Index In Brief

IN BRIEFINDEX

The concert business digest

Tomorrowland is granted a permit for a third festival weekend in 2022, which will help to recoup lost revenue from two fallow years.

Police investigate the fatal stabbing of Drakeo the Ruler at the Once Upon a Time in LA music festival.

Coachella is granted a temporary restraining order against Live Nation in its trademark infringement lawsuit over a rival music event called Coachella Day One 22.

Germany’s Event Management Forum presents a series of demands to government amid concerns no major tours will be able to take place in the first half of next year.

UK government announces new financial support for businesses in response to the spread of the Omicron variant, which has been criticised as inadequate by live music trade bodies.

Saudi Arabia’s Soundstorm festival pulls in huge crowds from around the world, according to promoter MDLBeast. An exclusive live-stream performance by Westlife, broadcast by Tencent’s Weixin across China, pulls in almost 28 million viewers.

US Congress writes to Live Nation to demand answers over the Astroworld tragedy.

Olivier Darbois is re-elected as president of French live music industry association Prodiss.

Coachella Music Festival and producer Goldenvoice sue Live Nation for trademark infringement over Coachella Day One 22, which is advertised on Ticketmaster.

Harry Styles is named as 2021’s top worldwide ticket seller, while the Rolling Stones had the highest-grossing tour, according to Pollstar’s year-end rankings.

Veteran agent Adam Brill joins Wasserman Music as VP, fairs & festivals.

Live audio tech service Mixhalo raises $24million (€21m) in a series-B funding round. The Music Venue Trust warns that the UK’s grassroots circuit is on the brink of collapse in the wake of fresh government restrictions.

The Dutch government announces €84.5m in emergency funding after extending Covid restrictions until mid-January.

The number of concerts held in Saudi Arabia each year is set to rise by up to 600% on pre-pandemic levels, according to the kingdom’s assistant minister for tourism.

Ticketmaster expands its presence in Latin America with new operations in Mexico and Chile.

AEG-owned ticketer AXS announces the appointment of Jay Sietsema as general manager for its Swedish operation.

UK-based music company ATC plans to float on London’s Aquis Stock Exchange after raising £4.2m (€5m) in its initial public offer.

Ticketmaster Australia unveils a new integration enabling fans to check-in and verify vaccination status upon entry to a venue. The UK live industry is contending with up to 50% audience no shows and widespread cancellations due to Omicron, a snap industry survey shows.

Angus Baskerville, the longstanding 13 Artists director and booking agent, moves to new independent agency Pure from 1 January 2022.

Korea’s first-ever metaverse gig, the K-Vibe Concert, is staged by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Korea Tourism Organization.

Travis Scott is reportedly involved in an initiative to put new festival safety protocols in place following the Astroworld disaster.

Primavera Sound announces its first Chilean edition, a coproduction with Rock Stgo, from 7-13 November 2022.

Vaccine passports and facemasks are required in order to attend concerts in England as part of tougher restrictions unveiled by the government in response to the Omicron variant.

Europe’s biggest ever K-Pop festival is announced for Frankfurt, Germany, in 2022.

UTA confirms the appointment of Matthew Morgan as co-head of the agency’s Nashville office as part of a series of hires.

Vision:2025 launches a consultation for a music industry Green Code of Conduct to provide clear minimum environmental standards for all UK outdoor events.

National Arenas Association

chair Lucy Noble outlines the implications of the UK government’s “Plan B” measures for live music.

Live Nation launches a joint venture with Duke Concept to copromote African artists in the US.

The Netherlands’ Woo Hah! hiphop festival joins forces with US festival organiser Rolling Loud.

AEG Presents reveals Justin Bieber’s 2022/23 Justice world tour is on track to sell more than one million tickets.

Support schemes are extended for the live event sectors in Sweden and Denmark in response to the latest coronavirus restrictions.

TikTok unveils a hub of new and existing tools that will enable creators to monetise their shortform videos.

ASM Global names 30-year veteran Chris Bray as its new EVP of European operations. Creative Artists Agency promotes veteran music agents Bruno del Granado and Jeff Krones to leadership positions.

A new traffic-light system comes into effect in New Zealand, determining the fate of the country’s festival season.

Germany’s national and regional leaders move to ban unvaccinated people from much of public life, including live music venues.

Goldenvoice brings back one of its earliest festivals, US-based event This Ain’t No Picnic.

Oak View Group announces Bristol Street Motors as a founding partner of the Co-op Live Arena, opening in Manchester in 2023.

A total of 275 Astroworld lawsuits, representing more than 1,250 people, are set to be consolidated into a single case.

Vince Power Music Group announces AXS as its official ticketing partner for all its London venues after inking a new five-year deal.

Eurosonic Noorderslag in Groningen, Netherlands, moves entirely online in response to the government’s latest Covid-19 measures.

Foo Fighters axe a 2022 tour date due to the venue’s “refusal to agree to the band’s Covid safety measures.” In Germany, CTS Eventim acquires regional ticketing providers in the Rhineland region, Kölnticket and Bonnticket.

Ticket touts Peter Hunter and David Smith are sentenced to a combined six-and-a-half years in prison following a landmark court case.

ASM Global-managed Arena Oberhausen in Germany is to be renamed after 20 years as the König-Pilsener-Arena.

Live Nation New Zealand links up with Dunedin Venues and local promoter Common People to launch Fortune Festival.

FKP Scorpio wins an injunction preventing Viagogo from offering ‘worthless’ tickets for Ed Sheeran concerts.

Primavera Sound announces headliners Arctic Monkeys, Nine Inch Nails and Lorde for the firstever US edition.

Live Nation announces the completion of its previously announced acquisition of Mexico’s Ocesa Entretenimiento.

Australia’s Mushroom Group splits from booking firm The Harbour Agency.

Travis Scott requests to be dismissed from multiple lawsuits he is named in relating to the Astroworld disaster.

Primavera Sound announces Brazil and Argentina legs for 2022, after confirming Los Angeles and Chile spin-offs.

Madison Square Garden

Entertainment announces that it will be taking its custom camera technology – being developed for its MSG Sphere venue – to space.

Jim King warns the industry to be careful with thinking that the pent-up demand seen in early summer 2021 will remain.

UK government doubles the emergency funding for arts, culture and heritage organisations made available through the Culture Recovery Fund to £60m (€72m).

ASM Global appoints Nate Whitman as chief strategy officer.

TEG appoints impresario Randy Phillips to the board of directors.

Semmel Concerts sets up its own booking department under the name SCE Artists & Events.

The Global Crowd Management Alliance, a not-for-profit group bringing together crowd managers, organisations, businesses and academics, is launched.

Freight Minds, a new freight forwarding company for live events, is established.

SSE Arena, Wembley boss John Drury predicts it could be at least 2024 before the arena business gets back to a “normal” calendar.

Agent Steve Strange is remembered at London’s O2 Academy Brixton.

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