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Touring

Page: 105

Jeremy Holgersen has joined APA as a senior vice president and agent in the concerts division, it was announced today by Bruce Solar, the company’s head of concerts. Holgersen arrives at APA from UTA, where he worked following its acquisition of The Agency Group. It was during his lengthy tenure at The Agency Group — joined in 2000 — that he and Solar met.
Holgrensen’s roster at UTA included Action Bronson, Apocalyptica, At The Gates, Bad Brains, Bob Vylan, Cypress Hill, D’Angelo, G-Eazy, GZA, Jesse Royal, Ms Lauryn Hill, Nova Twins, Patoranking, The Pogues, , Protoje, Suicidal Tendencies and more, “most of whom are expected to join him at APA,” according to a press release.

“We are truly excited to have Jeremy join us at APA,” says Solar in a statement provided to Billboard.  “Jeremy is a great agent with exciting clients and a wonderful colleague who I loved working with in the past and am glad we have reunited.”

Holgersen added, “the industry has taken note of all the exciting things that are happening at APA and how well they represent music artists in a 360-degree fashion, and I know that the best is yet to come for the artists that are joining me at APA.”

Holgersen joins touring agent Steve Kahl, who came to APA from CAA in October, as well as former ICM Partners touring agents Mitch Blackman and Mike Hayes. Others include comedy agents Chris Smith and Josh Lanham from ICM, Steve Kahl from CAA and Sam Sauerhaft, who previously worked in management.  

Clients joining APA from these agents include Kamasi Washington, Blackbear, Robert Glaspar, Jax, Belinda Carlisle, Jon Belion, Martin Lawrence, Mike Epps and over 100 others.

In 1910’s The Vagabond, the French writer Colette claimed, “The only real things are the dance, the light, freedom, music.” If that’s the case, then there are few pop catalogs more in touch with reality than Madonna’s.

The Queen of Pop kicked 2023 off right by announcing the Celebration Tour, a global trek honoring her four decades of culture-changing hits.

Needless to say, she has a lot of material to choose from — with 12 No. 1s, 38 top 10 hits and 57 titles on the Billboard Hot 100, Madonna is an all-time pop GOAT. And considering her most recent tour (the excellent, intimate Madame X Tour from 2019-2020) was primarily focused on the album of the same name she was supporting, there’s quite a number of beloved classics that Madge hasn’t performed live in several years.

That seems set to change with the Celebration Tour, which promises to be a career-retrospective run of songs from the pop icon, whose self-titled debut introduced the world to a new game-changing superstar back in 1983. And since we’re looking at 40 years of Madonna, we decided to round up 40 songs we would love to hear the Material Goddess perform live.

Now, we’re not saying we want every one of these songs performed in full at every tour stop — a 40-song setlist is less a concert and more of a marathon. Some we’d like to hear in part, perhaps as a segue or in a medley; others we could imagine M performing as a surprise treat on select tour dates. But this is our wish list.

GoldenSky Country Music Festival will return to Sacramento this year on Oct. 14 and 15 at Discovery Park, with a performer lineup led by Eric Church, Sacramento’s own Jon Pardi, as well as Maren Morris and Parker McCollum.

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Also performing are Jordan Davis and Country Music Hall of Famer Wynonna Judd, as well as Lainey Wilson, Elle King, Eli Young Band, Niko Moon, Ingrid Andress, Nate Smith, Adam Doleac, Frank Ray, Tenille Arts, Drake Milligan, Megan Moroney, Kidd G, Willie Jones, Lakeview and Avery Anna. GoldenSky Country Music Festival is produced by Danny Wimmer Presents in partnership with Visit Sacramento.

”We’re thrilled to partner with DWP to bring the West Coast’s premier country music experience back to Sacramento,” said Visit Sacramento President & CEO Mike Testa. “This year’s incredible lineup, coupled with unique local activations and Sacramento as the backdrop will make for an unforgettable weekend. We can’t wait to welcome music fans from across the country back to our city.” 

The event will also feature an array of activities for festivalgoers, including GoldenSky Beer Festival, a “festival within the festival” that will showcase the top local, regional and national tastes with over 150 different selections of beer, hard seltzer and ciders. The Farmhouse, presented by California Bountiful, will offer a local food experience featuring some of Sacramento’s top dining establishments. Other festival offerings include El Dorado Market, River City Saloon & Dance Hall, Loud Lounge, Wines of Sacramento and Sidelines Sports Bar. 

GoldenSky Country Music Festival debuted as a two-day event in 2022, with 50,000 people in attendance for a lineup that included Tim McGraw, Sam Hunt, Brothers Osborne, Midland, Carly Pearce and Parmalee.

Oak View Group (OVG) has hired ASM Global’s senior vp of finance and global solutions Gary McAneney to serve as senior vp of finance and CFO at OVG’s UBS Arena at Belmont Park in New York.

Based in the Mid-Atlantic region, McAneney starts his new role effective immediately and will report to Francesca Bodie, president of business development for OVG, and Kim Stone, president of UBS Arena and executive vp of OVG East Coast.

“OVG has experienced unmatched industry growth over the last year, and Gary’s bold leadership and dynamic experience will be instrumental as we continue to steam ahead. We look forward to having him aboard,” said Bodie. 

With more than 30 years of experience, McAneney will lead financial operations across all OVG-owned and operated venues within its ever-expanding business development division, plus oversee finance functions at UBS Arena.

“I’m pleased to welcome Gary to the team at UBS Arena,” Stone said. “With his diverse background in all financial disciplines, and proven ability to make valuable contributions, Gary will play a critical role at UBS Arena and be an asset across all other OVG divisions given his extensive experience in the industry.”

McAneney joined ASM Global in 2019 out of West Conshohocken, Penn., and has had a long career in the facilities business. At SMG, which merged with AEG Facilities to form ASM Global in Oct. 2019, he oversaw financial and accounting reporting for all of SMG’s operating contracts, including Mercedes Benz Superdome (New Orleans), NRG Stadium (Houston), Soldier Field (Chicago), U.S. Bank Stadium (Minneapolis) and Moscone Center (San Francisco).

“I’m excited to join the world-class team at Oak View Group, and for the opportunity to work with the most progressive and dynamic company in our industry. The quality of leadership and vision within OVG is unparalleled,” said McAneney.

The Senate Judiciary Committee will hold a hearing on Jan. 24 at 10 a.m. EST examining the ticketing industry and Ticketmaster’s handling of the Taylor Swift ticket sale, Senator Amy Klobuchar‘s (D-MN) office announced.
Titled “That’s The Ticket: Promoting Competition and Protecting Consumers in Live Entertainment,” the hearing will look at accusations of anti-competitive behavior in the ticketing space and examine the history of the 2010 Department of Justice consent decree governing the merger of Live Nation and Ticketmaster.

The merger has long been criticized by members of both parties with Klobuchar recently identifying the Swift crash as an example of how “Ticketmaster’s power in the primary ticket market insulates it from the competitive pressures that typically push companies to innovate and improve their services.”

The Nov. 15 sale crash, which affected both Ticketmaster and its competitor SeakGeek, was the result of massive demand from Taylor Swift fans and an illegal bot attack, Ticketmaster wrote in a Nov. 15 blog post.

Klobuchar, who chairs the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Competition Policy, Antitrust, and Consumer Rights, will be joined at the hearing by ranking member Mike Lee (R-UT) for the hearing before the full Senate Judiciary Committee with Chair Dick Durbin (D-IL) and incoming ranking member Lindsey Graham (R-SC).

“The issues within America’s ticketing industry were made painfully obvious when Ticketmaster’s website failed hundreds of thousands of fans hoping to purchase tickets for Taylor Swift’s new tour, but these problems are not new. For too long, consumers have faced high fees, long waits, and website failures, and Ticketmaster’s dominant market position means the company faces inadequate pressure to innovate and improve,” Klobuchar said in a statement. “At next week’s hearing, we will examine how consolidation in the live entertainment and ticketing industries harms customers and artists alike. Without competition to incentivize better services and fair prices, we all suffer the consequences.”

“American consumers deserve the benefit of competition in every market, from grocery chains to concert venues,” Lee added. “I look forward to exercising our subcommittee’s oversight authority to ensure that anticompetitive mergers and exclusionary conduct are not crippling an entertainment industry already struggling to recover from pandemic lockdowns.”

“It’s been more than a decade since Ticketmaster merged with Live Nation, and competition in the ticketing and live entertainment industries has only gotten worse. Too often, consumers are the ones who pay the price for this market failure,” said Durbin. “I look forward to this hearing to explore what led to this environment, as well as steps we can take to bring competition back to these industries in a way that puts fans and artists first.”

“I’m glad to see the committee will look into the Ticketmaster debacle,” said Graham. “I look forward to hearing more about how we got here, and identifying solutions.”

A witness list has not been released for the Jan. 24 hearing. A spokesperson for Ticketmaster did not comment when asked about the upcoming hearing.

Your move, Your Madgesty. Madonna played a star-studded game of truth or dare on Tuesday (Jan. 17) to tease her upcoming Celebration Tour.
In the video, the superstar faces off against Amy Schumer at a table surrounded by the likes of Lil Wayne, Jack Black, Meg Statler, Kate Berlant, Diplo and Eric André. “I just want to make sure you all know why you’re here. Amy Schumer, truth or dare?” Madonna asks to kick off the festivities, to which the comedian gamely responds, “Dare, b—h.”

Let’s just say the dare the pop star cooks up for Schumer is rather, ahem, not safe for work. But when it’s the Inside Amy Schumer star’s turn to come up with a dare, she speaks for generations of Madonna fans by saying, “Madonna. I dare you to do a world tour and play your greatest mothaf—in’ hits.”

“Four decades? As in 40 years? We’re talking ‘Like a Virgin’?” the icon clarifies before breaking into “La Isla Bonita” with a giddy Schumer as the rest of the table sings along.

“Wait, hold up. That’s a lot of songs. You think people would come to that show?” Madonna asks. And when the assembled stars all agree, she concludes, “OK, so the answer is … f–k yeah.”

Once “Vogue” starts playing on top of the celebratory scene, Her Madgesty talks directly to the camera, promising, “’80s. ’90s. 2000s. Four decades of music, avec moi. MLVC. Welcome to the party, b—-es.”

According to a release, the tour will begin July 15 at Vancouver’s Rogers Arena and play 35 cities across North America before moving to Europe in October.

Watch Madonna and Schumer’s game of truth or dare above.

Get ready, MOA! TOMORROW X TOGETHER is gearing up to hit the road later this year, and announced a series of world tour dates on Tuesday (Jan. 17), taking place across Asia and the United States starting this March.

The trek — officially titled Act: Sweet Mirage — will see members members Yeonjun, Soobin, Beomgyu, Taehyun and HueningKai doing 21 shows across 13 cities, starting with a pair of dates in Seoul on March 25-26 before heading to Singapore and Taipei, Taiwan. April will see the K-pop group travel across Japan, while May holds the band’s U.S. dates, with stops in Charlotte, Belmont Park, Los Angeles and more.

Didn’t see your city in TXT’s tour announcement? Future dates may be on the horizon, as the official tour poster tells fans there’s “more to come.”

TXT’s Act: Sweet Mirage world tour will support the group’s forthcoming album, The Name Chapter: Temptation, which is set for a Jan. 27 release date. The mini album’s tracklist and official poster are set to drop on Jan. 19, while the album preview will arrive on Jan. 22. Two additional teasers for the project’s lead single will be shared on Jan. 24 and 25. Following the EP’s release, the K-pop group will perform a special showcase on Jan. 28.

The Name Chapter: Temptation will be the group’s first music release since the arrival of its fourth mini EP, minisode 2: Thursday’s Child. That project was a hit for the K-pop stars. It spent a total of 14 weeks on the all-genre Billboard 200 chart, where it peaked at No. 4. Thursday’s Child achieved even more success on the Top Current Album Sales chart, where it spent 20 weeks on the tally and hit No. 1.

See TXT’s tour announcement below.

Austin Neal‘s year-old booking agency — The Neal Agency — has named Adi Sharma as a co-head and agent, and has added “Fall in Love” hitmaker Bailey Zimmerman, Canadian country artist Josh Ross, and indie artist mike., as well as lifestyle brand Stevenson Ranch to the roster.
These additions expand the agency’s roster, which already reps Morgan Wallen, HARDY, ERNEST, Chase Rice, Ashland Craft, Riley Green, John Morgan, Lauren Watkins and Seaforth, to a dozen clients.

The Neal Agency celebrated its one-year anniversary in December 2022 and has nominations at the upcoming CMA Touring Awards, including talent agent of the year (Austin Neal).

“It’s surreal to think this time last year we only had two employees, other than myself, and no office. Going into 2023, I am able to walk into a full office of 12 each morning  – which is both humbling and exciting,” Neal said via a statement. “Adding Adi’s leadership to that mix will allow the company and our culture to reach new heights in our sophomore year. We are all so excited to be able to work with one of the brightest young agents in this business who will undoubtedly help lead the company going forward.”

“Austin and I have known each other since I moved to Nashville and we have always had a very like-minded approach to supporting and growing artists’ careers,” Sharma added via a statement. “To see what he and this team have built in the span of a year is inspiring. I couldn’t be more excited to be a part of this rapidly growing team, to work with one of the best agents in the business, and to help the company continue to grow into the future.”

This year will mark more successful tours for the company, as Wallen’s One Night at a Time World Tour makes its way to Australia, the United States and Canada, including over 20 stadium shows along the way. ERNEST, who notched his first headlining tour last fall, will join Wallen on all of his 2023 dates.

Additionally, HARDY’s the mockingbird & The Crow Tour will launch Feb. 16 and is sold-out across 19 cities. Meanwhile, Rice’s Way Down Yonder Tour has 36 dates set through the summer. Seaforth will set out on their first headlining tour in 2023, with their 23-date About Time Tour.

The Neal Agency team (Pictured L to R: Hank Wiehebrink, Simone Chretien, Juliette Edwards, Haley Teske, Evan Kantor, Austin Neal, Andrew Greene, Kelly Sherin, Kolby Vetter, Adi Sharma, Marisa Mineo, Spencer Foote)

Tiia Sparzak

Madonna announced the dates for her global tour honoring four decades of hits on Tuesday morning (Jan. 17). The Celebration Tour was announced via a raunchy five-minute video paying homage to her iconic 1991 documentary, Truth or Dare, featuring an NC-17 dinner party featuring Diplo, Judd Apatow, Jack Black, Lil Wayne, Bob the Drag Queen, Kate Berlant, Larry Owens, Meg Stalter, Eric Andre and Amy Schumer.

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The 35-city Live Nation-produced tour will kick off in North America on July 15 at Rogers Arena in Vancouver, BC and hit Detroit, Chicago, New York, Miami, Los Angeles, Dallas and San Francisco before wrapping up in Las Vegas on Oct. 7. The outing will then move on to Europe, starting with a date in London at the O2 Arena on Oct. 14 and winding down in Amsterdam on Dec. 1 at the Ziggo Dome.

“I am excited to explore as many songs as possible in hopes to give my fans the show they have been waiting for,” the singer said in a statement about the outing that will span her four decades in music while paying respect to New York City, where her musical journey began. Bob the Drag Queen will be the special guest on all the dates.

Tickets go on sale on Friday (Jan. 20) and Jan. 27 at 10 a.m. local time; click here for a complete list of dates and ticketing options. The tour will feature the 64-year-old singer performing songs dating back to her 1983 self-titled debut through her most recent studio album, 2019’s Madame X, marking the star’s first-ever career retrospective outing.

The tour announce came just months after Madonna released her career-spanning compilation album, Finally Enough Love: 50 Number Ones, which encompassed her entire dance club career, featuring remixes by top producers and 20 rare recordings officially released for the first time. In 2021, Madonna signed a deal with Warner Music Group for an “extensive, multi-year series of catalog releases that will revisit the groundbreaking music that made her an international icon.” Madonna last toured in 2019 and early 2020 on her Madame X theater tour.

Madonna will have plenty of songs to choose from for the set list, including 57 titles charting on the Billboard Hot 100, 38 top 10 hits and 12 No. 1s, including 1990’s “Vogue,” and 2000’s “Music,” released a decade apart and each spending 24 weeks on the Hot 100. Madonna’s “Borderline” from 1984 spent 30 weeks on the Hot 100. She followed that impressive feat a decade later with the ballad “Take a Bow,” which held the No. 1 spot on the Hot 100 for seven weeks.  

Check out the dates and the announcement video below.

The 2023 Celebration tour North American dates:

July 15 – Vancouver, BC @ Rogers Arena

July 18 – Seattle, WA @ Climate Pledge Arena

July 22 – Phoenix, AZ @ Footprint Center

July 25 – Denver, CO @ Ball Arena

July 27 – Tulsa, OK @ BOK Center

July 30 – St. Paul, MN @ Xcel Energy Center

August 2 – Cleveland, OH @ Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse

August 5 – Detroit, MI @ Little Caesars Arena

August 7 – Pittsburgh, PA @ PPG Paints Arena

August 9 – Chicago, IL @ United Center

August 13 – Toronto, ON @ Scotiabank Arena

August 19 – Montreal, QC @ Centre Bell

August 23 – New York, NY @ Madison Square Garden

August 24 – New York, NY @ Madison Square Garden

August 30 – Boston, MA @ TD Garden

Sept. 2 – Washington, DC @ Capital One Arena

Sept. 5 – Atlanta, GA @ State Farm Arena

Sept. 7 – Tampa, FL @ Amalie Arena

Sept. 9 – Miami, FL @ Miami-Dade Arena

Sept. 13 – Houston, TX @ Toyota Center

Sept. 18 – Dallas, TX @ American Airlines Center

Sept. 21 – Austin, TX @ Moody Center ATX

Sept. 27 – Los Angeles, CA @ Crypto.com Arena

Oct. 4 – San Francisco, CA @ Chase Center

Oct. 7 – Las Vegas, NV @ T-Mobile Arena

European Dates: 

Oct. 14 – London, UK @ The O2

Oct. 21 – Antwerp, BE @ Sportpaleis

Oct. 25 – Copenhagen, DK @ Royal Arena

Oct. 28 – Stockholm, SE @ Tele2

Nov. 1 – Barcelona, ES @ Palau Sant Jordi

Nov. 6 – Lisbon, PT @ Altice Arena

Nov. 12 – Paris, FR @ Accor Arena

Nov. 13 – Paris, FR @ Accor Arena

Nov. 15 – Cologne, DE @ Lanxess Arena

Nov. 23 – Milan, IT @ Mediolanum Forum

Nov. 28 – Berlin, DE @ Mercedes-Benz Arena

Dec. 1 – Amsterdam, NL @ Ziggo Dome

Madonna is planning a massive 40th anniversary tour later this year with her longtime concert promotion partner and producer Live Nation and music manager Guy Oseary, sources tell Billboard.  
The 64-year-old pop icon will perform music from her entire catalogue, dating back to her 1983 self-titled debut album through her most recent studio album, 2019’s Madame X. The world tour will be Madonna’s first ever career retrospective, featuring a compilation of her biggest hits across four decades of music and will reportedly include a multi-night run at the O2 in London. 

“It’s going to be the biggest tour she’s ever done,” one executive familiar with her plans tells Billboard. The tour will include both stadium and arena dates, the source says, and include over-the-top production that delivers both “Material Girl” kitsch and occasionally outrageous sex appeal with plenty of show-stopping moments made for social media.  

Billboard has also learned that Oseary will continue to serve on Madonna’s management team, despite stepping down from his role at mega-management collective Maverick in 2020 and splitting with longtime clients U2 in 2022. 

The tour buzz comes just months after the “Hey You” singer released her career-spanning compilation album Finally Enough Love: 50 Number Ones, spanning her entire dance club career, featuring remixes by top producers including 20 rare recordings officially released for the first time. In 2021, Madonna signed a deal with Warner Music Group for an “extensive, multi-year series of catalog releases that will revisit the groundbreaking music that made her an international icon.”  

Madonna last toured in 2019 and early 2020 on her Madame X tour, a theater run that was struggled through production delays and Madonna’s recurring hip and knee injuries. While the Madame X tour earned strong critical reviews in the press, its habitually late start time often angered ticket holders and prompted two class actions lawsuits from fans. 

When it comes to choosing her nightly set list for this new tour, Madonna will have no shortage of songs to choose from with 57 titles charting on the Billboard Hot 100, 38 top 10 hits and 12 No. 1s, including 1990’s “Vogue,” and 2000’s “Music,” released a decade apart and each spending 24 weeks on the Hot 100. Madonna’s “Borderline” from 1984 spent 30 weeks on the Hot 100. She followed that impressive feat a decade later with the ballad “Take a Bow,” which held the No. 1 spot on the Hot 100 for seven weeks.  

Madonna’s 2008-2009 Sticky and Sweet Tour is the highest grossing tour by a female artist ever, according to Billboard Boxscore, netting $407 million. Her most recent Madame X theater run grossed $36.4 million with 124,655 ticket sold. 

Reps for Madonna could not be reached for comment at time of publishing.