After inaugural season, Live Nation asks for 10 more annual shows
Live Nation is requesting 10 additional shows for the 2022 concert season at Live Oak Bank Pavilion.
The inaugural season ended last month with 19 shows (Lake Street Dive, the last Live Nation event of the season, canceled the day of, citing plans to reschedule that have yet to be announced). Under the city of Wilmington’s 10-year management contract with Live Nation, the national firm can book at least 15 and up to 20 events each year at the venue.
“We’re in a unique position,” Live Nation general manager Ryan Belcher told the Wilmington City Council at an agenda briefing Monday morning. “We have more artists and bands that want to come to Wilmington than available slots.”
City Manager Tony Caudle has the authority to increase the number of shows Live Nation can host at the city-owned amphitheater per the parties’ agreement; Caudle told council Monday he was seeking information on the use of department resources before acting on the company’s request.
Last year, Live Nation’s 19 shows attracted 89,458 attendees, according to numbers provided by the city. This figure doesn’t include civic events (like the Azalea Festival and the city’s Fourth of July grand opening, which attracted 25,583 attendees combined) or event rentals (including the Beer, Bourbon & BBQ Festival, Lighthouse Beer & Wine Festival and Christmas movie and visits with Santa, which brought in 11,314 people).
“People are coming from all over,” Belcher said. Including the Azalea Festival concerts, Belcher said 41% of ticketholders were from Wilmington and the rest were from outside the local market. “We sold 26 tickets in Alaska,” he said, illustrating the hundreds of different zip codes where tickets were purchased and the wide-reaching range of the venue and artists’ interest.
The city gets $2 of every ticket sold and $200,000 annually from Live Nation to rent the venue, per the agreement, and also collects revenues from civic events and venue rentals.
So far, the city has collected $314,000 in total revenues at the park, having been paid two quarterly rental installments from Live Nation from the season that began in July with the triple-header opener, Wide Spread Panic.
Quantifying the economic boost the $38-million park has spurred is difficult without data, but anecdotally, hotel owners, restaurant and bar employees have reported bursts in business around concerts.
“Unfortunately, there are no metrics to track the venue’s economic impact on downtown Wilmington,” Wilmington Downtown Inc. (WDI) spokesperson Christina Haley wrote in an email.
Belcher told city council the firm hired roughly 625 people, most of which were part-time employees, to help run the events.
“Our caterer, our laundry, our cleaning crew, tent rentals, staffing agencies, food trucks, were all local companies that benefitted from this venue,” he said.
Councilmember Neil Anderson asked Belcher how he planned to stack the upcoming concerts considering the requested additional shows, citing the multi-night shows for GRiZ and Widespread Panic. “People that live there don’t want to have to endure three, four shows in a row,” he said.
Last season was a condensed one, considering the park opened in July, and this season the booked shows will be more spread out, Belcher said. So far this season, Live Nation has announced six shows, the earliest booked for April 12.
The U.S. House Oversight Committee is investigating Live Nation’s role in the Astroworld tragedy in Houston, where 10 attendees died and hundreds were injured, prompted by extreme overcrowding. Councilmember Clifford Barnett asked Belcher, “What are we doing to make sure that doesn’t happen here?”
Belcher said the comparison was apples to oranges, considering the size of the shows, and also cited his comments would have to be limited as the event was under investigation. “We train extensively,” he said. “We have show stop procedures.”
The inaugural season occurred “without incident,” Belcher said. A city staff memo on the season roundup cites nuisance behavior along Front Street near the apartment complex Flats on Front following concerts, with illegal drug use and public urination. The area was added to WDI’s downtown ambassadors’ PM shift, according to the memo.
Council and staff are requesting a more detailed rundown of the concert season crime statistics from Wilmington Police Chief Donny Williams in the coming weeks.
Deputy City Manager Thom Moton said after a meeting with Williams, he gleaned the department is struggling with COVID-19 fatigue, with staffing presenting a major challenge. Both WPD and Live Nation agree the number of officers at each event, which is generally 10, can be reduced this season. The city is looking to augment public resources, with 50% of security to be provided by Live Nation instead by utilizing a private security firm.
The city is working with a private property owner to potentially introduce handicap parking near the venue – a major concern presented this concert season, as reported by Port City Daily.
Anderson urged Belcher to ensure the park utilized more than one entrance to prevent bottlenecking and to make the main entrance clear with signage. Uber and Lyft drivers who are familiar with the area would not follow the geofencing drop-off zones, creating issues for Live Nation.
Live Nation unveils new ’emo nostalgia’ festival
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When We Were Young will take place this autumn in Las Vegas with headliners Paramore and My Chemical Romance
Live Nation is taking fans back to the ‘golden age of emo’ with a new festival, When We Were Young.
Paramore and My Chemical Romance (MCR) are set to headline the festival, billed for Saturday 22 October in Las Vegas.
The date comes amid MCR’s hotly-anticipated reunion tour, which sold out upon its announcement in early 2020.
Meanwhile, When We Were Young is currently Paramore’s only announced date and comes shortly after the band announced their long-anticipated return to the studio.
The festival is slated to take place at Las Vegas Festival Grounds – a 37-acre open-air concert venue that reportedly can accommodate up to 80,000 fans.
More than 60 bands are set to play across three stages in 12 hours
Located on the Vegas Strip, the grounds has previously hosted ACM Party for a Cause Festival, iHeartRadio Music Festival and the 2015 Rock in Rio USA as well as a number of major festivals and conventions.
Jimmy Eat World, Avril Lavigne, Car Seat Headrest, The All American Rejects, Taking Back Sunday and Alkaline Trio are also set to perform at When We Were Young.
More than 60 bands are set to play across three stages in 12 hours and general admission tickets start at US$224.99.
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“An Evening with Silk Sonic” to Debut at Park MGM in Las Vegas Beginning Friday, February 25
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Weather Alert
The next system arrives Thursday afternoon and continues into Friday morning. Expect 1 to 2 inches of snow for the Eastern Magic Valley and Lower and Upper Snake plain with 3 inches possible for the Eastern benches along the I-86 and I-15 corridors. Highest snow amounts will be for the Big Holes and Wasatch mountains where 4 to 8 inches of snow is likely. Expect 3 to 6 inches for the Caribou Range including Wayan. Other areas across the Southeast and Eastern Highlands should get around 2 to 4 inches of snow. The Albion mountains will likely see 3 to 6 inches with localized higher amounts. Winds of 20 to 25 mph are possible late Thursday into Friday morning, especially for ridgetops across our southwest areas in the Southern Hills/Albion mountains.
Silk Sonic Announce Forthcoming Las Vegas Residency
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Silk Sonic, the tantalizing duo of Anderson .Paak and Bruno Mars, have announced that they will be bringing their music to the Las Vegas Strip beginning on February 25 at Dolby Live as part of “An Evening With Silk Sonic.”
“Its happening! The sexiest party of the year! Them Silk Sonic Boyz are performing Live in Las Vegas!” Mars tweeted. The run currently includes 13 dates at the 5,200-seat theater at the Park MGM, with the Live Nation presale slated to kick off at 1 p.m. ET today (January 19); the general public on-sale begins at 1 p.m. ET on Friday (January 21).
The shows are subject to the venue’s Health Check standards to reduce exposure to COVID-19, which requires masks be worn by all attendees and which could also require proof of full vaccination, proof of a negative COVID-19 test before entering the event or a rapid on-site COVID test.
“THE TERMS ARE LOCKED AND VEGAS MIGHT NOT EVER BE THE SAME JACK!! YOU’RE INVITED TO THE HOTTEST SHOW IN SIN CITY!” .Paak added about the first substantial run of gigs in support of the pair’s debut album, An Evening with Silk Sonic. The project debuted at No.1 on Billboard’s Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart on the list dated November 27, and No.2 on the Billboard 200 after the lead single, “Leave the Door Open,” topped the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart for eight weeks between April and July 2021.
Back in November, .Paak unveiled APESHIT INC., a new record label launched in collaboration with Universal Music Group.
.Paak is one of today’s most prolific artists, working as an acclaimed musician, songwriter, producer, and director and crossing a wide spectrum of creative content development. He can now add “label head” to his many accomplishments.
“I wanted to start a label that sets fire to a new generation of artists, who can play while performing,” said .Paak. “This label is going to be about passion, about feeling, about honesty. It’s about respect for the culture and art and it’s about heart.”
Visit Silk Sonic’s Ticketmaster page for more information.
Slipknot Set 2022 Tour Dates: Ticket Presale Code & On-Sale Info
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Slipknot have announced new 2022 Knotfest Roadshow tour dates for North America.
Beginning in March and extending into June, the grotesque rockers will perform at 40 large-scale venues with an impressive lineup of opening acts on select dates: In This Moment and Jinjer will open the first leg of the tour, followed by Cypress Hill and Ho99o9 opening the second leg of the tour. Check the full info for each concert on the event and ticket links below. Additionally, Slipknot will bring their heavy sound to European cities and a few festivals beginning in July.
When do Slipknot 2022 tour tickets go on sale and what is the presale code?
Tickets for their previously announced shows are now on sale. For the new dates, the general public on-sale begins as early as January 21. Presales are currently underway for VIP packages and fan club members. Spotify, Live Nation, LN Mobile App, and local venues/radio presales will follow. Keep in mind, each date is different and details are subject to change.
The Live Nation presale password is FRONTROW, and the LN Mobile App code is COVERT. Click through the individual concert links for more information about the show you’re interested in.
For the health and safety of all, please make sure to get fully vaccinated and follow your local guidance about health and safety precautions. The newer variants are more contagious than previous strains of COVID, and booster shots are now recommended for everyone who has been vaccinated for over five months.
Slipknot All Tour Dates and Tickets
We recommend following Slipknot on social media and signing up for their free email newsletter, in addition to checking your local venue’s social media and email subscription service, to get the most up-to-date information.
For concert tickets and more, check out Slipknot’s Zumic artist page.