Touring
New COVID-19 Rules Mean That the Party Is Over for Ibiza Super-Clubs This Season
Sweeping new rules designed to curb “alcohol abuse” on the island also outlaw party boats, pub crawls and balcony jumping. The verdict is in, and the party is over for Ibiza super-clubs this summer. On Sunday (June 21), the Balearic government announced new rules pertaining to nightclubs and outdoor venues for the dance mecca of Ibiza in the context of COVID-19. These regulations ensure that the island’s biggest clubs and other mid-sized venues will stay closed for the 2020 season. For indoor spaces, the rules state that only venues with a stated capacity of 300 or less are allowed to open for the season and will only be allowed to open at one-third capacity. This means there can only be up to 100 people at a time inside a club, that they must be seated and that there can...
Lyric Opera of Chicago, San Francisco Opera Scrap Fall Seasons Due to Coronavirus
The Lyric Opera of Chicago and San Francisco Opera have canceled the fall portions of their 2020-21 seasons due to the new coronavirus. The Lyric Opera eliminated four of its 10 productions and delayed opening night from Sept. 17 to Jan. 16. San Francisco canceled five of seven stagings and delayed opening night from Sept. 11 to April 25. Twenty-six performances were canceled in Chicago and 37 in San Francisco. Lyric general director Anthony Freud said Tuesday he hopes to reschedule the missed stagings for future seasons: a double bill of Mascagni’s “Cavalleria Rusticana” and Leoncavallo’s “Pagliacci;” what was to have been the North American premiere of George Benjamin’s “Lessons in Love and Violence;” Puccini’s “Tosca;” and Verdi’s “Attila.” The season now is set to start with the Chicag...
Riot Fest 2021 Set With Headliners My Chemical Romance, Smashing Pumpkins & Run the Jewels
Chicago’s Riot Fest 2020 has been scrubbed, due to the health crisis. But the multi-day festival will return next year with a bill headlined by My Chemical Romance, Smashing Pumpkins, Run the Jewels and Pixies. Also confirmed to the 2021 lineup are Coheed and Cambria, Taking Back Sunday, Sublime With Rome, Dirty Heads and Lupe Fiasco, performing The Cool in full. The 2021 edition will take place Sept. 17-19, 2021 at Douglas Park, almost a year to the day from the scheduled 2020 show (originally set for Sept. 11-13). A first of three waves of performers 50 acts is announced with Vic Mensa, Living Colour, Big Freedia, Toots and the Maytals, Best Coast, L7, Gogol Bordello, and many more on board. “If you already have your 2020 ticket, you’re in luck, it’s good for 2021,” reads a stateme...
Tones And I, Jimmy Barnes, Amy Shark & More Set for COVIDSafe Concerts Program In Australia
BRISBANE — Live music is returning to Sydney, with a little help from government. As Australians kicked back for another weekend in lockdown, a statement dropped Saturday (June 13) from the New South Wales government detailing “Great Southern Nights,” a live music campaign featuring some of the biggest and brightest homegrown artists. A lineup starring Tones and I, Jimmy Barnes, Birds of Tokyo, Missy Higgins, The Jungle Giants and Paul Kelly will present 1,000 gigs for Great Southern Nights, curated by ARIA and an industry advisory committee and playing out in venues across regional New South Wales and the state capital, Sydney. Other big names booked include Thelma Plum, The Presets, Amy Shark, Tash Sultana, The Teskey Brothers and The Veronicas. There is one slight catc...
Coachella Announces 2021 Dates After Cancellation News
Now Coachella is being planned for April 9-11 and April 16-18, 2021, and Stagecoach is scheduled for April 23-25, 2021. Following news Wednesday Coachella and Stagecoach festivals’ October dates were canceled by county health officials, promoter Goldenvoice announced new dates on Thursday (June 11) in 2021 for the Indio, California, events. Now Coachella is being planned for April 9-11 and April 16-18, 2021, Stagecoach is scheduled for April 23-25, 2021. Coachella’s 2020 edition was previously scheduled to take place April 10-12 and April 17-19 with headliners Travis Scott, Frank Ocean and Rage Against the Machine. Due to the coronavirus pandemic, it was then pushed back to the weekends of Oct. 9-11 and Oct. 16-18 and Stagecoach was moved to Oct. 23-25. R...
Jason Isbell & the 400 Unit Taps Lucinda Williams for Summer 2021 Tour
Jason Isbell & the 400 Unit plan to hit the road with special guest Lucinda Williams next year for an unforgettable summer jaunt. The whole squad’s first pit stop in their North American journey is in Vancouver, B.C. on July 19, while wrapping around the West Coast and southwest states before reaching the last two shows in Austin, Texas from Aug. 7-8. Tickets are on sale and available for purchase here. Isbell and his band are touring in support of their latest studio album Reunions, which soared to the top of three Billboard charts (all tallies dated May 30) — making a 20-1 leap on the Top Rock Albums chart, jumping 17-1 on the Top Country Albums chart, and skipping one spot 2-1 on the Americana/Folk Albums chart. Check out Williams’ tour announce...
Coachella, Stagecoach Music Festivals Pushed to 2021
The events were already rescheduled from April to October, as plans for a return next year still remain unclear. The Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival and country music festival Stagecoach will not take place this year due to county and state restrictions. Riverside County Public Health Officer Dr. Cameron Kaiser told the Los Angeles Times on Wednesday (June 10), the festivals would not be held in Indio, California, this October — as had been planned when promoter Goldenvoice was forced to reschedule from their original April dates last March due to the coronavirus pandemic. Kaiser cited California Gov. Gavin Newsom‘s four-step outline for re-opening the state as the reasoning behind the decision, noting music festivals are not permitted to reopen until a...
Here Are All the Major Music Events Canceled Due to Coronavirus (Updating)
Billboard has compiled an ongoing list of major concerts and events that have been postponed or canceled due to the outbreak. As the coronavirus disease continues to spread, live event organizers have been canceling or postponing large gatherings from technology conferences to major concerts. Billboard has compiled an ongoing list of major concerts and events that have been postponed or canceled due to the outbreak. Cancellations Announced In June June 1: Motley Crue, Def Leppard, Poison and Joan Jett announced that their summer stadium tour of North America is postponed until next summer, with rescheduled dates to come. Tickets will be honored at rescheduled shows; refund information is not yet available. Cancellations Announced In May May 29: The Faith No More and Korn joint tour, w...
Clearing His Name: Metropolitan CEO Says He’s Ready to Put Disastrous Albany Show Behind Him
Two years after an SMG executive accused him of stiffing his portion of a bill for a 2018 concert, John Scher says new evidence clears him of wrong-doing When John Scher was approached by an old friend about investing in a long-shot benefit concert, the 69-year-old promoter knew he should have walked away. But spellbound by the opportunity to work with superstar artists James Taylor and John Legend, Scher convinced himself that he could pull it off. Big mistake. “I don’t know why I let myself get dragged into these things,” Scher says of the cancelled 2018 concert supporting Albany Med hospital that became a costly lawsuit and legal headache he didn’t need. In late 2017, Times Union Center manager Bob Belber approached Scher with a proposal to co-promote a black tie gala celebrating the re...
Music Venues Across the Country Can Reopen, But Is It Worth It?
Concerts are slowly starting again, but they’re looking considerably different in the pandemic and many clubs are unsure whether they’re worth the risks. On May 18, TempleLive in Fort Smith, Arkansas, hosted one of the nation’s first socially-distanced concerts with country rock artist Travis McCready of the band Bishop Gunn. In order to prevent the spread of the coronavirus promoters implemented extensive safety protocols: temperature checks at the door, masks on attendees and staff, limited bathroom occupancies and disinfecting fog sprayers, among them. The venue also had to keep each “fan pod” group of fans who arrived together at least six feet apart with one-way walkways and vigilant staff. It was an unusual sight for Getty Images photographer Kevin Mazur, who flew in from...
Which Artist Should Do a Drive-In Concert Next? Vote!
Drive-in concerts are all the rave now, but which touring artist would you rave to from inside your car if they put on a drive-in show? Kesha would have embarked on her 2020 High Road Tour with Big Freedia had it not been for the coronavirus pandemic, but these two could raise hell from the road without ever leaving it. Similarly, Kenny Chesney pushed his NFL stadium Chillaxification Tour to 2021, apologizing to his heart-broken fans, “Sadly, we can’t find a way to make it safe, to navigate water that’s just not getting any clearer.” But the country legend has a shot at navigating those waters by finding outdoor fields that are roughly the same size of NFL stadiums and letting the shows go on. Pearl Jam ran into the same bump in the road when the band wanted to p...
CTS Eventim’s Quarterly Earnings: Revenue Down 34.7%, Liquidity Looks Good & More Takeaways
Live entertainment revenue at the German event producer fell 40.4% due to the suspension of concerts across Europe. Europe’s coronavirus crisis took a huge toll on German event producer CTS Eventim in the first quarter, leading to a 34.7% decline in revenue to €184.6 million ($202.1 million) and clouding the outlook for the remainder of 2020. Due to countries’ suspensions of concerts and other gatherings due to the coronavirus pandemic, CTS Eventim’s live entertainment revenue fell 40.4% to €108.6 million ($118.9 million) while ticketing revenue fell 24.4% to €79 million ($86.5 million). CTS Eventim had been growing quickly until the pandemic threw the touring industry into disarray. In 2019, revenue rose 16.2%, and adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization in...
