FOCUS Wales dedicated to ‘healthier future for music’
FOCUS Wales, the country’s largest music industry event, returns to Wrexham between 8–10 May.
The conference and showcase event brings together over 400 industry professionals and more than 250 artists from across the globe.
This year’s conference is dedicated to building a healthier future for music, exploring evolving best practices, artist well-being, sustainable industry growth, and fostering a more equitable landscape for both performers and industry professionals.
Neil Ingham, executive director of Samaritans, will open Focus Wales 2025 with a keynote on the transformative impact of deep, empathetic listening in suicide prevention. Cardiff University will return to share updates on Prosiect Pūtahitanga, reflecting on music and language connections between Cymru and Aotearoa, alongside a visiting delegation from New Zealand.
Another session, led by PPL, will examine evolving priorities for labels, artists and their teams, weighing the balance between data-driven strategies and more traditional, fan-focused campaigns. Speakers will include Katherine Cantwell (Heavenly Recordings), Brad Kulisic (Lambrini Girls/Pigsx7), and Joe Howden (Dark Arts Digital). Meanwhile, Meg Devereux (Marshall) will be joined by Nova Twins and Henca Maduro (New Skool Rules Festival) to explore ways to better support grassroots musicians in building sustainable, long-term careers.
LIVE, meanwhile, will host a panel exploring what it takes for artists to break through to headliner status in 2025 and beyond, with insights from Nicklas Damkjær (Roskilde), Dev Sherlock (SXSW), Connor Cupples (Crosstown Promotions), Megan Evans (Deer Shed Festival), and Beckie Sugden (CAA Agency).
This year’s conference is dedicated to exploring evolving best practices, artist well-being, sustainable industry growth and more
British Council Wales will lead a discussion on the role of showcasing in fostering peaceful cultural exchange, with contributions from Ísleifur Thorhallsson (Iceland Airwaves), Alona Dmukhovska (Music Export Ukraine), Cecilia Soojeong Yi (DMZ Peace Train Festival), Asifuzzaman Khan (Dhaka International Folk Festival), and Login Kochishki (PIN Conference).
The Music Venue Trust will host a hands-on workshop to help attendees articulate their ethical values and demonstrate social responsibility — key factors in securing funding and building a resilient, future-proof industry. In addition, a series of panels and workshops will be presented by leading industry organisations such as PRS Foundation, PRS for Music, Sound Roots, Beacons Cymru and Eisteddfod Genedlaethol, alongside the festival’s new media partner, IQ magazine.
Beyond the conference, FOCUS Wales will facilitate international partner showcases hosted by M for Montreal, BreakOut West, Nova Scotia Music Week, Catalan Arts, Spanish Wave, CNM France, Westside Music (Sweden), Way Up North (Denmark), Wide Days (Scotland), and more to be announced.
Among the guests heading to Wrexham this May are KEXP’s Senior Programming Advisor & Variety Mix DJ/Host Kevin Cole, journalist and podcaster Mark Sutherland, Jose Marihno and Caroline Thiévent from Radio France Internationale (RFI), Jean-Louis Brossard, co-founder of the legendary French festival Transmusicales, Michel Attia, Head of Bookings and Events at Austrian national radio station FM4, Paola Wescher, director of booking at Last Tour PT and founder of Latina in Brazil, and Anne Runge, a curator and promoter who programmes Northern Germany’s acclaimed Fusion and at.tension festivals.
The FOCUS Wales industry conference will take place alongside the festival’s 250+ strong lineup of artists performing across 20 stages in Wrexham city centre over the three-day event.
Delegate passes are on sale now via focuswales.com. Passes grant access to all conference events, private networking sessions, the pre-festival showcase, the online delegate database, and all live performances with priority entry.
Get more stories like this in your inbox by signing up for IQ Index, IQ’s free email digest of essential live music industry news.
Equal pay, a seat at the table: Women demand equality
Equal pay has been named the top accelerator for gender equality by women working in the international live music business.
With International Women’s Day taking place tomorrow (8 March) under the theme of Accelerate Action, IQ asked executives to name one thing that would make the industry a more equitable environment for women.
“To create a more equitable industry for women, equal pay is essential—without it, there is little incentive to stay or advance,” says Jana Posth, festival director of Rock am Ring in Germany.
Rauha Kyyrö, FKP Scorpio’s co-president of touring & artist development, reiterated the sentiment, adding: “Regardless of an employee’s gender, the industry should pay equal wages.”
But as many executives pointed out, transparency around salaries is the first step to eradicating the gender pay gap. Wasserman Music’s Flo Noseda says that this should start early in the process, when companies are advertising a position.
“Let’s see who’s really delivering progress and who’s delivering rhetoric”
“[Adverts] that say “competitive” or “DOE” usually means “underpaid” and when there is no gauge at all it can waste people’s time and mean that people (especially women) can be underpaid from the offset,” she tells IQ.
One Finiix Live’s Jess Kinn would like the transparency to go a step further, with companies forced to publish everything from policies to promotions.
“I’d like to see a body with teeth – like the DCMS – survey the top 50 music companies in the UK with questions about how their gender equality policies are actually working in practice eg: What proportion of your promotions went to women in the last year? What proportion of your leadership team are women? What are you doing to encourage women into the industry? Make the results public, then we can really see who’s delivering progress and who’s delivering rhetoric.”
Having spent the majority of her career as “the only woman in certain rooms,” ASM Global’s Anna Sjölund has called for better representation in the boardroom.
“Women belong in all places where decisions are being made. It shouldn’t be that women are the exception,” she said, quoting Ruth Bader Ginsburg, the late American lawyer and fierce advocate for gender equality and women’s rights.
“Stop defining us by our gender e.g. a female agent”
“In our industry there are still plenty of rooms where the women are the exception and the ones that have the power to change that are the men in majority,” she continues. “If you never leave your seat – no one else gets the chance to fill it.”
Sam Oldham, venue director at The O2, agrees but warns companies that it’s not enough to just have token representation at the table. “Actively seek out diverse perspectives. Make a concerted effort to ensure all voices are heard and provide a safe space to do so, in which minorities feel comfortable coming forward with their views.”
As Ticketmaster’s Sarah Slater points out, the board room isn’t the only place that women’s voices and ideas should be heard and praised. “Hype women up—especially when they’re not in the room. Create space for their voices where they’re often overlooked. Amplify their work, share opportunities, and make sure they get the recognition they deserve. No gatekeeping—just lifting each other higher.”
CAA agent Beckie Sugden, meanwhile, is keen to remind the industry that colloquial language plays a key role in gender equality.
“Stop defining us by our gender e.g. a female agent etc,” she says. “I’ve never heard anyone say male agent before so why is this defining tag necessary for women? In my example I am an agent that happens to be a woman not a female agent! I have to check myself on this also as it so deeply entrenched in how we talk about ourselves and women in general. Until the language and narrative, we use daily changes nothing will change. The tags reinforce us as second class citizens on so many levels!”
“Pay us equally, respect our boundaries, and stop expecting us to do your admin!”
As Mojo’s Kim Bloem underscored in her Q&A, flexible hours and working conditions are crucial components for women juggling a career and motherhood.
Roundhouse’s Lucy Wood echoes this sentiment, adding: “I think it would be a great thing for organisations to adopt a policy of allowing parents to expense evening/night care costs, in my case this would be covering babysitting while I’m out at gigs, but could be for anyone with caring responsibilities more generally.”
LIVE’s Gaby Cartwright, meanwhile, says that raising awareness among individuals who do not menstruate or experience menopause is crucial to making the industry a more equitable environment.
“It’s important to highlight how menstruation and menopause can significantly impact both the day-to-day lives and professional experiences of individuals in the workplace, especially within the industry,” she tells IQ. “By fostering this understanding, we can create more supportive and inclusive environments that accommodate the needs of all employees.”
Put simply by Raven Twigg, ASM Global: “Pay us equally, respect our boundaries, and stop expecting us to do your admin!”
Get more stories like this in your inbox by signing up for IQ Index, IQ’s free email digest of essential live music industry news.
Amyl and The Sniffers to deliver Futures Forum keynote
Australian punk rockers Amyl and the Sniffers have been confirmed as the keynote interview for next week’s ILMC Futures Forum.
The conference for next-generation live music business leaders will return to the Royal Lancaster Hotel in London on Friday 28 February 2025 as part of the ILMC.
For the final session of the day, Amyl and the Sniffers frontwoman Amy Taylor will sit down with BBC Introducing’s Abbie McCarthy to discuss the band’s illustrious live career, her take on the business, and the band’s recent album Cartoon Darkness.
Formed in a Melbourne share house in 2016, Taylor, Dec Martens (guitar), Gus Romer (bass) and Bryce Wilson (drums) have enjoyed a rapid rise over their near-decade of existence.
“The band are on the brink of transforming critical acclaim and cult status into something much bigger”
Their explosive live shows have earned them three sold-out shows at London’s Roundhouse, support slots with Foo Fighters, The Smashing Pumpkins, Weezer, Fall Out Boy, and Green Day, and festival appearances at Glastonbury, Primavera, Best Kept Secret and Bandland. Meanwhile, their firebrand discography has continued to draw critical acclaim, with CLASH dubbing their most recent LP Cartoon Darkness as “The most important moment for rock music in 2024… album of the year”.
This year, the BRIT-nominated band will embark on what looks to be their biggest 12 months yet, including an extensive world tour and appearances at Coachella, Hurricane/Southside and more. As The Guardian wrote, “The band are on the brink of transforming critical acclaim and cult status into something much bigger”.
Amyl and the Sniffers are represented by ATC Live (EU/Asia/Latam), Arrival Artists (NA) and Supersonic (AUS/NZL).
News of the keynote comes after Futures Forum unveiled the full speaker lineup, which includes Connie Shao (AEG Presents), Jess Kinn (One Fiinix Live), Raven Twigg (ASM Global), Dotun Bolaji (Primary Talent International), Beckie Sugden (CAA), Alice Hogg (ATC Live), Kara Harris (Live Nation) and many more.
Passes include a full day of innovative programming, a five-star lunch, refreshments, drinks, and networking opportunities.
For more information or to purchase passes, click here.
Get more stories like this in your inbox by signing up for IQ Index, IQ’s free email digest of essential live music industry news.
GEI17 puts finishing touches to agenda
The Green Events and Innovations Conference (GEI17) has unveiled its full agenda, featuring speakers such as Moby, Dale Vince OBE, Declan McKenna and award-winning musician and activist Madame Gandhi.
The leading conference for event sustainability is organised by A Greener Future (AGF) in partnership with the International Live Music Conference (ILMC) and takes place on Tuesday 25 February 2025 at London’s Royal Lancaster Hotel.
It has been announced that the highly anticipated EarthPercent Hour will include a keynote conversation between the foundation’s CEO Cathy Runciman and renowned artists Moby and Declan McKenna.
Another headline session Act 1.5 and Beyond, focuses on the groundbreaking work of Massive Attack and their collaborators, following their huge proof-of-concept show in Bristol, and UN Accelerator City being awarded to Liverpool in 2024. Hosted by Claire O’Neill (A Greener Future), the session will feature environmentalist Dale Vince (Ecotricity/Forest Green Rovers) and professor of climate and energy policy Carly McLachlan (Tyndall Centre).
Tackling increasingly extreme and unpredictable weather, Events in the New Climate: Damage Limitation will be chaired by Greg Cochrane (journalist and broadcaster). He will be joined by Dr Clair Barnes (World Weather Attribution/Imperial College London), Erik Distler (AEG), Steven Howell (Media Insurance Brokers) and Megan Best (Native Events).
A Greener Tour Round V, which tackles the impact of touring, will be chaired by AGF’s head of a greener tour and Massive Attack tour manager Jamal Chalabi, who will be joined by Richard Burnett (KB Event), Christof Huber (Gadget Entertainment Group AG), and Vanessa Govinden (Offshoot Tours).
Global Perspectives and Common Cause, hosted by Sangeeta Waldron (Serendipity PR), explores the issues we face collectively and individually that create division and intolerance, and how the events sector can use its influence and be an agent for good.
The day rounds up with the International AGF Awards 2025
Food & Drink: Impacts and Emotions addresses the impact of event/tour catering, commercial and emotional resistance to change, and the solutions, chaired by punk legend John Robb (Membranes/Louder Than War), with Dale Vince OBE (Ecotricity/Forest Green Rovers), Adam Hempenstall (Peppermint), Tobias Azizah (Meta/Vegetarian Society) and Bonnie May (Eat to the Beat).
Water & Sanitation: Getting out of the Shit delves deep into the urgent topic of water scarcity and national sewage overflowing into our waterways, with Glastonbury Festival and Boomtown’s head of sanitation Jane Healy.
Also on the agenda is the topic of DEI in sustainability with No Climate Action Without Us – How to make disabled people’s access to live events environmentally sustainable chaired by Suzanne Bull MBE, founder of Attitude is Everything, and The Social Sustainability of EDI in Festivals: Challenge or Opportunity hosted by AEME Chair Adrian Bossey (Falmouth University).
The lineup for the Quick-Fire Innovation Round, in which delegates present their innovative products or services, will be hosted by Abena Fairweather (Legacy Marketplace) and includes presentations by Sounds Right, Mycofilter, Wheelskeep, and A Good Thing with their innovations for a greener live sector.
The day rounds up with the International AGF Awards 2025 sponsored by Skydiamond and hosted by Madame Gandhi and AGF CEO Claire O’Neill. Finalists span 34 events, venues, and innovators from 14 countries.
GEI17 is supported by platinum sponsor Ecotricity, gold sponsor TAIT, and silver sponsor The O2, with EarthPercent as charity partner.
Click here for more info. See the full programme here and speakers here.
Get more stories like this in your inbox by signing up for IQ Index, IQ’s free email digest of essential live music industry news.
Female pop pantheon dominates Grammys 2025
The 67th edition of the Grammy Awards took place last night (2 February) at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, with performances from some of the biggest names in pop music.
More than 20 musicians performed during the awards show, which took place in the wake of the LA wildfires – one of the largest natural disasters in US history.
The ceremony kicked off with a tribute to the city, featuring an all-star cast of artists including Dawes, Brad Paisley, John Legend, Sheryl Crow, Brittany Howard and St. Vincent.
The supergroup delivered a jaunty rendition of Randy Newman’s I Love L.A. as clips of firefighters and first responders played on the screens behind them.
Elsewhere, Charli XCX delivered a ‘boisterous’ performance of Von Dutch and Guess, with the former track earning her Best Dance/Pop Recording. The British popstar also scooped Best Dance/Electronic Album for the cultural phenomenon BRAT.
Doechii delivered an electrifying performance of her breakout hits Catfish and Denial Is A River after becoming the third woman ever to win Best Rap Album and Chappell Roan gave a buoyant performance of Pink Pony Club before walking away with Best New Artist.
Beyoncé, the most nominated artist in 2025 and in Grammys history, did not perform, but she finally won Album of the Year on her fifth try for Cowboy Carter. The star also went home with Best Country Album and Best Country Duo/Group Performance for her track II Most Wanted ft Miley Cyrus.
Beyoncé finally won Album of the Year on her fifth try for Cowboy Carter
Minutes before winning her first-ever Grammy Award, Sabrina Carpenter took the stage to perform her smash hit Espresso (which earned her Best Pop Solo Performance) and Please Please Please. She later earned Best Pop Vocal Album for her recent LP Short n’ Sweet.
Taylor Swift and Billie Eilish – who earned six and seven nominations, respectively – went home empty-handed. Eilish performed her nominated hit Birds of a Feather alongside her brother Finneas.
The biggest winner of the night was Kendrick Lamar whose track Not Like Us was named Record of the Year, Song of the Year, Best Rap Song, Best Rap Performance and Best Music Video.
Other artists that performed during the ceremony included Shakira, Benson Boone, Lady Gaga and Bruno Mars, Raye, Shaboozey, Teddy Swims, Khruangbin and The Weeknd, who delivered a surprise performance.
An all-star tribute to Quincy Jones, who died on 3 November 2024, drew performances from Cynthia Erivo, Herbie Hancock, Jacob Collier, Lainey Wilson, Stevie Wonder and Janelle Monáe. Elsewhere, Coldplay’s Chris Martin delivered a muted take on the band’s track All My Love for the ceremony’s In Memoriam segment.
See the full list of nominees and winners at Grammys 2025 here.
Get more stories like this in your inbox by signing up for IQ Index, IQ’s free email digest of essential live music industry news.
ILMC 37: Industry leaders join bumper programme
The countdown is on to the 37th International Live Music Conference, with a raft of new speakers joining the conference’s largest-ever programme.
The leading gathering of international live music executives will return to London’s Royal Lancaster Hotel between 25-28 February, with around 2,500 professionals expected to attend.
With five weeks to go, executives from FKP Scorpio, AEG Presents, Live Nation, Oak View Group and ASM Global have joined the speaker line-up.
FKP Scorpio’s Folkert Koopmans joins The Open Forum on Wednesday 26 February, while FKP’s Rauha Kyyrö is set to chair Ethics & Activism: Adapting to artist and fan views.
Festival Formats: Survive & thrive sees Alex Bruford from ATC Live take the chair, and Kelly Stelbasky from AEG Presents joins Pricing the Ticket: Balancing expectations.
The Venue’s Venue adds Tom Lynch from Live Nation EMEA, and Marie Lindqvist from ASM Global takes the chair for Wellness vs The Industry. The speaker lineup so far can be found here.
As previously announced, Superstruct co-founder James Barton will be the Hotseat interview for ILMC 37.
This year’s ILMC ushers in a new-look, refreshed programme, with session formats that range from question times to fan focus groups and panels to keynotes.
This year’s ILMC ushers in a new-look, refreshed programme, with session formats that range from question times to fan focus groups and panels to keynotes
A new element of the conference is Middle East Live supported by OVG, which will comprise two dedicated sessions on the rapidly expanding region: a state-of-the-nation review and a venue focus.
Other new additions to the programme include Question Time, which will see top industry leaders tackle questions submitted by conference delegates, and Meet The Fans – a fan focus group that gives the industry a chance to hear directly from regular gig-goers.
The Arthur Awards 2025 and the Gala Dinner will return on Thursday 27 February, with just a handful of tickets left.
Similarly, tickets for the third edition of London Calling – now rebranded as Soho Calling – are flying off the shelf. The showcase event takes place on Wednesday 26 February, bringing together over 20 exciting emerging artists to six of Soho’s iconic stages: The 100 Club, 21Soho, The Lower Third (presented by DIY Magazine), Phoenix Arts Club, The Social, and The Forge.
Performers include Tom Aspaul (UK), Monster Florence (UK), Giift (DK), Bluai (BE), Kai Bosch (UK), Lola Moxom (UK), Punchbag (UK) and Really Good Time (IE).
Also taking place on Wednesday 26 February is Touring Entertainment LIVE, which will offer a full day of big-brand live entertainment, exhibitions and touring family shows. The Greener Events and Innovations (GEI) Conference will tackle sustainability in the live sector throughout Tuesday 25 February and Futures Forum will offer a programme geared towards young and early-career live music professionals on Friday 28 February.
Key partners on ILMC 37 include Live Nation, Ticketmaster, CTS Eventim, ASM Global, Tysers Live, BWO Entertainment, AXS, Showsec, DEAG & LMP Group.
Get more stories like this in your inbox by signing up for IQ Index, IQ’s free email digest of essential live music industry news.
Second round of ILMC’s bursary scheme closing soon
The second round of the Alia Dann Swift Bursary Scheme, supported by ASM Global, will close for applications on 3 January.
The scheme offers 30 young executives a full complimentary delegate pass to the 37th edition of ILMC at London’s Royal Lancaster Hotel between 25 and 28 February 2025.
Each bursary recipient will also be twinned with a dedicated industry mentor and benefit from additional networking opportunities both during and after the conference.
ASM has agreed to extend the scheme in 2025 to include six months of additional mentoring consisting of five monthly meetings post-ILMC, and access to the firm’s senior management during that period for any questions.
The long-running programme is intended to provide a route for live music’s brightest upcoming executives to participate in ILMC for the first time and build their network. This year will see the 150th mentee attend ILMC as part of the long-running scheme.
Places for the 2025 bursary are allocated in three rounds, ending 22 November, 3 January, and 7 February. More information can be found here.
“Nurturing the next generation is essential to keeping our industry alive”
“Nurturing the next generation is essential to keeping our industry alive,” says Chris Bray, president of ASM Global Europe. “Whether it’s emerging creatives, talented artists, or future executives and agents, there’s no shortage of remarkable talent ready to make their mark. At ASM Global, through ASM Global Acts, we’re proud to create meaningful opportunities that help young professionals take their first steps in the live entertainment business.
“Our partnership with ILMC’s Alia Dann Swift Bursary Scheme is a key part of this mission. With just 30 bursary places up for grabs and applications still open, now is the time to apply. We look forward to meeting the 30 bursary recipients next February at ILMC and celebrating their role in shaping the future of our industry.”
Founded in 2018, the bursary scheme is named after the late Alia Dann Swift, ILMC’s long-standing producer, who was instrumental in both bringing talent into the industry and supporting and encouraging new ILMC members.
Meanwhile, the countdown is on to the ILMC, which also comprises Greener Events and Innovations (GEI), Touring Entertainment LIVE and Futures Forum.
Around 2,500 live music executives are expected to attend the four-day conference, which also includes The Arthur Awards and Central London showcase event, Soho Calling.
Get more stories like this in your inbox by signing up for IQ Index, IQ’s free email digest of essential live music industry news.
ILMC unveils largest-ever programme for 2025
The International Live Music Conference (ILMC) has unveiled its largest-ever programme for the 37th edition, which will take place at London’s Royal Lancaster Hotel between 25-28 February 2025.
In the new-look, refreshed programme, session formats range from question times to fan focus groups and panels to keynotes.
New additions to the programme include Question Time, which will see top industry leaders tackle questions submitted by conference delegates, and Meet The Fans – a fan focus group that gives the industry a chance to hear directly from regular gig-goers.
Another new element, Middle East Live supported by OVG, will comprise two dedicated sessions on the rapidly expanding region: a state of the nation review and a venue focus.
As previously announced, Superstruct co-founder James Barton will be the Hotseat interview for ILMC 37, while other conference topics across the three-day event include ethics & activism, marketing, the arena market, festival formats, electronic music, fan data tools, wellness, a series of genre spotlight sessions, and a workshop programme including live music insurance, green riders, visas and programming gender-balanced events.
“We have gone back to first principles this year and completely refreshed the conference agenda”
Session chairs include Emma Banks (CAA), Rauha Kyyrö (FKP Scorpio), Sally Dunstone (Primary Talent International), Marie Lindqvist (ASM Global), Dan Steinberg (Emporium Presents), Tom Zaller (Imagine Exhibitions) and Clementine Bunel (Wasserman Music).
“We have gone back to first principles this year and completely refreshed the conference agenda, ensuring that we continue to deliver on ILMC’s core mission of being the premier place for the international live music business to discuss its most important issues,” says head of ILMC Greg Parmley.
“It’s the biggest ILMC agenda yet, and we’re excited to deliver the new sessions and formats in February.”
Running alongside the core ILMC programme, Touring Entertainment LIVE will offer a full day of big-brand live entertainment, exhibitions and touring family shows on Wednesday 26 February, and the Greener Events and Innovations (GEI) Conference will tackle sustainability in the live sector throughout Tuesday 25 February.
Friday at ILMC runs as Futures Forum, with an additional delegation of young and early-career live music professionals invited to attend sessions on festival booking, emerging markets, tour marketing, alternative revenue streams and more.
Key partners on ILMC 37 include Live Nation, Ticketmaster, CTS Eventim, ASM Global, Tysers Live, BWO Entertainment, AXS, Showsec, DEAG & LMP Group.
Over 2,500 live music professionals will take part in the 2025 ILMC programme, with full details available at 37.ilmc.com.
Further sessions will be announced in the coming weeks.
Get more stories like this in your inbox by signing up for IQ Index, IQ’s free email digest of essential live music industry news.
Movers and Shakers: New hires at OVG, Eventim, AXS
Oak View Group (OVG) International has hired Matt Owen as booking projects manager in London.
The US-based venue management giant’s international projects include Co-op Live in Manchester and Arena São Paulo in Brazil.
Owen joins OVG from London’s Wembley Stadium where he was programming manager, booking artists including Taylor Swift, Green Day, AC/DC and Bruce Springsteen.
He started at the 90,000-capacity stadium in 2019, serving as a customer engagement manager for almost four years before becoming programming manager in 2022. He has previously held roles at Tottenham Hotspur Football Club and West Ham United FC.
Meanwhile, Nick Griffith has been appointed as senior director of business development for Europe at AXS Europe.
Nick Griffith has been appointed as senior director of business development for Europe at AXS Europe
Prior to joining AXS Europe, Griffith spent 11 years at Ticketmaster, most recently in the role of vice president, global client ops/sales operations – global.
He has also held roles in international sales operations, and UK-based sales operations and client development.
Elsewhere, Australian concert organiser Destroy All Lines has hired renowned promoter Scott Mesiti.
Mesiti co-founded his own touring company MJR Touring in 2012, which was acquired by TEG in 2019. Following the acquisition, he became head of touring for TEG MJR Live.
Mesiti has promoted artists such as Hans Zimmer, Snoop Dogg, Ice Cube, Cypress Hill, 50 Cent, Six 60, The Jacksons, Sia, Steel Panther, Evanescence, James, Salt & Pepa, Sean Paul, Shaggy and UB40, and festivals including Valleyways and Knotfest.
Australian concert organiser Destroy All Lines has hired renowned promoter Scott Mesiti
Finally, Vlad Enăchescu has been appointed general manager of ticketing company Eventim Romania.
Enăchescu was previously the president of the CSM Bucharest women’s handball team. A former journalist for TVR and DolceSport, he is also a renowned sports commentator in Romania.
“I happily accepted the offer because I like challenges,” says Enăchescu in a statement.
“It gives me the opportunity to be active in the vicinity of my passions: sport and art. I was always a frequent consumer of shows and culture, but also a constant presence in sports halls and arenas.”
Get more stories like this in your inbox by signing up for IQ Index, IQ’s free email digest of essential live music industry news.
Northern Might: Norway market report
Bergen boy Kygo’s hour-long set to launch his fifth album this summer – a live performance on a dizzying outcrop of rock in front of the Hardangerfjord, with a helicopter-delivered Steinway, Sigrid, and a string section – distilled a certain stereotypical picture of Norway: heart-stopping scenery, healthy-looking people, yearning songcraft, generous budgets.
If the first three of those are dependably true, the last is a bit more moot these days. Norway has always had plenty of spending power, its oil wealth making it one of the wealthier countries in the world. But in recent years, the macroeconomic pendulum has swung the other way. The Norwegian krone is at a historic low in 2024, effectively running at a 30% discount compared to a decade ago.
That’s good news for tourists but bad news for promoters, who have traditionally enticed a deluxe range of talent to a gloriously pretty but out-of-the-way northern European country of around 5.5m people.
“Things are changing in the Nordics, and the discrepancy between the currencies is quite visible,” says Erik Egenes, acting general manager of Oslo’s by:Larm festival and conference. “The Danish krone is very strong compared to the Swedish [krone] and especially the Norwegian [krone]. It is not easy to book international acts when the costs are 20% higher compared to last year.”
The odd part of Norway’s predicament is that its economy remains strong. But with nervous global investors seeking bigger, safer currencies, local interest rates low, and oil losing ground against renewable energy, the krone doesn’t buy as much talent as it once did – especially given that Norway isn’t necessarily a useful stop on the way to anywhere else.
“The festivals and the events that attract a younger audience were struggling this year”
“Some of the big acts are only doing one city in Scandinavia now,” says Egenes. “And even in the 1,000-cap venues, a lot of touring acts can’t justify coming for the fees Oslo provides.”
Like almost any market you might name, the big acts remain more popular than ever on Norway’s larger stages – hence shows such as Bruce Springsteen’s visit to Bergen in July (to follow two huge Oslo shows the summer before) and Ed Sheeran’s two-night stand at Oslo’s Ullevaal Stadion next year, which is due to set a new stadium record, with 36,000 fans signed up for each night.
Meanwhile, festivals such as Superstruct’s Øya, Live Nation’s Tons of Rock, and the independent OverOslo, while not immune from painful costs, were among the winners in a country of many, many festivals.
Yet, there is a frustrating unpredictability about much of the market that promoters elsewhere will recognise. “The big acts sell the tickets, no matter what time of year or where you are, but the festivals and the events that attract a younger audience were struggling this year,” says Live Nation Norway managing director Martin Nielsen.
“A lot of the festivals did much worse than they have previously done.”
“Norwegian artists were almost seen as second-class filler, just to fill the gaps between international acts, and that’s changed”
One consequence is the emergence of a wave of Norwegian talent that can now be found selling out arenas that were almost exclusively reserved for international acts no more than a decade ago.
Local dance-pop giant Kygo is comfortably Norway’s biggest star, and though he’ll be at the Unity Arena near Oslo and Trondheim Spektrum in November, he’ll fill any Norwegian venue having previously sold out the Ullevaal in 2022.
Meanwhile, Alan Walker, Girl In Red, Aurora, Sigrid, and the evergreen A-ha all wield significant international and domestic clout, while Susanne Sundfør, merely a critical favourite abroad, has latterly become a festival and arena headliner at home, with two shows at Spektrum in September.
“Norwegian artists were almost seen as second-class filler, just to fill the gaps between international acts, and that’s changed,” says long-serving promoter Peer Osmundsvaag, founder of PiPfest, formerly of Atomic Soul and the local branch of All Things Live.
“The quality has improved, the management has improved, they’ve become more professionalised, and they’re delivering really good shows.”
Where Norway is concerned, while it may be small, it isn’t necessarily straightforward
While international eyes generally turn to Oslo, in reality, Norway is a remarkably geographically diffuse place, and cities such as Bergen, Trondheim, Stavanger, and Tromsø all operate as markets – and talent hubs – in their own right, given their remoteness from the capital and from each other.
“I’m in Bergen right now, which is a seven-hour drive from Oslo,” says Egenes. “Then you have Trondheim, which is a seven-hour drive in a different direction, and Stavanger, which is eight hours in another direction.”
Tromsø in the far north, meanwhile, is further from Oslo than Oslo is from Paris. So, where Norway is concerned, while it may be small, it isn’t necessarily straightforward.
Promoters
Oslo’s promoting lineup holds few surprises for observers of the Scandinavian – or broader European – business, with Live Nation, FKP Scorpio, All Things Live, and Øya owner Superstruct all much in evidence, alongside a smattering of independents.
Live Nation Norway brings a steady lineup of international stars, as well as festivals including Tons of Rock and Neon in Trondheim. In 2020, it acquired Bergen Live, which has consistently drawn megastars to the second city among the fjords of western Norway, its visitors including The Stones, Metallica, and Coldplay, in addition to Springsteen this summer.
“People’s margins are still as bad as they were this year; there’s no positive signs from the banks or any better interest rates”
“That was the biggest show in the history of the western part of Norway,” says Nielsen. “We had 45,000, and Bergen’s not a big city – about 290,000 people, 470,000 in the broader region. A lot of people travelled in, but still, that’s a big one.”
Nielsen isn’t sure whether the market just had a cold in 2024, or something more long-lasting, but he says the signs for next year are currently heartening.
“We will do well in ’25 – that’s my feeling,” he says. “So far, for next year, we’ve gone out with Justin Timberlake, which is a big name, and I’ve placed him in Trondheim [at the EC Dahls Arena], where he’s never been, and it’s selling very well.
“I’ve booked Imagine Dragons for Neon Festival, which is obviously the biggest headliner Neon has had, and it’s the only festival that Imagine Dragons is doing on their European tour, so not unexpectedly, that’s also doing quite well. We have gone on sale with a lot of shows recently and almost all have performed well or very well. Teddy Swims for example played Rockefeller (1,300-cap) in May this year, and now he has sold out Oslo Spektrum for his show in February, which is nothing but amazing.
“People’s margins are still as bad as they were this year; there’s no positive signs from the banks or any better interest rates. So maybe it’s because the summer is over, and people are happy to look forward to something else, but it’s just a feeling I’ve got, from the announcements we’ve had, that ’25 is going to be good.”
“Domestic artists are doing very well”
All Things Live Norway, launched on the foundations of Friction and Atomic Soul Booking at the time of the initial Waterland-backed roll-up in 2018, has continued to bulk up in the ensuing years. It added Bergen-based management, booking, and promoting group Stageway in 2022 and acquired Oslo-based festival specialist HES last year.
Like others, Gry Mølleskog, CEO of both the group and its Norway operation, notes the strength and diversity of Norwegian artists in today’s market. On top of incomers such as Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds at Spektrum, recent All Things Live shows have included Girl In Red and Sundfør at the same arena – as well as 30th anniversary-celebrating local hip-hoppers Klovner I Kamp in the hilly Torshovdalen park in Oslo in August.
“Domestic artists are doing very well,” says Mølleskog. “We have just sold 75,000 tickets for Åge Aleksandersen in Trondheim [at Lerkendal Stadion] next year. He is a legend – the whole of Norway loves him so much, and he is also playing big outdoor shows in several cities, including Oslo [Voldsløkka] and Bergen [Bergenhus Fortress].
“Two popular solo artists, Ingebjørg Bratland and Odd Nordstoga, have also joined forces again and played 120 concerts in Norway in the past year. They have just announced a Christmas tour, which is also selling out.
“And Mari Boine – she is a Sámi singer, she is 67 years old, and people are just amazed by her voice. She has toured all over Norway this year, and she had three shows at the Opera House in Oslo in October. She is really incredible.”
“We see [our independence] as a little bit of an advantage”
FKP Scorpio, established in Norway in 2018 – and integrating Oslo-based booking agency Nordic Live in 2020 – has plenty of shows on the schedule, ranging from Nils Frahm and Gabrielle at Spektrum and Hans Zimmer at the Unity Arena in 2026 to numerous smaller local and international acts. But Sheeran next summer represents a peak.
“Ticket sales have been fantastic and setting new records at Ullevaal Stadium,” Stian Pride, the company’s head promoter in Norway, tells IQ’s forthcoming Global Promoters Report. “And it’s definitely our high-water mark, too – we’re extremely grateful to get the opportunity to present this singular artist in Norway.”
In such a consolidated environment, big-hitting independent promoters are rare, though one of those, Sky Agency – which balances artist shows with a bulging festival portfolio, as well as a management stable and a label – isn’t sure that’s a drawback.
“We see [our independence] as a little bit of an advantage,” says Trond Opsahl, Sky Agency CEO and co-founder. “We own our own company, and we work 24-7 to make it a success. If it goes the wrong way, it’s our own money, so we really need to be on top of it.”
Opsahl was speaking a day or two after a local Sky act, production and DJ duo Broiler, had sold out the Unity Arena for next March. “25,000 tickets in less than eight minutes,” says Opsahl. “We sold out Spektrum earlier this year in three minutes – that’s 10,000 tickets – so we knew they were really popular, but you never quite know how things are going to go.”
With All Things Live, Peer Osmundsvaag oversaw the two largest ticketed live music events in Norway’s history – Eminem at Oslo’s Voldsløkka, which drew 55,000 people in 2018, and Rammstein, who pulled 60,000 fans to Bjerke Travbane horse track in 2022.
He has been independent again since leaving ATL in July, and frankly recommends it, though he is keeping quiet about future plans beyond PiPfest. “Independence should almost be something that everyone in the industry has to do every three years for six months,” he says. “Being on the outside, being in the trenches, does sharpen the senses and makes you search a little harder for the truth, be it ticket pricing or just questioning the things you would usually do.”
Part two of the Norway market report will be published in the coming days.
Get more stories like this in your inbox by signing up for IQ Index, IQ’s free email digest of essential live music industry news.