Hotstar: Gregory Alan Isakov Cultivating Fans, Growing Touring Business

Jessie McCall – Gregory Alan Isakov
Farming Fans: Gregory Alan Isakov’s steadily growing road business takes him to Australia for the first time in March.

After years of toiling away on the road as well as in the actual dirt on his 3.5-acre rural Colorado farm, folk musician Gregory Alan Isakov has slowly but steadily pushed into larger rooms and shows no signs of slowing, with a patient but potent work ethic that extends to his team as well. 

“Philosophically, the tone of the team has been to be patient and do smart things, work the rooms we know we can sell out and keep growing with the promoters,” APA’s Susie Giang, who’s represented Isakov since around 2009, told Pollstar. “It’s been slow and steady and I think it’s proven to grow stronger because of it, which has been good.” 

That strength is reflected in the numbers, with recent dates wrapping up with two nights at the Royale Nightclub in Boston (about 2,400 tickets) and every date of the 38-date tour selling out but two according to Giang. Other shows included The 9:30 Club in D.C. ($42,000 grossed), First Avenue in Minneapolis ($47,310), and plenty in between including a sold-out Red Rocks in his home market of Colorado, meaning more than 9,000 tickets. 

Born in South Africa but growing up in Philadelphia, Isakov moved to Boulder to study horticulture, where he now tends to a plot of land growing vegetables and other crops during his time off from music. In October he released his first LP in five years Evening Machines. It’s his first on Dualtone Music Group rather than on his own label, Suitcase Town Music, run in-house with manager Sarah Levin. She reiterated the touring strategy, saying, “We’re wanting to nurture every market like a garden, planting seeds in each and coming back and growing.”

With longtime fans eating up the lush, rootsy folk that falls somewhere between My Morning Jacket and Hozier, the LP garnered critical praise from major outlets like Rolling Stone, Paste Magazine, Pop Matters and others, and debuted at No. 48 on the Billboard Top 200, No. 1 on the Folk / Americana Album chart and No. 2 on the Indie Album Chart.

The added buzz and careful timing from Isakov’s team has meant hitting markets he hasn’t seen in a while, and moving up to much bigger venues.

“I really love to be in markets like Toronto, and Montreal, where he hadn’t been since about 2013,” Giang said. “I think the last Toronto headline play we did was the Drake Hotel, which is about 150 tickets, and he just sold out the Danforth Music Hall which is 1,400.”

The path was paved early on, with a clear plan to take advantage of strong support slots and come back to loyal fans. 

“One of the biggest tours he got right out of the gate was with Brandi Carlile around 2010,” Giang said. “That helped us really form a foundation to seed and grow, and one of the things we always talked about as a team is to make sure we go back to those places and that we’re cultivating the land in a way where we can create our own community and be part of a community as well.”

Indeed, in 2009 supporting Carlie, Isakov played McMenamins Crystal Ballroom at 602 capacity, and in October played the city’s Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall at more than 2,700 seats.

“Festivals for sure have been huge too,” added Giang. “We really want to make sure the timing is appropriate. As a team we collectively try to be very sound and healthy about the amount of times we hit markets, the amount of time we wait between those markets.”

Isakov, either performing with a full band of six, as a duo, solo or even at times full orchestra (such as playing with the National Symphony Orchestra in Washington, D.C.) means he can do the rowdiest nightclub, biggest outdoor festival stage or stuffiest seated theatre, which promoters have seen first-hand. “It could be Red Rocks, The Fillmore, it could be The 9:30 Club, any of those venues and promoters that have treated us so well. I rarely see the amount of stark quietness and stillness and appreciation for an artist from the fans, which is really special,” Giang said. 

“Pin-drop is definitely a good description,” Levin said, adding that upcoming milestones include his first Ryman Auditorium headline gig and two Fillmore San Francisco gigs, with one already sold out. That’s not to mention the Red Rocks sellout this summer, which actually wasn’t his first. 

“In 2016 was the first time he headlined Red Rocks, and it did sell out but it did the day of, which is so amazing!” Levin said. “But for us to do it three months in advance this time wasn’t just wow, but really wow.

“The tour in January-February with more U.S. dates is exciting for us, and we’re so excited he’s playing Newport Folk Festival, with more touring probably later in the summer,” Levin said. “Australia in March is also great and right now Europe is going very well.”

Isakov’s live performances demonstrate his connection with and impact on his fans, with Giang noting a recent show at The Vic in Chicago as particularly moving.

“One of the most extraordinary things about Gregory is that he has the ethos and tone of a songwriter, a poet, and a troubadour all at once,” Giang said. “He creates authentic and beautiful moments with his fans as he plays stages and venues; but he also creates that authenticity and originality as he grows his world of art, his work as a touring musician, recording artist, and member of this musical community. It’s really special to be part of something that moves like that, and moves the world like that as well.”