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Colombian promoters unite to form Breakfast Live

Colombian promoters Breakfast Club and TBL Live have joined forces to create new entertainment company Breakfast Live.

The combined firm plans to stage around 60 events in 2024, including reggae event Entono Soundsystem at Bogotá’s Movistar Arena, featuring The Wailers ft. Julian Marley and Inner Circle on 11 May, and the disco-oriented Boogie Nights W on 15 May, starring Kool and The Gang and The Village People.

Additionally, the inaugural Tomorrowland presents Core Medellín will premiere from 11-12 May.

“At TBL Live, we are fans of the fans, and this union of forces and talents will open a new chapter in the entertainment industry,” says Andrea Valencia, CEO of TBL. “Two Colombian companies synergise to create opportunities for the audiences, bringing them closer to their favourite artists.

“Starting today, we are Breakfast Live, and we are here to host the best stories, moving emotions through music and culture.”

“From now on, we cease to be simply a club, and we become a platform for tireless creators, eternal visionaries, and dream makers”

Breakfast Live will organise live music shows, tours, cultural and family events, and will continue to expand Breakfast Club’s festival portfolio, which includes brands such as La Solar, Ritvales and La Verbena.

“Today, our paths cross to reach new horizons,” adds Carlos Franco, CEO of Breakfast Club. “From now on, we cease to be simply a club, and we become a platform for tireless creators, eternal visionaries, and dream makers that we will bring to reality with the same love with which they were imagined.”

Both Breakfast Club, which was founded in 2013, and TBL Live, launched in 2018 by CLK, will continue to operate other business verticals independently from event promotion.

Breakfast Club currently holds 15 to 20 events per year, with capacities ranging from 5,000 to 40,000, while TBL Live has worked with acts such as Disclosure, Martin Garrix, Morat, Juan Luis Guerra, Juanes, Maluma and Kygo, and has also staged concerts in Spain, Chile, and Ecuador.

 


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Madonna to wrap up tour with Copacabana Beach gig?

Madonna is set to wrap up her Celebration Tour in Brazil with potentially the biggest concert of her career.

The 65-year-old has reportedly lined up a “free and historic” show on Rio de Janeiro’s Copacabana Beach. Visit Rio, the city’s official tourism office, also told Brazilians to “get ready” for the event, which is yet to be officially confirmed.

The New York Daily News reports the May gig, paid for by the Brazilian bank Itaú, would mark the pop icon’s 40 years in music, as well as the bank’s 100th anniversary.

“Yes, it’s true: Madonna is coming to Brazil for a mega show on May 4, which can potentially become the largest show of the Queen of Pop’s four-decade career,” declares Rio-based newspaper O Globo.

Free concerts on Copacabana Beach have routinely attracted in excess of one million people to concerts in the past. The Rolling Stones’ famous 2006 show pulled in an estimated 1.5m fans, while a 1994 New Year’s Eve gig headlined by Rod Stewart reputedly enticed 4.2m.

Madonna’s most well-attended show to date was in front of 131,100 people in Paris, France in 1987

Madonna’s most well-attended show to date was a performance at Parc de Sceaux in Paris, France on 1987’s Who’s That Girl World Tour, which drew 131,100 concertgoers.

The Celebration Tour, which commemorates the 40th anniversary of Madonna’s breakout single Holiday, does not currently include any stops in South America. The tour launched in London last October, with the European leg grossing $77.5 million from 429,000 ticket sales, according to Billboard Boxscore.

The North American leg, which was rescheduled after Madonna was hospitalised with a serious bacterial infection, began in December 2023 and is due to conclude in April with five nights at Palacio de los Deportes in Mexico City.

In January, Madonna and tour promoter Live Nation said they would “vigorously” contest a lawsuit filed by two fans after the singer started a concert at Brooklyn’s Barclays Center more than two hours late.

 


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Colombia set to gain 16,000-capacity arena

Colombia is set to gain a 16,000-capacity multipurpose arena, costing more than US$50.6 million, by 2026.

Arena Primavera (Spring Arena) will be built in the city of Medellín (aka the City of Eternal Spring) – the birthplace of Latin superstars Karol G, J. Balvin, MALUMA and Freid/ Ferxxo.

Built by the 20-year-old CLK Group, the new arena is projected to host 600,000 spectators across 75 events each year.

The Colombian market currently has two key arenas, according to the Global Arena Guide 2023 – Coliseo Live (cap. 24,000) and the Movistar Arena (cap. 12,000), both in Colombia’s capital city, Bogotá.

“We are convinced of the potential of the entertainment market in Medellin and Antioquia, which has become a musical and cultural reference for the country, a must-stop for national and international artists,” says Hernando Sánchez, CLK general manager.

“We are convinced of the potential of the entertainment market in Medellin and Antioquia”

“Therefore, a venue is needed to place the department as a leader in the global arena circuit. Arena Primavera is the answer to this, and we are confident that, with the support of the Sabaneta City Hall, it will be a source of pride for everyone.”

Designed by HOK, the five-story arena will feature a changing LED facade, 22 suites, 20 boxes, and 50 spaces for people with reduced mobility.

The 55,000-square-metre venue will also include 450 parking spaces for cars, bicycle locations and water and energy-saving systems.

The 14-acre site, located in the municipality of Sabaneta and an eight-minute walk from two Metro stations, will also include a new entertainment district, a green corridor, new roads and additional facilities.

Arena Primavera’s owner CLK Group is a consortium of ticketing market leader Tuboleta, Movistar Arena, promoter TBL Live, specialised food company Venues Snacks, and Thunder Production.

 


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Legal action fails over Roger Waters’ Chile gigs

The Jewish community of Chile has failed in an appeal to ban Roger Waters from “using elements or issuing comments that incite hatred and anti-Semitism” at his upcoming Santiago concerts.

The 80-year-old former Pink Floyd bassist, who has repeatedly insisted he is not an antisemite, brings his This Is Not a Drill Tour to Estadio Monumental this weekend for two shows from 25-26 November.

In its appeal, the community – which alleges that Waters has a “history of incitement to anti-Semitic hatred” – also called on promoter DG Medios to carry out “all necessary actions” to prevent the musician from making any “Judeophobic” statements.

“The CJCh [Representative Committee of Jewish Entities in Chile] seeks to prohibit him from using elements or issuing comments that incite hatred and anti-Semitism in his concert,” says Jewish community leader Ariela Agosín, as per Merco Press. “It also seeks that the producer [DG Medios] performs all necessary actions to prevent the… events from occurring.

“We are not interested that he stops singing, but that his concerts are not an incitement to hatred, that he does not call for violence, that he does not use anti-Semitic elements. That’s what our actions will be.”

However, Cooperativa reports that the bid has been ruled inadmissible by Santiago’s Court of Appeals as “no facts have been mentioned that could constitute a violation of the constitutional guarantees”.

The community had followed the lead of the Delegation of Argentine Israeli Associations (DAIA), which recently attempted to prevent Waters from performing in Buenos Aires for “discrimination, advocacy of crime and incitement to collective violence”.

According to Infoebae, while the DAIA failed to have the dates cancelled, it succeeded in gaining a ruling from the Argentine authorities that prohibited Waters from uttering anti-Jewish epithets in his concerts at Estadio River Plate on 21-22 November. The Jerusalem Post reports that Waters subsequently dropped his “antisemitic iconography” from his presentation for the Argentina shows.

“A prosecutor was present at both shows and warned the stadium and the production company that she would be attentive if Waters committed a violation of the law”

“A legal firm denounced, together with an affidavit subscribed by myself, that if he did the same show he had been doing on tour, where he dressed as a Nazi, used the Star of David on the flying pig, and compared Abu Shakleh to Anne Frank, that it would be considered a crime,” said SWC Latin America’s director Dr Ariel Gelbung.

“A prosecutor was present at both shows and warned the stadium and the production company that she would be attentive if Waters committed a violation of the law.

“At the same time, the DAIA, the political representation of the Jewish community in Argentina, managed to get a judge to let Waters know that he had to refrain from making antisemitic comments.”

The tour, which wraps up in Quito, Ecuador on 9 December, was subject to controversy earlier this year in Germany, where Frankfurt City Council and the state of Hesse attempted to block Waters performance at Frankfurt’s Festhalle, citing allegations of “persistent anti-Israel behaviour” from Waters, who it claimed was “considered one of the most widely spread antisemites in the world”.

Waters took legal action, branding the move “unconstitutional”, “without justification, and based upon the false accusation that Roger Waters is antisemitic, which he is not”. A German court subsequently ruled the gig should be allowed to go ahead, concluding that blocking it would infringe upon Waters’ free speech rights.

Almost 40,000 people, including artists Eric Clapton, Brian Eno, Nick Mason, Peter Gabriel and Tom Morello, signed a petition demanding the concerts be allowed to proceed.

A cross-party group of politicians in Germany was also unsuccessful in demanding the cancellation of Waters’ gig in Cologne due to his comments on the war in Ukraine.

 


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Primavera Sound plans first foray into Uruguay

Primavera Sound has announced its first foray into Uruguay with The Cure’s tour of South America.

The British band are due to headline the four upcoming editions of Primavera Sound in Buenos Aires, Argentina (25-26 November), São Paulo, Brazil (2-3 December), Luque, Paraguay (7 December) and Bogotá, Colombia (9-10 December).

In addition, the Robert Smith-fronted band will play three standalone shows in Lima (Peru), Santiago (Chile) and Montevideo (Uruguay) – promoted by Primavera Sound and partners – marking their first shows in South America in a decade.

Primavera’s debut in Uruguay comes as the Barcelona-hailing festival brand strengthens its ties on the continent.

Before the end of the year, the second editions of Primavera Sound Buenos Aires and São Paulo will take place, while Colombia and Paraguay will host debut editions. The latter will be a one-day affair to mark Asunción Spring Day.

Primavera’s debut in Uruguay comes as the Barcelona-hailing festival brand strengthens its ties in Latin America

As previously announced, Primavera will also debut in Peru this month with a series of concerts in Lima ahead of the 2023 Latin American festival run.

The four dates, which will be held under the Road to Primavera Sound banner, start with The Cure at the National Stadium on 22 November, with support from The Twilight Sad and Just Mustard.

Multiespacio Costa 21 will then host Bad Gyal on 1 December, followed by the Pet Shop Boys – who bring their Dreamworld greatest hits show to the venue on 7 December – and Bad Religion on 8 December.

Meanwhile, in Europe, organisers are gearing up to announce the 2024 lineup for the Barcelona edition on 21 November.

The flagship event will return from 30 May – 2 June next year, with its Porto leg to follow from 7–9 June.

Organisers confirmed in July that the Madrid instalment will not take place in 2024 due to “external difficulties… in the final stretch of pre-production,” which led to “one of the most complicated” editions of Primavera Sound ever.

Primavera Sound launched in Barcelona in 2001 and has also run sister events in Los Angeles and Chile in recent years.

 


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The Hives set to break ground with Venezuela gig

The Hives are reportedly set to become the first international rock band to perform in Venezuela for a decade.

The Swedish rockers, who have been managed by ATC Management since 2022, will headline the 6,000-cap Concha Acústica de Bello Monte in Caracas on 7 December after the US eased sanctions against the South American country.

“Because of the sanctions, it became an unviable market,” ATC’s Matthew Greer tells Variety. “We just happened to have the good timing to be the first ones in. Hopefully, The Hives can be part of the journey to re-open the country and have bigger artists go down there.

“Venezuela is such a huge country, but it’s been isolated from the benefits of the music industry boom in Latin America over the last 10 years. It’s definitely overdue for Western artists to go there.”

“We have definite arena ambitions for all over the world and I don’t think there’s anything that should stop us in achieving that”

The Venezuelan date is part of a wider tour of Latin America, which also includes slots at Corona Capital festival in Mexico on 17 November, Peru’s Indie Rock Fest on 25 November and Primavera Sound Brazil on 2 December, as well as stops in Chile, Argentina and Ecuador.

The group, who tour the UK next spring, released their first album in 11 years in August with their sixth LP The Death Of Randy Fitzsimmons and supported Arctic Monkeys for the band’s UK stadium dates. They will also support Foo Fighters on their 2024 US tour.

“There’s such great demand for brilliant live bands – they’re few and far between, so this can keep going much, much further,” adds Greer. “We have definite arena ambitions for all over the world and I don’t think there’s anything that should stop us in achieving that.”

 


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Move Concerts’ Rodriguez talks LatAm challenges

Move Concerts CEO Phil Rodriguez has broken down the ups and downs of the South American touring scene as the company prepares to co-promote next month’s Primavera Sound Buenos Aires.

The LatAm region’s biggest independent promoter is partnering with Primavera alongside PopArt Music and Dale Play Live on the festival, which returns to Parque Sarmiento in the Argentine capital from 25-26 November, headlined by The Cure, Pet Shop Boys, Blur and Beck.

“Argentina at the moment is very challenging,” Rodriguez tells IQ. “This is the first year we are involved with this event, and it will be the second edition in Argentina. Our objective are not only to grow the numbers but as important to deliver on the experience for the punters and consolidate the brand in the market.”

Rodriguez describes the situation in certain countries in the region as “politically delicate”.

“The elections in Argentina [later this month] will be historic in terms of what direction that country will go,” he says. “Right now, the country is essentially broke.”

In general, Rodriguez reports that Move has recorded “more hits than misses”in 2023. Recent successes include a 13,000-cap sellout with Ghost at Buenos Aires’ Movistar Arena on 24 September, and the debut of its Legends in Concert series a week later, when it presented Rod Stewart and Brazilian singer-songwriter Ivete Sangaloat at Allianz Parque, São Paulo, Brazil. The latter show grossed more than US$3 million.

“We sold out – 31,000 tickets sold,” says Rodriguez. “It was a reserved seating configuration at the Allianz Stadium. Rod Stewart and Ivete Sangalo sang two songs together at the end of the show and the chemistry between them was fantastic. It was definitely a case of 1+1=3 and we will definitely repeat this concept.”

“We’re seeing local talent/Latin artists doing stadium tours. This was extremely rare before”

The firm also sold 16,000 tickets for a Bad Bunny “listening party” this week at Puerto Rico’s José Miguel Agrelot Coliseum. Back in March, it teamed with Bunny’s manager Noah Assad to stage Karol G’s history-making Puerto Rican shows, which saw the Colombian star become the first artist ever to sell out three nights at Hiram Bithorn Stadium in San Juan, drawing more than 100,000 fans across the trio of shows.

“She’s incredibly hard-working and focused and has unquestionably taken her career to the next level – stadium level, superstar level,” reflects Rodriguez, who points out the market is especially strong for domestic artists.

“In many cases it is as strong or stronger than most international/Anglo artists,” he adds. “We’re seeing local talent/Latin artists doing stadium tours. This was extremely rare before.”

He continues: “In general, well, we cannot complain, but the audience is being more selective. The ‘after Covid boom’ is tapering off. I feel the increase in the cost of living has impacted the fans to as certain degree. For the [top] acts and top-tier festivals, business is strong. In the case of the smaller acts or festivals, there are more challenges.

“Costs certainly have impacted everybody – artist, promoters and fans. Everything is more expensive. There has also been more difficulty in venue avails as local artists are now selling more than in the past increasing holds on venues. Also, the demand for stadium dates availability is butting heads with football schedules more than ever.”

Move Concerts is headquartered in Miami, Florida, and has offices in Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, Peru and Puerto Rico. Since 2019, the company has operated a joint venture with US entertainment and sports company Loud and Live, whose CEO Nelson Albareda was recently named Billboard Latin Power Player Executive of the Year.

 

PHOTO: GHOST with Fabiano de Queiroz, VP touring MOVE Concerts (Credit: Gabriel Sotelo)

 


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Peru festival cancelled over football clash

A music festival set for Peru’s National Stadium in South America has been cancelled at short notice to make way for two international football matches.

The Lima Music Fest “Wild Edition” was slated for 22 September with a line-up including Caté Tacvba, Wos, Nicki Nicole, Cypress Hill and Bomba Estéreo.

But promoter Kandavu Producciones has now been informed by the Peruvian Institute of Sport (IPD) that – contrary to previous statements – the 53,086-seater venue is needed to host the national side’s upcoming 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers against Brazil (12 September) and Argentina (17 October).

In a statement, the company, which has worked with acts including the Rolling Stones and Roger Waters, among others, says it booked the venue back in February after being told the matches would not be played at the stadium.

“We have been informed that the national soccer team reversed its decision not to use the National Stadium for the qualifiers”

“However, we have been informed that the national soccer team reversed its decision not to use the National Stadium for the qualifiers,” it adds. “The soccer field must be in the best condition to host these sports matches, which is why we are forced to make the painful decision to cancel the Lima Music Fest 2023 event.”

“This unfortunate situation harms us economically, morally and also harms the public who have purchased their tickets for the events that would be held there.”

Kandavu says the headline artists will not be able to perform on a rearranged date due to scheduling issues, compounded by a lack of alternative venues.

“This becomes even more difficult when, in our country, there is a lack of adequate premises for this type of event and that are necessary for the development of the entertainment industry in Peru,” adds the statement. “All these reasons force us to make that unwanted decision.”

 


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Primavera Sound expands footprint in Latin America

Primavera has announced its debut in Peru, with a series of concerts in Lima set for this November ahead of its 2023 Latin American festival run.

The four dates, which will be held under the Road to Primavera Sound banner, will start with The Cure at the National Stadium on 22 November, with support from The Twilight Sad and Just Mustard.

Multiespacio Costa 21 will then host Bad Gyal on 1 December, followed by the Pet Shop Boys – who bring their Dreamworld greatest hits show to the venue on 7 December – and Bad Religion on 8 December.

The shows will act as a precursor for Primavera Sound’s second editions in Buenos Aires, Argentina (25-26 November) and São Paulo, Brazil (2-3 December), as well as the festival’s premiere in Luque, Paraguay (7 December) and Bogotá, Colombia (9-10 December).

The Cure will headline all four editions in their first shows in South America in a decade. The Paraguay edition will be a one-day affair to mark Asunción Spring Day.

Organisers confirmed last month that Primavera Sound Madrid will not take place in 2024

Other acts set to appear on some or all dates include Beck, Blur, Carly Rae Jepsen, The Killers, The Hives, Grimes, Black Midi, Slowdive, Róisín Murphy and Muna.

Organisers confirmed last month that Primavera Sound Madrid will not take place in 2024. The festival debuted in the Spanish capital in June, featuring acts such as Kendrick Lamar, Depeche Mode, Four Tet, Fred Again.., Skrillex, Rosalia, Calvin Harris, Maneskin and St Vincent. However, its first day proper was cancelled for “safety reasons” amid “persistent severe weather”, which impacted pre-production at the 96,000-cap Ciudad de Rock (City of Rock) in Arganda del Rey. There were also complaints from fans about long queues on the other two days of the event.

Explaining their decision not to proceed with a Madrid sequel, organisers cite “external difficulties… in the final stretch of pre-production”, which led to “one of the most complicated” editions of Primavera Sound ever.

In Europe, Primavera Sound’s flagship Barcelona edition will return from 30 May-2 June next year, with its Porto leg to follow from 7-9 June. The festival launched in Barcelona in 2001 and has also run sister events in Los Angeles and Chile in recent years.

Primavera Sound recently gained an internationally recognised stamp of approval demonstrating its commitment to LGBTQ people. The Queer Destinations committed distinction, which is present in 12 countries, helps businesses create safe and more inclusive touristic spaces for the community.

 


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Live Nation acquires Colombia’s Páramo Presenta

Live Nation has expanded its presence in Latin America by acquiring a majority stake in leading Colombian promoter Páramo Presenta.

The deal was executed via Mexico’s Ocesa, in which LN secured a controlling interest in December 2021.

Páramo is best known for its flagship four-day event Estereo Picnic, the biggest music festival in Colombia. Held in Bogotá, its most recent edition in March was headlined by Twenty One Pilots, The Chemical Brothers, Drake and Billie Eilish.

The firm’s festival portfolio also includes Bogotá’s Baum Festival and Knotfest.

“Páramo is fresh off of a record year and their team are some of the best in the business,” says Live Nation president and CEO Michael Rapino. “Colombia is a booming market, and we’re looking forward to working with our new partners at Páramo and longtime partners OCESA as we continue our expansion across Latin America.”

“We are excited to build upon our deep relationship with Live Nation, and welcome Páramo as a partner,” adds Ocesa CEO Alejandro Soberón Kuri. “Together, we will continue to elevate the live entertainment landscape in Latin America, adding Páramo’s top festivals and concert roster to Ocesa’s large scale events in Colombia.”

“Almost 20 years ago, we embarked on this journey because we saw the opportunity to bring more artists we love to Colombia”

All future events will be ticketed through Ocesa’s Colombian ticketing entity Eticket as part of the partnership.

“Almost 20 years ago, we embarked on this journey because we saw the opportunity to bring more artists we love to Colombia,” says Páramo Presenta CEO Gabriel García.

“After being raised in an era with very few shows in the country, and being part of an exponential rise of live music, today we celebrate this historic merge with Live Nation and Ocesa, two of the most important entertainment companies in the world, with the firm conviction that it will propel us to new heights and provide even more unforgettable moments between artists and fans, becoming a key part of the country’s growth and strengthening our market to be increasingly competitive on the global stage of live entertainment.

“All of this was made possible thanks to the public and the sponsors who have believed in and supported our work.”

Live Nation’s Ticketmaster business recently strengthened its foothold in Latin America by launching new operations in Brazil and Peru, adding to its existing operations in Argentina, Mexico and Chile. LN’s C3 Presents and Rock City also took control of Lollapalooza Brazil earlier this year.

 


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