Features
No Challenges, Only Opportunities: Live Nation Leads Pollstar’s Magna Charta Promoters Chart
Viktor Schanz – Kirk Hammett in his element
Metallica sold out stadiums across the world in 2019, and many of them were in Europe
Live Nation leads the Magna Charta in the promoter category for a second consecutive year. Based on 532 box office reports, Live Nation sold 7,805,587 tickets in Europe for a gross of $678,739,606.
“We are in a great position as we enter 2020,” John Reid, president of Live Nation Europe told Pollstar. “The live music market is strong, and we have not only a great 2020 planned, but 2021 is already looking good, too. So, all positive.”
– John Reid
President of Live Nation Europe
He picked Metallica, Bon Jovi and Ed Sheeran as among Live Nation’s biggest 2019 tours, adding that “the big festivals all had a great year, from [Belgium’s] Rock Werchter to [Netherlands’] Lowlands to [Italy’s] Firenze Rocks.”
When questioned about the biggest challenges in 2019, Reid responded, “I don’t like to worry about challenges, we are building a business and challenges big and small are part of that ride. Opportunities are all around us and our strength lies in having a tremendous infrastructure and global team to see these opportunities and act quickly to realize them.”
He said 2020 would be all about developing Lollapalooza’s European footprint. “This year’s Paris, Berlin and Stockholm festivals will be unmissable,” Reid said. “Show-wise we have big tours from rockers Extremoduro, Guns N’ Roses, Iron Maiden and many more.”
According to Reid, Live Nation’s strategy remains the same: “To deliver world class events for music fans. Creating a better fan experience is a priority, and that means growing the number of shows we put on, as well as the number of places we operate in.”
Live Nation rolled out its worldwide sustainability initiative Green Nation last year, which has been “integral to our planning over the last year,” Reid said.
Green Nation will “only become more embedded in 2020,” he continued. “Each market is finding unique ways to tackle issues from recycling and transport to fossil fuel alternatives and solar panel car parks, as launched at Lowlands this year. Artists are increasingly keen to minimize their carbon footprint, and we have dedicated teams equally committed to making real change and measuring our progress going forward.”
Coming in second and third on the Magna Charta are two businesses that are part of CTS Eventim’s pan-European promoter network Eventim Live: Semmel Concerts, which reported 3,465,186 tickets sold and $189,416,672 grossed, and FKP Scorpio, which reported 2,844,362 tickets sold and $195,101,904 grossed from Feb. 1, 2019 to Jan. 31, 2020.
FKP Scorpio particularly has been grown its business over the last year, and began 2020 by opening a new Belgian office. It also heavily invested in the agency business in recent months, first acquiring Norway’s Nordic Live, and then taking over most bookers from German booking agency Four Artists.
The company will launch a new event, Limestone Festival, near Munich this June, with an inaugural lineup topped by Post Malone. “We are really looking forward to our new Limestone Festival, not only because of the fantastic lineup – apart from Post Malone many renowned artists from urban to dancehall, pop and rap – but also because the location is so beautifully situated right next to a sapphire-blue lake,” FKP Scorpio co-CEO Stephan Thanscheidt told Pollstar.
FKP also promoted 28 concerts from Ed Sheeran’s record-breaking “Divide” tour in seven European countries, including the largest concerts ever played to date by Ed Sheeran in his impressive career: Jun 22-23, 2019 at the Hockenheimring, each with 100,000 fans. Those concerts were the definite highlight of 2019 for FKP founder and CEO Folkert Koopmans, who said, “Looking into 100.000 expectant faces who wanted to see ‘their’ Ed it was a very emotional goose bumps atmosphere!”
Nick Minns Nick Minns – Folkert Koopmans and Ed Sheeran
On the way to the stage in Hanover, where Ed Sheeran would officially break U2’s record for the highest grossing tour of all time.
In 2020, Thanscheidt is looking forward to the next editions of FKP Scorpio’s flagship festivals Hurricane and Southside. “We are so happy to present Twenty One Pilots, Kings of Leon, Seeed, Deichkind, Martin Garrix, The Killers and Rise Against as headliners and also so many more awesome bands, from rock to pop to hip-hop and electro,” he said.
Another of FKP Scorpio’s 2020 highlights will be Taylor Swift’s exclusive, already-soldout June show in Berlin. FKP Scorpio founder and CEO Folkert Koopmans confirmed what those working in this business have felt for years: The booking process continues to start earlier and earlier.
Rainer Keuenhof – Hurricane Festival 2019
Parkway Drive live on stage
“We do not mind, though,” he said. “It helps us to have more planning security for the program we book, and we have more time to look for alternatives, in case something does not work out. Also, we can start the announcements and therefore the ticket sales sooner.”
Reid doesn’t mind the new booking reality either. “There’s no challenge for us here,” he said. “It’s just a part of the job. The business is growing, which means that the calendar is constantly evolving.”
That doesn’t mean promoters don’t face challenges in 2020. Said Koopmans: “The biggest challenge still is to manage to offer fair ticket prices for all kinds of events – small club show to arena gig – while costs are constantly increasing on all levels.”