Senbla’s Ollie Rosenblatt talks expanded Sony role
Senbla CEO Ollie Rosenblatt has spoken to IQ about his goals for the promoter and his expanded role at parent firm Sony Music Masterworks (SMM).
A division of Sony Music Entertainment, SMM acquired a controlling stake in UK concert promotion and production business Senbla five years ago. Its portfolio also includes producer and promoter RG (Raymond Gubbay) Live; Barcelona-based Proactiv; Roast Productions Backyard Cinema; Holland-based GEA Live and Dubai-based promoter MAC Global.
Just this week, meanwhile, it announced a majority investment in Los Angeles-based experiential production and design company Black Sky Creative, whose recent projects include Stranger Things: The Official Store; AC/DC Official Dive Bar Takeover at the Power Trip Festival; the Olivia Rodrigo Tour Fan Experience; and Britney Spears – The Zone immersive fan experience.
“We’re very powerful in non traditional global business now, not just in terms of artist touring, but right across the board: family entertainment, theatre and experiential, and production,” says Rosenblatt. “We’ve got a really interesting, diverse, mixed portfolio of business now, We’ve done a lot in a few years as we continue to grow and broaden our remit. We also have a large focus on IP within the business, and on trying to create assets using IP.”
Rosenblatt took on the position of SVP Masterworks Live at Sony Music earlier this year, advising SMM president Mark Cavell and the broader Masterworks Live team by helping to identify future acquisitions and partnerships.
“I still run Senbla day-to-day, but my wider role at Sony is really exciting,” he explains. “It’s a more formalised role around what I was dipping my toe in beforehand. It’s really about growing this business globally, structurally, in the right way – driving efficiencies across all our businesses – and making acquisitions that are going to help feed the global landscape. I wanted to grow not only Senbla, but also the global business, and these opportunities came about from the network that I operate in.”
He continues: “We look at [potential acquisitions] in terms of, what can this add to the group? Can it add real value? Is it in a territory we’re not currently in? Or can it boost another area of the business? So it has to fit in, but we’re not only looking at promoters, we are looking right across the board.”
“Sony is unbelievably supportive and entrepreneurial from the top down”
Rosenblatt goes on to hail Sony’s backing as “fantastic”.
“They are unbelievably supportive and entrepreneurial from the top down,” he says. “It’s amazing to see and it’s an incredible place to work; they’ve got this brilliant ethos and this shift in their direction to focusing broader than just recorded music is really exciting. And we’re not slowing down, they want to keep growing and keep building.”
A key area of development for Senbla has been within the films in concert format – most recently with Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, which has its Japanese premiere this month. The production will run at venues across the UK in September and December, with Avatar the Last Airbender also set to tour in early 2025.
“The film in concert business continues to grow massively,” notes Rosenblatt. “We moved into not just promoting them, but owning global licences on certain films, which has enabled us to supercharge those products internationally – utilising all the businesses within Sony to produce more film in concert shows than probably any other company in the whole world.”
London-based Senbla hired John Empson, best known for promoting Eden Sessions and Wilderness, in 2020 to lead the company’s experiential events business. Last year, the firm launched boutique 7,000-cap UK concert series On The Mount at Wasing, which returned to Berkshire in June with headline performances by Sophie Ellis-Bextor, Paolo Nutini, Crowded House, Jungle and Underworld.
“John’s predominantly focused on our outdoor business, and he’s fantastic,” says Rosenblatt. “Wasing is a special site, and we’re excited to continue to build and develop that. Launching something fresh is always hard in the first year, but we made huge strides and this year felt like an even bigger breakthrough.”
“We’re focusing on beautiful, iconic sites with iconic artists”
The unique eco woodland venue – a natural amphitheatre surrounded by trees in the grounds of Wasing, Berkshire – had previously hosted the Glade dance music festival in the mid-late 2000s.
“Artists absolutely love playing there and it’s just not another concert in a greenfield site,” adds Rosenblatt. “We work with the whole estate to try to drive their ethos into what we’re presenting for the audience. And again, we’re going to be back next year for another run of events in this most spectacular outdoor site.”
Senbla has upcoming concerts with the likes of Rickie Lee Jones, The Shires, Tubular Bells Live in Concert, Ron Sexsmith, Boyzlife, Ward Thomas and Wet Wet Wet. Rosenblatt has also worked on special shows by Quincy Jones, Ennio Morricone and Burt Bacharach.
“We’re focusing on beautiful, iconic sites with iconic artists,” he says. “Our touring business, a mix of artists, film in concert, family entertainment and theatrical – all the stuff we’ve always been doing, but more of it. It’s a busy old time at Senbla.”
Rosenblatt also pays tribute to Bacharach following the songwriting legend’s death last year aged 94.
“He was an amazing age, but it didn’t diminish the huge loss I and people around the world felt,” reflects Rosenblatt. “I started promoting him when I was so young and it was never lost on me how incredible it was to work so closely as I did with him, and get to present his music, and it’s still not lost on me to this day. Those opportunities and experiences are so rare because there was no one like him, and I don’t think there ever will be.”
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Sony Music Masterworks links with live producer
Sony Music Masterworks (SMM) has announced a new strategic venture with live entertainment company Roast Productions.
Founded by Bonnie Royal and Michael Stevens, London-based Roast Productions (RP) focuses on producing theatre, concerts and family entertainment events.
Royal and Stevens will continue to lead the company’s day-to-day operations and collaborate with Masterworks on the development of a range of new productions, working in partnership with both Masterworks president Mark Cavell and Ollie Rosenblatt, founder and CEO of SMM-backed UK concert promotion and production company Senbla.
“I’m absolutely delighted to welcome Bonnie and Michael to the Sony Music Masterworks family,” says Mark Cavell, president of Sony Music Masterworks. “Their creativity and expertise will further support our endeavours in securing and creating new quality and original live productions that will captivate and entertain audiences across the globe, and provide first-class content for our other partners to promote and market.”
Recent and current RP shows include Macbeth starring Ralph Fiennes and Indira Varma, 2:22 A Ghost Story and variety show Christmas Actually, curated by Love Actually filmmaker Richard Curtis and produced in partnership with Senbla.
“The strength of its vision and values makes it the ideal partner for us as we develop a diverse body of work in the UK and internationally”
“It is an absolute honour to join Sony Music Masterworks and develop new work and new markets together,” add Royal and Stevens, producers and co-MDs of Roast. “The strength of its vision and values makes it the ideal partner for us as we develop a diverse body of work in the UK and internationally.”
SMM’s agreement with Roast Productions is the latest in a series of strategic partnerships and acquisitions advancing its growth as a multi-faceted worldwide entertainment business operating in more than 30 countries.
A division of Sony Music Entertainment, SMM has acquired stakes in live businesses such as Senbla, Barcelona-based Proactiv Entertainment last year. Other investments by the firm include Backyard Cinema; Holland-based GEA Live; Dubai-based concert promotion, talent management, events and production company MAC Global and Raymond Gubbay Ltd.
Its continued growth comes as another record label, BMG, has signalled that is stepping away from the live music industry after agreeing a deal which will see its two live companies, Undercover and Karo, transferred back to the minority shareholders.
- As part of ILMC 36, Touring Entertainment LIVE will bring together the world’s top show and exhibition producers, rights holders, venue operators and promoters on Friday 1 Match for a dedicated day on the multibillion-dollar sector.
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All change as BMG exits live business
BMG is stepping away from the live music business after agreeing a deal which will see its two live companies, Undercover and Karo, transferred back to the minority shareholders.
The German-headquartered music giant acquired a majority stake in Brunswick-based promoter/event production firm Undercover in October 2020, enabling it to “offer artists an integrated tour promotion and ticketing service” on an opt-in basis, in addition to “releasing recordings and publishing songs”.
BMG and Undercover subsequently formed a strategic alliance with Karo, the company behind the Taubertal Festival, in 2021, and booked out Berlin’s 1,600-seat Theater des Westens every night until the end of 2024 to showcase domestic and international recording artists.
However, in late 2023, BMG CEO Thomas Coesfeld announced the company would be focusing on its “core service areas” of music publishing and recordings moving forward.
“We wish BMG and its team all the best and every success in focusing on its core business”
“Michael Schacke [Undercover founder/owner] and Volker Hirsch [Karo founder/owner] are seasoned entrepreneurs who have built enviable reputations in the live music business,” says BMG chief content officer Dominique Casimir. “We are pleased to have agreed terms which allow them to pursue an independent future and we wish them and their teams the best for the future.”
The new deals will see the two companies return to their previous ownership structure.
“I have looked for and found the best solution for Undercover and our artists,” says Schacke, who launched the company in 1991. “Undercover will remain strong and independent in the future. We wish BMG and its team all the best and every success in focusing on its core business.”
Founded in Tauber Valley in 1996, Taubertal has featured acts including Biffy Clyro, Placebo, Rise Against, Pink, Die Toten Hosen, The National and Skunk Anansie.
“It has been a pleasure working with Michael Schacke and Dominique Casimir and we are pleased yet again to be pursuing an independent course as we near the 30th year of existence of Taubertal in 2026,” adds Hirsch.
The record business has had a complex relationship with its live counterpart down the year
The record business has had a complex relationship with its live counterpart down the years, arguably reaching its zenith with the controversial proliferation of so-called ‘360’ deals with artists in the late 2000s/early 2010s.
More recently, major label Warner Music Group (WMG) crossed the divide to acquire India-based live events and artist management company E-Positive. WMG said that the deal would strengthen its position in the market while allowing its artists “to tap into new expertise in brand partnerships and live events”.
Also in 2023, Warner Music France’s live entertainment and concert production company Décibels Productions secured a majority stake in French talent agency Les Visiteurs du Soir, while Warner Music Poland bought a minority stake in Polish concert and festival promoter Big Idea in 2022.
Meanwhile, Sony Music Masterworks, a division of Sony Music Entertainment (SME), acquired a majority stake in Barcelona-based Proactiv Entertainment last year. Other investments by Sony Music Masterworks include Backyard Cinema; Holland-based GEA Live; Dubai-based concert promotion, talent management, events and production company MAC Global; Raymond Gubbay Ltd and UK concert promotion and production company Senbla.
Elsewhere, Universal Music Group (UMG) launched live music arm U-Live in 2012. French-headquartered media giant Vivendi, which announced the partial spin-off of its UMG stake in 2021, is reportedly working with advisers on potentially offloading parts of its Vivendi Village subsidiary, including See Tickets and 11 festivals such as the UK’s Love Supreme and Kite, as well as Garorock in France.
Sources indicate that Vivendi has concluded its ticketing and festival businesses were not of sufficient scale to compete with the likes of Live Nation and AEG. The Financial Times reported the firm is seeking up to £300 million (€348m) for See Tickets, which it bought for €96m in 2011, with AEG and CTS Eventim said to be among the interested parties.
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Sony Music Masterworks acquires Proactiv stake
Sony Music Masterworks, a division of Sony Music Entertainment (SME), has announced it has acquired a majority stake in Barcelona-based Proactiv Entertainment.
Proactiv, which has sold two million tickets over the last five years, works with talent and brands to stage concerts and festivals, touring and immersive experiences. Founded in 1987 by event production guru Horacio Renna, the firm’s live music shows and events have included performances in Spain by Andrea Bocelli, Malu, Juan Luis Guerra, Dani Martin, Juanes and Maluma.
Current MD Nicolas Renna will continue to lead the company’s day-to-day operations, working closely with Masterworks president Mark Cavell, as well as Sony Music Spain & Portugal President Jose-Maria Barbat on behalf of SME’s Latin Iberia region, to grow the business through an expanded range of events, venues and experiences.
“I feel very proud to continue my father’s legacy, as well as the work I began at Proactiv Entertainment almost 20 years ago, with a partner like Sony Music Entertainment,” says Nicolas Renna. “We share vision and values, and we are firmly committed to creating a global leader in production and promotion of live experiences. With the support of Mark Cavell and the rest of the team across SME’s global network, we will access new territories, grow our portfolio of properties and generate emotions to new audiences.”
“Today starts a new era of success, made even greater by a partner with such great history and world-class capabilities”
Proactiv has also delivered shows based on international IP such as Disney on Ice, Disney Live!, The Lion King, WWE Live, Hamilton, the Harlem Globetrotters, Monster Jam, Harry Potter In Concert, Star Wars In Concert, Walking with Dinosaurs, Marvel Universe Live and Peppa Pigs. It is also the producer behind the touring experiences of Meet Vincent Van Gogh, FC Barcelona Exhibition, and Secret Garden.
“We have built our company to be one of the leaders in our sector and a standard-bearer through our values, professionalism, and hard work,” adds Horacio Renna. “Today starts a new era of success, made even greater by a partner with such great history and world-class capabilities.”
The relationship is the latest in a series of strategic partnerships and agreements advancing Sony Music Masterwork’s growth as a multi-faceted worldwide entertainment business. Investments by Sony Music Masterworks include Backyard Cinema; Holland-based GEA Live; Dubai-based concert promotion, talent management, events and production company MAC Global; Raymond Gubbay Ltd and UK concert promotion and production company Senbla.
“We are thrilled to partner with Nico and Horacio Renna to take Proactiv Entertainment’s business to the next level and help more leading artists and brands connect with fans through high-quality productions globally,” says Sony Music Masterworks president Mark Cavell. “They have a strong vision and key creative relationships around the world. Taken together with Sony Music’s expertise, resources, and broad portfolio of live entertainment properties, we look forward to creating even more innovative live experiences for audiences everywhere.”
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Sony Music backs new family entertainment agency
Sony Music Masterworks has joined forces with leading US family entertainment bookers Stephen Lindsay and Brett Sirota to launch RoadCo Entertainment, a new booking agency specialising in “live family entertainment experiences”.
As RoadCo, Lindsay and Sirota – the co-founders of The Road Company, which brings musicals, plays and special attractions to venues across North America – will work alongside Mark Cavell, president of Sony Music Masterworks, and Scott Farthing, senior vice-president of Masterworks Broadway, to develop and produce live events based on both existing brands/IP and new formats.
The agency will also work with other Sony companies to identify opportunities to develop live shows based on Sony-owned properties.
RoadCo Entertainment is the latest live-industry venture for Sony Music Entertainment, following its acquisition of classical promoter Raymond Gubbay in 2018 and UK concert business Senbla the following year.
Lindsay and Sirota have previously worked with Masterworks, co-producing 2017’s SpongeBob SquarePants: The Broadway Musical, which won a Tony Award. The Road Company’s other shows include the North American tours of Wicked, Moulin Rouge, Beetlejuice and Oklahoma!.
“RoadCo is the perfect venue for us to further grow our entertainment division in the US when the touring business is ready to return”
“We are energised and excited at the opportunity to create a second booking agency with our friends at Sony Music Masterworks, who bring a wealth of expertise, resources, and intellectual property,” say the pair in a joint statement. “The Road Company will continue its focus on Broadway and other theatricals, while RoadCo starts a new chapter for us as we build this expansive new enterprise with Sony Music capable of handling a broad roster of live entertainment properties.”
Mark Cavell, president of Sony Music Masterworks, comments: “We are thrilled to be partnering with Stephen Lindsay and Brett Sirota, whose track record as booking experts is well-known throughout the entertainment industry.
“Since first working together on the co-producing team of the Tony Award-winning SpongeBob musical, we have looked for other opportunities to collaborate. RoadCo is the perfect venue for us to join forces and further grow our entertainment division in the US market when the live touring business is ready to return.”
RoadCo is the third new booking agency, and the first focusing on family entertainment, to launch in the US since the start of the coronavirus pandemic, following TBA Agency and Mint Talent Group.
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Sony Music expands live offering with Senbla stake
Sony Music Masterworks, a division of Sony Music Entertainment, has acquired a majority stake in UK concert promotion and production company, Senbla.
Senbla founder and chief executive Ollie Rosenblatt will continue to run the company, working alongside Sony Masterworks’ chief operating officer Mark Cavell and UK label head Sarah Thwaites.
“The combination of Senbla with Sony Music Masterworks gives us a broader platform to grow opportunities in live performance,” comments the Senbla boss, who says he is “delighted” with the new partnership.
Cavell says the deal is “exactly the right move” for Masterworks, as the Sony Music division continues to build on a “very successful live business”.
“The combination of Senbla with Sony Music Masterworks gives us a broader platform to grow opportunities in live performance”
Sony Music took full control of UK-based show producer Raymond Gubbay Live (RBL) last year, in a deal with Germany’s Deutsche Entertainment AG (DEAG).
According to Cavell, the acquisitions “provide the perfect platform to grow the business in the UK and overseas.”
Founded in 2011, Senbla puts on more than 200 concerts and shows annually across the UK. The promoter has worked with artists such as Joss Stone, Burt Bacharach, Sophie Ellis-Bextor, Soft Cell and Beverley Knight.
Last year, Senbla teamed up with content creation company Wisebuddah to put on Quincy Jones: A Life in Song at the AEG-owned O2 Arena. Senbla has led productions including Star Wars in Concert, the Apollo Nights Summer Series and Electric Soul Festival.
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