Herman Schueremans: 50 years in the business
Looking back on half a century in the live music business, Herman Schueremans has learned many lessons – a smattering of which you’ll find highlighted in the pages of this special anniversary feature. However, arguably his top lesson is that cycling is not only the best possible way to stay fit – it can save your life.
In 2014, Herman took a regular cycle journey to visit his mother in her residential care home, and on his way back his bike hit a patch of wet leaves and sent him tumbling. “I broke my hip,” he tells IQ. “But it was broken quite nicely – it didn’t move, there was just a fracture through it. But on the scan for my hip, the doctor noticed that my appendix was swollen, so I was told it was best to remove it while I was in hospital.”
During what should have been a routine operation, the surgeon discovered that Herman’s appendix had been leaking and was very slowly poisoning his body. Warned that the leak could lead to cancer, Herman agreed to a procedure where a team of surgeons would meticulously open up and clean his intestines, while removing anything that could not be saved. “They also coated my intestines in platinum, which would kill any infection that they might have missed. It was a big operation – 32 hours in total.”
Despite undergoing such trauma, which would normally result in a patient spending months in hospital to recover, within a week Herman was back at home. “I wanted to be back working on my festivals – the Classic and Rock Werchter,” he states, “I’d lost 15 kilograms, and I had to rest quite a lot, so I was not as active during the festival changeovers, but because I cycled every day, as a 60-year-old man I was pretty fit and healthy, so that definitely helped.”
Consequently, he urges everyone in the live music business to take up cycling. “It’s a great way to forget about our fantastic business and all the responsibilities you have. I would absolutely advise people to cycle because it’s not only healthy, it destresses you. And if you’re with friends, at the end of the bicycle ride you stop at a nice pub and have some lagers.”
Inspired by a documentary on Woodstock, he decided to create a small music festival in the town of Herent
Small Beginnings
As one of the most popular personalities in the live music world, Herman Schueremans’ career is the stuff of legend. Growing up in Belgium in the 1960s and ’70s was a frustrating time for music-loving Herman because although most international tours travelled through the country on their way to and from gigs in Germany, France, and the Netherlands, very few would actually stop in Belgium to perform. Herman would shatter that status quo.
Having toyed with electric guitar, then bass guitar, he conceded his talents were not as a musician, and at the age of 17, he began managing a local band. A year later, inspired by a documentary on Woodstock, he decided to create a small music festival in the town of Herent, a few kilometres from his hometown of Leuven. “I called it ‘The Park Festival,’ because it was in a park,” he laughs. “I booked a few local bands, and 800 people came to the first event.”
However, just weeks later, another youngster – Hedwig De Meyer – staged his new festival a mere eight kilometres away in the village of Werchter. “He also had 800 people,” says Herman. “At the time, I was also writing for a newspaper, and I was the only journalist on Hedwig’s guest list. We met and agreed to work together for the following year, and because there were fewer neighbours in Werchter, we kept that site to minimise the chance of complaints.”
That collaboration led to the first Rock Werchter festival, in 1974, and the partnership thrived, with Hedwig taking care of production logistics, and liaising with the local authorities and the Werchter mayor, while Herman concentrated on booking the artists.
Still living at home, Herman soon started using his talent to promote club gigs, as part of a move to try to fund renting his own apartment. “It wasn’t the usual promoter route because I was a festival promoter before I organised gigs, but I was able to pick up some interesting bands and that’s what kick-started everything.”
“It wasn’t the usual promoter route because I was a festival promoter before I organised gigs”
What that modest comment does not cover is the lengths young Herman would go to in order to fulfil the growing demand from audiences in Belgium to discover new talent. As a result, his ambition and confidence grew, and he would travel to London to try to meet with agents who had never heard of him. Working with a shoestring budget, he would stay in youth hostels and wait for the unsuspecting agents on their office doorsteps first thing in the morning, just to try to get a meeting.
Herman comments, “Some people become a missionary in Africa or whatever. Our mission was to put Belgium on the map and to see acts playing in Belgium and not only passing through from London to Germany to play for the American troops or to play Paris or Hamburg or Berlin.
“The big bands didn’t bother about Belgium in those days, so I started out chasing the smaller ones. That was one of the advantages of being in a small country – if you wanted to be part of the music business, you had to sniff out the new acts.”
Such was Herman’s skill in identifying emerging talent that the local Warner Records operation persuaded him to take a job in its A&R department – an opportunity that he realised could ultimately benefit Rock Werchter. “We were doing promo for Sire acts such as the Ramones and Talking Heads, as well Stiff Records, which was home to the likes of Elvis Costello, and I was able to get those acts to play at the festival,” reports Herman.
His tenure at Warners lasted close to five years and saw him rise through the ranks to head the local A&R and promo departments. But with the festival and his other promoting efforts dominating more and more time, he was given an ultimatum by his managing director. “So, I left Warners, aged 26, to finally become a full-time promoter. It was a very easy decision. Basically, my hobby became my job. And I’ve never regretted it. I still love my job.”
“Our mission was to put Belgium on the map and to see acts playing in Belgium and not only passing through from London”
Production Spin-offs
As Rock Werchter grew in the early years, there were a number of accidental spin-offs that have, in the decades since, become major players in the live music sector – namely Stageco, EML, and The Powershop.
“When we started, the festival was in one marquee where we could squeeze in about 3,000 people,” explains Herman. “When it grew, we rolled up the sides of the marquee, but the stage wasn’t high enough and people couldn’t see, so we decided to move outdoors, and Hedwig used his engineering skills to design the stage, which was the birth of Stageco as a business.
“In those days, you had supply companies like Edwin Shirley in England but bringing equipment from England to Belgium was too expensive, so we had little choice but to do it ourselves.” And it wasn’t just the staging that had to be sourced. With no decent PA or lighting equipment available in Belgium, the partners also created EML – which has since become part of the PRG group of companies. And it was a similar tale for The Powershop, owned by Hedwig’s brother, Jan De Meyer, as the Werchter principals decided that the best way to solve their power supply issue for the greenfield site was to launch their own business.
Indeed, for about the first 15 years of Rock Werchter, any profits were ploughed back into Stageco, which quickly became a year-round business supplying infrastructure to international tours – the pioneers being Genesis.
“The band’s agent, Steve Hedges, was at one of our festivals and was so impressed by our stages that he put us in contact with the band and that led to us getting the deal to supply staging for a Genesis European tour – which then went on as far as New Zealand,” says Herman.
“When we started, Rock Werchter was in one marquee where we could squeeze in about 3,000 people”
And the success of Rock Werchter was also getting Herman and Hedwig noticed. Noël Steen and Monique Van Dromme, who organised another festival, Rock Tourhout, in the west of Belgium, proposed that the two events should collaborate, to save costs and share line-ups, but at either end of the country. Theoretically, Torhout-Werchter was a great idea. Logistically, it was a huge challenge.
“At that time – 1980 or ’81, I think – both festivals were just one day each, so we’d move everything overnight from Torhout to Werchter – that’s 140 kilometres – and I mean everything: the PA system, the lot. It would have to be loaded out at Torhout, make its way through the traffic across Belgium, loaded in at Werchter, and built in time for the gates opening the next day.”
Rather than just being a one-off experiment, the twin festivals continued the practice for 15 years, until they both expanded to two-day events in 2016.
“In the early days, the twin event helped me attract bands because I was able to offer two shows rather than just one, but Werchter be- came bigger and bigger and booking two festivals started to become a disadvantage,” says Herman. “It also became bloody expensive to run a festival at two different sites. So, when we made big losses at Torhout in 1996 and ‘97, I took the decision to concentrate just on Werchter.”
While the appeal of Rock Werchter captured the imagination of music fans from day one, creating a day-to-day tour circuit around Belgium was a longer-term project. “We didn’t have a company name, but we set up a foundation called Altsien to reflect what we were doing – working with alternative acts like the Human League, Dead Kennedys, and U2, and using alternative venues, such as university aulas in Leuven, Brussels, Ghent, Liège, and Hasselt; a union venue in Mechelen; a sports hall in Deinze; and venues in provincial places like Herenthout, Zedelgem, Poperinge, etc .”
Looking back, Herman admits lots of mistakes were made, but it was the learning ground that he and his companies built their foundations on. “I could easily lose £300 on a show, which was a month’s wages. But that taught you to quickly learn from your mistakes.”
“I still operate as an entrepreneur, and Live Nation allows me to do that”
Making Belgium a European Hub
Two decades ago, when Robert Sillerman’s SFX undertook its programme of corporate klepto-mania, Herman Schueremans’ activities in Belgium were among the top targets for his vision for a global promoting empire.
“SFX first approached me in 2000,” states Herman. “I was honoured that such a big company felt Belgium was important enough. So, in May 2001, I became part of what would later become Live Nation.”
As a division of that corporate entity, Herman’s company has grown in size by a factor of six. Indeed, during the Covid pandemic, the financial protection not only allowed him to keep every member of staff but he actually hired new employees as restrictions on live shows began to ease.
“Promoting shows is an art,” he tells IQ. “I don’t have to put my financial future at risk anymore, but I do want to be successful, so I still operate as an entrepreneur, and Live Nation allows me to do that: to take risks. In fact, since we became part of Live Nation, the company has grown from about ten people to about 60 now.”
And he contends that making the odd mistake is part and parcel of the process in evolving as a promoter. “I still make mistakes, but I think that’s an important part of the process because sometimes you overestimate, sometimes you underestimate things. Especially after Covid.
“When we restarted in March [2022], one of my big worries was will I be able to give the same service?”
“When we restarted in March [2022], one of my big worries was will I be able to give the same service? And I was so happy to see that a lot of shows and tours were safe.”
Looking back on the past year, which he contends was the busiest of his career, Herman says, “It was a sort of interbellum, but not between two wars, rather between two music worlds, which made it a good lesson for everybody to rethink the business, to reinvent it.
“Most of us had a good 2022, but some suffered because they underestimated costs. But overall, the business is back, and I think 2023 will be very good. It’s all about approaching things in a positive way, without becoming greedy.”
Indeed, Herman believes there are some positives to take away from the devastation that Covid inflicted on the live events sector. “People are re-appreciating the experience of a live show or festival. At Werchter 2022, we saw so many happy people. At every festival, you have some moaners, but even the moaners forgot to moan. If we can make those people happy, then I think we are doing a good job.”
“Religion and politics divide; music unites. So, no, I do not miss politics”
Vote Schueremans!
Among Herman’s other claims to fame is a long stint as a member of parliament for the Flemish Liberals and Democrats. “I got involved because I thought that politicians kept making stupid decisions that threatened to destroy what we’d worked so hard to build,” he explains.
His political achievements include helping to introduce a decibel law that measures average noise levels over the course of an hour, as well as Herman enjoys a much-deserved beer at the Rock Werchter 2013 after party legislation to fight secondary ticketing.
Despite those positive moves, Herman is candid about his time as a parliamentarian. “Over the years, I’ve learned that music brings people together. It’s one of my slogans: religion and politics divide; music unites. So, no, I do not miss politics. But it is damned important.”
He continues, “At the same time, I’m happy that I did it, because I can see what the qualities of democracy are and that we all should support it. Being in the Liberal Party, we also managed to push through legislation to allow same-sex marriages. I think that was tremendously important because in recent years we have seen a return to conservatism, meaning it might be a lot more difficult, today, to get those laws voted through and adopted.”
His interest in political matters dates back further. Speaking from his beloved second home in South Africa, Herman tells IQ, “One of the things that gives me a lot of satisfaction is that at the time when Nelson Mandela was in prison at Robben Island, Peter Gabriel asked us to deliver the stages for the Free Mandela shows, which we did in Dakar, in London, and in New York. Delivering those stages at no cost, because that was the deal, was one of the best things I’ve done in my career… when I pass away, and if heaven exists, when Saint Peter is at the gates and starts reading me my list of sins, I will bring that up as an argument to let me in.”
“Delivering the Free Mandela shows was one of the best things I’ve done in my career”
Golden Years
Herman is rightly renowned for the development of Rock Werchter – which is set to mark its 50th anniversary in 2024 – and, indeed, the rest of his festival portfolio, which includes Werchter Boutique, Werchter Classic, Graspop Metal Meeting, and I Love Techno, as well as hugely successful partnerships with the likes of Pukkelpop and Dour.
His support for other businesses in the aftermath of the two-year pandemic lay-off helped those events enjoy successful post Covid returns. “A lot of people moved out of our business to do other things during Covid, and it was a bit difficult to get all those people back on track. But that meant the satisfaction after the festivals was double or triple because we managed to do it as a team,” he states.
“A long time ago, we decided to start paying suppliers in advance and not 30, 60, 90, or 120 days after the event. Helping people with their cash flow definitely allowed them to get back to work after Covid. And that policy helped us a lot in 2022. Don’t forget, we have a history with Stageco, The Powershop, EML, so while we don’t have a Silicon Valley like the Americans have, around Werchter we have a rock and roll music fair, and we have a common history.”
World-Class Legacy
One Herman mantra that has never changed is the lengths he goes to in order to make sure that everyone who attends his festivals is kept safe and made as comfortable as possible – from the audience to the artists to the crew. “For example, we have warm showers, day and night. So, whenever the crew or truck drivers arrive, they get their towels, and we try to make them feel at home.
“The artists’ dressing rooms are perhaps a bit over the top. But basically, when you arrive at Rock Werchter, the dressing room is yours until the end of the festival when you leave. Catering is always open; you can drink tea from a proper cup; you can eat with a knife and fork; you can drink a good glass of wine or draft beer out of a glass. It’s about hospitality.”
“I’ve been saying that a festival should be reinvented every five or even three years. It’s all about evolution”
Reminiscing on his career path, he adds, “30 years ago, I said a festival should be reinvented every ten years. But in the last decade, I’ve been saying that a festival should be reinvented every five or even three years. It’s all about evolution. This is a business where if you have the capability of listening to other people and their ideas, you can be creative, you can reinvent, and you can give young people an opportunity to prove themselves.”
And talking of the next generation, the 69-year-old festival guru admits that the pandemic triggered him to begin plotting the way forward for Live Nation Belgium and his beloved festivals when he is no longer at the helm.
“One of the main jobs I had in the last five years was to prepare our company for succession,” he reveals. “When we started the company, there were five or six people. Ten years ago, it was 30-something. And today it’s close to 60. So, as the business grows, the pyramid also has to grow.
“Now, we have a fantastic team ready to take over in the next couple of years. They do already a hell of a lot of the jobs, and I have to give them all that credit. So, I am happy that the company is in a place where I can afford to stop working in this business, and our team will deliver.” Not quite ready to hang up his promoter’s hat, however, he concludes, “My team inspire me, and I hope I still inspire them a bit. And together we are strong.
“You’re only as good as your last show, not only as an artist but also as a promoter”
“But we are not immortal, and I think it’s part of our moral duty to hand things over to the next generations to create opportunities for them. And for them to do even better – I’m sure they will.”
As for the immediate future, 2023 will be like most years for Herman Schueremans, with the highlights he’s looking forward to centring around his summer programme.
“It’s fantastic to put on the Belgian show of a European tour or a world tour – it’s a privilege to contribute to that. But festivals are something that you create with your team, and you really have to reinvent and rework every year.
“We want to treat our audience well, but at the same time, we want to bring in a younger audience, and I rely on the younger members of our team to do that.
“It is a good success story – and I still love my job every day, but I think staying humble is key. Bottom line, you’re only as good as your last show, not only as an artist but also as a promoter, also as a PA company, as a stage company.”
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Cardiff arena costs rise by more than 50%
The cost of building Cardiff’s new arena has spiralled by more than 50%, causing significant delays to the project, according to a report.
The 17,000-cap venue, which is being developed by Robertson Group, will be operated by Live Nation and Oak View Group and is set to form part of a wider multi-million-pound regeneration of Butetown, Cardiff in Wales, UK.
However, “inflationary pressures” have seen costs rise from £180 million (€203m) to almost £280m (€316m).
“Following the pandemic, the UK economy has experienced significant volatility with abnormal levels of inflation and significant interest rate rises,” reads a Cardiff Council document. “Inflationary pressures have pushed the original design of the new indoor arena from the procured figure of £180m to close to £280m.”
The report to members of the council’s cabinet adds that, as the authority’s borrowings for the project are capped, Live Nation has taken responsibility for the price increases.
“Live Nation has had to undertake a detailed review of the design to identify any opportunities to make savings”
“Live Nation remains committed to the project and has secured board level approval to cover the costs,” it continues. “Nonetheless, Live Nation is now working to reduce the level of cost increase through a review of the arena design and reconsideration of site infrastructure requirements.
“The cost of delivering the new indoor arena project has risen by more than 50%. Consequently, Live Nation has had to undertake a detailed review of the design to identify any opportunities to make savings. This has caused a significant delay to the programme. It is now anticipated that the final contract will be signed in July 2023 with a start on-site programmed for January 2024.”
The arena was originally scheduled to open in 2025, but is not now set to be completed until the following year, according to Wales Online.
Live Nation already runs the existing 7,500-cap Motorpoint Arena Cardiff, as well as converted warehouse venue Titan Warehouse. OVG, meanwhile, is currently constructing the UK’s first all-electric arena, Co-op Live, in Manchester.
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Clockenflap’s Sweeting: ‘We’re in a boom period’
Magnetic Asia’s Justin Sweeting tells IQ the Hong Kong market is enjoying a boom period, amid Clockenflap’s acquisition by Live Nation.
Live Nation announced yesterday that it had acquired a majority stake in the Hong Kong-based promoter and its flagship music and arts festival, with the Clockenflap team to continue to curate, manage and produce its events. Clockenflap also organises regular touring concerts in Hong Kong under the Clockenflap Presents banner.
Clockenflap 2023 was held from 3-5 March in Central Harbourfront Event Space with a line-up including Arctic Monkeys, Balming Tiger, Bombay Bicycle Club, The Cardigans and Wu-Tang Clan. Due to the pandemic, it was the 30,000-cap festival’s first edition since 2018 (its 2019 event was cancelled due to the Hong Kong protests) and came just days after the city finally lifted its mask mandate, which began in June 2020.
Sweeting, co-founder and music director, hails Clockenflap’s return, which coincided with a buoyant period for Hong Kong’s live music sector, as “incredible”.
“Many stars aligned both within and outside our control, including the mask mandate being lifted the week of the event, absolutely glorious weather and some truly sublime performances,” he says, speaking to IQ. “The audience at Clockenflap is already a very positive and open-minded one, though that was even more amplified this time. It was like the whole city had just been collectively let out into the wild, and it genuinely felt like the kick-off event for Hong Kong opening up to the world again.
“We’re in a period of boom at present, though am very conscious to take heed of the lessons learnt from watching the rest of the world open up before us, especially in terms of peaks and dips in demand levels.”
“I’ve always wanted Clockenflap to be one of the very best city-based festival experiences in the world, and that won’t change”
Sweeting says that demand was “strong”, with all ticket types for the festival, which was founded in 2008, selling out across the whole weekend for the first time.
“A combination of aggressive timelines, rising production costs and shifting goalposts related to the pandemic were consistent challenges,” he says. “Still, we were more than happy to face these each day as it ultimately meant that we could finally get back to the fun stuff too.
“There were so many magic moments, and honestly, just the fact that we were able to be back on again without any restrictions in play was the overriding highlight for me. I can’t really overstate what a great feeling it was to be fully back.”
With Clockenflap’s next edition confirmed for 1-3 December 2023, Sweeting is convinced its new partnership with Live Nation will help cement its worldwide reputation.
“I’ve always wanted Clockenflap to be one of the very best city-based festival experiences in the world, and that won’t change,” he adds, speaking before yesterday’s announcement. “We’ll always look to continuously improve as we evolve.”
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Global Promoters Report: France
The Global Promoters Report, a first-of-its-kind resource that highlights the world’s leading promoters and the 40 top markets they operate in, is now available to subscribers of IQ.
In an excerpt from the guide, IQ delves into one of Europe’s most influential markets: France.
As one of Europe’s major international touring markets, trends in France have repercussions across the continent. The market prognosis in 2022 is very much a mixed bag. Recovery from Covid after long periods of shutdown was beginning to happen only to crash headfirst into growing energy costs and a mounting economic crisis in the country. There are plenty of things to be optimistic about in the sector, but the severe challenges impacting live music cannot be ignored.
As in most European markets, the international heavyweights in France are Live Nation and AEG Presents. Live Nation runs Lollapalooza and Afropunk festivals in the capital, as well as I Love Techno Europe and Main Square. International touring acts it brought in during 2022 included The Rolling Stones, Jack Harlow, Sting, Chainsmokers, and Lil Nas X, with Bring Me The Horizon, You Me At Six, The Vamps, Lizzo, and Sam Smith booked for 2023 as well as stadium shows in Paris with Beyoncé, Metallica and The Weeknd.
AEG Presents runs the Rock en Seine festival, and acts it booked for 2022 included Suede and Olivia Rodrigo. Acts confirmed for 2023 include Tom Brennan, Yungblud, and Celine Dion.
Take Me Out is a new local entrant in the French market, launching in February 2022. Bookings this year include The Amazons, …And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead, and The Libertines, with We Are Scientists, North Mississippi Allstars, Circa Waves, and The Slow Readers Club booked for next year.
Corida Group (incorporating Corida, Super!, The Talent Boutique. and Pi-Pôle) is the live music arm of the Because Group and acquired a 50% stake in the Pitchfork Paris festival promoter Super! in 2018. Super! also runs the Villette Sonique festival.
“Unlike other countries, we were lucky enough to benefit from government subsidies during most of the pandemic”
Alias Production brought acts such as Courtney Barnett, Mogwai, Confidence Man, Franz Ferdinand, and Youssou N’Dour to play in 2022. Its bookings for 2023 include dEUS, The War on Drugs, Yo La Tengo, Lewis Capaldi, and Robbie Willims.
“Unlike other countries, we were lucky enough to benefit from government subsidies during most of the pandemic, which has protected companies and saved many jobs, so there hasn’t been too much damage across the industry,” says Emma Greco, promoter at AEG Presents in Paris.
“However, the French political climate is heated as we’re facing new challenges with the rise of energy prices, shortages of gas, and the high cost of living, all causing new waves of protest and strikes.”
She says touring costs are shooting up, with transportation costs in particular up 20% this year. There is also a skills and equipment shortage, caused in part by the pandemic, as infrastructure companies closed/downscaled and skilled workers were forced to leave the business and seek work elsewhere. As more acts race to get back on the road in France, there is still not enough staff or enough equipment to go around.
“All the sound and lighting providers were out of stock in recent months, meaning we have sometimes had to turn to our EU neighbours,” explains Greco.
“All the sound and lighting providers were out of stock in recent months, meaning we have had to turn to our EU neighbours”
Jean-Louis Schell, promoter at Take Me Out, believes there is also an oversaturation in the market. He says that 20 years ago, around 150 international acts were touring in France each year; now it is over 1,000.
“We have the same number of venues, maybe more small clubs with free entry, but there are the same number of people buying tickets and inflation is increasing; even if it is less than in other territories, 5.6% is still huge,” he says. “Students and young people generally have less money.”
Arnaud Meersseman, general manager of AEG Presents and programmer at Rock en Seine, says increases in ticket prices and acts touring too frequently are causing severe problems in the market.
“Large venues with more than 5,000 capacity have seen ticketing go up by 19% compared to 2019, but small venues have seen a drop of 38%, and medium venues have seen a drop of 26%,” he says. “Those medium and small bands that are in the middle, they’re all touring at the same time. They are probably not that new, they’ve probably been around for a while, people have seen them, and they’re on their second or third record. If you miss them this time around, well, that’s fine; you can see them the next time they come around.”
Pascal Bernardin of Encore Productions lays out the scale of the challenges as he sees them. “I’m lucky that my business is outside France,” he says of the state of the domestic market. “If I look at promoters, it’s been hard, and I’m not sure when it will come back. Festivals did okay, and the big ones did very, very well. A lot of smaller festivals did not do so well. A lot of people complain about the cost, which is getting higher.”
The average ticket price for major shows in France is €120-130 so consumers cannot afford to go to more shows more frequently
What this all means is that smaller acts and acts in the middle are struggling the most, with Schell suggesting audiences are increasingly waiting until the last minute to buy tickets. “It forces the promoters to increase their promo expenses, so the breaking point becomes more difficult to reach,” he says. “Stadiums and arenas are filling – or at least most of them are.”
And, of course, the impact of Brexit on British acts touring in France (and elsewhere in Europe) remains an issue. “The ATA carnets are a pain for young bands,” says Schell, “so we mainly look for venues and festivals providing backline.”
For the biggest acts, their popularity insulates them to an extent. Meersseman points to Blackpink and other K-pop superstars as creating their own centre of gravity in the French market. “We find that it is doing exceptionally well with very high ticket prices,” he says, especially with regard to upsell options. “If you get the full VIP package and you’re two people, you can be spending up to €2,000 on the show.”
Meersseman also suggests the average ticket price for major shows in France is €120-130, and that means big acts scoop most of the money, and consumers cannot afford to go to more shows more frequently. “Once you spend that times two, you’re not going to be spending much on tickets for the rest of the month,” he says.
Meersseman also feels there is something of a touring arms race happening at the upper levels at the moment that will greatly impact on the future shape of the market.
“To bring in a bigger show costs a fortune, therefore you raise ticket prices”
“The competition is so intense because of the volume of touring that acts need to bring in bigger and bigger shows – but everything costs more and more,” he says. “To bring in a bigger show costs a fortune, therefore you raise ticket prices. Other acts think they should raise ticket prices and bring in a bigger show. It’s a vicious circle, and I don’t think it’s leading to anything very good.”
The processes of breaking acts across France are, however, beginning to change, even amid the market uncertainty outlined above. “We start off with a club show or a tastemaker event,” says Meersseman. “Agents love putting all their acts through Primavera and then having a soft launch for all the acts at the same time in June. We try to avoid that if we can. From there on, we’ll usually give them a good slot at our festival, Rock en Seine, to try to build them up from there. Then we’ll try to get them back in for a bigger Paris show. After that we will try to get them back for some regional shows and regional festivals. France is such a centralised country, that if you don’t break Paris, you’ll never be able to venture into the regions. Paris is the key to opening up everything.”
Greco says that breaking Paris is only the start and that promoters really need to be thinking and acting locally. “I think it’s important to build an artist outside of Paris – whether it’s through festivals or regional shows,” she says. “There’s not always time for it, but I believe it’s an important step when building an artist in our market.”
“If you don’t break Paris, you’ll never be able to venture into the regions”
International acts that have performed well in terms of touring are varied. Schell mentions Peter Doherty and Kasabian as recent successes, adding that French hip-hop acts are now selling tickets on a par with some of the biggest international acts, suggesting an interesting domestic/foreign split in the live market.
Greco points to Fred Again, who sold 1,600 tickets in two minutes for his show at Elysée Montmartre, and Olivia Rodrigo’s first show in France at the Zenith in June 2022 exceeded expectations.
Meersseman says, beyond a range of K-pop acts and major international stars like Robbie Williams and Tyler, The Creator doing well, there is a revival of interest in pop-punk from the late 1990s and early 2000s. The Hella Mega Tour (featuring Green Day, Fall Out Boy and Weezer) sold out the 35,000-capacity La Défense Arena in July 2022. Meanwhile, The Offspring have sold out the Zenith in Nantes and were already close to selling out the AccorHotels Arena in Paris, with both shows not happening until May 2023.
Parts of the market are struggling and other parts of the market are over-indexing. This dynamic looks unlikely to change for a while, with suggestions that, with many postponed shows running into next year, it might not be until 2023 that the live market in France fully recalibrates itself.
The Global Promoters Report is published in print, digitally, and all content is also available as a year-round resource on the IQ site. The Global Promoters Report includes key summaries of the major promoters working across 40+ markets, unique interviews and editorial on key trends and developments across the global live music business.
To access all content from the current Global Promoters Report, please click here.
Live Nation acquires Hong Kong’s Clockenflap
Live Nation has acquired a majority stake in Hong Kong-based promoter Clockenflap and its flagship music and arts festival.
One of Asia’s best-known festival brands, Clockenflap made its return in early March after a four-year hiatus, featuring artists including Arctic Monkeys, Balming Tiger, Bombay Bicycle Club, The Cardigans and Wu-Tang Clan.
The Clockenflap team will continue to curate, manage and produce its events, with co-founder and music director Justin Sweeting confident that Live Nation’s support and resources will help cement its status internationally.
“It was a wonderful feeling seeing a capacity crowd at the festival last weekend – Clockenflap has one of the most positive and open minded audiences in the world,” he says. “The Live Nation team share our vision for Clockenflap being one of the best city festivals in the world, and with Live Nation’s support and resources, I’m excited for the future of the festival.”
Founded in 2008, the three-day, 30,000-cap festival takes place at Hong Kong’s Central Harbourfront Event Space. Its next edition has been confirmed for 1-3 December 2023.
“By joining forces with Live Nation, we can continue to grow the festival and expand our event activities in Hong Kong and regionally”
Clockenflap also organises regular touring concerts in Hong Kong under the Clockenflap Presents banner, with recent sold-out shows announced for Cigarettes After Sex and Honne, and its partnership with Live Nation comes at a time events in the region are seeing a bloom in activity.
“Over the last 15 years we have grown Clockenflap into a world-class three-day festival,” says Clockenflap co-founder and MD Mike Hill. “By joining forces with the global leaders in entertainment, Live Nation, we can continue to grow the festival and expand our event activities in Hong Kong and regionally.”
“Partnering with Clockenflap further demonstrates that Live Nation is committed to bringing world-class festivals and live entertainment experiences to Hong Kong fans,” adds Live Nation APAC president Roger Field. “Our team is dedicated to supporting Mike, Justin and their team’s exceptional skills and capabilities, and through Live Nation’s global network we will enhance and grow the Clockenflap brand and deliver new and exciting live opportunities to the region.”
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Global Promoters Report 2022: Germany
The Global Promoters Report, a first-of-its-kind resource that highlights the world’s leading promoters and the 40 top markets they operate in, is now available to subscribers of IQ.
In an excerpt from the guide, IQ delves into the biggest touring market in Europe and the third-biggest in the world: Germany.
Germany is the biggest market in Europe and the third-biggest in the world, after the US and Japan. It generated revenues of around €5bn a year in pre-Covid times, though things are significantly tougher since the return of unrestricted shows in spring 2022, as energy prices and economic concerns squeeze sections of the market.
The German promoting business remains muscular and is largely steered by powerful consolidated groups – from local giants CTS Eventim, FKP Scorpio, and DEAG, to Live Nation – though there remain a number of hardworking independents.
Between them, the big groups account for a significant chunk of the nation’s national promoters. CTS Eventim, for instance, holds stakes in FKP Scorpio, Semmel Concerts, DreamHaus, and Peter Rieger Konzertagentur, accounting collectively for recent tours by Rolling Stones, Ed Sheeran, Muse, Måneskin, and others, as well as major festivals including Rock am Ring and Rock im Park and Hurricane/Southside.
Live Nation GSA entered the market in 2015 through its acquisition of Marek Lieberberg Konzertagentur (MLK). It brings all the expected superstar tours you would expect – Bruce
Springsteen, for one, arrives next July for four German stadium shows and another in Austria, while Sting, Lil Nas X, Bryan Adams, and Rosalía did the rounds before Christmas.
Live Nation bulked up further in September, adding longstanding independent Goodlive to its holdings. The festival, booking, and services agency brings events including Munich debutante Superbloom, electronic fest Melt!, and hip-hop and reggae event Splash! in Ferropolis; metal and punk festival Full Force in Löbnitz; and hip-hop event Heroes in Geiselwind.
“The majority of acts – especially those not in the top range or having a buzz right now – are struggling to sell tickets”
The Eventim-affiliated, Hamburg-based FKP Scorpio is, of course, a group in its own right, operating across the Nordics, Austria, Benelux, the UK, and Poland. In Germany, it has lately promoted stadium shows for Sheeran and the Stones, as well as a heavy slate of festivals – from the twin Hurricane and Southside indie events to M’era Luna in Hildesheim, Highfield in Großpösna, and Berlin’s Tempelhof Sounds.
Broadly speaking, festivals and blockbuster headline shows have remained strong in Germany this year. Cities like Berlin, Cologne, and Munich remain busy, affluent markets for live shows, with Hamburg not far behind.
But in a time of economic uncertainty fuelled by the war in Ukraine – combined with a perfect storm of post-Covid factors that have put a premium on material and staffing of all kinds – the softness of the everyday touring market is a major challenge for the German business. While the biggest acts sail on undaunted, all promoters have tales of smaller shows either half-filled or cancelled due to weak demand.
“Looking at this demographically, the younger people are going to shows more in comparison to older people, but in general it’s challenging,” says FKP Scorpio CEO Stephan Thanscheidt.
“Of course, there are some acts that sell all the time, but the majority of acts – especially those not in the top range or having a buzz right now – are struggling to sell tickets. A lot of acts are cancelling at the moment, and not for logistical or other non-transparent reasons. They are just saying, very openly: we can’t make this tour financially work with the ticket sales and the costs we have. They are potentially playing to half the people, with double or triple the cost.”
“You put great acts on, you put great support acts on, you really think about pricing, and still ticket sales are running at 50%”
All promoters have been forced to reckon with a very different market in 2022, even as they have scrambled to honour the previous two years’ worth of Covid-era tickets.
“You put great acts on, you put great support acts on, you really think about pricing, and still ticket sales are running at 50%,” says Scumeck Sabottka, founder of independent Berlin-based Robbie Williams and Rammstein promoter MCT Agentur, who, again, notes that his flagship shows have done very well.
“Maybe next year it gets better, but I think the new normal could easily be 70%, so we need to gauge our costings and offers on that. At the moment, I think we, as promoters, are carrying a lot of pressure on our shoulders.”
German promoters in the DEAG stable include Frankfurt veteran Wizard Promotions – now under the stewardship of Oliver Hoppe, son of legendary founder Ossy – which leans in a rock direction, with Iron Maiden, Def Leppard/Mötley Crüe, and Scorpions all on the schedule for 2023. Hoppe junior, (who in September added the title of DEAG executive vice president, product and innovation to his Wizard responsibilities), shares the mixed outlook, “All in all we managed to entertain over a half a million visitors in the summer, and that was tough work but also an exciting exercise. But it’s a struggle. Nobody knows where inflation, labour shortages, energy costs, and the ongoing pandemic will take us.
“There seems to be a pattern that high-demand shows are still high in demand, but I am very concerned about club shows and emerging artists. I am expecting every day for some grand-scale tour to hit the wall, but so far, from what we are hearing and seeing from the market, that isn’t happening – so I think there is hope.”
“We see strong sales on A+ talent and established festivals but soft ticket sales on everything else”
Also in the DEAG family – along with UK promoter Kilimanjaro Live, whose Stuart Galbraith recently ascended to the group role of executive vice president international touring – are Christian Doll’s Stuttgart-based C2 Concerts and the German arm of I-Motion. The former’s 2022 tours include German dates for the Harlem Globetrotters; the latter, part-acquired in 2019 from US promoter Randy Phillips’s LiveStyle, operates several long-established electronic music festivals including Mayday, Nature One, and Ruhr in Love.
Sina Hall, Semmel Concerts senior project manager, entertainment, says dialogue with agents and other stakeholders is ongoing, as the market adapts to a new set of conditions. “If you look at the situation for promoters or clubs that are not necessarily part of a group of companies, most of them most likely used their money to make it through the pandemic, so they have to be more risk-conscious when making decisions now,” says Hall.
Relatively few promoters have launched during Covid times, for obvious reasons, but one exception is DreamHaus, the CTS-Eventim-backed venture helmed by former Live Nation GSA managing director and COO Matt Schwarz, which landed in early 2021 with one significant advantage over the wider market. “The beauty of being a start-up during Covid times is that we didn’t have to deal with any aftermath of cancelled or multiple-postponed events,” Schwarz noted in IQ’s recent German market report.
In other respects, DreamHaus – which operates the blockbuster Rock am Ring and Rock im Park festivals, as well as Tempelhof Sounds and arena shows this year for Lewis Capaldi, Yungblud, Muse, Måneskin, and others – sounds a familiar note of caution.
“We see strong sales on A+ talent and established festivals but soft ticket sales on everything else,” says Schwarz. “Pushing down the increased costs of touring and local production to the customers via higher ticket prices is not a sustainable solution. The worst is yet to come, so we are more selective in our bookings and the M.O. is ‘less is more’ for now.”
“The worst is yet to come, so we are more selective in our bookings and the M.O. is ‘less is more’ for now”
In its structure, Germany is a unique market. Under its distinctive regionalised system, local promoters with strong local knowledge typically co-promote with national promoters in any given city.
The local promoting business these days also betrays a strong corporate interest. Eventim owns a number of such promoters, including Bavaria’s ARGO Konzerte, Cologne’s Dirk Becker Entertainment, Promoters Group Munich, and Vaddi Concerts in south-west Germany.
Other prominent local operators include DEAG companies ACT (Berlin), River Concerts (Hamburg), Rhein Main Concerts (Frankfurt), Global Concerts and KBK (both Munich) and Handwerker, based in Unna; Hannover Concerts, in the northern German city of the same name; and Undercover, based in Braunschweig and operating in northern Germany and beyond, which was acquired by BMG in 2020 to lay the foundations for a new live music and events unit.
Some local promoters have expanded well beyond their original regions: Semmel Concerts, now a major national player, focused on Bavaria and Eastern Germany when it first launched more than 30 years ago.
These days, its shows span Germany and Austria and its calendar includes three postponed Berlin dates on Elton John’s farewell tour next May, as well as concerts by Hans Zimmer, Céline Dion, John Cale, and others next year.
“It makes the business kind of boring if there are only three or four big corporates fighting each other”
In a globalised era where scale and network clout count more than ever, Germany is hardly the only market in which independent promoters have inexorably been absorbed into international groups. Ben Mitha, managing director of Hamburg-based Karsten Jahnke Konzertdirektion, the persistently independent promoter founded by his grandfather, doesn’t condemn any other company for doing so, though he maintains that the market needs indies for its all-round health.
“I totally understand those people, especially in these last two challenging years, who are seeking shelter under a corporate umbrella,” says Mitha. “At the same time, it makes the business kind of boring if there are only three or four big corporates fighting each other. I think you also need those independents out there doing it for the passion or investing in some niche that might not be interesting for the big companies.”
Karsten Jahnke’s forthcoming shows include a Hamburg appearance for Robbie Williams as well as dates for Avril Lavigne, Arctic Monkeys, Wolf Alice, Elton John, and numerous smaller acts. This year’s successes have included The Cure and 49 nights at Hamburg’s Stadtpark for the Open Air series, with Deep Purple, Sting, Joe Jackson, Michael Kiwanuka, and Olivia Rodrigo among those collectively selling 170,000 tickets.
Among the market’s other nationally focused indies, is Berlin-based booker and national promoter Z|ART, founded in 2014 by Max Wentzler and Hauke Steinhof. Wentzler says there are enthusiastic audiences out there for fresh talent but suggests spiraling costs can easily have a brutal effect on promoters, even when a show is an apparent success.
“We are used to suffering in the live business, but it is haemorrhaging a little bit,” says Wentzler. “Margins have been decimated, basically, and it feels like all the income is being eaten up by security, ticketing, and stagehand companies, and also venues, who have increased their rates in response to energy prices because they are going to get hit with a huge bill.”
“Margins have been decimated, basically, and it feels like all the income is being eaten up”
Other independents include Hamburg’s a.s.s. concerts & promotion. Part of the Mehr-BB Entertainment Company, a.s.s. has operated as a booking agency and tour promoter for German and international rock, pop, folk, jazz, and world music artists since 1979, presenting up to 1,200 concerts a year.
A Covid-era consolidation saw two more Hamburg-based concert promoters, Funke Media and Neuland Concerts, merge to form what the company describes as “one of the largest owner-managed concert agencies in Germany.”
Operating as Neuland Concerts and working as both promoter and agency, Neuland’s current schedule includes dates for German stars Ina Müller and Max Mutzke. In Munich, Astrid Messerschmitt’s United Promoters has a superstar pedigree, having worked shows for Eric Clapton, AC/DC, and others, as well as maintaining a longstanding relationship with legendary veteran Marcel Avram.
Hamburg’s Music Minds Productions has also seen it all and has recently staged shows for 50 Cent at Cologne’s Lanxess Arena and The Police’s Andy Summers in Hamburg and Berlin. Of the market’s standalone festival promoters, Cosmopop is responsible for the 28-year-old Time Warp electronic festival in Mannheim and its international editions in Brazil, Chile, and the US; Opus produces the renowned Jazzopen Stuttgart; while ICS (International Concert Service) controls Wacken Open Air in Schleswig-Holstein, which remains one of the world’s biggest and most-esteemed rock festivals.
“I would wish that in many cases solution-oriented thinking could come forward instead of ego-driven thinking”
The market is competitive and tough, with even the winners licking their wounds after a bruising year. Superbloom managing director Fruzsina Szép – recently profiled in the German editions of Rolling Stone and Vogue as the one and only woman in charge of a German festival – believes more collaboration would benefit all.
“I don’t see any other festivals as competitors,” she says. “I’m really happy to have many great festivals in Germany, in Europe, in the UK. And if we have to tackle the same problems, then why not learn from each other to make it better?
“I’m very much in balance with my own ego, and I would wish that in many cases solution-oriented thinking could come forward instead of ego-driven thinking. People shouldn’t be afraid to say, ‘Well, we had problems, we had challenges.’”
The Global Promoters Report is published in print, digitally, and all content is also available as a year-round resource on the IQ site. The Global Promoters Report includes key summaries of the major promoters working across 40+ markets, unique interviews and editorial on key trends and developments across the global live music business.
To access all content from the current Global Promoters Report, please click here.
Heavenly Sent: Inside Lewis Capaldi’s biggest-ever tour
When Lewis Capaldi played the final UK show of his Divinely Uninspired to a Hellish Extent tour in Aberdeen on 15 March 2020, little did anyone know that 24 hours later, a ban on mass gatherings would be introduced that would curtail any further shows for the best part of two years.
However, during the intervening period, the singer-songwriter worked with his representatives to crank up anticipation of his soon-to-be-released second album (Broken By Desire To Be Heavenly Sent) to such an extent that his return to performing live is smashing records.
Indeed, Capaldi’s return to Aberdeen’s P&J Live Arena on 23 January this year set a new high bar of more than 15,000 tickets sold. “His shows in Scotland for this tour were amazing. He has been very open about his mental health and that anxiety can cripple him sometimes, so it was so powerful to see him enjoying the shows, because hometown shows come with huge pressures,” states promoter Craig Johnston at DF Concerts. “Our Aberdeen show became the highest-selling indoor show in Scotland’s history: it’s an incredible achievement.”
That historic gig was all the more special for production manager Nick Lawrie, who has been on the road with Lewis since he only needed a car to get from gig to gig. “I was asked early on if I could look after him. In fact, the only person who has worked with him longer is Aiden Halliday, his musical director, who started on keyboards,” says Lawrie.
Having taken on driver duties, front of house, monitors, and part-time production manager in smaller venues, Lawrie stepped up to full-time PM as the size of show grew. “On the last tour, we had seven trucks, but we’re up to 14 trucks for the UK and European arenas tour,” says Lawrie, adding that the touring party numbers in the 80s including drivers, etc. “We were six buses for the UK leg – it’s a big tour!”
“The thing about Lewis is we never skipped a moment of building”
Hailing from Aberdeen, Lawrie is delighted that the P&J show broke records. He commends everyone involved on the road for their hard work, while singling out artist manager Ryan Walter and agents Ryan Penty and Alex Hardee for making sure everyone is looked after.
“A lot of the Lewis camp has been around for a long time and that definitely helps,” contends Lawrie. “As for the tour routing, we have a couple of spicy overnights in Europe where we’ll have to advance the rigging package, but thankfully, his manager and agents are mindful about burnout, from Lewis himself right the way down through the crew. The fact they take our welfare so seriously is really appreciated by everyone on the road.”
Examining Capaldi’s tour history hints at an artist who has an impressive work ethic, having put in the long hours around the world playing tiny venues and step by step growing his fanbase at every opportunity.
“The thing about Lewis is we never skipped a moment of building,” says Ryan Penty who represents Capaldi along with Alex Hardee at Wasserman Music. “In London, for example, we started at The Waiting Room [120 capacity], then we played a show at Oslo [350-cap] where there was an 18-plus age restriction, which was a little bit of a hiccup, at the time. But from there we played the Scala [800], then we went straight to Shepherd’s Bush Empire [2,000], then Brixton Academy [4,921], then Wembley Arena [11,500] for two shows on the weekend before the pandemic. And then last year we played two nights at The O2 [18,500]. That sort of sums up the hard work Lewis and the whole team have put in everywhere, just organically growing the audience each time.”
Assisting team Capaldi on the journey are a team of promoters whom he has remained fiercely loyal to. There are no fewer than eight promoters involved in his 12 UK dates, for example. One of those long-term partners is Anna-Sophie Mertens, VP of touring at Live Nation. “I first came across Lewis Capaldi in mid-2016, before any of his music had been officially released,” she says.
“He wandered on, plugged in, looking pretty casual about the whole thing, then started to play… and it was jaw-dropping”
“I was struck by his voice and the simple, yet remarkable, beauty of the songs, so I arranged a meeting with his management to talk about what plans they had in mind for him. Usually [at that stage] artists and managers would be looking for London showcase opportunities, but they wanted the opposite and felt strongly about getting live show experience outside of London and building from north to south. So, I focused on delivering just that, with a support to Seafret in spring 2017. I got to meet Lewis for the first time at Birmingham O2 Institute3 on that tour, and the room just fell silent when he went on – everyone being in absolute awe. It was a sign of great things to come.”
Anton Lockwood at DHP Family tells a similar tale. “I got an email from his manager, sometime in early May 2017, with a link to the song Bruises, which got my interest enough to offer Lewis a slot, at two weeks’ notice, at Dot to Dot Festival,” says Lockwood.
“I saw him for the first time with my colleague Dan Roberts at Hy-Brasil bar in Bristol, where there was a small but decent crowd. He wandered on, plugged in, looking pretty casual about the whole thing, then started to play… and it was jaw-dropping. One of those few times when you turn to the person you’re with and you both just say, ‘Fuck me, this guy is incredible. He’s going to be a superstar!’”
Mertens continues, “Once the music finally got released to the wider world, the headline live shows slotted in perfectly with sold-out shows across the board. The campaign gathered real momentum with Lewis’s songs really connecting with his fans of all ages and his humour and character making him instantly likeable and relatable, too. We found ourselves finishing his first album campaign with two shows at The O2, and they sold out in minutes. I am not sure this has ever been done before on a first album campaign.”
Capaldi’s legendary reputation to elicit laughter from his audience, as well as delivering a powerful set, has seen his popularity blossom. And the demand from fans to witness his shows is not lost on his promoter partners. Lockwood comments, “The thing with Lewis is, what you think he’s like from his social media, he is actually like that – and people respond to that.”
“We’ve no reason to change our promoters, because everyone’s done a great job. Everyone sells all the tickets”
Kilimanjaro Live promoter Steve Tilley agrees. “Lewis’s social media game is second to none,” he states. And Tilley discloses just how deep the loyalty to promoters runs through the Capaldi camp. “Kilimanjaro has been involved in Lewis’s career from the very start, and when Carlo Scarampi was working for us, he was given some parts of the UK when those decisions were made. I got involved after Carlo moved over to Communion, retaining our interest in the artist but working with Communion going forward in collaboration.”
Recalling his initial interaction, Tilley continues, “I saw Lewis supporting Bastille and suggested we put him forward to support Ed Sheeran at the 2019 Leeds and Ipswich gigs, which he subsequently went on to play. We also booked Lewis for the mainstage at Belladrum in 2019, just as he was exploding in career terms. So many people wanted to get into the mainstage arena to see him that we had to close it! We also added Lewis to Kew The Music in 2019 when Jess Glynne had to cancel her slot, and with only about two weeks’ notice, we sold out the show in minutes. It was a crazy time.”
Continuing their collaboration on the current tour, Kilimanjaro and Communion are co-promoting Exeter Westpoint Arena. “It sold out absolutely effortlessly,” reports Tilley. Addressing the decision to stick with the promoting team, everywhere, Penty notes, “We’ve no reason to change our promoters, because everyone’s done a great job. Everyone sells all the tickets. It was split up at the start for a reason, and everybody did their bit to help Lewis get to where he is, so people should be rewarded for that. In the UK & Ireland, we’ve got Futuresound, SJM, Communion, DHP, Kilimanjaro, Live Nation, DF Concerts, and MCD – just about everyone’s got a slice of the tour.
Let it Roll
With the UK leg of the tour wrapping up on that 2 February show in Exeter, Capaldi’s European promoters have been counting the days to welcome him back – many having first witnessed him live at the IFF [International Festival Forum] in 2017.
Michael Šimon, booker and promoter for Selection in Czech Republic, has Capaldi back for just his second headline show in Prague on 17 February, having also booked him for Colours of Ostrava Festival in 2019. “When we first saw him at IFF, his enormous talent was clear to us,” says Šimon. “The first costing for November 2019 was built on a cap of 750 tickets. A few years later, Lewis’s second show in Prague will take place in the biggest arena in the Czech Republic, the [18,000-cap] O2 Arena Prague.”
“He played a lot of shows but never the wrong places, allowing his fanbase to grow continuously”
In Switzerland, Stefan Wyss at Gadget abc Entertainment also recalls Capaldi’s showcase at IFF. “Alex Hardee told us very early about this super-talented guy from Scotland. At IFF we were really impressed – Lewis was sick and had a bad voice, but it was still a massive voice.”
That showcase led to a booking. “His first show in Switzerland was at Openair St. Gallen in 2018 on the tent stage. After that, we sold out – way in advance – his first headline at [the] end of 2018 with 500 tickets in Zürich.”
Turning to Capaldi’s work ethic, Wyss comments, “He played a lot of shows but never the wrong places, allowing his fanbase to grow continuously. And I’m sure his humour and charisma helped a lot. If you look at his live history in Switzerland – [nine shows across four years] – it’s very impressive for a new artist in a small market.”
And Wyss predicts the momentum will keep building. “He will [take] another massive step [this year],” he says. “Hallenstadion in Zürich will be sold out with 13,000 tickets. And he is also headlining Openair St. Gallen. It will be a massive year for Lewis.”
Commenting on Capaldi’s tireless efforts, Selection’s Šimon reveals, “During his first Prague show, we watched Lewis sign hundreds of CDs for hours after the sound check. He did it with a dedication and respect toward each and every fan.”
“The way Lewis engages his fans on social media is just brilliant and different from anyone else”
Other promoters attest to his enthusiasm and drive. Mertens notes, “Lewis and his whole team have a strong work ethic. If it is the right thing to do, they will find the time and way to make it work. In the early days, he was flying back and forth between the US and the UK almost weekly to ensure he was making an impact with the right opportunities.”
One recipient of such an opportunity was Alessandro Ravizza at Vivo Concerti, who promoted Capaldi’s first Italian show in 2017 at Linecheck Festival. “Some of the people knew Bruises, but he captured the attention of every single person in that room,” recalls Ravizza, who has since promoted two headline shows for the Scottish crooner.
“As an Italian promoter, you don’t always have the chance to work with artists on each step of their touring career; but I think Lewis, management, and Ryan/Alex had a long-term vision, and they’ve worked very hard on every territory to grow a loyal, organic fanbase. Also, the way Lewis engages his fans on social media is just brilliant and different from anyone else, and this helps us as promoters a lot when it comes to selling tickets.”
DF’s Johnston concurs. “Lewis has an amazing talent of making everyone, even people who have never met him, feel like they are his best mate, and that is an incredible tool for us when selling tickets.”
As the tour rolls through Europe, Ravizza reports that Vivo Concerti will sell out the 8 March gig at Mediolanum Forum in Milan. “To be honest, Clemente [Zard], Andrea [Ritrovato], and I felt very confident even without listening to any songs of the new album because we knew demand was there,” he says. “After hearing the new songs, it was pretty clear. We’re looking forward to seeing one of the greatest artists of his generation connecting deeply with his people.”
“It was always a perfect execution of putting the right building blocks in place”
Another beneficiary of Capaldi’s artistry is Live Nation Denmark promoter Anna Brink. She says, “In 2018, we sold out Vega Small Hall in Copenhagen, a 450-cap venue. There has been an increasing demand for his shows ever since, and the next hard-ticket show we did was in 2019, which we upgraded from a 1,550-cap venue to a 5,000-cap venue and sold out. It’s amazing for an artist to grow like this in such a short time, especially in a smaller market like Denmark. We’ve now sold out his Royal Arena show on this tour, so we couldn’t be happier.”
Brink adds, “Lewis has a wonderful team around him, and I love working with them, especially his agents, whom I’ve known for a long time, so it’s great to be able to share this success together.”
Mertens comments, “Lewis has a great team, from his band, his tour and production managers and road team who have, for the most part, been there right from the start. A particular mention needs to go to Ryan Walter, Lewis’s manager, who right from the start had a strong vision in place and ensures every step, every release, every artwork, every tour announcement and on-sale is meticulously planned and slotted into Lewis’s career. It was always a perfect execution of putting the right building blocks in place.”
To Tell the Truth I Can’t Believe We Got This Far
While the crew on the road now numbers in excess of 70, the core members have been with Capaldi from early on in his career.
DF Concerts’ Johnston observes, “Most of Lewis’s live crew are Scottish, and we’ve all worked together before on other acts and projects over the years. It’s worth mentioning that King Tut’s gets a lot of credit for bringing through new artists, but all of his crew have done shows in Tut’s as well, so it also brings through the new tour managers, production managers, sound engineers, lighting engineers, backline tech, etc.”
“Effectively, if you ignore the pandemic shutdown, he’s doubled the size of the production in less than a year”
As for the production itself, the back-to-back September 2022 shows at The O2 in London proved to be a rehearsal for the current tour. Nick Lawrie says, “By about the second week, every day was starting to feel the same, which as a production manager is kind of what you want. Now we can concentrate on finding efficiencies and trying to identify areas where we can tighten things up.”
One of the main features of the production is a giant video cube, which raises and lowers to the stage, and at one point, features Capaldi using its roof as a B-stage. “We have a customised automation system, which is pretty complicated, and the show relies on a fair amount of trim – 17 metres on the grid. Some arenas don’t allow that, so it’s something we have to adjust every day, as well as making sure that every seat in the house has good sightlines,” explains Lawrie.
Matthew Bull at All Access Staging reveals the production from last year’s O2 shows was slightly reduced for ease of use, loading in and out. However, with two trucks for staging alone, it’s still an impressive set up.
“They asked us for a rolling stage because of what they wanted to do with video, etc, so we supply that on the top level, as well as the risers on either side for the backline and cameras,” says Bull. And the feedback from the road he reports is all positive, “They’re a really friendly bunch, and the tour seems to be running really smoothly, so it’s great to be involved again with Lewis.”
Neg Earth Lights has been working with Capaldi since his last tour. “This production is much bigger, so Lewis has done very well in terms of scaling things up, because effectively, if you ignore the pandemic shutdown, he’s doubled the size of the production in less than a year,” says Neg Earth’s Sam Ridgway.
“We’re playing some of the biggest arenas in Europe, and I have to say it’s the best tour party I’ve ever worked with”
He adds, “Nick Lawrie is great to work with. Following The O2 shows, we had a production debrief and drew up plans on how to make improvements to the rig to make things more tour friendly.”
Those tweaks included adding a specialist automation company, WI Creations, to the equation. Involving automation of course complicated matters, with sound supplier FE Live completely redesigning its kit as a result.
“It’s fairly tricky audio-wise because of the three-sided cube, so we’ve had to design audio around that,” says FE’s managing director Ryan Mcilravey. “The O2 shows allowed us to trial stuff, and after those shows, we rebuilt our kit into bigger packaging because audio has to be assembled pretty quickly once everything else is loaded in.”
Like many of the suppliers on the tour, FE Live began working with Capaldi in 2018 and have witnessed the speed at which the artist moved to academy-sized shows and then onto even bigger venues.
“Fourteen months later, we’re playing some of the biggest arenas in Europe, and I have to say it’s the best tour party I’ve ever worked with,” says Mcilravey. “Lewis is very loyal to his suppliers and crew, so there are a lot of Scottish people who know each other well, but even so, it’s not that common to have 70-plus people on the road and everyone gets along.”
“It was glaringly obvious that Lewis would be playing arenas in a short space of time”
One of the key crew members is backline expert Paul Gibson, who handles tech for bass and guitars, including Lewis’s. He reveals that when Covid hit, the decision was made to sell all the Kemper equipment, which has now been replaced with Quad Cortex. “The equipment only recently came out, and I think we’re the first large production to use it, so that has been a bit of a challenge,” says Gibson. “It’s controlled by playback, so we had to get a couple of programmes made but that process has been quite exciting.”
Gibson, who has been working with Lewis Capaldi for close to six years, observes that while lots of production departments have stepped up their game, the biggest notable change for him is somewhat easier. “There are a few more stairs for me to climb in the arenas.” He adds, “Even the new suppliers who have been brought in are amazing. Usually, when you’re on the road, little cliques develop, but that hasn’t happened on this tour – we’re just one big family.”
Another happy traveller is Bobby Langley from Global Merch Services, who first encountered Capaldi at The Great Escape in 2018, thanks to a tip from Alex Hardee. “It was glaringly obvious that Lewis would be playing arenas in a short space of time,” states Langley.
“From my side of things, we inherited some incredible creative to work with. Lewis approaches his music as an art, rather than jumping on any bandwagon. There can be a temptation when you’re working with artists who reach arena level to just play it safe when it comes to merch, but if you keep being creative, you get a better result for everyone.”
Headspace
For an emerging superstar – or “Scotland’s Beyoncé,” as Capaldi has jokingly referred to himself – the temptation to cash in can be overwhelming. But there’s no trace of greed among Capaldi’s inner circle, with tickets for the tour priced amazingly low for such a large arena production.
“Lewis doesn’t do any VIPs – there’s no meet and greets, there’s no golden circle, there’s no end-of-the-aisle uplift”
“Lewis doesn’t do any VIPs – there’s no meet and greets, there’s no golden circle, there’s no end-of-the-aisle uplift or anything like that,” says Penty. “He’s always wanted to keep the face value ticket prices affordable, so on the UK dates for this tour, we’re at £45, £55, and £65, which is the top price for the very best seats.
“We don’t want his fans to feel like he’s ripping them off at any point, and I know he just wants to make sure that everybody feels like they’re not excluded from seeing him because of the price.
“Originally, the tickets were going to be even cheaper, but we had to push the price a little because the costs of everything have gone through the roof since this tour was routed two and a half years ago. But in the end, we worked hard to keep ticket prices reasonable. At the end of the day, if the fans come and have a good night, and they’ve had value for money, they’ll come back.”
Having been planned three years ago, the current tour has been a long time in the making, but the results have made the wait worthwhile.
“We first started discussing and planning the tour dates in 2020, but we had to push back our plans several times due to the pandemic, so I am very excited to see the new tour and album campaign finally kicking off,” says Live Nation’s Mertens. “This tour is only the beginning of the many things we have planned on the live side for Lewis Capaldi in 2023 and beyond. I am extremely excited for things to come.”
And hinting at those future plans, Penty says, “He’s confirmed for Electric Picnic, and Reading and Leeds festivals, and we’ve recently announced additional outdoor shows in August for Manchester, Belfast, Chepstow, and Edinburgh at the Royal Highland Centre.
“But the focus now turns to 2024. We’ve got dates held internationally, and we’re looking at bigger venues, especially in the UK where the sales we had for the arena tour were ridiculous.”
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Live Nation details inaugural FairWell festival
Live Nation has unveiled the maiden edition of FairWell festival, taking place in Oregon (US) this July.
Sheryl Crow, Zach Bryan, Willie Nelson & Family, Turnpike Troubadours, Gary Clark Jr. and Mt. Joy will perform at Deschutes County Fairgrounds in the heart of the High Desert in Central Oregon between 21–23 July for the event.
Over 36 artists in the folk, blues, rock, country, and soul spheres will perform across three stages for the three-day festival.
Over 36 artists in the folk, blues, rock, country, and soul spheres will perform across three stages for the three-day festival
According to Live Nation, the festival will celebrate its “native Oregon spirit by bringing fans a range of locally sourced culinary options such as a craft beer hall, an exceptional wine experience with a curated selection, and an array of cuisine from local favourites, as well as unique fan experiences including a local craft market, fairground attractions, and more.”
Morgan Wade, Trampled By Turtles, Yola, Band of Horses, Luke Grimes and Charley Crockett are also slated to perform at FairWell festival, which starts at US$199 for three-day GA tickets.
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Live Nation CFO says ’23 is off to ‘raging start’
Live Nation’s “raging” start to 2023, the Department of Justice’s reported antitrust investigation and lessons learned from the Taylor Swift onsale were detailed in a new interview with the promoting giant’s president/CFO Joe Berchtold.
Speaking yesterday (8 March) at Morgan Stanley’s Technology, Media and Telecom Conference, Berchtold said the company had defied projections with its performance in the opening months of the year.
“’23 is off to a raging start,” he said. “Investors, even more so, thought we were top-ticking in ’22 and it was going to be impossible to match, and that is simply not the case. Ticket sales are up over 20% for concerts this year. Ticketmaster GTV is up 33%, which just shows that all live events, not just concerts, continue to be strong on a global basis.”
Berchtold indicated that one of the more pleasing aspects was that the success was not limited to a small number of big tours.
“The demand is very broad, very deep,” he said. “Last week, Ticketmaster sold over six million tickets, which we’ve done many times before. But what was interesting is that no single artist accounted for over 150,000 tickets. It wasn’t a big onsale week, and that just demonstrates the breadth of the demand. It’s not just the Beyoncés that are selling all of these tickets, we’re seeing very broad demand across all marketplaces – and across all artist levels – continue to be very strong.”
“The high end is continuing to move very strongly and artists are continuing to look to adopt platinum tickets to capture more of the value”
Berchtold, who appeared before a US Senate antitrust panel in January, spurred by the fallout from the presale for Taylor Swift’s Eras tour, explained how the lessons learned helped ensure the subsequent onsale for Beyoncé’s Renaissance World Tour was carried out smoothly.
“First of all, there have been a lot of successful onsales,” he said. “Beyoncé, yes. But Morgan Wallen, Garth Brooks, Madonna and a host of others I’m forgetting that have gone very well. These don’t get the publicity around the ones that go well.
“The Taylor Swift thing, it was our fault in that we said we could do more than ultimately we could deliver, full stop. So that’s on us. When she increased the number of shows in response to the number of Verified Fans to help somewhat counterbalance the supply-demand imbalance, we said that we could pull off still doing that in one day. And the problem was is when we were attacked [by bots] that morning, we had no time to respond and fix that.
“Really, the only difference of substance with the Beyoncé onsale is that we spread it out over more time. We still had bot attempts and other things, but because we had it spread out over a much longer period, we were able to fix that and have a minimal number of shows get impacted because of it.”
In addition, Berchtold said that Ticketmaster had sold more than twice as many market-based platinum tickets than at the same point last year.
“The high end is continuing to move very strongly and artists are continuing to look to adopt platinum tickets to capture more of the value,” he said. “At the same time, artists are continuing to make sure to price the back of the house reasonably to make sure that everybody can afford to get a ticket.”
“We’re just on a journey to continue to educate and have people understand that the artists ultimately need to make money as well”
Berchtold noted that high-profile artists such as Bruce Springsteen speaking out in defence of the dynamic pricing model was a helpful shift.
“I think that every time an artist comes out and publicly says, ‘I’m a great performer and I should capture the value of my performance, not the scalper,’ then that’s helpful for other artists to be comfortable doing so,” he said. “We’re just on a journey to continue to educate and have people understand that the artists ultimately need to make money as well.”
Berchtold also alluded to the reported antitrust investigation into Ticketmaster by the DoJ, stating it could have a “chilling impact on their ability to do settlements ever again”, due to its previous settlements with LN in 2010 and 2019.
“We have a binding agreement with the DOJ as it relates to any perceived deeds in the past, much as you have individual settlements,” he said. “There has never been a situation where the DOJ has come and attempted to retrade a settlement. So a) there are legal questions about whether or not they could retrade a settlement. And b) it would have a chilling impact on their ability to ever do settlements again.
“The first barrier that you got to overcome is the fact we’ve actually had settlements. Two, is it seems to be, pick any random data path you want and it’s, ‘Ticketmaster’s a monopoly, therefore Live Nation-Ticketmaster should be broken up.'”
Berchtold said the assertion that Ticketmaster is a monopoly was not borne out by the facts.
“Market share has declined and more of the money has consistently gone to the venues, as opposed to Ticketmaster,” he said. “Neither of those things happens with a monopoly.
“Live Nation has, over this period, gone from 40 million fans to 120 million fans… And we’ve increased the amount of money we’ve paid to artists by billions of dollars, so we’ve dramatically expanded the marketplace. Again, not hallmarks of a monopoly. Certainly the margins aren’t the hallmark of a monopoly either. Now, we understand that doesn’t mean they’re not going to look and unfortunately, we don’t control the process or the timing of that process.”
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Touring powerhouses back Fair Ticketing Reforms
Live Nation, CAA, UTA, Wasserman Music and WME are among more than 20 music organisations to come out in support of ticketing reforms.
Fans & Artists Insisting on Reforms (FAIR) Ticketing is appealing for policymakers to combat ticket touts by giving artists the right to decide how their tickets can be sold, transferred and resold, and for speculative ticket selling and other deceptive practices used to sell tickets to be made illegal.
In addition, the coalition is demanding the expansion and and stricter enforcement of the 2016 BOTS Act and for resale sites that serve as a “safe haven” for touts – and knowingly sell tickets that are illegally acquired – to be fined.
Finally, it is calling for all-in pricing across all ticketing marketplaces introduced nationally so that fans know the full cost of a ticket plus fees right upfront.
“Bots and scalpers cause chaos in the current onsale process, leaving lots of fans disappointed,” says Michael Rapino, president and CEO of Live Nation, which launched the Fair Ticketing Act last month. “Artists are fiercely protective of their fans and we need to make sure laws help artists control their concert intellectual property and how their tickets are sold. That would be a big step forward in helping fans buy tickets at the prices artists set.”
“FAIR Ticketing reforms give more control over ticketing to the artists so they can get tickets to real fans and prevent unauthorised resellers from charging exponentially more than face value”
Other high-profile supporters of the reforms include The Azoff Company chair and CEO Irving Azoff, Wasserman Music EVP and managing executive Sam Hunt and WME global head of contemporary music Lucy Dickins.
“No one cares more about fans than the artists,” says Azoff. “FAIR Ticketing reforms give more control over ticketing to the artists so they can get tickets to real fans and prevent unauthorised resellers from charging exponentially more than face value. I hope Congress will pass legislation for the good of artists and their fans.”
“Ticketing can be a frustrating and confusing experience for fans, and technological advancements in the space often end up being double-edged swords,” says Hunt. “FAIR Ticketing reforms are a crucial leap toward creating a process that is equitable and transparent to all parties.”
Dickins adds: “There is no doubt that change is needed in the current ticketing ecosystem to protect our clients and their work. The FAIR Ticketing reforms would provide the necessary tools to empower artists and creators who know their fans best while putting an end to deceptive ticketing practices.”
The artist coalitions, management groups, music labels and agencies to have signed on to back the “artist and fan friendly reforms”, include the following:
724 Management
Black Music Action Coalition (BMAC)
Creative Artists Agency (CAA)
Crush Music
The Core Entertainment
Endeavor
Faculty Inc.
Full Stop Management
Gellman Management
Laffitte Management Group
Live Nation Entertainment
Music Artists Coalition (MAC)
REBEL
Red Light Management
Salxco
Songwriters of North America (SONA)
United Talent Agency (UTA)
Universal Music Group
Vector Management
Wasserman Music
Wolfson Entertainment Inc.
WME
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