Heartland to reunite Lauryn Hill with Wyclef Jean
Live Nation Denmark has revealed that its Heartland Festival has confirmed a landmark European exclusive performance by Ms. Lauryn Hill to celebrate the 25th anniversary of her multi Grammy award-winning album, The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill.
The 13 June performance will mark the first time in 20 years that Hill will share a stage with former Fugees star Wyclef Jean, while Hill’s son, YG Marley – with whom the singer was pregnant when she recorded the iconic album – will also feature on the bill.
Boutique festival Heartland takes place from 13-15 June in the stunning surroundings Egeskov Castle on the island of Funen. Among the other acts announced for this year’s event are Anne Sanne Lis, Nile Rodgers & CHIC, Phoenix, and Tom Odell.
“Fugees’ The Score and Lauryn Hill’s The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill are seen as two of the most important and groundbreaking albums of the late 90s”
Hill will perform her iconic Miseducation album, as well as Fugees classics with Jean, whose set will feature music from his groundbreaking solo releases. YG Marley, who has rocketed to fame with his global hit Praise Jah in the Moonlight, will make his first appearance in Europe at the event.
“It’s a major scoop for us that Lauryn Hill and Wyclef Jean have agreed to put together a unique and exclusive concert set for our audience at this year’s Heartland Festival,” says Heartland MD, Ulrik Ørum-Petersen. “For a generation, Fugees’ The Score and Lauryn Hill’s The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill are seen as two of the most important and groundbreaking albums of the late 90s, and with more than 42 million albums sold, they are undeniably milestones in modern music history.
“It will without a doubt be a night to remember at Egeskov Castle.”
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Live Nation Denmark collaborates on new festival
Live Nation Denmark is collaborating with the municipality of Esbjerg to launch a new festival this summer.
Suset Festival will debut from 16-17 August and has confirmed Danish pop duo Nik & Jay as its first headliner. Its lineup also includes Andreas Odbjerg, D-A-D, Medina, Barselona, Gobs, ICEKIID and Pil, with further acts still to be announced.
Located in Esbjerg Harbour, the site will be set against an industrial backdrop of offshore wind turbines, cranes, containers, cargo ships and drilling rigs.
Festival director Tobias Kippenberger, who hails from the city, is the former frontman of Danish rock band The Floor Is Made Of Lava and is fulfilling a longstanding ambition of creating a festival in his hometown.
“Suset will be a festival with big ambitions and high quality, and we can all look forward to some magical days together at Esbjerg Harbour,” says Kippenberger. “With Nik & Jay, we kick off the ball by bringing one of the country’s strongest live names back to Esbjerg after a seven-year absence, and I’m sure it will be a huge party when the audience gets to experience Suset for the first time this summer.”
“The festival adds a new dimension to the perception of what Esbjerg is, at the same time as we mark the city strongly on the cultural map”
Day tickets are priced DKK795 (€107). While its inaugural programme focuses on domestic artists, organisers say the long-term goal is to create a festival bill featuring leading names from home and abroad.
“We have allied ourselves with the very best in the music industry to create a musical lighthouse right out on the quayside, where we can really feel the rush from the North Sea,” says Esbjerg Municipality’s mayor, Jesper Frost Rasmussen. “The festival adds a new dimension to the perception of what Esbjerg is, at the same time as we mark the city strongly on the cultural map. Suset is a big and decisive step in our efforts to make Esbjerg an even more attractive place to live and live.”
The concert venue is being lent by offshore energy supply base operator NorSea, which will move its activities to another location on the harbour for six weeks around the festival dates.
“We want to support the culture in Esbjerg and also the ambition to raise the culture to a new level,” says NorSea MD Jesper Høj-Hansen. “If this means that we must change the logistics for a period of time, we are happy to do so.”
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Europe’s first stadium show since Covid-19 sells out
Live Nation Denmark has announced the first full-capacity stadium show in Europe since the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic in March 2020.
The sold-out show will see Danish post-punk band, The Minds of 99, perform to 50,000 people at the National Stadium (aka Parken) in Copenhagen.
The concert is slated to take place in the Danish capital on 11 September, a day after the Danish government drops all remaining Covid-19 restrictions.
This means attendees will be able to enjoy the show without social distancing, wearing masks or showing Covid-19 certification.
Ulrik Orum-Petersen, promoter at Live Nation Denmark, told IQ that it’s a “historic day” for the European live music industry.
“[This is] a manifestation of the strong fan confidence towards our industry… it gives our whole industry incredible optimism”
“It’s also a manifestation of the strong fan confidence towards our industry and it gives our whole industry an incredible optimism and strong faith in a bright future ahead,” Orum-Petersen added.
The Minds of 99 say: “This concert has turned into something far greater than The Minds of 99. It’s about what the whole world has been through the last year and a half. It is about the full reopening of live music in Denmark. The live music that so many people live and breathe for. It’s not about us anymore. It is beautiful.”
Denmark is the EU’s third-most vaccinated country, according to Our World in Data, with 71% of the population having received two shots.
The high vaccination rate prompted the government to start the rollback of restrictions at the beginning of this month.
After 10 September, the Danish government will no longer categorise Covid-19 as a “socially critical disease” or legally impose any Covid-19 restrictions.
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Live Nation, Roskilde and more plan test project
A number of major players in Denmark’s live music industry are organising a test project to gather knowledge and evidence on how major events can take place safely during the Covid-19 pandemic.
The partners behind the project include Live Nation Denmark, Dansk Live (Denmark’s live music association) and major Danish festivals such as Roskilde, NorthSide, Tinderbox and Smukfest, as well as organisations outside of the sector.
The project, dubbed Safe 2.0, will take place in late summer and autumn with an aim to find out:
- How spectators’ health data can be safely and smoothly handled.
- The quality of the rapid test and its ability to limit the spread of infection.
- The most effective way to detect infection at major events.
- How to efficiently and safely execute larger events.
Safe 2.0, funded by the ‘Restart’ team for culture and sport, will use a similar model to the one used during a test series of football matches earlier this year.
All attendees were required to show proof of a negative antigen test in order to gain entry to the 3F Superliga competitions, organised by the Divisional Association.
“The hope was initially that we could secure knowledge that could ensure a faster reopening for the benefit of festivals”
Organisers say Safe 2.0 will implement Denmark’s vaccine passport (Coronapas) as soon as it becomes available in autumn.
“Safe was originally developed together with the Divisional Association in the autumn of 2020, but we are now at version 2.0 of the project, where the focus is on cultural activities,” says Dansk Live’s Esben Marcher.
“The hope was initially that we could secure knowledge that could ensure a faster reopening for the benefit of festivals and venues. Even if it did not succeed, we are happy to be able to start the project now and secure knowledge that can prove crucial in the future.”
Safe 2.0 comes too late for the raft of festivals that were called off in May due to government restrictions.
Roskilde (26 June to 3 July), Smukfest (4–8 August), Northside (3–5 June), Tinderbox (24–26 June), Beautiful Party (4–8 August), Jelling Festival (20–23 May), Copenhell (16–19 June) and Heartland (27–29 May) were cancelled this year.
Vig Festival (8–10 July), Thy Rock (25–26 June), Nibe Festival (30 June to 3 July), Ringsted Festival (5–7 August), Langelandsfestival (18–25 July), Radio ABC Beach Party (17 July) and Kløften Festival (24–26 June) were also called off.
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Danish festival giants join forces for comeback event
Live Nation has teamed up with nine of Denmark’s biggest festivals – Roskilde Festival, NorthSide, Heartland, Copenhell, Smukfest, Tinderbox, Jelling Musikfestival, Nibe Festival and Grøn – for a one-off event that will mark the reopening of the country.
‘Back to Live’ will take place at Refshaleøen, a former industrial site in the harbour of Copenhagen, on Saturday 4 September – days after the country’s current Covid-19 restrictions are due to be lifted, allowing large events to take place.
According to the organisers, the concert will also serve as an opportunity for the festivals involved to “gain experience and collect empirical data on Covid initiatives” in relation to organising large live events.
“Two years without festivals have been hard for the entire music industry and both the audience, artists and organisers need to feel the community,” reads a statement from the organisers.
“The crisis has also strengthened the dialogue and cooperation between the festivals”
“At the same time, the crisis has also strengthened the dialogue and cooperation between the festivals and revealed a pronounced need to focus on the importance of live concerts and their significance for community and unity in society.”
The one-day outdoor concert will kick off at 2:00 pm (CET), hosting performances from “some of Denmark’s biggest names in rock and hip hop” including Dizzy Mizz Lizzy, Dad, Suspekt, Tessa and more to be announced.
Tickets for Back to Live are on sale now for DKK 545 (€73).
Currently, in Denmark, 10,000 people are allowed at “public events”, thanks to the country’s Covid-19 ‘passport’, Coronapas, which certifies that the bearer has either tested negative for the coronavirus or is immune/vaccinated.
The government recently clarified the restrictions from August onwards but the news came too late for Denmark’s major music festivals, which cancelled en masse last month citing a lack of information.
However, a number of the festivals – Roskilde, Nibe and Smukfest – have planned alternative events this summer.
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Live Nation acquires Danish agency PDH Music
Live Nation Denmark has announced today that it has acquired Danish booking agency and artist management company, PDH Music.
Through the acquisition, Live Nation aims to “continue to meet the demand for Danish artists.” According to IQ’s Danish market report, the live industry in Denmark is “one of Europe’s most compelling”.
The deal follows a string recent moves by the live music behemoth in Nordic countries, with the acquisition of Norwegian metal festival Tons of rock and Finnish urban festival Blockfest.
“This deal extends the already successful relationship PDH Music has had with Live Nation over the past several years,” says Henrik Seifert, director of PDH Music.
“Live Nation has the global reach and infrastructure to further strengthen PDH Music, and PDH Music has a roster of local artists that Live Nation is committed to investing in”
“Live Nation has the global reach and infrastructure to further strengthen PDH Music, and PDH Music has a roster of local artists that Live Nation is committed to investing in and developing. It is a match made in heaven and we are excited about our future together.”
Live Nation Denmark managing director Jesper Christensen comments: “I have known PDH Music’s founders Micky Pramming and Henrik Seifert for many years. They are great people who share a profound love of live music and I’m excited about the energy they will bring to Live Nation Denmark”.
Over the next year PDH Music will leave their current premises in Østerbro, Copenhagen and join Live Nation in the district of Frederiksberg.
Seifert, Pramming and the rest of the PDH Music team will continue to work under the PDH Music brand as part of Live Nation Denmark.
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