Festival heads debate red line for ticket prices
European festival promoters engaged in a heated debate about increasing ticket prices during a panel discussion at the recent ILMC.
Festival Forum: Mud Baths & Outdoor Pursuits saw Holger Jan Schmidt (Go Group/Yourope) moderate a discussion between Melvin Benn (Festival Republic, UK), Mikolaj Ziółkowski (Alter Art, PL), Nika Brunet Milunovic (MetalDays, SI) and Maiju Talvisto (Flow Festival, FI).
With all agreeing that the supply of artists, customers and infrastructure is stable for the 2023 festival season, the panel’s sticking point was how to keep tickets reasonably priced.
“There is almost always a moment in every economy when you feel you are being ripped off”
Apart from one Festival Republic event, the organisers on the panel said that they had increased prices for all of their festivals.
“We are reaching a red line,” warned Ziółkowski, who promotes Open’er, Orange Warsaw, Kraków Live in Poland. “There is almost always a moment in every economy when you feel you are being ripped off.”
“Generally, prices are higher and people are not earning more money. So probably in summer 2023, people won’t be able to buy two or three festival tickets, they’ll only be able to go to one. We have to be so clever to be more interesting and more flavorful than other cultural offerings,” he concluded.
Benn, who promotes Reading, Leeds, Latitude, Wireless and Download among other festivals, argued: “We don’t know where that red line is. We want to keep the ticket prices down but we have to compete and pay artists what they want. At a point, the public either says we’ll buy the ticket or we won’t buy it. That’s the risk; that’s the business we’re in.”
“The dilemma is: what is too expensive?… it’s relative”
Both Ziółkowski and Schmidt aired concerns high ticket prices may render festivals financially inaccessible for a large chunk of the audience.
“It’s important that we are trying to keep prices for festivals and headline shows reasonable because music should not be for rich people. Music should be for all people,” said Ziółkowski.
Schmidt echoed his point: “I would also argue that if we raise the ticket price [too much], we will exclude people who can’t afford the ticket so they will not be able to come to the festival.”
MetalDays’ Milunovic added: “The dilemma is: what is too expensive? It depends on what you get for the money that you pay for the ticket. It’s relative.”
“There’s no such thing as cuddly capitalism. Entertainment costs”
Benn commented that maintaining a top tier line up for festivals such as Reading and Leeds was crucial to their ongoing success, adding that prices would inevitably rise given the ongoing hikes in costs that all organisers are facing. “We have to do what the market demands,” he said. “If ticket prices go up and people don’t come, we’ve lost out – so we have to try and balance it.”
Flow Festival’s Talvisto agreed that it’s a balancing act to keep costs down but pointed out that “there aren’t that many pieces in the puzzle where we can increase the revenue”.
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Poland’s Arena Gliwice tops one million visitors
Poland’s Arena Gliwice is celebrating surpassing one million visitors less than five years after opening.
The 17,178-cap venue, which enjoyed a record year for ticket sales in 2021, opened in May 2018 and reached the visitor milestone last month despite two years of Covid restrictions.
The arena has previously welcomed acts including Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, Evanescence, Nightwish, James Blunt and Slayer.
“We owe this milestone primarily to our team,” sales and marketing director Konrad Kozioł tells IQ. “Arena Gliwice is run by experienced managers who were involved in the organisation of such large-scale events as the 2012 UEFA European Football Championship and the 2016 European Men’s Handball Championship.
“Some members of our team have previously worked for other major arenas across the country, so they were able to bring their industry expertise to this new venue when it opened in 2018. Others were recruited locally and given all the training they needed to be able to put on high-profile events.
“Another major factor was our ongoing cooperation with the municipal authorities in the city of Gliwice, who have been very supportive in helping the venue take off.”
“We also want to use this year to work on organising our own events, which we would be responsible for from start to finish – that’s one of our major goals”
The arena’s 2023 calendar is dominated by sporting events, but will also host concerts by the likes of Bring Me The Horizon, Gojira, Led Zeppelin Symphonic and Andre Rieu.
“We also want to use this year to work on organising our own events, which we would be responsible for from start to finish – that’s one of our major goals,” says Kozioł, who joined the board of the European Arenas Association last autumn.
He lists the venue’s highlights from its first half-decade in business as the 2019 Junior Eurovision Song Contest, the 2022 FIVB Volleyball World Championships and the 2021 Poland vs Israel basketball European qualifier, which broke the Polish national basketball team’s attendance record, with more than 12,000 tickets sold.
“Something that’s unique about Arena Gliwice is the comprehensive support we offer all event organisers,” adds Kozioł. “Customer experience is also one of our main priorities – we always do our best to ensure that our guests feel taken care of from the moment they arrive. Finally, we’re the only venue of this kind in Poland to manage F&B operations ourselves. This allows us to tailor the menu to correspond to the atmosphere of every event – for Andre Rieu’s concert, for instance, we served cheesecake instead of the usual hot dogs.”
“In 2021, the number of people who participated in events at Arena Gliwice was 66% higher than in 2019 – our best pre-Covid year”
Kozioł also shares his pride at the way the arena’s management handled the Covid-19 pandemic and speaks of the biggest challenges moving forward.
“Following the announcement of the first lockdown in mid-March, it took us less than a month to set up a professional television studio from which we streamed over 1,000 hours of content between April and November,” he says. “The cost of electricity in Poland has already gone up by 100% and we have to be prepared for further price rises, but it’s really hard to predict how the economic situation might develop given the ongoing war in Ukraine.
“Another challenge we’re facing has to do with bookings – we have become a recognisable venue on the Polish market and our calendar is filling up by the day, so it gets harder and harder to fit more events in.”
Wrapping up, Kozioł says the country’s live music sector is currently witnessing an “explosion” of events on the market, which can be construed as both a positive and a negative.
“Customers have more choice than ever before, but with their financial resources under strain, they can’t attend them all, which forces them to prioritise,” he adds. “This makes it harder to sell out and creates the need to maximise marketing efforts. At the same time, ticket sales are at an all-time high. In 2021, the number of people who participated in events at Arena Gliwice was 66% higher than in 2019 – our best pre-Covid year.”
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Major fests confirm new blockbuster acts for 2023
Major festivals including Boardmasters (UK), MEO Kalorama (PT), Fest Festival (PL), NOS Alive (PT) and Orange Warsaw (PL) have revealed new names for their 2023 editions.
Boardmasters music and surfing festival in the UK has unveiled the first wave of more than 30 acts, including two headline performers, for next year.
Former Oasis frontman Liam Gallagher and Florence + The Machine will headline the festival in Newquay, Cornwall, on 9–13 August 2023.
Other acts announced for the Superstruct-backed event include Little Simz, Four Tet, Example, Dylan, Bob Vylan, Cassyette, Kid Kapichi, Jockstrap, Connie Constance, Gwenno, Katachafire, Gretel Hänlyn and Wunderhorse.
The festival, which usually attracts about 50,000 people, is held at Watergate Bay and Fistral beach.
Liam Gallagher and Florence + The Machine will headline Boardmasters
Organisers said “tens of thousands” had already signed up for pre-sale tickets before the general release on Friday (25 November).
Elsewhere, Portugal’s MEO Kalorama is set to return to Bela Vista Park in Lisbon between 31 August and 12 September, after a successful debut.
The second edition of the 40,000-capacity event will feature acts including Arcade Fire, Florence and the Machine, Foals and Metronomy.
The Blaze, Amyl and the Sniffers are also slated to perform at the event, which is promoted by House of Fun and Last Tour – the cultural company behind events such as Bilbao BBK Live, Azkena Rock Festival, Cala Mijas and BIME Live.
Elsewhere in Portugal’s festival market, NOS Alive‘s first artist confirmation is American rock duo Black Keys.
The second edition of MEO Kalorama will feature Arcade Fire, Florence and the Machine, Foals and Metronomy
The 15th edition is due to take place between 6–8 July 2023 held in the Algés riverside, close to Lisbon.
This year’s NOS Alive, promoted as usual by Everything Is New, welcomed 210,000 people over four days and 165 artists across seven stages.
Poland’s 2023 festival summer is also shaping up, with Fest Festival and Orange Warsaw detailing their forthcoming editions.
The fourth annual Fest Festival will see performances from the likes of The Chemical Brothers, 070 Shake, Gibbs, Oki, Oliver Heldens, Rubens, The Stickmen Project, Two Feet and Yungblud.
The 50,000-capacity event will once again return to Chorzów’s Silesia Park – the largest park in Europe – between 9 and 13 August, 2023. Fest Festival is promoted by Follow The Step, which also stages On Air festival in Warsaw.
Poland’s capital will also see the return of Orange Warsaw next year, taking place at the Horsetrack Warsaw-Służewiec between 2 and 3 June.
English superstar Sam Smith has been confirmed for the 14th edition of the 10,000-capacity event, promoted by Alter Art (Open’er, Krakow Live).
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Festival Focus: More huge names confirmed for ’23
Another spate of European festivals have announced headliners and main stage artists for their 2023 editions.
Dutch festival Pinkpop has confirmed that British pop star Robbie Williams will return to Landgraaf for the first time since 2015.
He will close out Saturday night at the festival – which is said to be “the oldest and longest-running annual dedicated pop and rock music festival in the world” – while P!nk will top the bill on the Friday night. English indie rock band Editors and Dutch electronic band Goldband are also on the 2023 bill.
The 52nd edition of Pinkpop, promoted by Live Nation-owned Mojo Concerts, will take place between 16–18 June, next year.
Williams is also set to perform at the UK’s Isle of Wight festival, alongside Pulp, George Ezra and Chemical Brothers. Sugarbabes, Sophie Ellis Bextor, Anne-Marie, Gabrielle, Blondie and Ella Henderson have also been confirmed for the event, which runs between 15–18 June in Seaclose Park, Newport.
The festival is promoted by Solo Agency’s John Giddings and Live Nation.
Lowlands: “The oldest and longest-running annual dedicated pop and rock music festival in the world”
Elsewhere in the UK, DF Concert’s TRNSMT festival will see Pulp, George Ezra, Niall Horan, Sam Fender, Kasabian, The 1975 and Royal Blood perform at Glasgow Green in Scotland between 7–9 July next year.
Further South in the UK, Latitude will bring Pulp, Paulo Nutini, George Ezra, The Kooks, Metronomy to Henham Park, Suffolk, between 20–23 July.
In Poland, promoter Alter Art has announced Arctic Monkeys for the 2023 edition of Open’er, slated for 28 June to 1 July at Gdynia-Kosakowo in Gdynia. The English rockstars will close the Orange Main Stage on the Friday night, in support of their new album The Car.
And in neighbouring Czech Republic, Colours of Ostrava have confirmed US pop rock band One Republic as the first headliner for next year’s instalment, set for 19–22 July at Dolní Vítkovice in Ostrava.
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The New Bosses 2022: Maciej Korczak, Follow The Step
The 15th edition of IQ Magazine’s New Bosses was published in IQ 114 this month, revealing 20 of the most promising 30-and-unders in the international live music business.
To get to know this year’s cohort a little better, IQ conducted interviews with each one of 2022’s New Bosses, discovering their greatest inspirations and pinpointing the reasons for their success.
Catch up on the previous New Bosess 2022 interview with Lewis Wilde, head of music partnerships at DICE. The series continues with Maciej Korczak, co-founder at Follow The Step in Poland.
In 2015, at the age of 23, he opened concert agency called Follow The Step (FTS) with his business partner Marcin Szymanowski. The first concerts organised by the agency included Post Malone, The Internet, Anderson .Paak, Mount Kimbie, Rhye, and Autechre.
In 2016, FTS opened a club called Smolna, which quickly became the most popular techno club in Poland, hosting DJ’s such as Tale of Us, Kiasmos, Jeff Mills, Amelie Lens, Dubfire, Charlotte de Witte, Laurent Garnier, Miss Kittin, Sam Paganini, Fatboy Slim, and many more.
Nowadays, FTS owns two music venues – Smolna and Praga Centrum – and seven festivals (World Wide Warsaw, Made in WWA, Summer Contrast, FEST Festival, On Air Festival, and Undercity). Artists such as Jorja Smith, Tame Impala, Jamie XX, The Chainsmokers, and Stromae have headlined at FTS’s events in 2022.
FTS also organises over 100 international headline shows per year, including Louis Tomlinson, Alan Walker, Avril Lavigne, Melody Gardot, Hardwell, Robert Glasper, Boris Brejcha, Rise Against, Denzel Curry, and is constantly growing and developing.
Your career, so far, has been pretty remarkable. Tell us a bit about how you managed to book Steve Aoki and Kygo while you were still a teenager?
Determination is the key! At the age of 19, I’d already organised plenty of high-school events. I’ve booked overseas electronic artists for them like cyberpunkers or Tiga. My goal back then was to work for one of the most popular venues in Warsaw at the time, and I was told by the manager of the venue that in order to do that I have to bring them a big overseas act, so that’s what I did – three weeks later, we’d done the Steve Aoki show thanks to my booking, and it was a sold-out event.
“We decided to open a techno club there called Smolna…we like to call it a Polish Berghain”
There were already some big promoters in Poland when you launched Follow The Step. What was your strategy to make the business a success?
Passion! The whole Follow The Step team honestly love what we’re doing and we are always hungry for more. Our company doesn’t have a certain strategy, we’re just simply doing the best we can, and we’re always up for new challenges.
Follow The Step was officially launched in 2017 as a booking agency for international DJs for Polish venues and clubs. From the very start, I wanted to focus on the booking, so I was lucky that I met co-owner of the company – Marcin Szymanowski – who is focusing on the business side of our company.
At first, we wanted to book club nights and then we became interested in small gigs. After a while, we started looking for a place for our office and this way we’ve found a dumpy basement in the centre of Warsaw, which we restored and [then] decided to open a techno club there called Smolna. We like to call it a Polish Berghain, and it was our springboard to establishing a concert agency in Poland, talking to agents, and networking.
Nowadays, being at IFF [the International Festival Forum] I’m talking to agents about artists that could easily fill up Polish arenas but also we’re entering new markets like Czech Republic and Bulgaria.
“I’d make [the industry] more gender balanced as I think it’s still something that the industry must work on”
What has been your biggest career highlight to date?
It was definitely organising a charity concert to support Ukraine when the war started, together with television station TVN, in less than two weeks. We sold out the show for 10,000 people and raised over $2m (€2m).
As a new boss, what one thing would you change to make the live entertainment industry a better place?
I’d make it more gender balanced as I think it’s still something that the industry must work on. That’s why in Follow The Step most of the employees are women, and we very much believe that they can work within every sector of music industry from production and sponsoring to media and marketing.
For a young company, the pandemic must have been tough. Can you tell us a bit about your Covid experience?
It was a tough time for sure and full of uncertainty about what was going to happen next, but we’ve used this time the best way we could. We were doing everything we could to maintain the company, and our main goal was not to fire a single person as our employees are the most important to us; we know that we can’t do anything without our team. We were lucky that we got support from our government, so it also allowed us to do that.
We were also the first agency in Poland that managed to do gigs and a festival during Covid and managed to give people some entertainment in a safe way. We also decided to take a risk and organise FEST Festival for 30,000 vaccinated people, as one of very few festivals in Europe in 2021.
“I never thought that I’ll end up having seven festivals, headline shows, and events, or over 70 people in our agency”
Setting up seven festivals in less than six years is very impressive. What tips would you give to other people who are looking to launch new events?
Try and don’t give up! Also don’t be scared to dream. When I was first starting, I never thought that I’ll end up having seven festivals, headline shows, and events, or over 70 people in our agency. But If you’re passionate enough and [you don’t mind sacrificing] most of your personal life, then it’s definitely something worth trying. But please remember that music and festivals are addictive, so you have to remember your [loved ones] and don’t give all of your time to work, as it’s easy to forget when you’re always hungry for more.
Having a good bond with agents and artist managers is crucial. How did you maintain contact with people during the pandemic, and do you feel that the working relationship between agents and promoters has changed over the past couple of years?
We’ve been in touch with agents and artist managers mainly through Zoom meetings. I think that what has changed during the pandemic is that people in the music industry started to be nicer to each other and actually care how the other person is feeling and checking on each other – I guess this time showed us that we’re all just humans at the end of the day.
“I see Follow The Step being one of the leading concert agencies in Eastern Europe”
What one thing would you like artists to learn about coming to perform in Poland?
That every single person that came to their concert is there for a reason. We have one of the most dedicated music audiences in Poland. And probably the craziest.
Where do you see yourself in five years’ time?
I see [myself and also] Follow The Step being one of the leading concert agencies in Eastern Europe. I really want us to expand to other markets. It would be perfect to be able to offer artists a whole tour in this part of Europe and not just Poland. This is our goal now!
IQ 114 is available now. To subscribe, and get access to our latest issue and all of our content, click here.
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The New Bosses: Introducing the class of 2022
The 15th edition of IQ Magazine‘s New Bosses can now be revealed, highlighting 20 of the most promising 30-and-unders in the international live music business.
New Bosses 2022 inspired the most engaged voting process to date, with hundreds of people taking the time to submit nominations. The final 20 comprises executives working across agencies, promoters, ticketing companies, charities and venues in 12 different countries.
In no particular order, the New Bosses 2022 are:
Benji Fritzenschaft, DreamHaus (DE).
Clara Cullen, Music Venue Trust (UK).
Dan Rais, CAA (CO).
David Nguyen, Rock The People (CZ).
Daytona Häusermann, Gadget ABC (CH).
Grant Hall, ASM Global (US).
James Craigie, Goldenvoice (UK).
Kathryn Dryburgh, ATC Live (UK).
Resi Scheurmann, Konzertbüro Schoneberg (DE).
Seny Kassaye, Fort Agency (CA).
Agustina Cabo, Move Concerts (AR).
Sönke Schal, Karsten Janke Konzertdirektion (DE).
Steel Hanf, Proxy Agency (US).
Steff James, Live Nation (UK).
Stella Scocco, Södra Teatern (SE).
Vegard Storaas, Live Nation (NO).
Lewis Wilde, DICE (UK).
Zoe Williamson, UTA (US).
Jonathan Hou, Live Nation (US).
Maciej Korczak, Follow The Step (PL).
Subscribers can read shortened profiles of each of the 2022 New Bosses in issue 114 of IQ Magazine, which is out now. Full-length Q&As will appear on IQ in the coming days and weeks.
Click here to subscribe to IQ for just £7.99 a month – or check out what you’re missing out on with the limited preview below:
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Roger Waters’ Poland gigs off amid Ukraine row
Two scheduled concerts in Poland by Roger Waters have been cancelled amid controversy over the Pink Floyd co-founder’s comments on the war in Ukraine.
The 79-year-old, who was due to perform at Tauron Arena in Krakow in April 2023 as part of his This Is Not a Drill Tour, wrote an open letter to Ukraine’s first lady Olena Zelenska, in which he claimed “extreme nationalists” had “set your country on the path to this disastrous war”. He also criticised the west for supplying Ukraine with weapons.
The letter prompted an angry response, with Krakow city councillor Łukasz Wantuch urging people to boycott the gigs and the city council due to vote this week on a resolution to declare Waters persona non grata.
Promoter Live Nation Poland confirmed the shows will now no longer go ahead but did not give a reason for the cancellation. A spokesman for the venue declined to comment.
“I have been looking forward to sharing my message of love with the people of Poland”
Responding to an article in the Guardian, Waters denied claims his team had made the decision to cancel.
“Your papers are wrong in their assertions that either, I or my management, has cancelled my forthcoming shows in Krakow, we haven’t,” he says in a Facebook post. “It is true that a town councillor in Krakow, a Mr Łukasz Wantuch has threatened to hold a meeting asking the council to declare me ‘Persona non grata’ because of my public efforts to encourage all involved in the disastrous war in Ukraine, especially the governments of the USA and Russia, to work towards a negotiated peace.
“If Mr Łukasz Wantuch achieves his aim, and my forthcoming concerts in Krakow are cancelled, it will be a sad loss for me, because I have been looking forward to sharing my message of love with the people of Poland… His draconian censoring of my work will deny them the opportunity to make up their own minds.”
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Poland’s Follow the Step on launching On Air festival
Follow the Step co-founder Maciej Korczak has spoken to IQ about the challenging but rewarding launch of new festival On Air.
The inaugural edition took place last weekend in Warsaw and was the Polish promoter’s first outdoor festival in the capital city.
The two-day event debuted at the 70,000-capacity Bemowo Airport, which has hosted concerts from the likes of Madonna and Metallica, as well as three editions of Sonisphere festival between 2010 and 2012.
On Air, meanwhile, saw artists including Tame Impala, Jorja Smith, Celeste and The Kooks perform across two stages at the airport.
“Our main goal is to book A-list artists,” says Korczak. “We are really proud of the line-up – hosting such artists at the first edition of the festival is a dream.
“On Air was already hailed by people and the media as one of the best festivals in Warsaw and Poland.”
“We are really proud of the line-up – hosting such artists at the first edition of the festival is a dream”
Even with a star-studded lineup, a myriad of external issues meant that Follow the Step didn’t sell as many tickets as it hoped for the inaugural edition.
High inflation and a saturated market were key obstacles for the festival, alongside a less-than-ideal weather forecast for the weekend.
“Launching a new festival is never easy, especially in the post-pandemic times,” says Korczak. “The biggest challenge that we faced was that On Air took place at the very end of the festival season and a lot of fans already used their festival budget.
“Normally it wouldn’t be a problem as it’s actually a good time for organising a festival in the capital – people are coming back from holidays and students to the universities – but this year because of the high inflation and because of many festivals and events being moved to this summer due to the pandemic, it meant that tickets were harder to sell this year.
“We also had to allocate a significant portion of the budget to raise awareness among people about the existence of the festival and break through the noise about other summer events that already had their fanbase.”
With that said, Follow the Step has already announced the second edition of the festival, set to take place on 8 and 9 September 2023 at the same location.
In addition to On Air, the Warsaw-based festival and concert agency promoter organises marquee event Fest Festival, based in Chorzów, which this year marked a record attendance.
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Poland’s Fest Festival draws 50,000 to third edition
Fest Festival welcomed 50,000 attendees over four days for this year’s edition, marking a record attendance for the Polish festival.
The third annual event, promoted by Warsaw-based promoter Follow The Step, took place between 10 and 13 August at Chorzów’s Silesia Park – the largest park in Europe.
The Chainsmokers, Rudimental, Nothing But Thieves, Rüfüs du Sol, James Arthur and Jungle were among the 200 artists performing across 11 stages during Fest.
“The third edition of Fest Festival came to an end and was hailed by festivalgoers and media as the most beautiful festival this summer in Poland,” says a spokesperson from Follow The Step.
The Chainsmokers, Rudimental and Nothing But Thieves were among the 200 artists performing across 11 stages
“During the whole festival, we gathered almost 50,000 attendees – a record attendance for Fest – and the festival ran continuously for 120 hours.
“Fest Festival means way more than an exceptional music celebration. The festival town plays a special role that encourages festivalgoers to take the most from its attractions such as artistic performances, social campaigns and workshops.”
Unlike the vast majority of European festivals, Fest Festival was able to go ahead last year, with 35,000 Covid-19-vaccinated concertgoers. The 2021 edition was the largest event to take place in Poland that year.
Follow The Step continues its festival season with On Air, slated to take place on 9 and 10 September in Warsaw.
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Warner Music buys into Polish promoter Big Idea
Warner Music Poland has bought a minority stake in Big Idea, one of Poland’s leading concert and festival promoters.
Under the terms of the deal, the two companies will launch new festivals and expand the line-ups of Big Idea’s existing Yass! festival and other events.
They will also collaborate to expand Big Idea’s merch business and booking operations, and develop its NFT-powered Live Entertainment Ecosystem.
Founded in 2012 by veteran Polish music executive Sławek Ostruszka, Big Idea built a name for itself by bringing major US hip-hop artists to Polish audiences and fostering the growth of homegrown artists in the genre.
The promoter has organised shows with up to 20,000 fans for artists including Anderson .Paak, Denzel Curry, Ghostemane, Lauryn Hill, Machine Gun Kelly, Mobb Deep, Playboi Carti, The Game and Trippie Redd.
Big Idea staged the first trap music festival in Poland, Clout festival in Warsaw, which brought international performers such as City Morgue, Ferg, Fivio Foreign, Jack Harlow, Key Glock, SoFaygo and UnoTheActivist and White Widow to the region.
“We’re going to pour rocket fuel on the success of individual artists and grow the wider local hip-hop scene”
Polish hip-hop group White Widow are an early beneficiary of the partnership, having signed a record deal with Warner Music Poland and a management contract with Big Idea.
Big Idea also has a growing artist and booking management side of the business that works with the likes of Noon, Rizi Beizeti, Vkie, Young Multi and Yung Adisz.
The deal will see some two dozen acts either sign directly with, or be distributed by, Warner Music Poland.
Adrian Ciepichał, MD of Warner Music Poland, says: “We’re always looking to do more for our artists and this deal will enable us to do just that. We’re going to collaborate with Big Idea to pour rocket fuel on the success of individual artists and grow the wider local hip-hop scene. I’m looking forward to welcoming new artists to our local roster and helping them find a wider audience in Poland and internationally.”
Sławek Ostruszka, CEO and founder of Big Idea, adds “This partnership will help accelerate the growth of Big Idea and benefit the whole hip-hop community in Poland. Fans will be able to enjoy even bigger, better shows and more artists will get the opportunity to make a huge impact with fans. As live music emerges from the shadow of the pandemic, this feels like the right time to go for growth.”
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