Germany’s LEA to be discontinued
Germany’s Live Entertainment Award (LEA) is to be discontinued and the organisation behind it dissolved, it has been announced.
First held in Hamburg in 2006, the ceremony had taken place at the Festhalle in Frankfurt since 2011 and grew into one of the industry’s most prestigious awards shows.
The LEA recognised excellence in the German live sector and was funded by the LEA Committee, which included the Federal Association of the Concert and Event Industry (BDKV) as well as a number of companies from the German event industry. Legendary promoter Fritz Rau served as the committee’s first president, with artist manager Dieter Weidenfeld holding the reins since 2010.
A jury of 24 experts, made up of media representatives and industry specialists from Germany, Austria and Switzerland, decided on the winners.
“Unfortunately, there was no offer from any direction, so the dissolution of the organisations was the result”
The LEA was last staged in June last year, when it was held as part of Frankfurt Fashion Week for the first time and attracted more than 1,000 guests. However, it has been decided to no longer hold the event following the departures of Weidenfeld, VP Lasse von Thien and MD Jens Michow, who was the longtime president of the BDKV up to last year.
The BDKV elected a new board 12 months ago, spearheaded by new president Sonia Simmenauer.
“Our goal was to create the conditions for the LEA to remain firmly connected to the BDKV in the future after Prof Michow resigned from office at the end of 2022,” says Weidenfeld. “This should have given our successors the opportunity to work out the future format of the event. Unfortunately, there was no offer from any direction, so the dissolution of the organisations was the result.”
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Semmel Concerts claims double win at Germany’s LEA
Semmel Concerts took home two honours from the first full-scale Live Entertainment Award (LEA) ceremony since the pandemic began.
More than 1,000 guests attended the event, which recognises excellence in the German live sector, at Frankfurt Festhalle this past Wednesday (22 June).
Semmel CEO Dieter Semmelmann was named Promoter of the Year and also received the award for Concert Hall/Arena Tour of the Year for Roland Kaiser’s Alles oder Dich tour, which was produced by the Bayreuth-based company. Staged in the autumn of 2021, Alles oder Dich was the first major arena tour to be undertaken under pandemic conditions, and attracted 150,000 people over 27 shows.
“My whole team has fought with courage, passion and vision for every event”
“Like many in this industry, my whole team has fought with courage, passion and vision for every event, and even accepted the challenges of resuming major tours under difficult conditions during the past year,” said Semmelmann. “So I dedicate this award to all my colleagues, on stage and behind the scenes, because mammoth undertakings like this have only been, and will only ever be possible with boundless loyalty, a lot of determination and countless helping hands.”
A jury of 24 experts, made up of media representatives and industry specialists from Germany, Austria and Switzerland, decided on the winners of the LEA, awarded for outstanding achievement in 2020 and 2021.
Elsewhere, Cologne promoter Roland “Balou” Temme was posthumously honoured with the Lifetime Achievement Award. Temme, who died last August aged 67, organised tours by the acts such as Peter Maffay, Udo Lindenberg and David Garrett with his companies Think Big and RTK.
Other winners included Austria’s Nova Music Entertainment for Nova Rock Encore (Festival of the Year), Nils Bodenstedt and Uli Mücke (Artist Manager/Agent of the Year), and Telekom Deutschland and Live Nation Brand Partnership & Media for the creation of digital live experiences on the Magenta Musik 360 portal (Cooperation of the Year).
Two new categories were also created this year due to the special circumstances in the assessment period: Industry Alliance of the Year went to the Music Industry Forum, Events Industry Forum, Swiss Music Promoters Association and Austrian Events Industry Interest Group, while the award for the artist alliance of the year went to booker Maria Paz Caraccioli Gutierrez and photographer Martin Diesch.
In addition, the inaugural honorary LEA was awarded to longtime BDKV (Federal Association of the Concert and Event Industry) president Jens Michow.
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Germany’s LEA returns to full strength
Germany’s Live Entertainment Award (LEA) ceremony will return to full strength for its 2022 edition, which will be held as part of Frankfurt Fashion Week for the first time.
The event, which recognises excellence in the German live sector, will take place at Frankfurt Festhalle on Wednesday 22 June. Confirmed performers include established singers Yvonne Catterfeld, Leony and Leslie Clio, along with newcomers Sobi and Pia Baris. Further highlights will be announced shortly.
In addition to the seats on the floor the Festhalle (13,500-cap.), public tickets have also gone sale for the upper tier.
A jury of 24 experts, made up of media representatives and industry specialists from Germany, Austria and Switzerland, has decided on the winners of the LEA, which will be awarded for outstanding achievement in 2020 and 2021.
Last year’s LEA was held in a smaller, socially distanced format
There have been two changes to the board: Hannover Concerts founder Michael Lohmann has been succeeded by managing director Nico Röger, while legendary promoter Karsten Jahnke has passed on his post to Karsten Jahnke Konzertdirektion MD Ben Mitha.
After the 2020 awards were cancelled due to Covid-19, last year’s LEA was held in a smaller, socially distanced format at the 1,200-capacity Gibson Club in Frankfurt. Wizard Promotions founder Ossy Hoppe was recognised with the lifetime achievement award at the ceremony.
The LEA is funded by the LEA Committee, which includes the Federal Association of the Concert and Event Industry (BDKV) as well as a number of companies from the German event industry.
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