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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.
The world of collecting societies used to be simple: The French SACEM was pronounced “sa-sem,” the German GEMA was pronounced “gay-ma,” the international organization CISAC was pronounced “si-sak” (except in Europe, where it’s usually “see-zak”), and the American SESAC was pronounced “see-sak” (except in Europe, where it’s usually “say-zak”). Then the passage of the 2014 European Union (EU) collecting society directive made things really complicated.
That landmark legislation made the collecting societies compete to represent songwriters and publishers in the online world in Europe. While the European societies would continue to collect from the bars, concert venues and TV and radio stations in their home territories, they would now license to streaming services across Europe compositions from the rights holders they represented. And over the past decade, many other countries — much of the world, with notable exceptions that include the United States, China and Japan — have adopted this system. “All of the societies now compete to sign publishers and creators to represent,” says SACEM CEO Cécile Rap-Veber.
Two global licensing giants are emerging from this competition: SACEM and ICE, a licensing hub formed as a joint venture by GEMA, the Swedish STIM and the British PRS for Music; Peter de Mönnink has run the Berlin-based ICE since early 2022. SACEM, the oldest songwriters collecting society in the world, collects for Universal Music Publishing online in most territories outside the United States, while ICE collects similar royalties for Sony Music Publishing; Warner Chappell Music’s rights are split between the two.
The societies behind ICE are also formidable on their own. Under CEO Andrea Martin, PRS for Music collected 777.1 million pounds ($960.3 million) in 2021, the last year for which results are available — a 22.4% increase over the previous year on a constant currency basis. Also in 2021, GEMA revenue increased 8.4% to 1 billion euros ($1 billion); the Munich-based society is expected to name a new CEO by summer because Harald Heker, who has helmed it since 2007, is said to be retiring this year. (By comparison, SACEM took in 1.1 billion euros [$1.2 billion] in 2021.) STIM had 2.2 billion kronor ($213.2 million) in 2021 revenue, up 13%, although Sweden is a far smaller country. (These financial results reflect 2021, since not all of the societies have released their 2022 numbers.) STIM has always been more important because “there is an exceptional demand for Swedish music,” says CEO Casper Bjørner, “and STIM has a strong focus on innovation of digital services for our members.” Besides its work with ICE, STIM also has a deal with a PanAsian licensing hub run by the Australian society APRA.
The budgets these societies possess give them the ability to compete globally — not all the smaller societies have the budgets to develop the technology to handle all the data that digital service providers offer. But the growing number of works they represent also give them more negotiating leverage. The interests of big and small societies alike, as well as those of creators in general, are represented by CISAC, a trade organization of collecting societies led by director general Gadi Oron.
Competition is usually collegial but fierce. SACEM has made deals to represent rights holders and societies from the Middle East and Francophone Africa, while ICE and PRS for Music have done better in English-speaking Africa. And, much as the EU envisioned, that competition among societies gives them an incentive to aggressively represent the interests of their clients. “We want to be the best collecting society in the world,” says Rap-Veber, “both in terms of revenue and also getting creators the most money possible.”
This story originally appeared in the April 22, 2023, issue of Billboard.
Artist, producer, DJ and multi-instrumentalist SG Lewis signed with multi-dimensional artist development company Godmode, founded by former Capitol Records A&R Talya Elitzer and songwriter-producer Nick Sylvester. Lewis joins a roster that also includes Channel Tres and JPEGMAFIA.
“I am thrilled to formally welcome Sam to Godmode. Sam is an incredible talent and already a part of the Godmode family, I can’t wait to see what we are going to build together,” said Elitzer in a statement.
Lewis, who performed at this year’s Coachella music festival, previously released two studio albums: 2021’s Times and this year’s AudioLust & HigherLove, both via Virgin EMI/PMR Records. As a songwriter and producer, he’s collaborated with artists including Dua Lipa, Elton John, Robyn and Tove Lo.
Scott Schreiber at UTA represents Lewis for booking.
Singer-songwriter Goth Babe (aka Griff Washburn) signed with Mom+ Pop, which recently released his debut single on the label, “Alone in the Mountains.” He’s represented by manager Sean Sheahan and booking agents Jackie Nalpant and Kiely Mosiman at Wasserman Music.
Doe Boy (“100 Shooters”) signed with Salxco for management. The rising rapper is also signed to Epic Records, which released his latest single, “Roll the Dice” featuring DeJ Loaf, on April 14.
Singer-songwriter Sarah Kinsley (“The King”) signed to Verve Forecast and Decca Records UK. Kinsley is managed by Beth Warren at Everybody’s Management.
Christian singer-songwriter Chris Davenport signed with Capitol CMG, which recently released his single, “Plead the Blood.” His debut album, Time, is slated to drop on June 30. He’s managed by the Breit Group.
Deer Tick signed with ATO Records for the release of their forthcoming album, Emotional Contracts, which is due out on June 16. The band is represented by managers Ryan Matteson and Kevin O’Halloran at Ten Atoms and agent Will Scott at CAA.
Swedish pop artist Sarah Klang signed with Nettwerk Music Group, which released her latest single, “Mercedes,” earlier this month. Klang is managed by Petter Seander at Birds Will Sing For You and Johan Calissendorff at Pangur Music; her booking agent for the United Kingdom and European Union is Bas Flesseman at Belmont Bookings.
Also signing to Nettwerk is Atlanta-based dream pop artist Bathe Alone (born Bailey Crone). The label released their latest track, “Awfully Quiet,” earlier this month. Bathe Alone released an album, Last Looks, in 2022 and an EP, Fall With The Lights Down (Louise), last year.
Chicago band Deeper signed to Sub Pop and released their debut single on the label, “Sub,” earlier this month. They’re revving up for the release of their debut album on Sub Pop later this year.
Country singer-songwriter Lauren Watkins signed with Big Loud Records/Songs & Daughters. She released her debut EP, Introducing Lauren Watkins, on April 21. Watkins is represented by managers Seth England at Big Loud Management along with Nicole Galyon and Meanie Mulrain at Songs & Daughters. Her booking agent is Austin Neal at The Neal Agency.
Australian hardcore band Geld signed to Relapse Records, which will release the group’s third album, Currency//Castration, on June 9. The LP is preceded by the single “Fog of War.”
With breakout single “Cupid” fluttering up sales charts on both sides of the Atlantic, FIFTY FIFTY forms a partnership with Warner Records — a deal that should boost the hit and others.
The K-pop girl is very much on the rise, thanks to the streaming power of “Cupid,” with its original recording, a “Twin” mix and an instrumental cut amassing a combined 377 million-plus streams across all platforms.
It’s on TikTok where “Cupid” gets a lot of love. The song has generated over 8 million TikTok videos and views on the platform are climbing towards 12 billion, and the #CupidChallenge has been added to tens of millions of clips.
“Cupid” has made the crossover into mainstream, all-genres charts. The track debuted on the Hot 100 a few weeks back and it’s now up to No. 60. Meanwhile, in the U.K., the single cracked the top 40 on the latest chart, published April 14, at No. 34. Also, the tune has entered the top 10 on the Global Excl. U.S. chart, lifting 22-9 on the latest tally.
Comprising Aran, Keena, Saena and Sio, FIFTY FIFTY was formed last year by South Korean entertainment agency ATTRAKT.
Now, through the new alliance with Warner Records/Warner Music Group Korea, FIFTY FIFTY is “poised for worldwide superstardom,” gushes a joint statement issued today (April 20).
“We are grateful to Warner Records for the opportunity to discuss innovative ways to bring FIFTY FIFTY to the forefront of the music industry,” comments Sung-il Ahn, CEO of The Givers and co-CEO of ATTRAKT. “We are thrilled to find that our thoughts and visions align with an artist-centered approach, and we are eager to explore potential avenues for success together.”
Adds Tom Corson, co-chairman and COO, and Aaron Bay-Schuck, co-chairman and CEO, Warner Records: “We are thrilled to partner with FIFTY FIFTY to amplify their global smash single ‘Cupid’ and we know there is much more to come.” The Warner Records’ team, they continue, “is excited to create additional opportunities for this powerhouse K-pop girl group.”
The group debuted its first single, “Higher,” on its introductory four-track EP, The Fifty, released Nov. 18, 2022. There’s more music on the way, insist the rising foursome.
“We are so honored to be working with Warner Records, and we are excited to see what the future holds for us,” reads a statement from the band. “We are looking forward to bringing more great music and content to our fans around the world. Thank you for your continued support and love.”
PRS for Music, the U.K. collecting society that represents composers and publishers, announced Monday (April 24) that it collected a record-high 964 million pounds ($1.20 billion) in 2022, a 22.9% increase over the previous year and an 18.9% increase over the previous high of 964 million pounds reached in 2019. The organization also distributed a record 836.2 million pounds ($1.04 billion) in 2022, an increase of 23.5% over 2021, while reducing its cost ratio to 9.3%.
“Live revenue came back,” says PRS for Music CEO Andrea Czapary Martin — up 683% from 2021 as the concert business rallied after the worst of the pandemic, and 16.1% compared to 2019. “At the same time, we saw a huge increase in music streaming — 25% — that exceeds market growth.”
PRS for Music is not the only collecting society that’s doing well as live music returns and streaming continues to thrive: In early March, ASCAP announced a 14% increase in collections to $1.52 billion and three weeks ago the German rights body GEMA posted 13% growth to 1.178 billion pounds ($1.25 billion).
Even by those standards, PRS’ results are impressive, although currency fluctuations and differences in accounting make exact comparisons between international collecting societies difficult. And it is rare to see a cost ratio below 10% for a society that collects for publishers and songwriters. PRS says it hit its goal to get its cost ratio below 10% four years ahead of its five-year plan.
“I run this like a commercial company, except we’re owned by the members and profits are distributed to our members,” says Martin, who joined PRS in mid-2019. Martin, a newcomer to the music business, worked for a variety of data- and subscription-focused businesses, including Reader’s Digest Association and the U.K. Royal Mail. “My background,” she says, “is in tech and data.”
Other highlights of 2022 include new and renewed licenses — “better agreements and new agreements,” Martin says. Revenue from video-on-demand services rose 16.5%, while that of linear television declined 2.4% and commercial radio, driven by advertising, grew 2.6%. “A TikTok agreement paid out last year,” Martin says, “and we doubled video game royalties.”
ICE, the Berlin-based music licensing hub that PRS owns as a joint venture with GEMA and Sweden’s STIM, is also “helping PRS immensely,” Martin says. “ICE is the biggest growth opportunity for PRS.” Expansion elsewhere is also a priority, Martin says, including in Africa.
PRS, like most of its sister societies, has a monopoly over U.K. collections — at concert venues, bars and restaurants, for example. Starting a few years ago, though, it also competes to represent composers and publishers online, to streaming services. ICE gives PRS the reach and resources to compete with SACEM. And PRS’ push toward efficiency gives it a solid competitive position.
“I’m very optimistic for the future,” Martin says. “But that doesn’t mean there aren’t challenges.”
Carlos “Charly” Pérez, who for over two decades led public relations and later promotion for Universal Music Latino, has been named senior vice president for communications and public relations for Warner Music Latina, effective immediately, Billboard has learned.
Pérez will be based in Miami and report to Roberto Andrade Dirak, managing director of Warner Music Latina, with whom Pérez previously worked closely with when Andrade Dirak managed Colombian star Sebastian Yatra.
In his new role, Pérez will craft strategies to promote WM Latina’s artists and people across a wide range of different media outlets to a business and consumer audience. He will also work closely with Ruben Abraham, svp of marketing and artist strategy, as well as Hector Ruben Rivera, svp and head of A&R, Latin Music, who both also report to Andrade Dirak.
Pérez is widely recognized as a beacon of knowledge, integrity and professionalism in the Latin music world as well as for his knack for singling out promising new acts, having pushed for early coverage of future superstars like Karol G, Feid and Sebastian Yatra, to name just a few.
Pérez is also particularly valuable given his deep knowledge of the pop, urban and regional Mexican markets.
Indeed, he started out 26 years ago working as an assistant to the International department at Mexican media company Televisa, where he later became a label manager. He later joined Univision Music Mexico as a label manager, focusing largely on regional Mexican music and working with acts like Los Tigres del Norte, Ana Bárbara, Banda El Recodo and Jenni Rivera, and subsequently moved to Miami as press and television coordinator.
Pérez rose steadily through the ranks and after Univision Music was acquired by Universal Music Latin Entertainment, he worked as national publicity director. In 2020 he was promoted to international vice president of public relations and promotions, overseeing the parent label, Machete Music and Capitol Latin and working closely with regional Mexican labels Fonovisa and Disa.
“I’m very happy and grateful for this huge opportunity to become part of the Warner Music Latina team,” said Pérez. “I’ll bring my experience to bear as we continue to evolve our company, enhancing our value proposition to artists, and positioning ourselves as a leader at the intersection of music and technology.”
Roberto Andrade Dirak adds: “Charly is an amazing addition to the team here at Warner Music Latina. His knowledge and experience transcend genres and borders, and he’s helped take some of the best Latin music to every corner of the world, empowering the careers of the artists he’s collaborated with. We’re delighted to have him join us.”
Pérez leaves Universal on good terms.
On April 3, Billboard broke the news that Jimin’s track “Like Crazy” reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 — a first for a solo Korean artist — while his album, FACE, debuted at No. 2 on the Billboard 200. Released by Big Hit Music, one of the labels under Korean entertainment company HYBE, “Like Crazy” currently marks the best performance by a member of K-pop supergroup BTS, whose hiatus announcement last year presented a significant challenge to HYBE’s ability to forge another chart success in the United States. “Like Crazy” reached only No. 11 in South Korea, although FACE topped album charts in South Korea and Japan.
Investors took note of Jimin’s U.S. accomplishments. The following day, HYBE’s share price on Korea Exchange rose as much as 11.4% to 212,500 won ($161) before ending the day at 205,000 won ($155), up 7.5% from the previous day (as of April 17, it had risen 40%). That was the highest closing price since June 10 of last year — three trading days before BTS confirmed it would take a hiatus, worrying investors and sending HYBE’s share price down 28% in a single day. For a company with grand ambitions to build off of the success of BTS, “Like Crazy” was an important validation.
The music industry should take note, too. HYBE did with Jimin what all South Korean music companies are attempting with increasing urgency: ride the wave of K-pop’s global success by expanding outside of Korea and build up operations in the United States, the world’s largest music market. “All the shareholders want to see the ability for them to diversify [their] portfolios,” says Sung Cho, CEO of Chartmetric and newly appointed board member of the pioneering K-pop agency SM Entertainment.
Exporting is what South Korea does best. “After the Korean War, the only way to survive was to export things,” says Cho. Over the last three decades, the success of companies such as Samsung, LG and Hyundai has turned the country of 52 million into a top 10 exporter, according to the World Bank. But in recent years, South Korea has become known not just for its exports of high-tech products and manufactured goods, but as a global entertainment dynamo as well. South Korea’s music business built its economic success into a trade surplus of about $3.1 billion for intellectual property of music and images in 2021, up from $800 million in 2020, according to the country’s Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism. The South Korean film Parasite won a 2020 Academy Award for best picture. A year later, Squid Game became the most watched series in Netflix history, a worldwide phenomenon that racked up 1.7 billion viewing hours in its first month.
South Korean music companies have become international powerhouses by drawing on hip-hop, R&B and pop music and selling the K-pop blend of these genres back to fervent fans in the United States, Japan and Europe. But to compete globally with larger companies, the South Korea approach to the music business, and not necessarily the music itself, could be the deciding factor. “We’re seeing not only the export of K-pop bands — the boy bands, the girl bands — we’re starting to see the export of the K-pop business model,” says Bernie Cho, president of DFSB Kollective, a Seoul-based artist and label services agency. SM Entertainment founder Lee Soo-man coined the term “cultural technology” in the ’90s for his system of producing K-pop and promoting it worldwide. Other K-pop companies have adopted a similarly disciplined, systematic approach to finding, developing and promoting musicians.
The widespread music-business anxiety about the death of artist development doesn’t apply to South Korea. Western labels fight bidding wars over viral artists with instantaneous popularity or favor proven artists and catalogs, leaving the task of building an audience to artists themselves or independent labels. In contrast, K-pop companies spend years recruiting and rehearsing talent, as well as giving artists instruction in a specific approach to the music business. “Combing through social media platforms like TikTok may give us a chance to sign artists who are technically proficient as music producers or performers, but we demand more from our artists,” says HYBE CEO Jiwon Park in an email to Billboard. That means trainees work with HYBE’s training and development department to “internalize the values of autonomy and responsibility” so they can navigate the expectations put on them.
To learn the U.S. market, South Korean companies have partnered with U.S. labels to distribute, market and promote their music. HYBE has a joint venture with Universal Music Group’s Geffen Records to create a U.S.-based girl pop group. JYP Entertainment has teamed with UMG’s Republic Records to form the global girl group America2Korea, or A2K. Additionally, Kakao Entertainment’s Starship Entertainment subsidiary has partnered with Sony Music Group’s Columbia Records to co-manage marketing and promotion of the six-member female group IVE in North America.
These U.S.-Korean partnerships have also given domestic labels a chance to learn the K-pop method of A&R. To Glenn Mendlinger, president of Imperial Music, a new division of Republic Records, the JYP partnership has provided insight into “what it is to build a fandom and foster it through immersive packaging and increasing the collectability of the products.” Mendlinger is impressed with JYP’s attention to detail and ability to build storylines for their artists. “That’s why they’re so successful,” he says in an email to Billboard. “The level of care is unparalleled and unrivaled in terms of its intimacy and diligence.”
But more and more, South Korean companies have boots on the ground and control of their destinies in the United States. HYBE is the furthest along in building out its stateside operations. In 2021, it acquired Scooter Braun’s Ithaca Holdings for $1.05 billion and named Braun the CEO of HYBE America, a genre-spanning collection of artist management and record labels that includes SB Projects, Nashville-based Big Machine Label Group and Atlanta hip-hop company Quality Control, which was acquired in February for $300 million. Those deals are “just the beginning,” HYBE chairman Bang Si-hyuk said in a speech in March. He believes building in the United States will give HYBE the “strong network and infrastructure” it needs to “minimize the cost of trial and error” and attain stronger bargaining power and distribution rates relative to local companies.
SM Entertainment, the company behind such groups as NCT 127 and aespa, and Kakao Entertainment have created a U.S. joint venture and plan to acquire a U.S.-based company to expand into hip-hop or R&B, according to SM’s road map made available to investors. Kakao now owns a 40% stake in SM Entertainment, having quelled HYBE’s attempt to buy a commanding stake and control its board of directors following a break with SM founder Lee.
South Korean music companies’ do-it-yourself nature extends to tech platforms, too. While most labels depend on the likes of Meta, Twitter and Fortnite to reach fans, HYBE owns its own social network, Weverse, and JYP and SM have a joint venture with tech company Naver called Beyond LIVE that streams live online concerts. SM also owns a social networking app, Bubble, and its artists will begin building fan communities at HYBE’s Weverse in September. It makes sense in one of the world’s most wired and wireless countries, says Cho of DFSB Kollective. In Korea, “youth culture, pop culture and digital culture are one and the same in many ways.”
For HYBE, Weverse not only diversifies its business but allows it to control how its artists communicate with their fans. With the addition of artists from North America and Japan, Weverse “will serve as a gateway to the fandom market in Asia, North America and the world,” says Park. With enhancements and new services, “Weverse will seek boundless expansion beyond K-pop.”
This story originally appeared in the April 22, 2023, issue of Billboard.
Both country labels and broadcasters want to speed the advance of singles on the Country Airplay chart, though figuring out how to do that is a slow process.
A volunteer panel, spurred by a 2022 Country Radio Seminar session, reported on its progress during an April 20 CRS 360 webinar, concluding that stations need to generate 150 spins on most singles to gain reliable research about the song’s connectivity. Stations that limit a new single to overnights and play it only six times a week require 25 weeks to hit that plateau, one of several factors that slow the hit-development process.
Songs ranked No. 11-20 on the chart have the toughest time advancing, according to the panel’s research, in part because of the plethora of approaches by programmers. Reporting stations that commit early to a new single are sometimes ready to move on from particular titles just as slower-evolving stations are beginning to boost rotations.
One partial suggestion, sure to meet pushback, was to use a smaller playlist, expose new singles more quickly in daytime rotations and make a decision at that 150-spin mark.
The issue is more intense in country than any other format, in part because artists and their representatives have a stronger personal relationship with broadcasters and are more invested in succeeding on that platform — and in controlling the outcome.
“It’s the only format I’ve ever been in,” said McVay Media president Mike McVay, “where people call and yell at me for playing a song or beg me not to drop a song.”
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Tomorrow comes the most wonderful time of the year: Record Store Day. As fun as some fans find it – and I joke that it’s my favorite holiday – it’s hard to remember how odd an idea it seemed when it started, in 2007. Back then, CD sales were sliding fast, download sales were growing a lot slower, and mass-market streaming was still taking shape. The idea of a day devoted to buying vinyl, much less in physical stores, was anything but obvious.
Now look. Vinyl generated more revenue in the U.S. than CDs by 2019, and more unit sales by 2022, according to the RIAA. Last year, vinyl generated $1.2 billion in the U.S. — more than Latin music, which brought in $1.1 billion, although Latin music brings in far more worldwide. And much of this growth came at a time of serious challenges, from insufficient manufacturing capacity to supply chain problems.
Now what? The future of vinyl was one subject that came up at a Nov. 3 panel that I moderated at RIAA headquarters in Washington, D.C. With me were Vinyl Me Please CEO Cameron Schaefer, Byrdland Records co-owner Alisha Edmonson, Thirty Tigers director of physical sales Mike Couse and consultant Simone Piece.
Among the topics that came up:
How vinyl fulfills a need for “better connection with music”
How the pandemic supercharged growth
Whether recent new buyers will stick around for the future
The most important question, of course, is what this means for artists. It was disheartening to hear that delivering vinyl to stores even close to an album’s release date requires up to ten months of advance planning. Even so, many independent acts make more money on vinyl than they do from streaming.
Another highlight? A performance from Lola Kirke:
No one knows what the future holds for vinyl. Judging by the format’s fast growth, however, it will remain an important part of the recording industry’s revenue mix for at least the next few years, and perhaps long after that.
Watch the entire panel here:
Frank Ocean’s decision to cancel his second of two performances at Coachella this weekend will likely cost the festival several million dollars, sources tell Billboard — losses that the festival will try to offset, in part, with finding new uses for the giant ice pad the company created for Ocean’s long-awaited performance.
A source close to the situation tells Billboard that festival promoter Goldenvoice is trying to make the best out of the millions of dollars spent on building a giant ice pad that was supposed to accommodate over 100 skaters during Ocean’s set last Sunday night but was scrapped at the last minute after the artist suffered an ankle injury. The ice pad cannot be used as a public ice rink, the source says, but the Goldenvoice team is working out how to incorporate it into another yet-to-be determined performance.
Ocean was to be paid $4 million for each of his two Coachella performances, for a total of $8 million, sources say. Since Ocean is not performing for the second weekend, he will only be paid for the first weekend’s performance. Goldenvoice, however, will still need to pay Blink-182 that same $4 million rate for their replacement one-hour headlining set on Sunday, sources say, and will also need to pay the newly announced Skrillex, Four Tet and Fred again.. combo for their closing set.
Typically, festival promoters pay an artist a performance rate and also cover basic production needs such as staging, sound, lighting and video boards. The artists will cover all additional production elements from their fee that are unique to their performance such as musicians, dancers, performers and other major visual elements.
In Ocean’s case, however, the most expensive part of his production — the custom ice pad— was built by Goldenvoice and came with significant energy costs. So, while Goldenvoice had planned to recoup that cost from his performance fees, sources say the production costs Ocean racked up exceed the $4 million he earned for the first weekend. That means Ocean failed to turn a profit from his Coachella appearance and that the festival will have to eat the remaining loss — for which it is highly unlikely to demand repayment.
Ocean also racked up about $45,000 in curfew fines during his set, which played 25 minutes past the mandatory midnight curfew imposed by Indio, California, city officials. However, a source close to Ocean says those fines are Goldenvoice’s fault, claiming Ocean’s set started an hour late because festival staff took an additional 50 minutes to change over the stage from Bjork’s set to Ocean’s set.
Despite the curfew fines, which added up to $133,000 over the weekend, according to officials with the city of Indio, the millions of dollars spent on an unused ice sheet and extra talent costs, Goldenvoice is still likely to make a profit from the festival. In an average year, Coachella grosses more than $115 million in ticket sales across both weekends and makes tens of millions more in food, beverage and hospitality.
Coachella’s second weekend kicks off Friday (April 21) in Indio.
