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Veteran touring specialist Rich Schaefer has been officially promoted to president of global touring at AEG Presents. Schaefer takes over the role from Gary Gersh, who announced he would be stepping down last month. In his new role, Schaefer will oversee all aspects of the concert promotion company’s worldwide touring deals, operations and talent relations. […]
Whether he’s building live-music clubs and theaters or renovating them, Rick Mueller abides by a simple rule for his complex job: “The best venues bring out the best in the fans and the best in the band.”
As AEG Presents president of North America, Mueller, 50, oversees all of the rooms in the territory for which the company is the primary talent buyer.
His purview includes more than 100 U.S. properties — mostly theaters and clubs managed by one of 13 regional offices that report to him. Among them are those owned and operated by The Bowery Presents, a collection of destination plays such as Brooklyn Steel and Forest Hills Stadium in New York and a series of newly opened clubs in Boston, Denver, Atlanta and Cincinnati. He’s also heavily involved in business development, overseeing construction of new projects that AEG Presents will exclusively book, like Nashville Yards, as well as bringing existing venues like the Santa Barbara (Calif.) Bowl under AEG Presents management.
“We’re building AEG as [a collection] of more regionally run businesses,” he explains. “That allows us to be more responsive to those markets — what’s happening musically there and what the customer wants.”
Mueller, who is originally from the San Francisco Bay area and now lives in Los Angeles, contends that strategy gives AEG Presents a “distinct advantage” over its main competition, Live Nation, where he briefly worked. “Live Nation is a very centralized company,” he says. “They buy their talent centrally. They make their concession deals centrally. They probably have their alcohol sponsored, and it’s driving whatever they serve in their venues. I don’t know that they give a lot of specialized thought in any given city to what is a great experience.”
You have opened a lot of smaller clubs. How do you identify markets that need another venue?
Since the pandemic, we’ve opened The Eastern in Atlanta, Roadrunner in Boston and the MegaCorp Pavilion in Cincinnati. They’re all doing really well, and we want to continue to add a lot more venues to that list. We’ve got Nashville Yards, which will open up at the end of 2024 or early 2025. We’ve got a venue in Raleigh [N.C.] that will open up in the first half of 2025. These are brand-new builds. As for what markets we look at — any place there’s opportunity. Sometimes that’s a function of a certain capacity room that doesn’t exist in a marketplace.
What size venues are your sweet spot?
We’re focusing on locations with capacities of 1,500 to 5,000. There’s more and more bands that are coming out of this frictionless distribution of music. They are able to sell tickets, so there’s a huge demand for these size venues. The bands can’t find enough dates, and we want to make sure that we service that opportunity.
You’ve opened a club called Racket in Manhattan, a market where you already have a number of small clubs. Why open another?
New York is a market where we’ve invested in very small spaces because it’s a very important developmental market for our relationships and conversations with bands. We feel that finding any venue in Manhattan — in this case, we renovated the old Highline Ballroom —is an opportunity we’re going to look at every single time.
What niche will Racket fill?
Look, in New York there’s a variety of bands that could sell more tickets than probably any other market in the United States. It’s also a first statement-type play. These smaller rooms are where we do a lot of, call it R&D. We build relationships with young bands, and then we want them on a path to play our whole venue portfolio. We hope that carries all the way through to our bigger venues like Forest Hills. It’s a true vertical pipeline where we can service an artist’s needs at any level.
Are small music clubs the new A&R for artists?
I think the internet is A&R for artists. In this day of social media and frictionless distribution, artists can be their own advocates. As far as building a live base, New York is a very important market to start relationships with artists early. In key markets that can handle a lot of shows, we’re going to continue to invest in that.
A lot of live-industry innovations start at the club level. What are your priorities?
What you’re seeing across the board in the industry is the desire for more premium offerings. There’s a huge group of people out there who are willing to pay a little bit more whether it’s for a better seat, a better experience, a better drink, better dining. We’re looking at that, but we’re also tailoring our offerings so that there’s an experience for everybody. We want to make sure that we offer a range of experiences — from cheaper to high-end.
Billboard recently reported that Gen Z concertgoers aren’t big consumers of alcohol. How do you adapt?
We’re keeping a very close eye on that. It’s a big part of the business, and it certainly hasn’t dropped off a cliff. People are still drinking, and we’re doing more offerings, whether it’s nonalcoholic or specialty cocktails. Almost on a daily basis, we look at where our numbers are and try to understand why, but it’s something that’s really hard to see in the moment. You have to collect data, and by the time you see where the trends are going, you hope you’re in a position to adjust to it.
How does your division run differently than, say, Live Nation’s House of Blues chain and its smaller venues?
Live Nation takes more of, I’ll say, a cookie-cutter approach to music. House of Blues is a chain, and it’s the same somewhat uninspired experience anytime you go to one of them. We’re opening brands that we hope speak to their markets and stand with their own identity.
Have you noticed any changes in the way fans buy tickets since the pandemic?
When we first came back, the number of no-shows was much higher than we’re accustomed to. That pretty much leveled off and came back into what you’d call traditional ranges. There are trends where a fan might wait a little longer to buy tickets. That’s more market-specific, and that dynamic has always existed. When I first started in this business at Bill Graham Presents, Detroit was this crazy, huge, late-selling market and would do thousands of tickets week of show at some of the amphitheater properties. It doesn’t sell the same way now. San Francisco has had a lot of changeover in terms of its population. Sales are up, but we see [ticket purchases] shifting a little bit later in the overall cycle. We are seeing more of a strong close to a lot of shows there, and why that is I’m not sure. But as an industry, we’re still selling a lot of tickets early in the game, especially in big arenas and the stadium star category. Business has been incredibly good. You haven’t really heard about a lot of large-scale underperforming tours.
What are the hot genres for ticket sales?
Generally stated, country continues to explode, as well as the land that Zach Bryan and Tyler Childers and even Jason Isbell inhabit — they aren’t traditional-style country. Kelsea Ballerini’s most recent tour is exploding. We’ve also seen incredible results with dance music. If you look at what has gone on at Brooklyn Mirage, which is not in our company, they’ve had what appears to be a record season.
What headwinds do you see?
If there’s a negative trend in the business, it’s that more multigenre festivals have struggled to maintain success. The big experiences like Coachella, Lollapalooza, Outside Lands are stronger than ever. They’re brands that people trust, and the festival experience is great. Below that, some festivals have struggled, while you’re seeing more single-genre festivals — dance, for instance — succeed. Look at Electric Forest. It speaks to a very specific audience, and it’s stronger than ever.
A year ago, indie and smaller acts were canceling tours because they were losing money. Is that still happening?
It has leveled off. A lot of people had sold tickets at a different kind of ticket price before the pandemic and made their budgets on one set of dynamics. Then when it was time to go out and tour post-pandemic, it cost a lot more to be out on the road. If your sales weren’t that good or you weren’t expecting to earn any back-end, you could end up losing money, which is why I think some people pulled down their tour plans. Costs have gotten under control, but it’s still expensive to tour. The challenge for midlevel tours is finding a balance between prices that are welcome among the fan base and the costs of being out on the road. Sometimes you have to find a mix of festivals and soft-ticket money out there to help pay for the markets that don’t cover the nightly bill that you need to earn.
How does the currently high level of inflation affect AEG’s business?
It costs a lot more for security and the labor to run our shows. And again, in some of these big markets where there’s a lot of events going on on a given weekend, it can be hard just to find staff. So managing our labor costs has been a real challenge. We have to look carefully when we do an event and what that costs and if we can make enough money for it to be worthwhile. Sometimes you go into these unique situations where the artist doesn’t seem to make any money because it costs more to do the show, and we’re struggling to make money, but it’s an important look for the artist. So we are all going in with the right goals and intentions to grow that artist’s career so that they make money on their live shows when they come back to that market.
Gary Gersh, president of global touring at AEG Presents, is leaving the concert promotion giant after eight years at the company, chairman Jay Marciano announced in a staff letter on Wednesday (Sept. 13). Rich Schaefer, currently the company’s senior vp of global touring, will step into Gersh’s role as president. “Gary played a vital role […]
Justin Bieber‘s and Scooter Braun’s success has been inextricably intertwined since 2008 when Braun discovered the then-13-year-old singer on YouTube, got him signed to Usher’s record label and became his manager. Braun made Bieber’s career, and vice versa, and their once-flourishing business relationship was arguably the catalyst for Braun adding Ariana Grande, Demi Lovato, J Balvin, Idina Menzel and many others to the management roster at his SB Projects, and the subsequent sale of its parent company Ithaca Holdings to Korean K-pop entertainment giant HYBE for $1.06 billion in April 2021 and his appointment as HYBE America’s CEO that followed.
But since then, Braun has moved his focus away from his management business and onto growing HYBE, shepherding massive deals like its $300 million purchase of hip-hop company Quality Control in February. That shift is one factor that’s had Bieber actively looking at how he might extract himself from that relationship with the help of his new music lawyer, David Lande, and prompting Braun’s other star clients to exit as well, sources tell Billboard. Grande is also planning to part with Braun on friendly terms, more because she’s “excited to go in a different direction” and because she’s “outgrown him” than because of his C-suite distractions, a source close to her says: “It’s time for something new.” Menzel, Balvin and Lovato departed earlier this year, on good terms as well, sources say.
But even for the world’s biggest superstars, leaving your manager is easier said than done — and Bieber and his lawyer are still exploring all their options, sources tell Billboard, with a full split not guaranteed. Bieber’s latest moves have included firing his agency, CAA, and hiring a new music lawyer — Lande at Ziffren Brittenham — to replace Aaron Rosenberg, whom Braun had helped hire. (Michael Rhodes, a partner at the Cooley law firm remains Bieber’s general counsel.)
Lande, these sources say, has been looking at how to extricate Bieber from the management agreement with Braun, but there’s a major complication: Bieber is still under contract for about four more years, following a series of amendments to their deal made three years ago, sources say, and standard management contracts tend to favor the manager. To get out entirely free of obligations, an artist must often show that their manager breached the agreement — which generally includes acting outside of an artist’s best interests, such as financial impropriety like siphoning funds. And only in the most extreme examples does a manager being unavailable or unreachable count. (Were that the case, Braun’s team at SB projects would likely give him significant cover: Braun’s lieutenant, Allison Kaye, has been running management as president of SB Projects since 2016.) Sometimes there are performance metrics, but given Bieber and Braun’s stature in the industry, that’s unlikely, music lawyers say.
“If you’re talking about a case where the artist is just no longer content with their current manager and wants to get out of their management deal, they have a high bar to clear,” says entertainment attorney Larry Katz. “The only chance an artist would have is if they can demonstrate a well-documented pattern of failure by the manager.”
That said, many managers and lawyers agree that it is not in anyone’s best interest to hold an artist in a contract against their will. “Slavery is not a thing,” says one manager.
A scenario like this usually results in the artist and manager striking a new deal that involves a lump sum paid to the manager; a commission on future monies made from deals in which the manager was involved; a sunset clause that gives the manager a gradually decreasing percentage of earnings from such deals — or, likely, a combination of these.
Perhaps because of these complications, sources familiar with some of Bieber’s business dealings say he is focused on resolving his predicament with Braun and would not begin a serious search for new management until that objective is completed — or may not seek a new manager at all.
Otherwise, Bieber would need to shoulder the cost of paying two managers until his agreement with Braun either expired or was dissolved.
A new manager would also face limited options for finding new income opportunities. Bieber is still under a recording contract with Def Jam as he currently works on his seventh studio album, meaning there’s no new multi-million-dollar label deal on the immediate horizon. He also sold his publishing, artist royalties from his master recordings and neighboring rights to Hipgnosis for over $200 million earlier this year. And he remains under contract with AEG Presents, which has promoted his concerts since his inaugural My World Tour in 2010.
Under that AEG deal, Bieber likely owes the promoter any advances paid for his tours that haven’t been recouped. This would likely include an upfront signing fee paid to AEG to promote Bieber’s tours, as well as a per-show guarantee — some or all of which would be recoupable against the tour’s ticket sales. These financial obligations are usually settled somewhere between the early planning of the tour and while it’s in progress, but Bieber’s situation is more complicated. That’s because he has repeatedly rescheduled or canceled touring plans over the past three years due to the coronavirus pandemic and personal health issues, which could mean that his deal with AEG has yet to recoup its obligations.
Still, sources agree Bieber remains an appealing client, because of the kind of influence that comes with his superstar stature.
As for the status of Bieber and Grande’s relationship with SB Projects, sources close to Braun’s camp say both artists are under contract but are currently working out new deal structures to account for Braun stepping into his larger role as HYBE America CEO. Sources close to Bieber and Grande say they are also working out new deal structures for the many business ventures they undertook while at SB — in preparation for their potential departures.
“It might take several years for Bieber to wrap up whatever deals he has with Braun and SB Projects, but he’s still a very attractive client,” says a major talent agent executive unassociated with the artist. “He’s young, he’s a proven superstar and he’s motivated to work and make money.”
Additional reporting by Dave Brooks and Elias Leight.
BMI’s recent rate court victory substantially increasing songwriters and publishers’ royalties for live events will be appealed, according to a notice filed by the North American Concert Promoters Association on Wednesday (June 21).
In May, Southern District of New York Judge Louis Stanton awarded the performance rights organization a 138% increase in rate to 0.5% of the event’s “revenue” with an expanded definition of the term to include tickets sold directly onto the secondary market, servicing fees received by the promoters and revenues from box suites and VIP packages. That 0.5% was up from what BMI said was a blended rate of 0.21%, based on 0.3% interim rate for venues that held less than 10,000 seats; and the interim 0.15% for venues that held more than 10,000 during the period of 2018-2022.
At that time, Stanton also set rates for the retroactive period of 2013-2017, with the previously used, less expansive “revenue” definition that only reflected earnings directly from the face value of primary market ticket sales. Those rates ranged from .08% of revenue for venues of up to 2,500 seats to 0.15% for venues with 10,000 or more seats.
On Tuesday, however, lawyers for the concert trade group filed a notice with the Southern District of intent to appeal that decision in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, according to the filing submitted by Weil, Gotshal & Manges, the law firm representing the concert promoters. The notice to appeal could mean that the group will appeal; or it could be a procedural move that keeps open the option to appeal. The concert trade group had 30 days to file the appeal notice from the last day in court— a few weeks back on a BMI motion regarding interest on whatever fees might be owed from the 2018-2022 term covered by the newly set rates for that period.
In a statement BMI said the concert industry has long fought against rate increases for songwriters.
“Given Live Nation, AEG and [the North American Concert Promoters Association’s] bizarre position throughout trial that concertgoers attend concerts for the experience of the staging, videos and light shows, as opposed to the actual songs and music being performed, their appeal was not a surprise to BMI,” BMI president and CEO Mike O’Neill said in a statement. “For decades, the live concert industry has fought to keep rates suppressed. And even now, when they are making more money than ever, in more ways than ever, they are determined to deny songwriters and composers the fair value of their work, despite the fact that without their contributions, a concert wouldn’t even be possible. BMI will continue to fight on behalf of our affiliates, the creators of the music that is the very backbone of the live concert industry, to prevent that outcome.”
The concert promoters did not. respond to a request for comment at time of publishing. In May, an AEG spokesperson said “AEG Presents and NACPA were defending performing artists, who bear the costs of BMI fees, in this litigation.” Concert promoters have long billed the performing artist for performance rights organizations’ royalty fees.
Concert promoter Goldenvoice of AEG Presents has re-upped its partnership with the historic Santa Barbara Bowl, extended its booking contract through 2032, company officials tell Billboard.
Built in the 1930s under the federal Work Projects Administration as part of President Franklin Roosevelt‘s New Deal, the sandstone-kissed 4,500-seat open-air rock and roll coliseum has hosted concerts by the likes of Bob Marley, James Taylor, Stevie Wonder and more.
Since the early 1990s, the Bowl has been managed by the not-for-profit Santa Barbara Bowl Foundation and programed by long-time talent buyer Moss Jacobs. For most of the 1990s, Jacobs was aligned with concert promoter Goldenvoice, which held the booking contract until the 2001 purchase of Goldenvoice by AEG. Jacobs left Goldenvoice that year and joined Nederlander Concerts as a vp of booking, bringing the booking rights to the bowl with him. In 2016, he quit Nederlander and went back to Goldenvoice, where he works as a Goldenvoice senior vp. Following his 2016 exit, the foundation exercised a key man clause in its contract with Nederlander, allowing it to end its deal and hand booking rights back to Goldenvoice.
“The Santa Barbara Bowl Foundation has been a vital partner,” states Jacobs, “helping Goldenvoice to foster incredible talent at one of the finest outdoor venues in the world. The Foundation understands the significance of partnering with a substantial national organization to benefit this amazing local community. This contract will allow us to build on the foundation of past great events to improve the already amazing stature of the Santa Barbara Bowl.”
Santa Barbara Bowl Foundation executive director Rick Boller said he was “thrilled to sign this booking agreement with Goldenvoice for another decade.” Since taking over management of the facility, the foundation has helped raise over $43 million for capital improvements at the Bowl.
After nearly 60 years in the music business, there’s precious little Elton John hasn’t already achieved. The icon has sold millions of records, toured the globe countless times and even saw the biopic based on his life, Rocketman, win honors at the Academy Awards and Golden Globes. But this week he added another accolade to his extensive collection, and one that sets a mind-boggling record: his multiyear Farewell Yellow Brick Road Tour became the highest-grossing tour of all time, and the only one to surpass $800 million in gross, passing Ed Sheeran’s Divide tour for the title.
John’s outing isn’t even over yet, and there’s still the possibility that this tour crosses even higher benchmarks before all is said and done. But it’s already a crowning achievement for Debra Rathwell, the executive vp of global touring and talent at AEG Presents, who promoted the trek. And the milestone earns her the title of Billboard’s Executive of the Week.
Here, Rathwell breaks down how the tour came together and became so successful, the strategy behind moving up from arenas to stadiums midway through, the challenges posed by the pandemic and the lessons learned from such a gigantic undertaking. “I’m not sure that there will ever be another artist like Elton John, or a tour quite like the FYBR Tour,” she says. “But for any artist aspiring to achieve this level of success, this tour is probably the best example of what comes out of hard work and a love of performing: get out there and share your music with your audience.”
This week, Elton John’s Farewell Yellow Brick Road Tour became the highest-grossing tour in history, and the first-ever tour to gross $800 million. What key decision did you make to help make this happen?
This all started to come together six years ago, back in 2017, a full year before the first date of the Farewell Yellow Brick Road Tour. Jay Marciano (AEG Presents chairman/CEO), Howard Rose (John’s longtime agent), Keith Bradley (John’s tour director), Donna DiBenedetto (AEG Presents vp), Barrie Marshall (Marshall Arts), Doris Dixon (Marshall Arts) and myself met in Las Vegas to begin the job of routing and shaping the first half of tour. At that time, Elton John was playing the final shows of The Million Dollar Piano residency at the Colosseum.
Once we had our plan together, Elton held a press conference in New York in January 2018 to officially announce his retirement from touring, but not before he had embarked on a final run of 350 shows over three years, beginning that September. He wanted to travel around the world to say farewell to his fans. We all knew right then that this would be the greatest tour of all time, and that it was our job to back up Elton and deliver the goods.
No single person can take credit for the monumental success of the FYBR tour — apart from Elton John, of course. But if I had to describe my small part of it over these past five years, it’s been kind of a “utility player” role. Depending on the day, or even minute, it’s coach, captain or just “the bossy girl with the clipboard” who keeps things on course.
Elton spent the first few years of this tour in arenas, before moving up to stadiums this past year. Why did you guys go that route?
For several years prior to the first arena show in Allentown, Penn. (Sept. 18, 2018), Howard Rose had booked shows in smaller secondary markets, which created demand in the major markets. That demand, combined with the news of the retirement, created demand for multiple shows in those markets. We repeated this strategy several times during the tour. But we also made sure to return to many of the same smaller secondary markets; it was important for Elton John to bid a final farewell to as many of his fans as possible.
It was always the plan that the final lap of the FYBR tour would be in stadiums. This was important to Elton and mapped out in the planning stages. Getting them organized and on sale during COVID turned out to be our biggest challenge.
Given the demand of an iconic performer’s final tour, how did you approach setting this up differently than you would have any other tour?
The tour was divided into two parts that we internally referred to as “Round One (179 shows)” and “Round Two (153 shows).” Round One kicked off with that Allentown show and ran all the way through to Sydney on March 7, 2020. Of course, we had no idea that the world would be shutting down four days after we wrapped Round One. And we certainly never imagined that Round Two wouldn’t be wrapped until summer 2023.
The tour also encompassed the pandemic. How did that affect your plans, and how did it force you to adapt once you got back on the road?
When we resumed touring in January 2022, we had very strict COVID protocols in place for all members of the touring team and local venue staff. With some minor adjustments in the routing, we were able to reschedule shows. Unfortunately, we had to cancel the two sold-out shows in Montreal and the two sold-out shows in Toronto due to government COVID restrictions. We also had to cancel some entire territories altogether; we always intended to bring the FYBR tour to Asia and South America, but two years of COVID delays and the rescheduling that followed made that impossible.
We also made the decision that the ticket prices for the stadium shows would be pretty similar to the arena shows — we were in a situation where rescheduled arena shows were on sale at the same time we were putting stadium shows on sale.
How has touring changed overall given the events of the past few years? And how has this tour itself evolved across the years that it’s been going?
The interesting thing to watch was that as the FYBR tour continued, the audience got younger. Elton John broadened his fan base over the life of the tour. Rocketman and his biography Me: Elton John were big moments for us. And The Lockdown Sessions album released in October 2021 was of course one more thing that connected him with a new generation.
The public demand for tickets increased exponentially as the tour was coming to an end. It actually got quite frenzied as the final shows approached in every market. We were all so excited that we were able to sell out three Dodger Stadium shows in Los Angeles, culminating with the livestream of the concert on Disney+.
What have you learned from this long-running Elton tour that you can apply to the rest of your clients?
First and foremost, the initial messaging and announcement of a tour is so important. It really is critical to its success. And the messaging that Elton John conveyed to his fans at that press conference all the way back in 2018 was front and center at all times.
Also, this tour really drove home the importance of having a strong team around you. I have loved every minute being a part of this team. It has been the greatest pleasure of my professional career to be involved with Sir Elton John, David Furnish, Luke Lloyd Davies and all of the wonderful people at Rocket Entertainment. Keith Bradley is the finest tour director and this tour would not have made it around the world for five years, in its many shapes and forms, without him. Many cherished hours were spent with Howard Rose and our touring partners Marshall Arts (Barrie Marshall and Doris Dixon) for the U.K. and Europe and Michael Chugg and Frontier for all of the shows in Australia and New Zealand.
Plus there’s our AEG Team: Andrew Sharp and John Merritt who have been traveling around the world for these past five years — apart from when they couldn’t — and Donna DiBenedetto, my promoting partner who keeps things organized. And of course, Jay Marciano’s leadership and experience has been invaluable. It’s just an incredible group of people from top to bottom.
I’m not sure that there will ever be another artist like Elton John or a tour quite like the FYBR Tour. But for any artist aspiring to achieve this level of success, this tour is probably the best example of what comes out of hard work and a love of performing: get out there and share your music with your audience.
To sum up: Start each tour with a clear message and intention, and a collaborative mentality is imperative. A successful tour requires lots of teamwork on the part of the agency, management, promoter and artist. Think big, and think worldwide. And always be patient. When I first meet with the extraordinarily talented artists with whom I get to work, I often joke that I will negotiate the rights to their 20th Anniversary Tour right then and there. But it’s not really a joke. That’s how much I believe in them.
AEG Presents, a global leader in concert promotion and artist development, on Thursday (Dec. 8) announced an official strategic partnership with K-pop touring and marketing company Powerhouse.
The two live music companies, which have worked together on many successful K-pop artists over the past 13 years, will collaborate on all aspects of the live K-pop business including touring, production, marketing and media across every level.
“In the course of last two decades, K-pop has grown to be one of the most popular genres in the global music industry.,” says C.S. Hah, Powerhouse chief executive and president. “The K-pop market has proven its depth and width to be more matured than ever, and I hope our launch of this formal partnership with AEG Presents can help K-pop grow to reach new horizons across the regions.”
AEG Presents and Powerhouse started their successful relationship in 2010, producing the SM Town concert at Staples Center, regarded as the first blast of K-pop in the U.S. and selling out 12,500 tickets in a matter of minutes. Since then, the two companies have collaborated on historic K-pop tours including two for BTS — the 2017 Wings arena tour in North America and the group’s Love Yourself arena world tour the following year — as well as MONSTA X’s massive 2018 The Connect world tour.
“C.S. Hah and Powerhouse have a track record that speaks for itself,” commented Gary Gersh, AEG Presents president of global touring and talent. “Powerhouse has tapped into what’s becoming an ever-expanding international market for K-Pop, and we are thrilled to build upon an already strong foundation between the two companies.”
Added Adam Wilkes, president and CEO, AEG Asia Pacific: “Powerhouse and AEG Presents have a great history together, and our collaboration has only become more extensive as the barriers continue to evaporate between global music markets. This feels like a logical progression in our ongoing partnership.”
Over the last five months, Powerhouse and AEG Presents have produced and promoted four massive tours for some of the most popular K-pop groups: BLACKPINK, Tomorrow X Together, ENHYPEN and ATEEZ. This year, BLACKPINK sold out 14 North American arenas, plus an additional 10 in the U.K. and Europe. Tomorrow X Together performed eight sold-out shows in two months. ENHYPEN sold out seven arenas in October 2022, and ATEEZ sold out 11 arenas on their North American tour which ended earlier this month. All four of those artists expect to tour the rest of the world in 2023.
AEG Presents UK has appointed Chris Wareing to senior vp of global touring and hired Paris Harding as a promoter, the company announced on Thursday (Dec. 8).
Wareing — a leading hip-hop, rap and R&B promoter as well as the founder of the annual Gods of Rap tour — joins AEG with the view of expanding the company’s hip-hop and rap presence across the globe. Wareing joins AEG from SJM Concerts, where he served for the last 10 years as a promoter. Harding brings with him a wealth of skills and experience in the rap space and also served as a promoter at SJM Concerts.
“Having worked alongside Chris for a number of years and admired his presence from afar, I couldn’t be more thrilled to have him join our team,” said AEG Presents UK CEO Steve Homer in a statement announcing the hires. “He’ll be working closely with myself and my colleague Gary Gersh [president of global touring and talent, AEG Presents] at an international level, to drive our footprint in these important genres forward. It’s rare to come across talent at the level he and Paris exhibit and I couldn’t think of a better way to close out a stellar year.”
In his own statement, Wareing added, “I’m excited to kick off the New Year with a new challenge booking globally with AEG. I admire the vision and work of the company and I’m looking forward to further driving their presence in the hip hop and rap space.”
AEG Presents company The Bowery Presents announced today the acquisition and opening of Racket, its newest New York City venue. Opening in 2023, Racket takes over the old Highline Ballroom space on West 16th Street — right next to the Western Beef and across the street from the bustling Chelsea Market.
The general admission spot will be The Bowery Presents’ most intimate venue on the island and will serve as an important linchpin in the company’s ecosystem of artist development. The company has a well-documented history of working closely with artists as they ascend from intimate venues to sold out arenas and stadiums.
“We are excited to welcome Racket to The Bowery Presents family. Racket is very much the sister venue to Music Hall of Williamsburg: a fundamental building block for us in Manhattan, and an important addition to Bowery’s commitment to both artist development and amazing experiences for our fans and partners,” says the Bowery Presents founder John Moore and his partner Jim Glancy in a joint statement.
In addition to filling a much-needed gap in terms of capacity and location in the area’s live music scene, Racket will further expand Bowery’s venue ownership and booking footprint across NYC, joining Music Hall of Williamsburg (650 capacity), Webster Hall (1,350 capacity), Brooklyn Steel (1,800 capacity), Terminal 5 (3,000 capacity), and Forest Hills Stadium (13,000 capacity). The company also books and promotes hundreds of concerts in theaters, parks, and arenas in the region. Like all Bowery venues, Racket will be available for private events.
Racket’s opening lineup will be announced in the coming weeks.