Live Music Industry News

The July 5 "Back to the Beginning" show raised more than $200 million for three charities, surpassing the amount raised by FireAid and Farm Aid combined.

Earlier this week news broke that Oak View Group CEO Tim Leiweke was stepping down after being indicted by the US Department of Justice. While not admitting to wrongdoing, Oak View agreed to pay a hefty fine and cooperate with the DoJ.

Leiweke allegedly lead “a scheme designed to steer the contract for entertainment services at a public university’s arena to his company.” His charges include conspiring with a competitor to get them to pull out of the bidding process. Leiweke’s charges face a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $1 million fine. Leiweke denies the charges.

As the Oasis reunion bus rolls into Manchester this weekend, Spotify has clambered on board for the ride. It has commissioned a short film about Oasis superfans, published through its social media accounts with billboard adverts starring some of the featured fans.

There are also some features within Spotify itself: a personalised ‘set list builder’ based on fans’ streaming history, which can then be turned into shareable cards for social media. Each fan will also get a playlist of their most-streamed Oasis songs.

Juice Entertainment, which has been engaged in a long-running lawsuit with Live Nation, has alleged the entertainment giant has engaged in fraud, monopolistic behaviour, deceptive business practices and corporate espionage.

The allegations were made in a letter submitted to the US Department of Justice and Federal Trade Commission’s public inquiry into unfair and anticompetitive practices in live entertainment.

In a memo to members, the National Independent Venue Association clarified the scope of Shuttered Venue Operator Grant recoupment actions being taken by the Small Business Administration.

NIVA says that the overwhelming majority of SVOG recipients — more than 91% — have closed out and the SBA told the industry group it has no intention of recouping those funds.

There are, however, 645 grantees, the SBA told NIVA, who are subject to involuntary recoupment. More than half of those identified had been non-responsive to earlier SBA communications. The remainder were identified as either having eligibility or overpayment issues.

Yesterday we reported on the US Department of Justice’s indictment of Oak View Group boss Tim Leiweke over allegations of bid-rigging around a new arena in Texas. He has stepped down from his role as CEO, but in a statement sent to Music Ally, his spokesperson has criticised the indictment.

“Mr. Leiweke has done nothing wrong and will vigorously defend himself and his well-deserved reputation for fairness and integrity. The Antitrust Division’s allegations are wrong on the law and the facts, and the case should never have been brought,” said the spokesperson.

The National Independent Venue Association (NIVA) in the US has called for the break up of Live Nation, proposing the business be split up into four companies across ticketing, promotion, advertising and sponsorship, and artist management.

NIVA submitted its formal comments to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and Department of Justice (DOJ) in response to their joint request for public input on unfair practices in the live entertainment marketplace.

Concert promoter and music executive Chuck Morris will be inducted into the IEBA Hall of Fame during the 2025 Honors & Awards Ceremony set for Oct. 7 at the Grand Hyatt Nashville.

A pioneering force in the Colorado music scene and beyond, Morris is Chairman Emeritus and President & CEO of AEG Presents Rocky Mountains. His contributions to the live entertainment industry span more than five decades and include a legacy of artist development, venue innovation, and industry mentorship. In the mid-1970s, Morris made his mark with the famed Denver nightclub Ebbets Field. His keen ear and curatorial spirit helped launch countless careers, and his passion for artists and fans alike continues to define his work.

Healing Appalachia, the nonprofit festival created by Tyler Childers and his manager to raise money to fight opioid addiction, has unveiled this year’s lineup. The event is slated for Sept. 18- 20 in Kentucky.

Thursday kicks off the weekend with Andy Frasco & The U.N. and Jeremy Short.

Friday will be headlined by Chris Stapleton, Molly Tuttle, The Infamous Stringdusters and Jesse Welles, and will feature Lukas Nelson, Sunny War, Desert Hollow, Corduroy Brown and The Montvales, Jeremy Pinnell and Moose Miller.

Oak View Group CEO Tim Leiweke is stepping down as CEO of the company he co-founded with Irving Azoff after his indictment on a conspiracy charge for allegedly rigging a bid to build and manage Austin’s Moody Center Arena.

Leiweke, 68, reportedly conspired with another bidder to have that company drop out in exchange for subcontracts at the $388 million arena. CNBC reports that the second company was New York-based Legends Hospitality, and that Leiweke reneged on the subcontracts agreement after that company bowed out of the bidding.

R&B singer Usher has canceled the entire Australian leg of his Past Present Future Tour, which would have marked his first visit to the region in nearly a decade.

Usher was scheduled to perform a total of 12 shows—six at Melbourne’s Rod Laver Arena and six at Sydney’s SuperDome—in November and December. As of now, all dates have been officially canceled. No reason for the cancellation was provided. The tour promoter issued a statement, shared by Ticketek, which said that the shows would “no longer be proceeding.”

What do do – if anything – about Live Nation and Ticketmaster? That’s a big question this year in the US for the White House and regulators alike, amid ongoing litigation and a recently-launched inquiry into ticketing practices.

As you’d expect, Live Nation is lobbying energetically. Variety reported on its latest submission aimed at the US administration, the Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission.

According to the report, the company is suggesting reforms including a 20% cap on ticket-resale prices; more control for artists over secondary ticket sales; and – a running theme – stronger enforcement of the existing BOTS Act to combat scalpers and the technology they use.

Molly Tuttle is gearing up for the release of her new solo album, So Long Little Miss Sunshine, on Aug. 15 via Nonesuch Records.

She recently shared a new single and video from the upcoming project, “The Highway Knows.” Recorded with producer Jay Joyce, the fifth full album from the singer, songwriter and guitarist marks a sonic departure from Tuttle’s recent work. Tuttle goes to a whole new place on her new album, which is a hybrid of pop, country, rock and flat-picking, plus a murder ballad for good measure. Her virtuoso guitar work takes center stage on this project more than ever, and for the first time, she introduces her banjo playing on two songs.

Lady Gaga’s four Singapore concerts in May boosted the country’s economy by an estimated S$100m (£58m/€67m/US$78m) to $150m in tourism receipts according to experts.

Talking to The Straits Times, Maybank economist Brian Lee noted, however, that the amount was much less than the S$350m to S$500m brought in by concerts from Taylor Swift and Coldplay in 2024.

Lady Gaga’s Singapore concerts, which were staged at the National Stadium as part of her Mayhem Ball tour, grossed US$40.8m from the sale of 193,000 tickets according to Billboard.

Beyoncé swaps the flying Cadillac for a flying gold horse, following a scary mid-air stage mishap in Houston last month.

Beyoncé has made a noticeable change to her Cowboy Carter Tour after the recent mishap that saw her flying Cadillac tilting mid-air with her aboard. In the closing moments of her July 10 show in Atlanta, Queen Bey introduced the audience to a gold mechanical horse, suspended by wires. Complete with galloping leg movements, the horse carried Beyoncé above the crowd as she performed her hit “16 Carriages.”

Here comes rhymin’ Simon. It’s not a phrase we would have imagined saying again, in the context of a concert tour, after Paul Simon wrapped up his official farewell tour seven years ago. There was reason to believe he had valid reasons for marking that as his real goodbye to road shows, and not as the kind of fake-out retirement that so many performers cash in on and then renege on. But he has found solutions to the issues that might have kept him off-stage. By the time he kicked off a five-night stand at Walt Disney Concert Hall this week, Simon was a full 40 shows into his 2025 “Quiet Celebration” outing. And he was sounding… yes, softer (as promised in the tour title!) but, really, undiminished. We’ve never had a better reason to be glad someone went back on their word.

The Grand Ole Opry is many things: a stage, a show, a symbol. It’s the longest-running live broadcast in the world, a cornerstone of country music tradition and a dream for generations of artists. But behind the lights and legacy are the people who bring it all to life, night after night, show after show.

Photo agencies are to boycott the rest of the Oasis reunion tour, including the first “homecoming” gig in Manchester on Friday, over restrictions imposed on how newspapers, magazines, TV broadcasters and digital publishers can use pictures from the gigs.

The band’s management has told photo agencies and publishers that they own the rights to shots taken at the concerts for just a year, and then they will lose ownership of the images for any future use.

Earlier this month, Adrian Holovaty, founder of music-teaching platform Soundslice, solved a mystery that had been plaguing him for weeks. Weird images of what were clearly ChatGPT sessions kept being uploaded to the site.

Once he solved it, he realized that ChatGPT had become one of his company’s greatest hype men — but it was also lying to people about what his app could do.

The world of VIP has become more weird and wonderful than ever, offering increasingly unique (and exclusive) experiences. Here are the 7 best.

FlyteVu, a Nashville-based agency, has been acquired by Driftwood Music Group. The company is expanding its offerings, with the addition of corporate bookings and music licensing.

Co-founded by former CAA executive Laura Hutfless and former Warner Music Group executive Jeremy Holley, FlyteVu is expected to grow its team by thirty-percent by the end of the year, and staffing changes have already begun. Hutfless remains CEO and Holley, Co-Founder, is exiting the organization. Linda Knight has been tapped as Chief Creative Officer with Sina Seger promoted to Chief Operations Officer, Miriam Singer to Chief of Staff and Adeniz Villar as Senior Director of Talent.

Two independent concert promoters—Boston-based MassConcerts and Buffalo’s Funtime Presents—have announced a new booking partnership with the legendary Rochester venue, Water Street Music Hall.

A fixture of the Rochester live music scene for decades, Water Street made its debut as a concert venue in 1976 as the Country Warehouse, hosting performances from artists such as Phish and 10,000 Maniacs, as well as a wide range of local and national acts.

The Justice Department indicted Oak View Group CEO Tim Leiweke, a longtime executive in live sports and entertainment who once ran AEG, in an alleged scheme to rig the bidding process at a public arena in Texas.

Leiweke was charged with a violation of Section 1 of the Sherman Antitrust Act. It carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $1 million fine.

Live Nation is addressing concerns about the company’s practices and industry more broadly with a new packet of material meant for President Donald Trump’s administration and other government agencies, principally the U.S. Department of Justice (DoJ) and Federal Trade Commission (FTC).

The submission, reviewed by Variety, is intended to address issues across the secondary ticket market and outlines suggested reforms to create fairness for fans and artists. Live Nation, the parent company of Ticketmaster, suggests that there should be 20 percent caps placed on ticket resale prices; that artists be given greater control over secondary ticket sales; and that the government should do more to combat bad actors, including going after deceptive websites and more effective enforcement of the 2016 BOTS Act.