Spilt Milk: Another Australian fest goes sour

Spilt Milk has become the latest casualty in Australia’s diminishing festival season.

“We couldn’t get you the Spilt Milk you deserve this year,” wrote organisers on social media last Friday (26 July). “We will come back when [we] can make all your dreams come true.”

The multi-city event started in Canberra in 2016, expanding to the Gold Coast and Ballarat in 2019 and Perth in 2023. Across its run, the festival hosted artists including Dom Dolla, Vince Staples, Lorde, Cub Sport, RL Grime, Peking Duk, Khalid, Juice WRLD, Steve Lacy, and Post Malone.

Spilt Milk is promoted by Kicks Entertainment which in 2022, was bought by Live Nation-owned promoter Secret Sounds.

Secret Sounds heralded one of the highest-profile casualties of this year when it pulled Splendour in the Grass, due to “unexpected events”.

The festival scene has been deemed “in crisis” since the beginning of this year when six notable festivals were cancelled in quick succession: Groovin The Moo, Coastal Jam, Summerground, Vintage Vibes, Tent Pole: A Musical Jamboree and ValleyWays.

“We couldn’t get you the Spilt Milk you deserve this year”

More events have since been cancelled due to a laundry list of issues such as bushfires, floods, the pandemic, rising insurance costs, the cost-of-living crisis and state regulations.

These woes were distilled in a Creative Australia report that revealed that only half of the country’s festivals are profitable. Earlier this month, the Australian Festivals Association pleaded for “the ongoing war on festivals” to end.

Australia’s House of Representatives has responded to the plight of the festival sector – and the music industry as a whole – with a new inquiry.

The standing committee on communications and the arts last week hosted three rounds of public hearings with industry stakeholders such as trade bodies, broadcasters and event organisers.

In the first round, the committee were told that “a national strategy to ensure the live music industry survives”.

Brian Mitchell MP, the chair of the committee, said that “the committee looked forward to continuing its deep dive into the operational and regulatory challenges facing the live music event industry”.

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LN-owned Secret Sounds buys Kicks Entertainment

Secret Sounds, the Live Nation-owned promoter behind Australian festivals Splendour in the Grass and Falls Festival, has acquired Kicks Entertainment.

Kicks is a premier Australian event management company which founded Foreshore Festival, Warehouse Festival and flagship festival Spilt Milk. The latter has sold out within minutes every year since its 2016 debut and has since expanded to three locations, Canberra, Ballarat and Gold Coast.

Financial terms of the deal between Secret Sounds and Kick Entertainment have not been disclosed.

“As festival and music fans ourselves, it’s exciting for us to have new partners that share our vision for event experiences that are fan-focused,” say Kicks Entertainment co-owners Jeff Drake and Ryan Sabet. “This partnership will evolve our conversations with artists and provide opportunities to activate venues and festivals that can house them. It will strengthen our ability to produce festival tours that deliver on our vision of ensuring quality over quantity.”

“[This] will strengthen our ability to produce festival tours that deliver on our vision of ensuring quality over quantity”

“Partnering with Secret Sounds and Live Nation is a natural step towards securing the future of new events and cementing those currently in the roster. The majority stake acquisition is also a boost for our loyal, local team. It brings new opportunities to enhance the already exceptional Kicks offerings and provides resources at an important time when fan experience is paramount.”

Secret Sounds co-CEOs Jessica Ducrou and Paul Piticco, add: “We’ve admired Jeff and Ryan’s work for a long time, they are brilliant entrepreneurs and the next generation of Australian promoters.

“We’ve been super impressed with the way they deliver their events and the consistent growth they’ve achieved with Spilt Milk, including the addition of a Gold Coast show which promptly sold out within days. We are very excited about this partnership and we’re looking forward to combining all of our skillsets and knowledge to support Spilt Milk’s further growth in the future.”

Secret Sounds is enjoying a bountiful return to live events, with a sold-out Splendour in the Grass (cap 50,000), the ‘biggest Falls line-up ever’ featuring Lil Nas X and Arctic Monkeys, and a slate of sold-out tours including Gorillaz, The Strokes and Jack Harlow.

Live Nation bought a majority stake in the New South Wales-based company in 2016, acquiring a 51% stake in Splendour and Falls, as well as its touring, sponsorship, PR, artist management and agency divisions.

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