but Maiden and George Benson. built 8,000 to 12,000-capacity Michael Rapino could well be the first step to bigger Attie Van Wyk “Our entry into the South African arena scheduled to open things” (see Audience issue 165). market through the acquisition of Big Concerts in 2017-18, that will significantly enhance Van Wyk will continue as company chairman, the opportunities for the live music industry,” expands Live Nation’s global footprint to 38 while his son Justin becomes CEO. countries and brings live entertainment at scale he says.

“Our previous transaction with Live Nation to a new continent,” says LNE president and CEO “This is a major development that we are was a strategic alliance whereby we agreed to Michael Rapino. particularly excited about and are already work together to bring global tours to South

world news

NY tout report suggests insider trading

6

UNITED STATES A three-year investigation by New York State attorney general Eric T. Schneiderman into ticket touting/scalping slams major promoters for holding back tickets for what it terms “insiders”.

The report, Obstructed View: What’s Blocking New Yorkers from Getting Tickets, found that up to 54 per cent of a concert’s inventory was reserved in this way.

It revealed that 20 per cent of tickets for 14 shows promoted by Live Nation Entertainment (LNE) in 2012-2013 and by AEG Live in 20122015 were “reserved”.

Such tickets, says the report, for Fleetwood Mac, Drake, Keith Urban, Justin Bieber and Kanye West were never made available to the general public, but put “on hold” and reserved for venues, artistes, promoters or reserved for pre-sale events and made available to nonpublic groups, such as particular credit card holders.

In addition, the investigation discovered that third party brokers (touts/scalpers) resold tickets on sites such as eBay-owned StubHub and LNE-

owned Ticketmaster site TicketsNow at average mark-ups of 49 per cent above face value, and sometimes more than 1,000 per cent.

The report launched in response to complaints about limited access to tickets, also

“Ticketing is a fixed game … my office will crack down on those who break our laws, prey on ordinary consumers …”

Eric T Schneiderman found evidence of computer software known as bots being used to harvest tickets for resale.

The investigation found that on 8 December 2014, a single tout/scalper used a bot to purchase 1,012 tickets a single minute to a June 2015 show by U2 at the 18,200- capacity Madison Square Garden.

“Ticketing is a fixed game,” says Schneiderman. “My office will crack down on those who break our laws, prey on ordinary

consumers and deny New Yorkers affordable access to the concerts and sporting events they love.”

The report recommends that resale platforms New York Attorney General disclose the Eric Schneiderman face value of the tickets they resell, that industry players must increase transparency regarding ticket allocations and publicly disclose the allocation of tickets on hold.

It also sets out a mandate to make its recommendations law and to impose criminal penalties for use of ticket harvesting ‘bots’ and a cap on resale mark-ups.

More information is expected to be announced in the coming weeks.

BRITS empire, as ceremony streams globally UNITED KINGDOM The MasterCard-sponsored BRIT Awards – The UK music industry’s lavish TV extravaganza celebrating popular music – was broadcast to 24 million people worldwide via YouTube alone.

The ceremony was staged at The O2 in London on 24 February and attracted 5.8m domestic viewers, with content seen in 32 countries via the streaming site.

There were also 7.5 million tweets relating to

audience • Issue 194 • March 2016

the event.

Adele swept the board on the night with four awards, the most for an individual artiste in 21 years. She won British Female Solo Artist, British Single for Hello, BRITs Global Success Award and MasterCard British Album of the Year.

Audience cover act Coldplay won British Group for the fourth time.

Live performances on the night included Rihanna and Drake, Jess Glynne, The Weeknd,

British Male Solo Artist winner James Bay, Little Mix, British Artist Video winners One Direction and Justin Bieber, who won the International Male award.

The show also featured a Lorde tribute to David Bowie, who was posthumously awarded the BRITs Icon Award.

International Female went to Björk for the fourth time and Tame Impala won International Group. www.audience.uk.com

Lock-out laws damaging Sydney’s music scene AUSTRALIA So-called lock-out laws in Sydney have caused a 40 per cent drop-off in live music performances, a music association study claims.

This month, the Government extended licensing laws forcing venues to shut their doors to the public at 1.30am, until 2017, and Brisbane looks set to follow suit.

The Australasian Performing Right Association and the Australasian Mechanical Copyright Owners’ Society (APRA-AMCOS) commissioned a survey of 23,000 venues, and found the laws were damaging Dean Ormston the city’s music offering.

It has also called for tax breaks to help music venues.

“For every dollar Australians spend on live music, three dollars circulates back into the economy,” says APRA-AMCOS’s head of member services Dean Ormston.

“Tax offsets have been applied and work well in

other industry sectors, and in large markets like the US.” A lobby group Keep Sydney Open has attracted almost 51,000 signatures to a petition, calling for restrictions to be lifted, with artistes such as Wu-Tang Clan issuing statements of support.

Dom Miller, CEO of Brisbane artiste management and booking agency Bluebeard Music, which has represented acts such as Courtney Barnett and Tame Impala, fears the region’s in-coming restrictions will be equally as damaging.

“Most live music venues open as a bar, a normal bar, between midnight and 3am, and midnight and 5am on Friday and Saturday nights,” he says.

“Those three hours are when live music venues make most of our money for the week. It allows us to subsidise those gigs that may only get 100-300 people on a Wednesday or Thursday night.”

Newsbites USA StubHub has announced plans to enter the primary ticketing market for sport events, but not for live music. The eBay-owned company is launching a platform which displays a seat map of NBA basketball events without making a secondary or primary distinction, allowing sellers to list both. Geoff Lester, partnerships and business development manager told Amplify magazine there is no plans to do the same for music. “There’s just a lot of factors that come into play for a concert ticket, that don’t necessarily exist for a sports ticket,” he says.

AUSTRALIA British-born Paul Sergeant, CEO of Melbourne Stadiums, operator of Etihad Stadium (cap. 53,000) in Melbourne, is stepping down from the role. Having been appointed in October 2012, Sergeant says it is “time to move on”, without being specific about his future plans. “I’ve had three-and-a-half wonderful years at Etihad Stadium and I thank the Investors, directors and staff for their support during this time,” he adds.

Director of operations Michael Green has been appointed acting CEO.

Living the dream

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Having performed sparsely in support of their last album, Coldplay have gone in the opposite direction, in support of A Head Full of Dreams.

A two-year world tour will see shows at Chile’s Estadio Nacional (cap. 48,665) in COVER ARTISTE Santiago, Brazil’s Allianz Parque (55,000) in São Paulo and the Foro Sol (50,000) in Mexico City.

North American dates include the Rose Bowl Stadium (92,525) in California and the AT&T stadium (80,000) in Texas.

In Europe the band will play venues such as France’s Stade CharlesEhrmann (45,000) in Nice, Spain’s Estadi Olimpic (55,926) in Barcelona, Germany’s Veltins-Arena (55,740) in Gelsenkirchen, the Netherlands’ Amsterdam ArenA (53,000) and four nights at the UK’s Wembley Stadium (80,000) in London.

“On the last record we only played a handful of shows, and that recess has really helped this phase,” says Coldplay’s international agent Steve Strange at UK-based X-ray Touring.

“This campaign is over the next two years and we look forward to returning in 2017 to service territories we didn’t get to this time round.

“They are an iconic band who have been at stadium level in most countries, and have now stepped into stadiums in the US.” Coldplay are managed by David Holmes of 3D Management.

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audience • Issue 194 • March 2016

New home for Lolla Berlin Brazil boost from Iron Maiden shows GERMANY

Lollapalooza Berlin (cap. 45,000) will take place at the city’s Treptower Park, after being displaced when it’s previous home became a Fruzsina Szép refugee shelter.

The event was forced to relocate from the old Berlin Tempelhof Airport site, because of the latter’s conversion into accommodation for Syrian refugees.

“With this wonderful new location, we found a new home that fits Lolla Berlin perfectly through its unique characteristics, charm and energy,” says festival director Fruzsina Szép.

Treptower Park, on the banks of the river Spree, was the site of the first open-air concert by a western rock band in the Soviet Union-controlled German Democratic Republic (East Germany), with Barclay James Harvest in 1987.

The German edition of the US festival brand returns on 10-11 September.

Lolla Berlin

It is co-programmed by Hörstmann Unternehmensgruppe (HUG) and Melt! Booking, and co-promoted by the UK’s Festival Republic and America’s C3 Presents (owner of the Lollapalooza francise), both majorityowned by Live Nation Entertainment.

The line-up will include Kings of Leon, Radiohead, Major Lazer, New Order, James Blake, The 1975, Catfish and the Bottlemen and Jess Glynne.

Early-bird tickets are on sale at €199 ($254) or €79 ($90) for one-day passes.

Admission is free for children below the age of 10.

BRAZIL Andre Matalon, director of Latin America regional promoter Move Concerts, is celebrating strong ticket sales for the company’s five Iron Maiden dates in the country, despite a challenging economic climate.

Move is promoting the band in the HSBC Arena (cap, 15,000) in Rio De Janeiro, Esplanada do Mineirao (19,000) in Belo Horizonte, Nilson Nelson Arena (14,000) in Brasilia, Arena Castelão (22,800) in Fortaleza and Allianz Parque Arena (42,000) in Sao Paulo, which has already sold out.

Tickets cost from 200-600 real ($51-152).

“Sales are remarkably strong for the shows,” Matalon tells Audience, and he expects at least four of the dates to sell-out.

“The economic and political situations in the country have been really challenging since mid-last year and this is obviously impacting our market. It’s a tough environment but we runs like this give us hope.”

Despite this, he still predicts a tough year. “It’s a busy show period here, specially in March, but the year won’t be as strong as 2015 and 2014 in the number of international acts performing here,” he adds.

Move is also promoting Iron Maiden across South America, with dates in Chile, Costa Rica, El Salvador and Argentina.

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Live Nation hails $7 billion year UNITED STATES Live Nation Entertainment (LNE) recorded its highest ever annual revenue of $7.6 billion for the year-ending 31 December, an increase of 11 per cent on the previous year.

Its Live Nation Concerts division delivered 25,000 events, up 12 per cent on the previous year, to 63 million fans, representing a growth of 8 per cent.

Despite fourth quarter (Q4) losses of $33.8m, blamed on foreign ex-

change rates, annual adjusted operating income was $616m, up 11 per cent, with operating profit hitting a record $155.9m.

“We continue to see the tremendous power of live events, with strong global consumer demand,” says LNE president and CEO Michael Rapino. “Live is a truly unique entertainment.”

LNE’s Ticketmaster division experienced its fifth record consecutive year, and Rapino credited its in-

volvement in the secondary market, which turned over $1.2bn alone.

The platform has recently merged its primary and resale platforms into one, through Ticketmaster+.

“Secondary ticketing continued to be a major focus, now operating in 13 countries and delivering 34 per cent growth,” reveals Rapino.

“Fans have continued to say their main goal is simply to get a ticket to the show they want and as a result, integrated inventory conversion

was 38 per cent higher than primary only offerings.”

He also reports a 20 per cent increase in tickets sold via mobile phones.

“We have heavily invested in online and mobile products to increase visits to our sites and conversion,” he says. “As a result, already in 2016, we have had three days selling over 900,000 tickets, placing them among the Top 15 days of all time.”

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audience • Issue 194 • March 2016

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Live Nation in David and Goliath battle for Palais AUSTRALIA

Supa-Trac

Palais Theatre

A LNE declined to comment.

The venue is in need of refurbishment, with an estimated A$43.4 million ($30.6m) repair bill, long delayed by funding rows within the Victorian state Government.

Meanwhile, LNA is also part of the Perth Stadium Management consortium bidding to operate the 60,000-capacity Perth Stadium.

Terraplas

The consortium, consisting of LNA, Western Australia Football Commission, LNE-owned Ticketmaster and Delaware North, is competing with AEG Ogden, Nationwide Venue Management, which is operated by Spotless, and Stadium Australia Operations, which runs Sydney’s ANZ Stadium.

A decision is also due by the end of March.

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Multi-national conglomerate Live Nation Entertainment (LNE) is locked in a battle with a family-run company for operation of the Palais Theatre (cap. 2,896) in St Kilda, Melbourne.

Live Nation Australia (LNA) is up against Sydney-based Playbill Venue Management, which runs the city’s Hordern Pavilion (5,500), as the only two remaining contenders from an initial 37 bids.

The victor will take over on 1 January next year, from current operators Palais Theatre Management, which has run the venue since July 2008, but was voted out of the tender by city officials.

The Palais is the largest seated theatre in Australia and has hosted the likes of the Rolling Stones in earlier years, with upcoming shows by Passenger, D’angelo, Brian Wilson and Ben Folds.

It is joint owned by the Victorian state Government and City of Port Phillip, which will announce their preferred bidder later this month.

Lobby group I Love My Palais (ILMP) is challenging the LNA bid, claiming the US-owned giant will use it to promote its own acts.

“They might have plenty of money, but also need to spell out how the Palais would be made available to groups outside their stable,” says ILMP chairman Peter Holland.

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T4F and Bizarro plan 50 shows CHILE Regional promoter Time 4 Fun (T4F) has merged with fellow Santiago promotion company Bizarro, to form new venture called T4F Entertainment Bizarro.

It is understood that the two companies have been in negotiations since 2013, and now will work together to book 50 shows each year in Chile.

“The decision to join a successful local

producer not only allows us to consolidate our local position, but also opens up the opportunity to generate new content to operations T4F has within the continent,” says T4F CEO Fernando Alterio.

Bizarro MD Alfredo Alonso will head new venture from his existing Santiago office, with Carolina Borzatto as concerts manager.

“This is great news because through this

deal, we can offer to the Chilean public more and better range of entertainment for different tastes,” says Alonso.

Formed in 2008, Bizarro has promoted shows by artistes such as Marc Anthony, Ana Gabriel and Ringo Starr. Upcoming concerts by the new joint venture feature Coldplay, Simply Red, Maroon 5 and Rick Astley.

T4F has offices in Argentina, Peru and Brazil.

scaled down version of their production, which is a shame for audiences here,” BEC-Tero’s Neil Thompson tells Audience.

“Madonna’s stunning set was the same as she used in London and New York, because that’s the show she was determined to do.

“Impact Arena is an international standard venue offering acts the highest facilities, which is why it is possible,” he says.

Ticket prices for the Bangkok show ranged from 2,000 baht ($56) to VIP packages at 20,000 baht ($843).

BEC-Tero/LNE is also co-promoting shows by

Impact Arena Madonna

Carlos Santana and Tom Jones.

Meanwhile, Thompson is also enthusiastic about upcoming shows by Thai rock band SLOT MACHINE, who have just released their first English-language album.

“They have already broken into markets in Taiwan and Australia, so we are sure they have international appeal,” Thompson adds.

world news

THAILAND Madonna will be only the third artiste to take a full Europe-US production to South-East Asia, when she gives two sell-out performances at Bangkok’s Impact Arena (cap.

9,500).

The other two acts to bring full-rig productions to the region were Michael Jackson and Phil Collins. It is also Madonna’s first SE Asian dates outside of Japan.

The Rebel Heart tour shows are co-promoted

by Bangkok-based BEC-Tero and Live Nation Entertainment (LNE).

“Most artistes bring their B-rig to Asia, a

© Live Nation BEC-Tero

Madonna’s A-team to Asia

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audience • Issue 194 • March 2016

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Malmö Arena – Your first stop in Sweden!

GERMANY O2 World Berlin (cap. 17,000) is to be renamed the Mercedes-Benz Arena under a 20-year partnership agreed between venue’s owner AEG and the German car manufacturer.

The naming rights deal will come into effect on 1 July and builds on an existing

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Charity’s anger at touts cancer benefit racket UNITED KINGDOM A cancer charity has slammed ticket touts for profiteering from a fundraising event at London’s Royal Albert Hall (cap. 5,250).

The series of Teenage Cancer Trust (TCT) concerts taking place in April will feature acts such as David Gilmour, New Order and The Vaccines.

Tickets cost £25 ($35), with 100 per cent after costs going to the charity, but tickets are being offered for up to £1,000 ($1,391) on Ticketmaster-owned Get Me In! and Seatwave, Viagogo and eBay-owned StubHub. “The only people entitled to profit from our

event are young people with cancer,” says TCT’s Michelle Saxby. “We believe that there should be [Government] legislation against the excesses of the secondary ticketing market.”

The TCT shows are promoted by SJM Concerts, who were unavailable for comment at press time.

StubHub and Ticketmaster both say they donate the commission they earn on the sale back to the charity.

Viagogo does not but a spokesman tells Audience, “We do not allow people to list tickets to charity events that were originally free of charge.”

Royal Albert Hall

Ovesen’s 117 plans venue for all seasons structure,” Ovesen tells Audience. “This would make it a unique and all year round facility and increase the kind of events we can offer.”

Meanwhile, shows are being held in a temporary 20,000-capacity open-air venue, simply called The Venue, while work is completed.

Niki Minaj will play 117 Live’s first show, taking place at the temporary venue on 25 March. Tickets cost 350 dirham ($95) for regular

standing, with 650 dirham ($177) for Golden Circle or 1,250 dirham ($340) for VIP tickets.

“We will be announcing a range of other events soon for the temp venue,” adds Ovesen.

Thomas Ovesen

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UNITED ARAB EMIRATES 117 Live promoter Thomas Ovesen has revealed plans to add a roof to the new Dubai amphitheatre.

Owned by media conglomerate Al Ahil Holding Group (AAHG), 117 Live promotes shows across the region, and wants to hold 30 concerts a year in a new 25,000-capacity Dubai Open-Air Mall, set to open in 2017.

“For our fantastic state of the art amphitheatre we are now considering a roof

12 Holland’s most cutting-edge concert venue, the Ziggo Dome, has been built primarily to host live music performances with an ability to welcome 17,000 visitors. Since the opening it has welcomed artists such as: Madonna, Pearl Jam, Prince, Barbra Streisand, Beyoncé and hosted the MTV EMA. Everything has been designed to offer the best experience for fans and performing musicians alike. Although the Ziggo Dome has a single purpose design. it can easily be

audience • Issue 194 • March 2016

adapted to host any kind of event. The Ziggo Dome has offered seated family events, large-scaled dance events and even sport events.

For further information, please contact: Sales Department 003120 312 56 56 sales@ziggodome.nl www.ziggodome.com

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A LEADING INDEPENDENT CONCERT PROMOTER IN FINLAND Animals & Frieds, Arcade fire, Baseballs, BB King, Ben Miller Band, Billy Idol, Black Star Riders, Bo Kaspers Orkester, Bon Jovi, Boney M, Bryan Adams, Carmen Souza, Cecilia Bartoli, Cesaria Evora, Chigago Blues, Cliff Richard & Shadows, Grace Jones, Deep Purple, Diego El Cigala, Dionne Warwick, Dream Theater, Eclipse, Femi Kuti, Fran Perea, Gary Moore, Gregorian, Gypsy Queens & Kings, Heaven and Hell, Helmut Lotti, Ian Andersson, Ian Hunter, Jean Michel Jarre, Jefferson Starship, Jerry Lee Lewis, Joan Armtrading, Johnny Winter, Jorn,Jose Feliciano, Joyce DiDonato, Kings of Salsa, Lady Gaga, Leonard Cohen, Linkin Park, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Mahala Rai Banda, Manhattan Transfer, Måns Zelmerlöw, Mötley Crüe, Nazareth, Neil Young, Omara Portuondo, Over the Rainbow, Patricia Kaas, Paul Potts, Rival Sons, Roberta Flack, Roxette, Roxy Music, Scooter, Scorpions, Status Quo, Steve Lukather, Stevie Wonder, Suzanne Vega, Take 6, The Blues Brothers Band, The Count basie Orchestra, The Duke Ellington Orchestra, The Moody Blues, Thriller Live, Uriah Heep, Wailers, Whitesnake, Wilko Johnson Band, Youssou N´Dour, ZZ Top...

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SFX awaits new CEO and anticipated asset sales UNTED STATES Little news has emerged from SFX Entertainment, following the company filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection while it restructures and tries to raise funds.

As Audience went to press, there was no announcement of a new CEO to replace founder Robert FX Sillerman, who stood down last month (see issue 193) and no sales of assets appear to have taken place.

Accounts show that SFX appears to have expanded too fast and over- anticipated the value of some acquisitions.

For example, in 2013 SFX bought Denver-

based Beatport, an online music store specialising in electronic music and culture (EMC), for over $50 million.

Beatport promoted itself as “the all-in-one hub for everything EMC”, but profits of $7.1m in 2014 flipped to a loss of $5.5m in 2015.

Fame House, a Philadelphia-based marketing agency that specializes in monetising its clients online, had revenue of $6.3m recorded a loss of $6.8m in 2014 and a loss of $622,000 last year.

Sponsorships revenue also fell, from $8m in 2014 to $7.3m last year.

North American live events generated $140m in revenue in both 2014 and 2015, but losses more than doubled from $5m to $13.2m, respectfully. Revenue from international live events and ticketing is believed to have fared better.

SFX issued a public stock offering via the Nasdaq exchange in October 2013, with an opening share price of $13. By 1 February this year, it had plummeted to $.05.

SFX festivals brands include Tomorrowland and Mysterland, which are subsidiary businesses and therefore assets.

Sponsor boost for Glavclub RUSSIA Owners of Moscow’s 2,500-capacity Glavclub have revealed how a naming rights deal and a new budget pricing model have brought the venue back to life from the brink of closure.

Club founder Igor Tonkikh says he was forced to briefly shut down the business in March last year, due to the country’s weakening economy and customer numbers falling.

But he has since signed a sponsorship deal

with mobile phone company Yota which has enabled him to drop average ticket prices for domestic acts to 300 rubles ($4), and still have budget to attract international names.

“Yotaspace Glavclub has been very successful both in artists booking and financial results,” says Tonkikh.

“We have hosted 185 acts since the deal was done, with international artistes including Noel Gallagher, Kesha, OK Go, Yann Tiersen, Jessie

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“Having developed our low-cost concerts with local artistes, we are now trying to develop this model with international acts too,” he says.

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audience • Issue 194 • March 2016

Live Nation joins with Union Knitting Factory speeds up with Slowdown deal

CANADA Live Nation Canada include Chasing Summer (16,000) and Sonic Boom (LNC) has acquired Calgary and (cap. 9,500).

Edmonton-based festival “Harvey and Nhaelan promoter Union Events and its are proven creative portfolio. entrepreneurs, who can help Producing 400 concerts Live Nation continue to build annually, Union is the third compelling events for music largest promoter in the country fans in Canada,” says LNC and the combined entity will Harvey Cohen president Paul Haagenson. promote over 1,200 concerts Cohen adds, “Nhaelan and per year.

I have worked closely with Union’s founders and cothe core members of LNC in managing partners Harvey numerous roles over the years, It Cohen and Nhaelan McMillan, is with great excitement that we and other key members of join their incredible team their team will join LNC, and its to continue the journey of Toronto and Vancouver offices bringing Canadians their most will operate under LNC auspicies. Paul Haagenson Founded in 2000, Union’s festivals cherished memories.”

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CK feeling impact of weak currencies South America Colombia-based some artistes prefer not to come at all, CKConcerts MD Christian Kramer says it rather than playing for less.”

“This exchange rate crisis means it is has become harder to attract acts to the continent because of poor local pretty quiet across the whole continent for smaller artistes,” he says. exchange rates.

“In Brazil the currency The pan South American is worth only half as much metal promoter last year opened compared to a year ago. In an office in Lima, Peru, as it Colombia, it has lost about 35 extends its operations down the per cent of its value.” length of the Pacific coast.

Forthcoming CK concerts “Our calculations are in local include Enrique Bunbury currencies and the effect is that at Agora Casa de la Cultura we are offering less in terms of Christian Kramer dollars to the artistes, than we were able to (cap. 4,500) in Quito, Ecuador. Tickets are US$69*. offer a year ago,” he tells Audience.

“So we’re doing less shows because * Ecuador no longer has its own currency).

UNITED STATES Multi-venue operator, agency and artiste management group Knitting Factory Entertainment (KFE) has added to its venue management portfolio by taking over bookings for the 750-capacity Slowdown club in Omaha.

KFE talent buyer Dave Poe, who joined the company in August and will work from the New York office, will liaise with local promoters such as 1 Per Cent Productions, Rad Kadillac and Perpetual Nerves to develop the venue’s music programme .

“Knitting Factory seemed like the right fit, and it seemed like the right time,” says Slowdown owner Jason Kulbel.

KFE president Mark Dinerstein adds, “In its relatively short time, Slowdown has become synonymous with the Omaha music scene and we are delighted to be involved.”

Among cities with KFE-owned Knitting Factory clubs are Boise ID (cap. 1,000), Spokane WA (1,500), Reno NV (1,265), Brooklyn NY (300), along with The Federal Bar venues in Los Angeles (300) and Mark Dinerstein Long Beach (300).

Newsbite EUROPE The European Talent Exchange Program (ETEP), organised by Dutch industry body BUMA Cultuur and the team behind the Eurosonic Noorderslag showcase festival and conference, has published its latest set of results. It confirms 394 shows by 132 artistes from 21 different European countries. Top scoring acts were Norway’s AURORA and France’s Ibeyi, with 13 bookings each, followed by Denmark’s MØ with 12. The program seeks to increase exposure of European artistes through radio play and live appearances.

16

IT’S ALL IN THE HALL AND IT’S ALL YOURS /hallenstadion.ch I booking@hallenstadion.ch I +41 (0)44 316 77 09

audience • Issue 194 • March 2016

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MTV’s isle bonus for Malta MALTA The annual Isle of MTV (cap. 50,000) festival, has significantly increased the number of young tourists coming to the island, say organisers.

The 10th edition takes place 24-29 June at IlFosos Square, featuring headliner Jess Glynne.

It is a free admission event on a first-comefirst served basis, co-promoted between MTV, the Malta Tourism Authority and local promoter G7.

“The number of visitors to Malta under the age of 24 has increased by 120 per cent and now accounts for 20 per cent of all tourists,” says Russ Samuel, vice-president of creative

planning services for MTV marketing partner Viacom Velocity.

“It’s testament to the role the event has played in highlighting Malta as a destination for live music fans.”

MTV will be carrying out post-event research on the economic impact benefits of the event.

The event is filmed and broadcast as a 60-minute programme across 20 MTV channels throughout Europe.

In the days leading up to Isle of MTV, G7 Events and the Tourism Authority host Malta Music Week, featuring club nights and beach parties.

Newsbites UNITED STATES Eventbrite, the Los Angeles based self-service ticketing platform has acquired workflow software company Queue. The company plans to integrate Queue, which is currently only available in the US, into its online platform and roll it into its European operation from September.The Queue app creates a fully integrated scheduling, budgeting and guest-listing interface for venues and promoters. “Queue has built a suite of industryleading products, designed specifically with the complex needs of venues in mind,” says Eventbrite’s vice-president of strategy Randy Befumo.

Gidi’s international aspirations on hold NIGERIA Organisors of the Gidi Culture Festival (cap. 10,000) say their plans to approach international artistes are on hold for a year, after deciding to grow its domestic base first.

The debut Gidi took place at the Eko Atlantic beach in Lagos on 4 April last year and featured some of Africa’s biggest artistes, such as Yemi Alade, Urban Boyz and Temi Dollface. It was promoted by Eclipse Live with tickets costing 4000 naira ($20).

Festival co-founder Chin Okeke had hoped

to produce an international roster for its second year, but has admitted more work is needed.

“We had wanted to book an international act this year but the economy as it stands won’t allow for such a budget,” he tells Audience.

“We would have loved to incorporate an international artiste but we felt it was more important to tighten up on the execution before expanding again.”

In a new strategy ticket prices have been cut in half, to 2,000 naira ($10), with extra focus

Gidi culture fest

on bringing more revenue in through bar and concessions.

This year’ s festival, due to take place on 26 March, features acts such as Davido, Phyno, Timaya, Yemi Alade, Tiwa Savage, Faarrow, KO and Ricky Rick.

THE MOST IMPRESSIVE VENUE OF THE NETHERLANDS

world news 19 The most impressive venue of The Netherlands Being host for AFC Ajax, the Dutch National Team, concerts of world’s leading artists, dance event Sensation, the 2013 UEFA Europa League final and four games of the UEFA Euro 2020 tournament, the Amsterdam ArenA is one of the leading Stadiums within Europe. The dynamic ambience, the central location, good accessibility and sufficient parking space make it a unique location for any event.

The spacious ArenA can be divided in many smaller areas to make it suitable for all kinds of events, concerts and festivals. Our most popular settings host between 10 and 68 thousand visitors. Amsterdam ArenA has recently invested in the future. The newly built ArenA Business Club is a state-of-the-art venue that provides more than 6000m2 of functional hospitality space which is suitable for more then 5000 people.

Amsterdam ArenA • +31 (0)20 311 1306 • sales@amsterdamarena.nl • amsterdamarena.nl • facebook.com/amsterdamarena www.audience.uk.com

audience • Issue 194 • March 206

City break for CMW Irish venues win IMRO accolades Toronto’s Canadian Music Week (CMW) has added one-day summit The Mastering of a Music City, to expand on its theme of creating so-called music cities around the world.

The session will examine Keith Donald how cities can increase tourism by focussing on its unique music heritage, as well as discussing things like a dedicated music tourism board, local planning laws and how to help live music venues.

Keynote speakers will include Jo Dipple of industry lobby group UK Music, CMW president Neill Dixon and Music Canada president Graham Henderson.

It takes place on 7 May at the Sheraton Center in a session jointly organised by Music Canada, the UK-based International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI), Music Cities Convention and CMW. “Ultimately the goal is to create a more sustainable music community where artistes and professionals can enjoy successful careers,” says Henderson.

Tickets to the one-day event cost C$499 (US$361).

world news

CANADA

TAKK PRODUCTIONS SEBASTIEN VUIGNIER SwITzeRlAND CONTACT@TAKK.CH www.TAKK.Ch

20

IRELAND

Performance royalty body Irish Music Rights Organisation (IMRO), handed out a range of awards at its eighth Live Music Venue of the Year Awards on 17 February.

The event, held at IMRO’s headquarters in Dublin, awarded The Set Theatre (cap. 380) in Kilkenny National Live Venue of the Year.

The People’s Choice Award, sponsored by Hot Press magazine, went to Dublin’s Olympia Theatre (1,600), while two new awards included Vicar Street in Dublin as Best Live Music Crew, and agent and manager Úna Molloy of Turning Pirate won Outstanding Contribution to Live Music in 2015.

Live Music Festival Of The Year went to

South Africa

Market Focus See pages 28-36

Longitude (10,000) and Best Small Live Music Festival went to multi-venue Other Voices.

“This is our annual chance to give a really big thank-you to promoters and venues across the country,” says IMRO chairman Keith Donald. “The work they do is invaluable, as young artistes can’t build up an audience without them.”

The awards were presented by Joe.ie‘s Paddy McKenna and featured performances from The Academic, Saint Sister and Rocstrong.

The IMRO awards are voted for by over 11,000 IMRO songwriter and music publisher members.

Correction WORLD In January’s Audience (issue 192) our feature Staying ahead of the game incorrectly stated that Ticketmaster sold 60 million tickets worldwide last year. In fact, this figure related to Ticketmaster International, which does not include its operations in North America. We apologise for the confusion this may have caused.

MORe ThAN 1ʼ000 ShOwS IN SwITzeRlAND SINCe 2009 !

ThANKS TO All ARTISTS, AGeNTS, MANAGeRS, CRew, ClUBS, FeSTIVAlS AND PARTNeRS FOR YOUR TRUST AND FIDelITY

www.TAKK.Ch www.audience.uk.com

johannes wessels - hauke steinhof + team

mpi - music pool international your independent live music promoter in germany.

mpi music pool international gmbh • an der alster 17 • 20099 hamburg +49 (0) 40 /18 13 06 39 • info@mpi-concerts.de

YOUR TICKET TO THE WORLD As the Number One, when selling tickets for music events and tours, there's only one brand to trust.

city focus Oslo, Norway Audience takes a look at the world’s major cities and venues most used by international artistes

Telenor Arena

Oslo Spektrum

Sentrum Scene

Oslo Konserthus

Folketeateret

Cosmopolite

Rockefeller Music Hall

Parkteatret

city focus

A: Widerøeveien 1, 1360 Fornebu T: +47 909 97 700 E: booking@telenorarena.no W: www.telenorarena.no Principle contact person: Marcia Titley Policy: Hire & self promote Capacity: 23,000 In-house Concert Sound System: No In-house Concert PA/Lights: No Past/forthcoming shows: Paul McCartney, Adele, Foo Fighters, Ellie Goulding, Jason Derulo

24

A: Munkedamsveien 14, 0115 T: +47 23 11 31 00 E: ok@oslokonserthus.no W: www.oslokonserthus.no Principle contact person: Knut Vigar Hansen Policy: Hire & self promote Capacity: 1,670 In-house Concert Sound System: Yes In-house Concert PA/Lights: Yes Past/forthcoming shows: Kodaline, Birdy, Dua Lipa, Aurora, Kygo

A: Torggata 16, 0181 T: +47 22 20 32 32 E: post@rockefeller.no W: www.rockefeller.no Principle contact person: Roar Gulbrandsen Policy: Hire & self promote Capacity: 1,350 In-house Concert Sound System: Yes In-house Concert PA/Lights: Yes Past/forthcoming shows: Bullet For My Valentine, Bring Me the Horizon, George Ezra, My Dying Bride, Walk the Moon audience • issue 194 • March 2016

A: Sonja Henies plass 2, 0185 T: +47 22 05 29 00 E: spektrum@oslospektrum.no W: www.oslospektrum.no Principle contact person: Wiggo Schie Policy: Hire & self-promote Capacity: 9,700 In-house Concert Sound System: No In-house Concert Stage Lighting: No Past/forthcoming shows: Imagine Dragons, Calvin Harris, Ariana Grande, 5 Seconds of Summer, The 1975

A: Storgaten 21-23, 0184 T: +47 21 09 65 00 E: publikum@folketeateret.no W: www.folketeateret.no Principle contact person: Anders Lövgren Policy: Hire only Capacity: 1,387 In-house Concert Sound System: Yes In-house Concert Stage Lighting: Yes Past/forthcoming shows: Bryan Adams, Elvis Costello, David Byrne, The Band Perry, Chris Cornell

A: Olaf Ryes plass 11, 0552 T: +47 22 35 63 00 E: limita@parkteatret.no W: www.parkteatret.no Principle contact person: Limita Lunde Policy: Hire & self promote Capacity: 500 In-house Concert Sound System: Yes In-house Concert Stage Lighting: Yes Past/forthcoming shows: Gavin James, Frank Carter, Oh Wonder, Black Temple, The Sword

A: Arbeidersamfunnets plaas 1, 0181 T: +47 22 20 32 32 E: post@rockefeller.no W: www.rockefeller.no Principle contact person: Roar Gulbrandsen Policy: Hire & self-promote Capacity: 1,750 In-house Concert Sound System: Yes In-house Concert Stage Lighting: Yes Past/forthcoming shows: Hozier, Ben Howard, The Kooks, Of Monsters and Men, James Bay

A: Vogts gate 64, 0477 T: +47 22 11 33 08 E: cosmopolite@cosmopolite.no W: www.cosmopolite.no Principle contact person: Ania Sienkiewicz Policy: Hire & self-promote Capacity: 1,250 In-house Concert Sound System: Yes In-house Concert Stage Lighting: Yes Past/forthcoming shows: Stanley Clarke, Marcus Miller, Lee Fields & The Expressions, John Grant, Steve Gadd

John Dee

A: Torggata 16, 0181 T: +47 22 20 32 32 E: post@rockefeller.no W: www.rockefeller.no Principle contact person: Roar Gulbrandsen Policy: Hire & self-promote Capacity: 400 In-house Concert Sound System: Yes In-house Concert Stage Lighting: Yes Past/forthcoming shows: Wolf Alice, Laura Marling, Love Amongst Ruin, The Vaccines www.audience.uk.com

Regardless of whether you are planning the perfect performance for rising stars or top international acts, with our four event venues in D端sseldorf, Germany, your sporting events, shows and concerts will be an absolute highlight on any scale. Thanks to the latest design, state-of-the-art technology and a high degree of flexibility, your events will know no limits.

And that is sure to please your 15 million potential visitors in the catchmant area.

How big an audience do you want?

concerts@d-cse.de www.d-cse.de

market focus

South Africa Hilltop Live - OppiKoppi panarama

market focus: south africa

Fortunately for The Rainbow Nation, their country holds a powerful attraction for many international artistes and that helps its promoters and venue operators to overcome the constraints of a weak currency. From stadiums and arenas to clubs, a steady flow of overseas acts is being maintained, as Christopher Barrett reports

28

A

to the 2010 football World Cup,” he says.

The company’s MD Justin Van Wyk says t the southern tip of the huge conti“When UB40 played in 1994, we had to the high-end shows it promotes are proving nent of Africa lays a country with the bring in a lot of equipment from the UK and resilient to the economic pressures and continent’s second biggest economy get stages built by construction companies, weak currency. and the only truly professional and rather than staging specialists. But it wasn’t “Our exchange rate has depreciated signifisophisticated infrastructure to handle internalong before companies like Gearhouse started cantly against the US dollar which has resulted tional artistes. providing a first rate service for the market.” in increased ticket prices and inflationary cost With Australia to the east and Brazil over to With offices in Durban, Cape Town and pressures,” he says. “Fortunately the segment of its west, South Africa is becoming an increasJohannesburg, multi-service and technical consumers that we target with our shows has ingly well-established touring destination for product supplier Gearhouse offers a range of shown strong resilience to these conditions international acts. services including staging, temporary venue and demand for tickets remains strong.”

It boasts a network of modern and well-run structures, rigging, lighting, audiovisual Another long-established promoter is Mike arenas and stadiums, a growing festival market and power.

Fuller, founder of Famous Concerts, who and a band of experienced promoters.

Marketing manager has been in the The country’s fluctuating economy Robyn D’Alessandro says the business 40 years, and weakened currency, the rand, company has just finished recalls the remarkwhich nosedived to nearly 17 to the US working on shows by able hunger for live dollar in January, coupled with the disRoxette and Rodriguez, and shows in the post tances involved in getting there, make the Ultra Music Festival, with Apartheid era. the territory rather more challenging a busy year ahead.

“I was lucky than the US and western Europe.

“This year is going to be enough to get the But it offers considerable opportuJustin Van Wyk Mike Fuller with Katherine Jenkins tough, but busier,” he says. first stadium tour nity for international artistes.

“Despite a weakening rand and economic cliwith UB40, we did five shows and they played The leading promoter for more than two mate, there seems to be a very decent amount to more than 250,000 people, it was amazing,” decades, Big Concerts, which sold a controlling of work in the pipeline and certainly the live says Fuller. “There was a build-up of anticipastake to Live Nation Entertainment in February music market is as strong as ever.” tion and UB40 were the perfect band – they (see news story on pages 4-5), staged a show in had cross-over appeal among both the black 1992 with Paul Simon, to celebrate the end of Apartheid and the lifting of the cultural boycott. and white communities.”

Currency checks This year will see Fuller promote a handful Since then it has staged shows by artistes Showtime Entertainment stages the Ultra including U2, Michael Jackson, Robbie Williams, of shows with Katherine Jenkins and assist Music Festival, which takes place over two days Lady Gaga, Justin Bieber, Red Hot Chili Peppers, promoter Airey Scott with a string of concerts in the Johannesburg Expo Centre and two days

by Nicky Minaj.

Metallica, Neil Diamond and Coldplay. at the Cape Town Ostrich Farm, with audiences “We have top class venues, airlines, hotels Among the tours Big Concerts is currently of 35,000 and 20,000 respectively. working on are Iron Maiden, Mariah Carey, Seal and roads, as there was a huge amount of The EDM event took place in February with investment in the road network in the build up and George Benson. a line-up of 15 international and 90 local acts

audience • Issue 194 • March 2016

www.audience.uk.com

South Africa Cape Town

South Africa Population (millions): 48.4 million Language: English Currency: South African Rand (ZAR) US$ exchange rate: 15.4 GDP per capita (US$): 11,500 Total music revenues per capita (US$): 1.4 Internet users: 21.7 Broadband households: 3.5 Active smartphones: 26.3

(Source: IFPI)

Pretoria

includes Cassandra Wilson, Angie Stone, Amadou & Mariam, Themba including Skrillex, Zedd, Afrojack, Robin Schulz and Fedde Le Grand.

Mokoena and Derrick Gripper. Weekend tickets cost 895 rand ($58) and Showtime director Tony Feldman says the live scene remains very day passes are 595 rand ($38.50). buoyant but the impact of the exchange rate is making life This year has seen espAfrika launch a new initiative called more difficult. “Promoters make offers and start negotiating espYoungLegends, a competition enabling young aspiring talent and by the time we get to contracts the currency has devalto perform at the event. ued by close to 30 per cent.

Hailed as Africa’s grandest music gathering, the festival is one “Punters are now more discerning when it comes to choosof the largest jazz events in the world and the single largest ing shows and for promoters it has become more difficult to music event on the continent. “It’s our flagship event of espAfriunderstand what shows will sell. Ticket prices are reflecting ka,” says marketing manager Carenza van Willingh. the disastrous exchange rate, which has made concerts more Carel Hoffmann of a luxury than in previous years,” he says.

Local strengths

Making it personal

All that jazz

Cape Town-based event management and production company espAfrika has been a key figure in the evolving live music business for the past two decades.

It launched The Cape Town International Jazz Festival (CTIJF) in 1999 with an audience of 2,000. It now attracts 37,000 people over two days to the Cape Town International Convention Centre complex.

The multi-stage festival will see more than 40 artistes perform, with a 50/50 split between local and international artistes. This year’s line-up

market focus: south africa

Along with promoting shows by acts including Mumford & Sons and Passenger, Impi Concerts recently took over the ownership Promoter Hilltop Live is currently enjoying of Splashy Fen Music Festival (15,000). success with local acts including Die Antwoord, Kongos, Established in 1990 it’s the country’s oldest music festival and Beatenberg, Lira, Vusi Mahlasela and Black Coffee, all of takes place on Splashy Fen Farm in Underberg, a world heritage which are touring extensively. site in the east of the country.

Hilltop founder Carel Hoffmann says a focus on local talent Tony Feldman Scheduled for 24-26 March, it’s headlined by Xavier Rudd, is a good way of avoiding the impact of a fluctuating rand. along with supporting acts such as Civil Twilight, Jeremy Loops, Albert “We do lots of events where we sell tickets with South African acts Frost and Arno Carstens. only, which is a nice safety valve,” he says. “Until about six months ago there was lots of activity, but the huge drop in the value of the rand had a massive impact, with lots of tours cancelled and many players getting out of the market.”

Hilltop also runs the Oppikoppi festival (cap. 20,000), which takes place every year on a game farm in the Limpopo Province. Last year it featured Gogol Bordello, The Circle View and The Curious Incident.

“It started as an inside bar party for 200 people and in the 22 years since we have added six permanent stages and lots more entertainment,” says Hoffmann. “It is now considered to be South Africa’s baby [UK festival] Glastonbury.”

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Showtime Management - Ultra Festival

www.audience.uk.com

audience • Issue 194 • March 2016

tour template worked superbly well,” he says. “They did two shows in Cape Town, one in Durban, and two in Pretoria, with capacities of 12,000, 8,000 and 20,000 respectively. It may mean an extended tour in terms of shows, but these size venues create significantly lower risk scenarios for promoters and artistes.”

Ticketpro Dome

“The economic situation is making life particularly difficult for smaller event organisers,” says Glen Netshipise of promoter Glen 21.

“The exchange rate is the biggest challenge, and capital – we are in such a capital-intensive industry with no tangible assets,” he says. “To do more shows or make offers for shows is very challenging and, with limited capital, it is impossible to compete with the big players.”

Among Glen 21’s events is the annual BET Experience Africa show, an urban music event that takes place at the 19,000-capacity Ticketpro Dome in Johannesburg. Last year’s headliners included Mary J. Blige and Maxwell.

“There is massive opportunity and room for growth in the urban market, but there are not enough events at the moment.” Netshipise believes.

Johannesburg-based promoter Witchdoctor Productions is working on shows for Polish death metal band Behemoth and Greek rock band Rotting Christ, both playing the city’s Bassline (1,200). Tickets are priced around 480 rand ($31).

“The live music market is healthy from the fans’ perspective, we just need our economy to improve, as the tickets tend to go up and nobody’s wages do,” says Witchdoctor Productions owner Shaughn Pieterse. “It’s a pretty broad market and the African music scene is massive, as in traditional localised hiphop and kwaito.

“Tapping into that market is where the money is, as for metal, we are a super small niche market.”

The company also runs urban heavy metal event Witchfest, which takes place at the Bassline and will this year see performances by Behemoth, At The Gates, The Haunted and Grave.

“Festival-wise we are seeing a surge in numbers, but as for the guys doing international events, it’s been a tough time, us included,” says Pieterse. “A decent line-up costs money and without sponsors it can be unaffordable.

“The fans have also been treated to some spectacular events, so the bar has been raised and as promoters, we need to be pushing all the time, without pushing ticket prices up.”

market focus: south africa

Impi Concerts co-owner Stuart Berry says the economic situation has made international acts increasingly difficult to afford, but the country’s live music infrastructure is better than ever, something which is being rewarded by the number of acts that continue to travel to the country.

“Mumford & Sons, Roxette, Rodriguez, Of Monsters and Men, Xavier Rudd, Josh Groban, Chris De Burgh and Civil Twilight have all confirmed tours in South Africa between now and the end of March,” he says.

Berry believes one way of meeting the challenge of the South African economy is playing more shows in smaller venues.

“The intimate outdoor venue is gaining good momentum compared to the larger stadium tour, and the recent Mumford & Sons

Size matters

Metal niche

30

audience • Issue 194 • March 2016

www.audience.uk.com

Lighter metal

Promoting, booking and concert production company Turning Tricks Entertainment was founded in 2012 and is staffed entirely by people who are also musicians in their own right.

“We work in a genre – new-age metal – that doesn’t normally see too many International acts visiting,” says TTE director Duncan Bell. “We don’t like to go too heavy and too dark.

“Last year we toured Protest the Hero at Arcade Empire (800) in Pretoria, Rumours (600) in north Johannesburg, Sundowners (500) in south Johannesburg and Klien Libertas (500) in Cape Town.

Tickets ranged from 200-350 rand ($13-23).

Duncan Bell ”In September we had 36 Crazy Fists and Monuments here for our annual festival Krank’d-Up (2,000), which is held at Sundowners and is in its fourth year,” he says. “We also like to work at building the local scene, as the horrendous exchange rate doesn’t do us many favours when touring international artistes.

Bell adds, “The metal scene here is growing, but we do no more than two tours a year, to be on the safe side.”

Other acts TTE works with include TesseracT, Affiance, Dead Letter Circus and Unearth.

Jo’burg hub

Promoter Brad Holmes owns the 22-year-old Bassline, one of the longest running venues in the country and is located in the Newtown Cultural Precinct of Johannesburg.

Forthcoming shows feature Nathi, Vusi Nova and Nancy G. The venue also has a 200-capacity performance space.

“We do an average of 15 shows per month and also have a studio and six Unearth playing at Krank’d-Up rehearsal rooms in the building,” says Holmes.

“The live shows are very diverse but predomiExpanding ideas nantly jazz and Afro-beat.”

Based in La Lucia, a suburb of Durban in The plunging value of the rand has seen the KwaZulu-Natal province, Airey Scott Holmes look for new ways to make shows Entertainment promotes the two-city Jack more feasible for international acts.

Daniels’ Boomtown festival, which will take “If anyone is coming to South Africa, we place at the Zoo Lake Sports Club (8,000) in try and share the cost as much as possible,” Johannesburg on 12 March and in July at the he explains. “We have developed a Southern Durban Botanic Gardens (5,000).

Africa festival circuit and can offer artistes six Among the artistes performing will be US gigs, which helps make the trip more viable. rapper T, with tickets priced between 490-850 “For me, a massive positive note is that our rand ($31.60-55). local content is growing much stronger – that “There is definitely a following for festivals is hugely important.” Holmes says. here and a few have sprung up over the last

market focus: south africa 31

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audience • Issue 194 • March 2016

market focus: south africa

T h e Wo rd ’s B e s t A re n a s F o r C o n t e m p o r a r y L i v e M u s i c

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while local acts include Matthew Mole venue even greater flexibility in terms of hostand Jeremy Lewis. ing smaller events. The room opens up other The next event takes place on 27 possibilities as well, for example multiple February at Company’s Garden in Cape events could be conducted simultaneously,” Town where 500 people wearing headsays Ticketpro Dome general manager phones will attend a three-stage event Cynthia Penprase. featuring acts such as Majozi, ShenFM Other enhancements have been made to the and Farryl Purkiss. Tickets cost between venue’s medical clinic and production office.

200-600 rand ($13-39).

Across town, the Ellis Park Arena (6,300), Craig is particularly passionate about which opened as an indoor tennis venue Wave House giving emerging acts a platform. “Our has been regularly used for concerts focus is to break the younger talent and since 1986. decade or so,” says Airey Scott co-founder try and get them connected to promoters and Part of the Ellis Park multi-venue complex, David Airey. agents, so we can start exporting what we includes Emirates Airline Park (55,000), “Boomtown is an urban festival that we originally known as the Ellis Park Stadium. have run for the last eight years in Durban, and have here,” he says.

It opened in 1928 and has a concert history we’re growing the festival brand by taking it to that includes shows by acts such as Sting, the Johannesburg for the first time.

Central landmarks Rolling Stones, Tina Turner and Eminem.

“Nowadays people are looking for different Until recently known as the Coca-Cola Dome, The venue was upgraded for the FIFA experiences in outdoor alternative venues, The Ticketpro Dome can provide shows with a World Cup in 2014 and was known between and we are constantly striving to offer people capacity of 5,000 up to its full 18,000 for con2008 and 2012 as Coca-Cola Park. At the end innovative options.” certs, and among facilities on offer to promotof 2014 a five-year naming rights deal was Patrick Craig, founder and creative director ers and artistes are star suites, movable tiered of promoter 3 Blind Mice, recognised there seating, VIP hospitality suites that overlook the signed with Emirates.

Home of the Lions rugby was a demand for top class talent union team, the stadium does performing intimate shows in “The bar has been raised and as not have any shows booked unusual locations, from beaches to mountainsides. promoters, we need to be pushing this year. Its chief financial and commercial officer Edgar So in 2010 he launched the all the time, without pushing Rathbone says, “The problem Studio 7 Sessions, which avoid any with the exchange rate means noise control issues by providing ticket prices up.” there is a very limited number audience members with wireless Shaughn Pieterse of international acts coming to headphones.

South Africa and the shows that “We stage bespoke live experiare taking place are very expensive.” ences with audiences of anything from 50 to main arena, and an in-house box office.

Rathbone is negotiating concert bookings 1,000 and focus on the 30-plus age group, The building is owned by the Sasol Pension at Ellis Park Arena, but nothing has been conbecause there is nowhere for them to go and Fund and managed by Thebe Reed Venue firmed yet. “We can’t predict what will happen watch great live music with quality sound in a Management, a subsidiary of Thebe Reed with the rand, it’s going to be a challenging small venue that’s not a dive bar,” he says.

Exhibitions Group. year and we are concentrating our efforts on “So we try and create events in new and Ticketpro, a subsidiary of Blue Label sports events,” he says. interesting spaces and are generally focused Telecoms, has secured a seven-year sponsoron breaking talent. In a lot of places we can’t ship deal. use amplified sound and there are so many Last year 90 per cent of shows at the Dome Adapting to needs great places in the city we can get access to were by international acts, with this year’s Some 370 miles south-east of Johannesburg, as long as there is no noise pollution,” Craig shows featuring Lionel Ritchie, Nicki Minaj, Durban boasts the Moses Mabhida Stadium explains. “So we use the wireless headsets to Mariah Carey, Rodriguez, Roxette and (56,000), where a flexible approach to concert do that.”

George Benson. formats is proving successful.

Among international acts to play the ses“By April the venue will have launched a “One of the most popular configurations at sions are Joss Stone and Francesca Biancoli, new 1,600m2 multi-purpose room, to give the the moment is a north facing stage set up that

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audience • Issue 194 • March 2016

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accommodates a capacity in the region of 20,000,” says commercial manager Grant Medcalf. “Recently we used this configuration for John Legend, Michael Bublé, Brian McKnight, Edgar Rathbone Tony Braxton & Babyface.

“Both the forthcoming Mariah Carey and Lionel Richie concerts will also use the configuration.”

The stadium is owned and run by the local eThekwini municipality and Medcalf says considerable investment has gone into the stadium, to make it a destination venue.

“As well as the stadium’s Arch of Triumph, there is the Skycar that takes visitors to a viewing platform 106m above the stadium with spectacular views of the city and Indian Ocean,” he says.

Durban also offers touring artistes a 4,000-capacity space at the Wave House.

Acquired by new owner Nick Leitch last year, the site operates as a water park during the day and recently underwent an overhaul of its facilities.

Wave House general manager Kim Perry says the Cynthia Penprase devalued rand has led the venue to focus on South African talent this year, “We are presenting more local acts and have concerts with Black Coffee, Short Straw, The Plastics, Gangs of Ballet and Die Antwoord.”

Grant Medcalf The outdoor venue comes with a tent-like structure able to cover 2,500 people standing. “We have a big screen, easy access to secure parking, bathrooms, restaurant facilities, power supply, bars – most of the infrastructure is in place,” says Perry, “There is no big build except for the sound rig. You basically just have to arrive.”

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audience • Issue 194 • March 2016

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The Sun City Superbowl staged its first concert in 1981 with Frank Sinatra and has featured acts such as Queen, Rod Stewart, Elton John and Sting.

Part of the GrandWest Casino and Entertainment World, 90 per cent of events at The Grand Arena are concerts, 40 per cent of which are by international acts.

The venue’s events and entertainment manager Gavin Taylor says, “The impact of the exchange rate has not only been felt via soaring ticket prices, it has also had an impact on getting the shows open to market earlier to allow concert-goers time to plan accordingly.”

Lara Portelli-Horvath, group events and

entertainment executive at Sun International, says the company’s current focus is on opening a new flagship venue – the 8,000-seat Times Square Entertainment Arena at Menlyn Maine in the Tshwane municipality, which includes Pretoria. The venue is expected to

open in 2017.

“The world class venue will offer a space with the best international standards to promoters, and Sun International will be able to include the venue in group deals with local promoters,” says Horvath.

“Taking a national perspective, we believe that the mix of facilities on offer, including a hotel, convention centre and arena dovetails well with our existing properties, especially Sun City,” she says. “We will be able to provide country-wide offers with the resultant ability to reap synergistic benefits.”

Located in the northern suburbs of Johannesburg in the Montecasino entertainment complex, The Teatro is a 1,875-seat

theatre that opened in 2007. It is owned by Tsogo Sun Gaming and was constructed at a cost of over 100 million rand ($6.5m).

“We have recently refurbished the seating in Gavin Taylor the auditorium after years of wear and tear,” says the venue’s general manager Bryan Hill.

Despite its relatively large capacity, the venue was designed to create an intimate atmosphere – with no seat further than 33m from Lara Portelli-Horvath the stage. Approximately 60 per cent of concerts staged at The Teatro involve international artistes and so the venue has not proved immune to the currency meltdown.

“The weakened rand has affected the choice of international content,” says Hill. “However, we are hosting Chris De Burgh, Albert Hammond, Singin’ In The Rain, and Slava’s Snow Show this year.”

Despite the challenges, artistes generally love working in the country and that has helped promoters and venue operators to weather the difficult economic climate, coupled with their determination to meet the live music needs of audiences keen for more.

Jess Glynne (MAR 16)

Biffy Clyro

Lianne La Havas (NOV 15)

(2016)

Kwabs

(NOV 15)

Gary Clark Jr. (NOV 15)

36 Jason De (2016)

Twenty One Pilots (FEB 16)

audience • Issue 194 • March 2016

Robin Schulz

rulo

(MAR 16)

HONNE (DEC 15)

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making it happen 40

Making it happen It cannot be easy getting into the international promoting business when you are 11,000kms from London, 8,000 from New York and even more from Los Angeles, and your country has no infrastructure, plus nowhere to go but back after a show. But Carlos Geniso has almost single-handedly established Chile as a major touring destination, as Christopher Barrett reports audience • Issue 194 • March 2016

www.audience.uk.com

C

arlos Geniso has been a drummer, a record producer and dabbled in broadcast rights, but it is as a concert promoter that he really hit the right note.

A pioneering professional in the South American live music market, Geniso has worked with some of the biggest artistes in the world and almost single-handedly turned Chile into a popular touring destination for artistes such as Paul McCartney, the Rolling Stones, Bob Dylan and Roger Waters.

With his mass of white hair and beaming smile, Geniso is a regular figure at all his DG Medios company shows.

A hands-on promoter, he is equally at home in the sponsor boxes and boardrooms, on the field with the production crew or in the box office.

Geniso can talk concert production at all levels and he is internationally respected by his peers.

When Argentina-based DG Medios founder Daniel Grinbank – himself a pioneer of international artistes touring across Latin America Rolling Stones in Santiago – was looking to set up an office in Chile, it was Geniso that he called.

In the 25 years since, Geniso has sold more than five million tickets in the country and helped transform the Chilean live music market.

“Carlos is very professional, he knows how it should be done,” says International Talent Booking co-MD Barry Dickins, based in the UK. “Thanks to Carlos, playing Chile is now like playing Germany or Sweden, that is how easy they have made it.”

During the two-and-a-half decades heading up DG Medios Chile, Geniso has not limited his reach to his country’s boarders.

Along with partners such as T4F in Argentina, Move Concerts in Miami, OCESA in Mexico and Live Nation Latin America, Geniso has

Roger Waters The Wall in Santiago

Congratulations Carlos on 25 years of DG Medios! www.audience.uk.com

making it happen

Paul McCartney in Santiago

co-promoted tours and shows in Brazil, Argentina, Peru, Colombia, Costa Rica, Uruguay, Mexico and even Spain and Portugal.

“We’ve co-pro’ed quite a few shows together,” says Move Concerts CEO Phil Rodriguez. “He has a great staff and delivers a great job. Shows that stand out are Iron Maiden, Bruce Springsteen, Katy Perry and Justin Bieber. ”Carlos has not lost his love of music. He still gets excited when shows are confirmed and he starts building the date. I consider him one of the good guys in our business.”

Alongside Grinbank, Geniso is also a partner in DG Entertainment Spain.

Also based in Madrid, Rafael Gimenez of promoter Sold Out first met Geniso in 1997 and worked with him on U2’s PopMart tour in Spain.

“He had bought the shows in South America and got two additional shows for Spain – Madrid and Barcelona. They looked for a local partner and decided to co-promote them with Sold Out,” says Gimenez. “It was a very good experience. Carlos is excellent at analysing the numbers and sees the business potential of a project when others are often confused.”

Geniso grew up in Buenos Aires, Argentina, and in 1967 attended his first concert – a performance by local band Manal. Influenced by Cream and Jimi Hendrix, they were a trio that played Spanish blues and rock.

He was hooked, and it wasn’t long before he had befriended the drummer and would roadie for him in return for drumming lessons.

In 1974 Geniso joined rock outfit Avalanche as the drummer and stayed with the band for three years. Along with Argentinian rock icon Charly García, Avalanche was one of the many acts managed

by Grinbank.

41

From Jose Muniz and everyone at

audience • Issue 194 • March 2016

making it happen

driving force behind the launch of the first Latin American blues festival, the City Jazz and Blue Festival in Mexico city. Over the years it attracted an array of artistes including BB King, Chuck Berry, Al Jarreau, Ray Charles, Chick Corea and Herbie Hancock.

The ‘80s also saw Geniso gain experience in broadcasting, by acquiring rights to landmark concerts and bringing them to millions of viewers across South America.

In ‘87 he won the rights to the radio and TV transmission of a concert celebrating the 40th anniversary of Atlantic Records in New York arena Madison Square Garden (cap. 19,000), and again broadcast the event across the region.

Among the acts performing were Genesis, Yes, Emerson, Lake and Palmer, the Bee Gees and a reformed Led Zeppelin.

Geniso also acquired the rights to the Nelson Mandela’s 70th birthday concert in ’88 at the UK’s Wembley Stadium (then 70,000), with a line-up that included Eric Clapton, Dire Straits, George Michael and Whitney Houston.

“I did a live broadcast through TV Global.

Back then there was no internet or digital TV, so getting the show broadcast live via satellite was a big deal,” he remembers.

He wasn’t about to get lost in the world of broadcasting. Geniso’s work with Argentine singer Mercedes Sosa in the US saw him © Cristain

“Years later Carlos became a businessman, which was fortunate for him and for music in general,” jokes Grinbank.

Before Geniso settled in Chile, he spent many formative years working in the US and Mexico.

In 1973 he took a trip to New York in search of the perfect drum set. Three years later he returned to New York and remained there for four years.

“I was lucky, New York was an incred(L-R) Carlos Geniso, Rod Stewart, Pablo Morales ible place to be at a very exciting time for music,” Geniso remembers. “We saw many of the great rock ‘n’ roll acts play, including in 1980. It was the first time he played South Aerosmith, Frank Zappa, David Bowie, Rolling America. It was supposed to be four shows for Stones, AC/DC and BB King.” $20,000 but we lost money, because there was He worked for a time as a producer at Jimi a lot of problems with exchange rates,” Hendrix’ Electric Lady Recording Studios and he relates. the Record Plant, where he produced the “I was out of pocket and flat broke, but BB Modern Clix album for Charly Garcia. The King came back with me to South America, sound engineer on the album was Joe Blaney Mexico, Chile and other countries, so I made who would go on to work with acts such as the money back many times over.”

The Clash, Prince and The Ramones. Geniso Phil Rodriguez, CEO of regional Latin took the album to Sterling Sound, where America promoter Move Concerts recalls the renowned engineer Ted Jensen mastered it. first time he worked with Geniso. “It was 1980 when I took The Police to Buenos Aires and I think Carlos was one of the 10 or 12 local Staring with BB partners. It was crazy,” he says.

A huge fan of blues, the first international Geniso spent much of the ‘80s in Mexico artiste Geniso promoted was BB King. The first where he co-promoted shows with leading run of shows did not go entirely to plan. event organiser OCESA with artistes such as “I approached BB King’s manager Sid Sting, Bob Dylan and Los Lobos. He was also a Seidenberg and we took BB King to Argentina

a ñ o s

42 PuntoTicket congratulates DG Medios and its founder and CEO Carlos Geniso for their 25 years in Chile. All the best!

audience • Issue 194 • March 2016

www.audience.uk.com

Others things people say …

Carlos Geniso

and got to work. promote shows at Carnegie Hall (2,800) in New Among the first major coups for the fledgYork, Wiltern Theater (1,850) in Los Angels and the Boston Symphony Hall (2,600). In March 1990 ling business was promoting Paul McCartney’s December ‘93 show at he promoted Charly Chile’s Estadio Nacional Garcia’s first appear“It isn’t an exaggeration (60,000) in Santiago, as part ance in New York, at to say that Carlos Geniso of his New World Tour.

The Ritz in front of an The artiste’s worldwide audience of 1,500. single-handedly helped put promoter Barrie Marshall Around the same time he took David Chile on the touring map” of UK-based Marshal Arts recalls, “Paul was the first Byrne on his first Phil Rodriquez international artiste to solo tour to Florida, play the venue and it was truly a magnificent Puerto Rico, Mexico, Brazil, Argentina and Chile. evening – the general from the army and the police were incredibly well-organised and Headquarters Santiago made sure that the security team did not have In 1991 Grinbank asked Geniso to launch DG their guns on display.

Medios Chile, he found a small office in Santiago

Barry Dickins, International Talent Booking, UK “Working with Carlos has always been relatively uneventful, which when you are working in that part of the world is exactly what you want.

South America is one of the more volatile markets, but Carlos has been great to work with, he is hard working, he knows exactly what he is doing and he is like a rottweiler – he just doesn’t give up.”

John Meglen, Concerts West/ AEG Live, US “I’ve worked with Carlos for a couple of decades in Chile, he’s always a class operator and a great promoter, but I still think he’s Italian.”

CONGRATS ON YOUR

DG MEDIOS

making it happen

25 TH ANNIVERSARY! We love you, Carlos!

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ozonoproducciones.com.ar www.audience.uk.com

audience • Issue 194 • March 2016

Others things people say …

making it happen

The Cure and DG Medios team 2013

44

“That football stadium, where I play most “It was a really peaceful, memorable and wonof my acts, is where they held all the prisoners derful night for all concerned and it’s wouldn’t and started shooting them. Look at that venue have been possible without Carlos – he played a remarkable part in helping to make it happen,” now, and the country, and it shows you how far it has come in a short period of time.” says Marshall.

Zweck has represented Roger Waters since McCartney has been a loyal client ever since, his first tour The Pros and Cons of Hitchhiking returning in 2011 for another show at the in 1984, and worked with Geniso to bring The Estadio Nacional and again for two shows in Wall to Santiago in February 2012.

2014 at the city’s Movistar Arena (15,000).

“Roger Waters has been there three times On 19 February 1994 Geniso’s hard work to over the years with lure the Rolling Stones to Chile finally paid off, “There were people praying Carlos and he has always done a good when the band played in the street … ‘please don’t job. I have never the country for the first worked with anyone time. Part of the VooDoo let these bands play over else in Chile – Carlos Lounge world tour, their has always been great Estadio Nacional show here, they are evil’” so I stuck with him,” sold out.

Carlos Geniso says Zweck.

His long relationship “He was profeswith the band has seen sional from the start, in the early days he was them work together on many occassions, most a partner of Daniel Grinbank – they were recently on 3 February when the Stones kicked off their nine-country America Latina OLE – 2016 a team and they learned how to do things very early on and do it to an international Tour in Santiago with another sell-out at the standard. They were pioneers in the market Estadio Nacional. for sure.”

Geniso now books all the concerts for the venue, which underwent a complete renovation in 2009, and says the venue can host shows Monsters riot ranging from 5,000 people up to a 45,000 mixed Geniso admits that his work to turn Chile seating and standing, with 60,000 as the full into one of the most professional and standing capacity. well-equipped touring destinations in U2, Madonna, The Cure, Iron South America has not always Maiden, One Direction and Justin been plain sailing.

Bieber are among acts to have He recalls the events surroundplayed the stadium under Geniso’s ing the staging of the Monsters of watch. However the venue has not Rock in Chile for the first time. It took always been filled with smiling place at the 90,000-capacity Estación faces and world-class musicians.

Mapocho in Santiago, a former railway station turned cultural centre.

Andrew Zweck “In the beginning it was very chalPolitical pressure lenging because of what happened Following a coup d’etat in 1973, politically in the 1970s and 1980s. The music which saw elected socialist President Salvador on radio station was very subdued, mainly Allende overthrown by the armed forces and national police led by General Augusto Pinochet, folk and acoustic bands and very little rock, pop or heavy metal,” he says. the stadium was used as a prison camp by the “I remember the first time I did a heavy military regime. metal festival. In 1994 we brought Monsters International agent Andrew Zweck of UKof Rock to Chile with a line-up including Black based Sensible Events, who has worked with Sabbath, Slayer and Kiss. There was a riot, the Geniso many times and booked a recent Rolling police tried to get into the venue, that was a Stones show at the stadium with him, says, “I big challenge. am old enough to remember the politics of the “There were people praying in the 1970s. Allende won the election for the Marxists street, trying to influence sponsors and and the military overthrew them. audience • Issue 194 • March 2016

Phil Rodriguez, Move Concerts , South America “There are many qualities I admire in Carlos; his tenacity, his good humour and his memory – he can remember what we had for lunch 20 years ago.”

Charlie Myatt, 13 Artists, UK “Carlos is a truly great promoter and a very decent man – reliable and dependable. We have done many shows with him and his team and hold him in the highest regard.”

Daniel Grinbank, DG Medios, Argentina “He is one of the best promoters in the world and he has remarkable intuition, a direct way of relating to people and always makes the marketing plans work. Besides that, he has a never-ending working capacity and excellent business skills that always enable him to find sponsors.”

Barrie Marshall, Marshall Arts, UK “Carlos is definitely among only a handful of people in the music industry that I would call a remarkable character. He has the panache and style to truly promote major artistes in stadia and new venues, plus the courage to try new things and make them work.”

Rob Markus, William Morris Endeavor Entertainment, US “Carlos has played a very important role in the development of the South American live music market. He is fun, creative and passionate. Many young promoters refer to him as The Godfather of the Chilean live music scene.”

www.audience.uk.com

major commercial sponsors to the Chilean concert market, which previously was left languishing far behind other Latin American countries when it came to attracting big brand sponsorship.

Says Move Concert’s Rodriguez, “In the 1980’s Chile was pretty much out of the South American tour circuit, and between the Pinochet dictatorship, a poor economy Early pioneers and dodgy proEncouraging internaJennifer Lopez, Carlos and Rob Hallett moters, Anglo tional artistes to play in artistes performing there were a rarity.

Chile for the first time was not always easy in “Most tours at the time were limited the early days of DG Medios Chile. to Brazil, Argentina, and Venezuela Grinbank remember, “It was vital to give and in some cases Colombia. It isn’t an artistes a lot of confidence because in the exaggeration to say that Carlos Geniso beginning the infrastructure was not there, single-handedly helped put Chile on the they had the choice of maybe two hotels and touring map.” now there are eight. Production-wise you had to bring a lot of equipment from abroad, but now they have a lot over there that is suitable. Solid foundations “It is all about caring for people, trying to Geniso helped improve the ticket purbe open and cooperative with the artiste. chasing experience for fans by introducMeanwhile, you have to be sensitive to the ing both Ticketmaster and PuntoTicket market and adjust to it.” services to Chile. He was also the first Geniso is also responsible for introducing promoter in the country to take out broadcasters, saying ‘please don’t let these bands play over here, they are evil’.”

“There has been a big turn around but to achieve that we had to challenge the media and institutions – over time we were able to massage the market and little by little we brought in more bands.

In 1994 we brought in many British artistes including the Rolling Stones and Elton John it a British invasion that year.”

Others things people say …

Rod MacSween, International Talent Booking, UK “I’ve known and respected Carlos as a friend and professional for 20 years and he has always delivered for me. He is very trustworthy and reliable, has a great sense of humour and a deep voice – he sounds like a gangster but he is a real gent.”

Andrew Zweck, Sensible Events, UK “Carlos is the biggest ligger I have ever met, he is always on a plane or in an airport going to someone else’s show. He is great fun and has always been a true professional.”

Rob Hallett, Robomagic Live, UK “Carlos is a great promoter, a great bon vivant and great fun to be with.

He is definitely one of South America’s professionals – before Carlos and Daniel [Griumbank], South America was a little bit like the Wild West, and he was one of those who tamed it.”

making it happen 47

www.audience.uk.com

audience • Issue 194 • March 2016

Carlos Geniso with Stevie Wonder

making it happen

non-performance insurance on the artistes he promoted.

His efforts have also resulted in a greatly increased network of concert venues in Chile.

“In the past we were limited to airfields, old soccer stadiums and an unused train station, but for the past nine years we have had the Movistar Arena, and that has made a big difference,” he says.

With a standing capacity of 15,000, the Movistar opened in 2006 and staged 34 shows in its first year, by 2011 it was staging more than 150 annually, with around 85 per cent of the concerts by international acts.

Another international agent and promoter who has worked with Geniso over the years is UK-based Robomagic Live founder Rob Hallett, most recently booking Jennifer Lopez, Justin Bieber and Black Eyed Peas to play at the arena with him.

Hallett regards Geniso as one of the

48

industry’s great professionals and characters.

He is particularly impressed by the obvious loyalty he has shown to his long-time friends and compatriot Daniel Grinbank.

“Carlos kept the company name, which stood for Daniel Grinbank Medios, even after Daniel signed a deal [to work] with Live Nation. It was a great mark of respect to someone he regarded as a mentor and he even maintained the the DG name when Daniel became a competitor.

“Now they are working together again and it’s unusual in this business to have that kind of loyalty,” says Hallett, “it is to be applauded.”

DG Medios Chile has come a long way in its first 25 years. It now has 16 full-time staff and employs hundreds of freelancers when needed to work on shows.

Key members of the team include international promoter Sylvia Hewitt, local show

Others things people say …

Jose Muniz, Mercury Concerts, Brazil “I first met Carlos when I sold my company to CIE/OCESA and he was already working for them in both Chile and Brazil. He is a genuine promoter and one of the pioneers in developing the music business in Chile. He is very particular in the way he works, knows what he is doing and how to reach an audience.”

Rafael Gimenez, Sold Out, Spain “Carlos is a very solid and sound businessman. He is fantastic at dealing with all the stakeholders, artistes, managers, media, partners – he makes no distinctions between them and treats everybody very respectfully.”

Marlene Tsuchii, Creative Artists Agency, US “Carlos and DG Medios have been a fundamental part of the Chilean market and we have worked on innumerable successful tours with Carlos and his team.”

Carlos Geniso with Katy Perry

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Others things people say …

Danton Vinales, Puntoticket, Chile “I first met Carlos in 2005 when we were planning the creation of Puntoticket with [retailer] Ripley and Carlos was bringing in U2’s Vertigo tour. Ripley became the main sponsor and we sold the tickets online.

It was our first time in the business and it was the most in-demand concert in the world.

“It was a very hard experience and we had meetings with him almost every day, sometimes until 4am, to solve all the issues. Therefore we have great love and respect for Carlos and we are so grateful to him for having confidence in us from the very beginning.”

Carlos Geniso and Alejandro Sanz

promoter Javiera Walker, marketing director Beatriz Guinez, media manager Miguel Ramirez, advertising campaign director Keka Kohler and production manager Amaru Parra.

Forthcoming concerts feature Katy Perry, Alejandro Sanz, Then Vamps, with Iron Maiden and Anthrax at Estadio Nacional.

Geniso says he is always looking for new talent to work across sponsorship and digital media. He finds social media to be a great way of generating ticket sales, but says traditional platforms remain vital.

Carlos Geniso, Miley Cyrus, DG Medios Media Manager

“Social media will kick-start ticket sales for a show, but when you need to fill up a show and if you cannot reach the capacity you need to sell-out, you need to embrace mass media,” he says. “Editorial is really important, the artistes are sometimes open to doing a little of that and it really pushes the ticket sales. Heavy rotation on radio, TV commercials – people here like to listen to the new material a band is playing before they commit.”

As for Geniso’s days playing in a band himself, the music industry veteran says they

are well and truly behind him, “I still have a drum set in my house but I don’t play much these days.”

A longtime friends and partner on numerous shows, Andrew Zweck questions whether Geniso even has a home.

“Wherever I go in the world I see Carlos there,” he says. “When he is perusing an act he is relentless. He worked on the Rolling Stones for the past year and came to London half a dozen times. He must live in airports, I don’t think he has a house.”

making it happen

arlos, C d n e i ear fr To our d tions on a l u t a r Cong s over s e c c u s all your 5 years 3 t s a l the pect and res n o i t a r mi all at With ad ny, Doris and Jen Barrie,

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audience • Issue 194 • March 2016

events Dates

The details shown below have been compiled from information provided to Audience and whilst we make every reasonable effort to ensure accuracy, we cannot be held responsible if data is incorrect

Country, City

Mar 28-Apr 3 Estonia, Tallinn

Event/Information

Dates

Country, City

Event/Information

Tallinn Music Week www.tallinnmusicweek.ee

May 29-31 Netherlands, Rotterdam New Skool Rules

www.newskoolrules.com

Showcase festival presenting Estonian across two nights, plus a networking event.

The conference panels, master classes and workshops, with artiste showcases.

Apr 5-8 Germany, Frankfurt

Jun 3-6 France, Cannes

Prolight and Sound www.prolight-sound.de

An event for light, sound and production in the music and entertainment industry.

Global Rock Summit www.globalrocksummit.com

Apr 15-16 USA, Hollywood

Conference for rock-based industry professionals.

Apr 17-20 USA, Hollywood

MIDEM www.midem.com

Conferences, showcases and networking event, attracting 8,000 business people from over 90 countries.

Jun 4-6 Paris, France

140th AES Convention www.aes.org

A gathering of audio professionals and enthusiasts on the planet, attracting delegates from over 100 countries.

Musexpo www.musexpo.net

Business discussion and artiste showcases at West Hollywood’s music venues.

Jun 16-18 Spain, Barcelona

Sonar www.sonar.es

Convention and festival dedicated to advanced music and new media art.

May 4-14 Canada, Toronto

Canadian Music Week (CMW) www.cmw.net

Four-day event for the music, live and broadcast industries, including seminars, keynote speeches, music festival and awards ceremony.

May 19 UK, London

Ivor Novello Awards www.theivors.com

The Awards celebrate honour and reward excellence in song writing and composing. They are presented by BASCA and judged by the writing community.

May 19-21 UK, Brighton

The Great Escape Festival www.escapegreat.com

Conference new music showcases across more than 20 venues.

events

Created by BBC Radio 1’s Pete Tong and leading professionals to help re-set the agenda for electronic music culture.

Pop-Kultur www.pop-kultur.berlin

Comprising two events: the WORD! conference for business and SOUND! for live events.

Sep 18-20 UK, London

PLASA 2014 www.plasashow.com

Trade event focusing on products and equipment for the live event, corporate, architectural and installation sectors.

Sep 21-24 Germany, Hamburg

Reeperbahn Festival & Campus www.reeperbahnfestival.com/en

Germany’s largest club festival and conference for the live entertainment Industry.

Sep 26-27 USA, Los Altos Hills IMS

www.internationalmusicsummit.com

May 25-27 Ibiza, Ibiza Town

54

Aug 31- Berlin, Germany Sep 02

West Coast Songwriters Conference www.westcoastsongwriters.org

Starts with a party to meet conference attendees as well as the many and varied industry leaders instructing the seminars, then a full weekend of seminars.

LIVE MUSIC AND TALENT BOOKING IN SWITZERLAND We would like to thank: concerts booking production consulting communication

Alborosie - Alex Hepburn - Aloe Blacc - Archive - Asaf Avidan - Asian Dub Foundation - Ayo Birth of Joy - Black m - Chinese Man - Deluxe - Gentleman - HOZIER - HYPHEN HYPHEN - IAM James Taylor Quartet - Justin Nozuka - Jazzmatazz - kid ink - King Charles - Lisa Hannigan Malia - MAITRE GIMS - Mattafix - Max Romeo - Milow - Mobb Deep - Mos Def - Nada Surf - Nas New Model Army - Nneka - OneRepublic - Patrice - Roger Hodgson - Sexion d’Assaut Shaka Ponk - Skip The Use - Susheela Raman - Talib Kweli - Tarrus Riley - Trixie Whitley Woodkid - yelawolf - Yoav - Yodelice - Youssoupha - Yuri Buenaventura - and many more... soldoutprod

audience • Issue 194 • March 2016

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Production news And the award goes to …

Newsbites

United STATES

Both the music and the spoken elements at the Grammy Awards needed to be crystal clear for the live audience and the estimated 23.5 million television viewers internationally, presenting a high-profile challenge the event’s sound provider ATK Audiotek.

Performers at the music industry gathering, staged at the 18,000-capacity Staples Center in Los Angeles – compered by LL Cool J – included Taylor Swift, Lady Gaga and Eagles members with Jackson Browne.

ATK vice-president of special events Mikael Stewart says only the best quality audio would ensure the sound remained clear when played on a standard home television, as well as providing premium sound to the live audience.

JBL Harman cover the Grammys

The company deployed JBL by Harman VTX V25 loudspeakers for the main PA, plus two 16-box VTX V20 loudspeaker side clusters, two nine-box S25 subwoofer clusters and three eight-box VT20 delays ensuring, says Stewart, that every audience member could hear the speeches.

“Music is dynamic, but spoken voice requires even more clarity and precision,” says Stewart. “The details can easily become muddled with low quality reproduction.”

Every eye open for Chvrches At Alexandra Palace, Okulus requested two additional IMAG screens, in portrait orientation, which were flown and angled slightly to front of house, giving further depth. The two 15’ wide by 20’ high screens were fed by Panasonic PT-DZ21K high brightness projectors, while footage was supplied via four Sony HXC-100 HD cameras – two at front-of-house and two handheld in the pit.

PRG XL at work with Chvches - pic Scott Davies

MEXICO Monterrey-based production and rental company Audio Systems del Norte has invested in 24 Pointe moving lights by Czech Republic manufacturer Robe. The company works with international artistes including Ricky Martin, David Guetta, Skrillex and The Scorpions. “All the artistes want to work with Pointes,” says Audio Systems’ sales manager Franco Cinquini .

ITALY Annual song contest the Sanremo Festival, attended this year

by Elton John, Ellie Goulding and Maitre Gims, deployed 150 moving lights by lighting manufacturer DTS, including Evo, Raptor and Nick NRG 1201 fixtures. “The festival’s artistic director Carlo Conti has repeatedly praised the eye-catching lighting of the event,” says a DTS spokesperson. The televised festival is held over five nights at Teatro Ariston (cap. 2,000).

Audio Rental

production news

World Three monolithic panels of LED screen formed the heart of the set by Louis Oliver and James Scott of Okulus Design for Chvrches’ Every Open Eye tour.

Custom-built LED video towers and adapted trussing held a variety of lighting fixtures including 33 Martin Mac Auras, Clay Paky Mythos beams and Philips Nitro Strobes, provided by PRG XL Video.

PRG XL’s Roy Hunt describes the tour, which plays venues including the UK’s Alexandra Palace (cap. 10,700) in London, Germany’s Columbia Halle (3,500) in Berlin and Chicago’s Riviera Theatre (2,500) in the US, as “a challenging design”.

Eight Mac Auras surrounded the central monolith, while four large and two small floor towers made of PRG’s Bat Truss housed the Mythos beams and Nitro Strobs, arranged in horizontal lines, achieving what Hunt calls a “multi-depth” look.

SOUTH AFRICA Johannesburgbased rental company MGG has invested in a Kinesys automation system, including 16 x LibraCELL load monitoring shackles and a D8+ 8-way DigiHoist controller.

MGG’s Herman Mentz says, “Kinesys motion control is a new concept for our market, something we’ve considered for a while, to ensure that the best safety standards can be applied for shows.” MGG provided production for the Afrikans is Groot touring concerts at venues including Moreleta Church Auditorium (cap. 7,100) in Pretoria.

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audience • Issue 194 • March 2016

57

Production news Rogues take spotlight off Fetty Wap UNITED STATES Spotlights were ruled out of a performance by rapper Fetty Wap when he resumed his tour following a motorcycle accident last September.

Lighting designer Brett Angstadt of Round Peg Productions wanted to achieve an intimate feel at venues including SECU Arena (cap. 5,200) in Towson, Maryland, The Marquee (2,500) in Tempe, Arizona and the 14,000-capacity BUKU Music & Art Project festival in New Orleans.

He deployed 18 Rogue R2 Wash moving LED fixtures by manufacturer Chauvet Professional, flown on two overhead trusses, both to colour the backdrop, provide special effects and light the audience at key moments in the show.

“The Rogues were critical to reflecting the mood of the music,” says Angstadt. “We used beams and aerial effects as well as some blinders in our rig. Without followspots, we really counted on the high output and the wide zoom range of the R2 Washes to provide front light on stage.”

He arranged the Rogues in groups of two, eight flown on the upstage truss and ten on the downstage unit.

“This was a fully busked show covering a wide range of emotions, so I used everything these fixtures had to offer,” says Angstadt.

“The Rogues’ zoom to created different looks, with lens effect macros to create some cool audience lighting for high-energy parts of the show.”

Chauvet’s Rogues on Fetty Wap

production news

dLive’s quick start for Lawson tour

58

Rob Simpson behind the dLive for JamieLawson

WORLD With a nine-hour running time, the need to inject “backdrop excitement” to Warren Haynes’ Christmas Jam at North Carolina’s US Cellular Centre (cap. 7,600) was vital, according to lighting designer Paul Hoffman.

Lighting for the charity event, with performances by the Doobie Brothers, Electric Hot Tuna, Dawes and Bruce Hornsby, illuminated the entire venue, rather than just the stage.

Hoffman’s design comprised four snake-like trusses over the central performance area, plus front and back trusses on stage and a circle truss over the audience, loaded with a range of fixtures.

Nashville-based Bandit Lites provided

Mac Viper Profiles, Robe BMFLs, Robe Pointes, Clay Paky Sharpys, Coemar Stagelite LED 2-Cell, GLP X4Ss and GRN Lite Pars, plus “massive amounts” of festoon lighting and a mirror ball.

Fixtures were placed on the floor to project the effects beyond the stage.

He created distinct looks for each artiste, projected onto a textured backdrop hung from the balcony behind the stage.

“Upstage fixtures served dual-duty as air effects or backdrop effects,” says Hoffman. “All in all there were four sets of fixtures that could be on the backdrop at any time, either by themselves or in combination with others to make a wide variety of effects.”

ENTERTAINING BERLIN www.entertainingberlin.com audience • Issue 194 • March 2015

www.audience.uk.com

Life is better together, get a ticket to celebrate it!

build it and they will come 62

Build it and they will come It is rare these days for a new stadium to transform the fortunes of a city with a global reputation as a bustling centre of entertainment, but the birth of Amsterdam Arena 20 years ago certainly deserves that accolade, as Rob Sandall reports

F

ew cities have as recognisable a brand as Amsterdam, widely considered as a premier destination for relaxation and recreation.

But while the idyllic canals and hospitable coffee shops have long been a part of its cultural history, the Netherlands’ capital has not always had the facilities or indeed the space to house grand-scale live music events.

Twenty years ago, the 53,000-capacity Amsterdam ArenA

audience • Issue 194 • March 2016

opened its doors for the first time, and has since become a key tour stop for major artistes.

Its CEO Henk Markerink has seen the stadium’s entire history unfold first-hand.

“At the end of the ‘80s, you had the 20,000-capacity Ajax Stadium and the 22,000-capacity Olympic Stadium,” he says.

“Those venues were also built close to the centre of Amsterdam, which made for a very narrow infrastructure to work with when it came to ease of visiting and exiting

the venue.” he explains. “So it’s fair to say that we were without a venue that was truly suitable for big-level football or music performances.

“I’ve been on board since 1991 when we first began to solve that problem, during the feasibility phase of the project.

“From there, I project-managed the building of the ArenA, became COO [chief operating office] in 1995, then was asked to be CEO in 1996, a position I have held since.”

The project was about more than simply creating a touring stop

for bigger pro duc tions, says Markerink, who is quick to emphasise the wider implications that the Henk Markerink stadium has had on the city.

“After careful consideration we decided to build on the outskirts of the city – there was very little already there, so we had space without needing to compromise,” he says.

www.audience.uk.com

Amsterdam ArenA – exterior

Sustaining skills

Amsterdam ArenA – interior

“But we also had a bigger vision of creating an entirely new region of Amsterdam, with the project intended to function as a

regenerational boost to the area, not unlike the Olympic Park’s design in London.

“Over the 20 years we’ve seen

As one might imagine, sustaining and accommodating tens of thousands of guests takes quite a logistical effort, a responsibility that facility and project management director Henk Van Raan notes is most certainly a group effort.

“We planned in an enormous

parking capacity from the very beginning to ensure we’d be ready for bigger events and visitors to the various venues – there’s always been room for huge numbers of cars and busses,” he says.

“In terms of places to eat, the ground-floor level restaurants remain open even when we don’t have an event that night in the Arena,” he says.

“They’re easy to reach for visitors and often we’ll take overspill from those people attending shows at the other venues in the area.”

Van Raan says that while careful early planning has been instrumental in the success of the ArenA, keeping customers entertained and comfortable has required large amounts of investment over the years.

“We have invested €50 million [$551m] in general refurbishments, not least enlarging the main building for the purposes of congress and seminars,” he says.

“We’ve also more recently invested in €4m [$4.41m] for a 4G network and €2.5m [$2.87m] for a Wi-Fi network.

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build it and they will come

tremendous amounts of growth, with the site now including a 15-screen cinema, shopping mall, seven hotels and of course the Heineken Music Hall [cap. 5,500] built in 2001 and Ziggo Dome [17,000], built in 2012.”

The wider implications of that growth, says Markerink, have been notable on a national scale, changing the way that those from further afield approach trips to Amsterdam.

“It now means that there’s scope not only for shows of varying capacities to be staged, but crucially, for visitors to turn the visit into a weekend trip,” he says.

“There are now 15 million visitors to the ArenA and the area around it each year.”

audience • Issue 194 • March 2016

during their visit in 1998,” he says.

“The royal wedding in 2002 was something quite special, too, with around 400 royal guests and 50,000 members of the public,

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Amsterdam ArenA – interior set design

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build it and they will come

weather, but also control temperature and “It’s been an important addition to the ArenA – I don’t think it’s acceptable to leave your dampen sound emissions during concerts audience without a connection to the wider – it’s an incredibly valuable asset. world anymore.”

Van Raan believes that looking after the Fast learners customer and ensuring their happiness Director of event productions Hidde throughout the entire experience is of the utmost Salverda says that from early trials-by-fire importance in securing their return visit. putting an virtually novice team into action, “The entire customer journey – from the the ArenA quickly settled in to comfortably second they’re sent a ticket – needs to be staging shows from global stars. considered, even down to helping guests with “Before we launched, there was initially a route planning and parking before they’re inside team of just three people working on project the venue. management,” he says.

“Once they are in, it’s about keeping them “They had to contract around 60 people comfortable – we’re about to begin a plan just for the logistics of opening night, that will see €60m [$66.17m} invested in and then figure out how their experience creating a new shell facade around the entire and function within the operation would arena, which will allow us to make every work fluidly. concourse wider.

“Within a matter of months the “That means more room for betterArenA had staged shows with Tina quality facilities. We like to say that Turner, Michael Jackson and Andrea everyone visiting here is a VIP, and this Bocelli. The production teamhey change will go a long way to making had to learn a lot very quickly, but sure that that remains true.” it helped them to understand logistics On a practical level, he adds that in a very practical way.” a large part of audience comfort can Markerink at first finds it be attributed to the all-important Hidde Salverda difficult to decide on his favourite closable roof. performances, but certainly has a huge list “That has certainly been key to remaining of names to choose from. adaptable during live music or dance “The Rolling Stones have been a pleasure to performances and sporting events too,” he says. see return a great many times, 10 shows in total “By closing the roof we can deal with bad I believe, and five of those sold out in two hours

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U2 five or six times, Bruce Springsteen and little bit of a drop in ticket prices, which is making David Bowie of course in 2004, which was these events more affordable and less of a luxury. a great show.”

Those two elements combined keep us hopeful Salverda notes that there’s a lot more on of further success in the future.” the way this year, and is grateful for the more recent appearance of artistes that can truly fill Designed to succeed a stadium, both with both their personality and Henk Schuit, MD of ticketing audience numbers. company Eventim Nederland, has also “This year we have Rihanna, Coldplay worked with he ArenA from the very performing twice, Beyoncé, the dance festival beginning, and has watched the ticketing Sensation, and of course our market change annual [disco sing-along] significantly as the Toppers performance, stadium has evolved. which has already sold out “My first steps in for three nights and will ticketing were actually possibly extend to a fourth. during the ArenA’s “I think that innovations opening in 1996,” he in the quality of the service says. “ I was working with we provide can only go so the Dutch State Lottery far, but ultimately content is and they were one of Henk Schuit key, and for a while we didn’t the five groups that see as many stars of a level that are needed to fill originally founded the venue. stadiums several nights in a row,” says Salverda.

“Back then, we were selling the majority of “That’s getting better tickets to events at the ArenA through SENS now with a new wave Service Points, a network of shops that could of pop stars, and the generate the tickets from the same machine as dance event market those for lottery draws. is still realising its “Shop-based sales for events were the potential, which we plan to predominate sales method until around 2003, work on this year with four after which the internet became more prominent separate events. of course. And now we do 95 per cent of ticket Henk Schuit “There’s separately a sales online.”

“A purpose-built stadium has helped to encourage promoters, artists and visitors alike”

all celebrating at a free event with music and dance.

“And then there have been so many more memorable performances – George Michael,

build it and they will come 65

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audience • Issue 194 • March 2016

build it and they will come 66

Schuit, who has taken leading roles in Ticketline, See Tickets and Eventim since those early days, says that the venue’s construction was a ray of sunshine amidst literal dark clouds.

“Until 1996 big stadium concerts in the Netherlands were always held in Rotterdam, but to be the honest the weather there isn’t known for being great, and you’d end up standing in the rain more often that not,” he says.

“It’s fair to say that a venue of this capacity, with a roof to protect visitors from the weather, was a Alex Borger huge change, and it wasn’t the only part of the design that made a big difference to live music in Amsterdam.

“The other refreshing change was that everything was built to make the logistical elements of loading-in far easier – big corridors to accommodate large trucks, and so on.

“A purpose-built stadium has helped to encourage promoters, artists and visitors alike.”

Schuit is of course not unaware of the city’s reputation, but believes that it’s nothing but positive in drawing holiday-goers to shows and an excuse to spend a little longer seeing the sights.

“I think it’s fair to say that using the name of the city is quite an important branding element, especially when attracting guests from America etc,” he says.

“Amsterdam has a reputation for, shall we say, a liberal lifestyle, and tying that in with a trip to the ArenA for a performance certainly helps the whole experience feel more like a cultural package.”

Prosperity bonus

Wil Osendarp of The Powershop has provided power for major events at the ArenA since the opening ceremony, and agrees that the stadium and city are now tied together symbiotically.

“We have provided power for shows such as Robbie Williams, the royal wedding party

and Coldplay, and it’s a pleasure to congratulate equally long-standing service partner of the ArenA, pays tribute to the benefits of the team on 20 years in the business,” he says.

“Since the ArenA was built, it has made a cohesive trio of venues.

“The ArenA’s clients generally use our a huge difference to the income of Amsterdam stage barriers for major concerts and as a whole.

“Every year a lot of people visit for the football games,” he says.

“The stadium, along with the Heineken Music shows and the football, but while they do they’ll now mainly stay in the city and eat and Hall and Ziggo Dome, create an infrastructure drink in restaurants while which is perfect for accommodating artistes with crowd capacities of significantly they’re here.”

Eric Keijer of electronic different sizes.”

Hedwig De Meyer at staging specialist dance music promoter ID&T/SFX Europe echoes Stageco says that working with Amsterdam the opinion that the ArenA has been nothing if not varied, tackling ArenA has generated the unique construction elements and significant wealth for challenges that each artiste’s performance has Leon Ramakers the area, not least in brought to the stadium.

“We’ve been there from the start, and it’s simply attracting visitors who just want been a real pleasure throughout the past to party.

“We started working together straight after two decades,” he says.

“Sometimes a show will have special the Euro 2000 soccer semi-finals,” he says. “That was the start of our event Sensation, which has requirements that need the ArenA team’s involvement and now been held every July they’ve always been since, in addition to [dance fast in accommodating events] Q-Feestfabriek those changes. and Ambassador.

“For U2’s 360° “In total we’ve worked tour, for instance, the on 29 events in the ArenA, weight of the stage and this year’s 2 July meant that the ground Sensation will be our 30th. beneath needed “I think the Amsterdam Wil Osendarp further reinforcement, ArenA has made a great contribution to the city of Amsterdam but we handled it together and the by hosting a lot of international and national resulting show was spectacular.”

Aukina Buining, MD of Ticketmaster events and acting as a great home for Ajax.”

Nederland, says that from the very beginning the stadium’s potential High praise Leon Ramakers, co-founder of the country’s was clear.

“Our relationship with the Amsterdam dominant promoter Mojo Concerts, first came into contact with the ArenA promoting Tina ArenA goes all the way back to the beginning Turner in 1996, and in the past 20 years has in 1996,” she says. “Ticketmaster sold the tickets for its opening shows which were three worked on a further 68 shows there.

“It was wonderful to see Holland’s capital city concerts by Tina Turner and three concerts by finally open a state-of-the-art stadium, and this Michael Jackson.

“All six concerts completely sold out; it year we’ll be promoting Coldplay, Rihanna and was the start of a happy and successful Beyoncé,” he says.

Meanwhile Alex Borger at security and relationship between our two organisations, safety system provider The Mojo Barriers, an and for Amsterdam.”

“The ArenA has made a huge difference to the income of Amsterdam as a whole”

Providing news, features and tour information to companies and individuals in more than

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OCTOBER 2015

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a guide to artistes, tours & agents

Boo Seeka Artistes

Period Territory

Contact

Adam Ant

Adele

Alice Jemima

Alec Empire

Animals with Dan McCafferty

Apollo Junction

Barbara Dickson with Nick Holland

Boomtown Rats with Bob Geldof

BOO Seeka

Blackmores Night

Jun-Aug Europe

Gary Howard T +44 20 7278 3331 United Talent gary.howard@unitedtalent.com Agency

Jun Europe Lucy Dickins

ITB

Oct Europe Zac Peters

DMF Music

Jun-Jul Worldwide Jeff Aug

Maximum

Booking

Details

tour plans

Artistes

Period Territory

BRNS

Brownout presents Brown Sabbath

Boo Seeka

Canned Heat

Calum Duell

CC Smugglers

Ceylan Ertem

Jun-Sep Europe Georgia Strawson T +44 20 7580 7773

ATC Live georgia@atc-live.com

Jul-Aug Europe Jeff Aug T +49 8324 933 851

Maximum info@MAXIMUMBooking.com

Booking Jun Europe

Contact

Details

Sarah Casey The Leighton-Pope Organisation

T +44 20 87414 453 sarah@l-po.com

Sep Europe Sabine Trunzer T +49 686 139 9827

Kultopolis agentin@kultopolis.com

Jun-Sep Europe Debra Downes T +44 20 7733 0508

Dawson Breed debra@dawsonbreedmusic.com

Music Jun-Sep Europe

Sarah Casey The Leighton-Pope Organisation

Nov Europe Riza Okcu

StageArt

T +44 20 8741 4453 sarah@l-po.com T +90 212 245 2424 info@stageartorg.com

T +44 20 7637 6979 lucy@itb.co.uk T +44 1392 437 744 zac@dmfmusic.co.uk T +49 832 493 3851 info@MAXIMUMBooking.com

Jun Europe

Alan Cottam Alan Cottam Agency

T +44 125 466 8471 alan@alancottamagency.co.uk

Jun-Sep Europe

Debra Downes T +44 20 7733 0508 Dawson Breed debra@dawsonbreedmusic.com Music

Jun-Aug Worldwide Chris Wade T +44 137 721 7662

Adastra adastra@adastra-music.co.uk

Jun Europe Alan Cottam T +44 1254 668 471

Alan Cottam alan@alancottamagency.co.uk

Agency Sarah Casey The Leighton-Pope Organisation

Jul Europe Alec Leslie

ALE Consolidated

T +44 20 8741 4453 sarah@l-po.com T +44 1829 730488 alecconsol@aol.com

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audience • Issue 194 • March 2016

tour plans

Jun-Aug Europe

71

tour plans aa guide guide to to artistes, artistes, tours tours && agents agents Artistes

Gaye Su Akyol

Geneviève Bellemare

Gemma Hayes

Hayley Westenra

Heather Small Jun-Nov Europe Steve Galeazzi T +44 1942 321 435

Industrial steve@industrial-

Strength Media strength-media.co.uk

Inner Circle Jul-Aug Europe Michael Genrich T +43 1914 8615

Georg Leitner Productions mgenrich@glp.at

Jack Pack Jun-Jul Europe Gary Howard T +44 20 7278 3331

United Talent gary.howard@unitedtalent.com

Agency

Jimmy Z Jun-Jul, Europe, Asia, Quentin Geerinckx T +32 475 735 049

Oct-Nov QG Enterprise quentin@qgenterprise.com

Joe Satriani Jun-Jul Europe Wayne Forte T +1 212 6332 600

Entourage Talent booking@

Associates entouragetalent.com

Dagny

tour plans

Period Territory Contact Details

Jun-Oct Europe Riza Okcu T +90 212 245 2424

StageArt info@stageartorg.com

Jun-Aug, Europe, Quentin Geerinckx T +32 475 735 049 Oct-Nov Asia, Australia QG Enterprise quentin@qgenterprise.com

Sep Europe Phil Simpson T +44 1539 528 808

Regent Music ps@Regentmusic.com

Jun-Sep Europe Sarah Casey T +44 20 87414 453

The Leighton-Pope sarah@l-po.com

Organisation

Artistes

Period

Territory

Contact

Details

Craig David

Dagny

David Knopfler

Deftones

Elle Exxe

Ernest Ranglin & Friends

Foreigner

Jun-Aug Europe

Gary Howard T +44 20 7278 3331 United Talent gary.howard@unitedtalent.com Agency

Jun-Aug Europe

Sarah Casey The Leighton-Pope Organisation

Jun Europe

Alan Cottam Alan Cottam Agency

Kim Churchill

Oct Europe Zac Peters

DMF Music

T +44 1392 437744 zac@dmfmusic.co.uk

T +44 20 8741 4453 sarah@l-po.com

T +44 125 4668 471 alan@alancottamagency.co.uk

Jun Europe Mike Dewdney T +44 20 7637 6979

ITB mike@itb.co.uk

Jun-Oct Europe Debra Downes T +44 20 7733 0508

Dawson Breed debra@dawsonbreedmusic.com

Music Jul Ireland David Flower T +44 20 7359 9232

SASA Music rab@sasa.demon.co.uk

Jun-Aug Europe Georg Leitner T +43 191 48615

Georg Leitner Productions gleitner@glp.at

Deftones

72

www.kultopolis.com • agentin@kultopolis.com audience • Issue 194 • March 2016

www.audience.uk.com

Seeking to create partnerships with promoters globally for all of our High Quality Productions.

Meet Michael Durkan at ILMC from the 3rd to the 6th March

a guide to artistes, tours & agents Artistes

Period Territory

Contact

Kiss

Korn

Lake Street Dive

Jun Europe Rod MacSween

ITB

Jun Europe Rod MacSween

ITB

Jun-Aug Europe Sarah Casey

The Leighton-Pope

Organisation

Le Vent du Nord

Lindisfarne

Maggie Reilly

Manny Charlton Band

Megadeth

Nazareth

Jul-Aug Europe Chris Wade T +44 1377 217662

Adastra Music adastra@adastra-music.co.uk

Jun-Aug, Europe Steve Parker T +44 20 7935 9222 Oct Miracle Artists steve@miracle-artists.com

Jun Europe Debra Downes T +44 20 7733 0508

Dawson Breed debra@dawsonbreedmusic.com

Music Jun-Sep Europe, Alan Cottam

South Alan Cottam

America Agency

Details T +44 20 7637 6979 rod@itb.co.uk T +44 20 7637 6979 rod@itb.co.uk T +44 20 8741 4453 sarah@l-po.com

+44 125 466 8471 alan@alancottamagency.co.uk

Jun-Aug Europe, Rod MacSween T +44 20 7637 6979

S. America ITB rod@itb.co.uk

Oct Europe Alan Cottam T +44 125 4668 471

Alan Cottam alan@alancottamagency.co.uk

Agency

Le Vent du Nord Artistes

Period Territory

Contact

Details

Ndiale

Neil Young

Oliver Dawson Saxon

Jul Ireland, David Flower

Scandinavia, SASA Music

East Europe

Jun-Jul Europe Barry Dickins

ITB

Jun-Sep Worldwide Steve Galeazzi

Industrial

Strength Media

T +44 20 7359 9232 rab@sasa.demon.co.uk T +44 20 7637 6979 barry@itb.co.uk T +44 1942 321 435 steve@industrialstrength-media.co.uk

Pitbull Jun-Aug Europe, Nina Pernica T + 43 1 914 8615

Africa Georg Leitner Productions npernica@glp.at

Rachael Sage Jun-Aug Europe Debra Downes T +44 20 7733 0508

Dawson Breed debra@dawsonbreedmusic.com

Music

Rebecca Jun-Aug Europe Gary Howard T +44 20 7278 3331 Ferguson

United Talent gary.howard@unitedtalent.com

Agency

Ritchie Jun Europe Alec Leslie T +44 1829 730488 Blackmore’s Rainbow

ALE Consolidated alecconsol@aol.com

Roberto Nov-Dec Europe David Flower T +44 20 7359 9232 Fonseca Trio

SASA Music rab@sasa.demon.co.uk

Sam Lee Jun-Oct Europe David Flower T +44 20 7359 9232

SASA Music rab@sasa.demon.co.uk

Sean Paul Jul-Aug Europe, Nina Pernica T +43 1 914 8615

Africa Georg Leitner Productions npernica@glp.at

tour plans

Rebecca Furguson

tour plans

75

www.audience.uk.com

audience • Issue 194 • March 2016

guide to artistes, & agents tour plans tour aplans a guidetours to artistes, tours & agents

Artistes

Period Territory

Contact

Steps Ahead Reunion Tour

Steve Arrington

Steve Lukather

Taksim Trio

Ten Years After

Tinariwen

Todd Dorigo

Tommy Emmanuel

Truckstop Honeymoon

Jun-Jul Europe Garry Howard T +44 20 7278 3331

United Talent garry.howard@unitedtalent.com

Agency

Jun-Aug, Europe, Quentin Geerinckx T +32 475 735 049 Oct-Nov Asia, Australia QG Enterprise quentin@qgenterprise.com

Feb, Europe Alec Leslie T +44 1829 730488 Mar 17 ALE Consolidated alecconsol@aol.com

Jun-Aug Europe Riza Okcu T +90 212 245 2424

StageArt rokcu@stageartorg.com

Oct-Dec Europe Sabine Trunzer T +49 6861 939 9827

Kultopolis agentin@kultopolis.com

Jul Europe David Flower T +44 20 7359 9232

SASA Music rab@sasa.demon.co.uk

Jun-Aug Europe Sarah Casey T +44 20 8741 4453

The Leighton-Pope Organisation sarah@l-po.com

Apr 17 Europe Sabine Trunzer T +49 686 139 9827

Kultopolis agentin@kultopolis.com

Jun-Jul Europe Chris Wade T +44 1377 217662

Adastra adastra@adastra-music.co.uk

R Q

Period Territory Contact Details

Jun-Aug Europe Steve Parker T +44 20 7935 9222

Miracle Artists steve@miracle-artists.com

Jun-Aug Europe Sarah Casey T +44 20 8741 4453

The Leighton-Pope sarah@l-po.com

Organisation

Whitesnake

Zapp

50 Cent

Jul-Aug Europe Rod Macsween T +44 20 7637 6979

ITB rod@itb.co.uk

Jun-Aug, Europe, Asia, Quentin Geerinckx T +32 475 735 049 Oct-Nov Australia QG Enterprise quentin@qgenterprise.com

Jun Europe, Africa Nina Pernica T +43 1914 8615

Georg Leitner Productions npernica@glp.at

Jun Europe

T +49 8324 933851 info@MAXIMUMBooking.com

Jun Europe Rod MacSween T +44 20 7637 6979

ITB rod@itb.co.uk

Jun-Sep Europe, Africa Walter Laurer T +43 1914 8615

Georg Leitner Productions wlaurer@glp.at

Details

Whitesnake These listing details have been compiled from information provided to Audience. Every reasonable effort is made to ensure accuracy, however we cannot be held responsible for incorrect data.

76

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audience • Issue 194 • March 2016

Jeff Aug Maximum Booking

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festival news Roskilde boost for Rising stars Festival debut is DENMARK Roskilde festival (cap. 70,000) has announced a greater focus on new and emerging talent and has added an independent dance music stage, Apollo Countdown, to its campsite.

The event, whih takes place from 25 June to 2 July, will debut its Rising stage for new Nordic acts.

“We take our responsibility for upcoming music seriously, and Roskilde Festival particularly in the past 15 years we’ve worked hard on presenting new Nordic acts to a large audience,” says head of programming Anders Wahrén.

“This year we will be focusing even more on our Rising stage, and the Apollo Countdown stage will be more integrated with the camping area.”

Artiste playing Roskilde include Red Hot Chili

‘boost for Chicago’

Toyota Park

Peppers, Chvrches, New Order, PJ Harvey, LCD Soundsystem, MØ, Tame Impala, Wiz Khalifa and Tenacious D. All profits from the festival are donated to charities.

Full week tickets cost 2,020 krone ($301), with a one-day pass available 995 krone ($148).

festival news

Knotfest blend just right JAPAN Promoters of the 25,000-capacity Knotfest, a franchise of the US event of the same name in California, have hailed their mix of domestic and international acts as the recipe the event’s success, and announced its second edition.

Tokyo-based Hayashi International Promotion (HIP) says 80 per cent of its bill is domestic and 20 per cent from overseas .

The event is a spin-off from the US edition, founded in 2012 by members of metal band Slipknot. There is also a Knotfest in Mexico.

“We aim is to create not only a music festival,

but a broader cultural event,” says HIP president Massy Hayashi.

The first Japanese version launched in 2014, with Slipknot, Limp Bizkit and Korn headlining.

“It was the first time the event was held outside of its home country of America, so it was a special event for us, and we want to build on that,“ adds Hayashi.

Held at the Makuhari Messe international exhibition hall in Chiba, it alternates annually with Ozzfest Japan, also promoted by HIP. Line-up details and dates are yet to be announced, but two-day tickets will cost 27,000 yen, ($235).

Tour Manager Terry Tucker’s Tribulations

UNITED STATES Organisers of the first Chicago Open Air music festival (cap. 30,000) say the event will help attract more international acts to the city’s Toyota Park stadium.

The three-day event will take place on 15-17 July in the Bridgeview village venue – home to Chicago Fire Soccer Club, and featured around 60 acts.

It is being promoted by Danny Wimmer Presents, Live Nation Entertainment and Toyota Park, with backing from Bridgeview mayor Steven Landek.

“I’ve been looking at the Chicago market for quite some time and Steven Landek has been very supportive of developing arts and entertainment in the area,” says festival producer Danny Wimmer.

Landek says, “Chicago Open Air is the next step in fulfilling our promise to bring more shows to Toyota Park. This is a great opportunity for our city.”

The festival will also feature a gourmet food and craft beer village.

Acts and ticket prices are yet to be announced.

by Newman-Parker

78

audience • Issue 194 • March 2016

www.audience.uk.com