Manchester turns Anti-Rihanna at Old Trafford gig

Rihanna’s Anti world tour rolled into Manchester on Wednesday evening, and while the crowd at the 26,000-capacity Old Trafford cricket ground welcomed the Barbadian singer (pictured) and guest star Drake with open arms – especially those she sent pizza to – other Mancunians weren’t quite so appreciative.

Residents, many living miles from the stadium, vented on Twitter that they could hear the concert clearly  from their living rooms (Karl Bonsworth wrote: “I’m about 10 miles away and can hear the bass from here! That is SOME sound system! #TurnitdownabitRihanna), and one – Jeannette Davidson, who lives in Failsworth, around eight miles away – phoned the Manchester Evening News to complain, telling the paper: “The noise is ridiculous. We are miles away and can still hear the whole thing. The windows are closed, too, and it’s still coming through into the house.

“I’m shocked that it’s this loud so far away. I feel sorry for the people who live right by it. They got a free concert whether they wanted one or not.”

“Noise levels were compliant with the acceptable levels as laid out in the licence provided by the council”

Despite this, a joint statement from the venue and Trafford council said the actual number of complaints was “small in number” and that “noise levels were compliant with the acceptable levels as laid out in the licence provided by the council to allow the concert to go ahead”.

A spokesman for Lancashire County Cricket Club (LCCC), which operates the ground, Lancashire County Cricket Club, adds that the sound may have travelled “due to atmospheric conditions”, but “we do try to mitigate that this as much as possible”.

LCCC communications manager Paul Holliday, who sent the statement to IQ, declined to comment on whether the venue would be implementing any measures to avoid similar sound leakage in future.

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LN Q1: Ticket resale still biggest growth area

Ticketmaster’s biggest-ever month and high-profile tours including Beyoncé’s Formation, Coldplay’s A Head Full of Dreams, Rihanna’s Anti, Drake’s Summer Sixteen and the Guns N’ Roses reunion contributed to double-digital revenue growth for Live Nation Entertainment in the first quarter (Q1) of 2016.

The multinational concert, ticketing, management and sponsorship giant reported a 10 per cent increase in revenue to US$1.2 billion and seven per cent rise in adjusted operating income in its Q1 financial results, released yesterday, although losses were also up: $34 million compared to $24m in Q1 2015.

Ticketmaster was the biggest success story of the three months up to 31 March, increasing its gross transaction value (GTV) by 18 per cent on a constant-currency basis, driven by continued strength in its ticket resale operations: GTV for Ticketmaster/Live Nation-owned secondary-ticketing marketplaces, such as TicketsNow and TicketsExchange in North America and Get Me In! and Seatwave in the UK, was up 43 per cent, reflecting a trend seen in Live Nation’s record-breaking 2015 yearly results.

Ticketmaster sold over 17 million tickets globally in February – its most in a single month ever.

In the concerts business, ticket sales for shows are up 10 per cent, with over 35 million already sold. Live Nation is also promoting 13 per cent more shows than in the same period last year

In the concerts business, ticket sales for shows are up 10 per cent on the last four months of 2015 (up to 29 April), with over 35 million already sold. Live Nation is also promoting 13 per cent more shows than in the same period last year.

“At the same time, we are expanding our global footprint, most recently adding South Africa as the 37th country we promote in and our acquisition of Founders Entertainment, which builds our presence in New York and adds Governors Ball to our global festival portfolio,” said CEO Michael Rapino in the earnings release.

The sponsorship/advertising business reported revenue growth of 13 per cent on a constant-currency basis.

Rapino concluded: “2016 is on track to be another year of growth and record results for the company. All of the leading indicators for our concerts, sponsorship and ticketing businesses are performing ahead of last year and we expect each of the businesses to deliver revenue, AOI and free cashflow growth this year.

“Our results are demonstrating the fundamental strength and growth trajectory of live events and Live Nation’s positioning to deliver long-term profit and cashflow growth.”