Potential mass shooting at Bad Bunny concert thwarted

An Arizona man who was allegedly attempting to conduct a mass shooting at a Bad Bunny concert in Atlanta, GA has been indicted. He attempted to sell weapons to an undercover FBI agent and disclosed his plot to kill a mass amount of minorities at a May 14 rap concert in Atlanta. Bad Bunny performed in Atlanta on May 14 and 15.

Nothing like last minute

An Eventbrite study released at the NIVA conference showed that fans are all about the last-minute ticket purchase. The window between ticket purchase and show day has decreased by 26% from 2022 - 2024 and 57% of tickets are sold within the 7 days before the show. Promoters are responding by shortening the average on sale window by 41%.

Related: Average concert ticket price hits an all-time record of $123.25 in Q1.

Barclays suspends Live Nation fest sponsorships

Barclays has suspended its sponsorship of all Live Nation festivals in the UK, including Download, Latitude, and the Isle of Wight, following significant backlash and boycotts from artists and attendees related to Barclays' financial ties to companies supplying arms to Israel. Numerous artists and performers have pulled out of these festivals in protest. Barclays defended its actions by stating that it provides essential financial services rather than direct investments in defense companies, but the protests have already led to significant disruptions.​

Colorado ticket bill protects against resellers and cancellations

Colorado Governor signed House Bill 1378 into law. The Consumer Protection in Event Ticket Sales prohibits an event from denying access to a guest who purchased tickets from a reseller and requiring ticket sellers to guarantee refunds under certain circumstances, such as cancellations.

Queensland venues get financial buoy

Queensland, Australia has pledged $1.6 million AUS ($1.06 million USD) to support struggling music venues in the wake of all of the festival cancellations this year. While the financial infusion isn’t a panacea, there is hope that it will provide a much-needed boost to artists and venues that need it most.

Ukraine’s biggest music festival set to return

ATLAS UNITED (formerly ATLAS) is scheduled to return July 12 - 14 at the Blockbuster Mall in Kyiv. The festival last took place in 2021, prior to the Russian invasion of Ukraine with over 600,000 people in attendance. The largest festival in Ukraine has hosted large international artists in the past, but this year will feature all Ukrainian acts.

Goldenvoice drew 250,000+ at marquee fests

This April, Goldenvoice hosted just over 250,000 guests over three weeks. Coachella was sold out on Weekend 1 at 81,690 tickets. They sold 80,148 tickets for Weekend 2. Stagecoach sold out and outsold both Coachella weekends with 89,003 tickets. 

Related: Pinterest shares insights from its first Coachella sponsorship.

George Strait still setting records

George Strait’s concert at Texas A&M Kyle Field last weekend set a record for the largest single ticketed concert in US history, with 110,905 guests. The previous record of 107,019 was held by a 1977 Grateful Dead show at Raceway Park in NJ. The concert also surpassed the record for largest event at Kyle Field, narrowly beating a 2014 football game between Texas A&M and Ole Miss which had 110,633 at the stadium.

Big [green] Church

The Big Church Festival in West Sussex, Europe's largest Christian and gospel music event, powered its main stage with green hydrogen for the first time, replacing traditional diesel generators. This switch to green hydrogen saved approximately 5.8 tons of CO2 emissions. The festival, which hosted over 30,000 attendees, aimed to enhance sustainability by reducing air pollution, noise, and environmental impact, aligning with broader industry efforts to transition away from fossil fuels and achieve carbon neutrality.

Related: UK’s Greener Futures Youth Festival aims to inspire and excite young people to build a greener future.

#peoplenews

1. Jennifer Koester has been elevated to President and COO of Sphere Entertainment from her previous role as President, Sphere Business Operations. 

2. Scooter Braun is hanging up his managing hat in order to focus on his CEO role at HYBE America.

• The Academy of Country Music is looking for a hybrid Director, Brand Creative and Design in Nashville, TN.

• LA28 Olympics is hiring a Senior Manager, Hospitality Operations in Los Angeles, CA. Salary: $115,000 - $130,000.

• Twitch is looking for an Event Program Manager for TwitchCon. The position is available in San Francisco, CA; Los Angeles, CA; Irvine, CA; Seattle, WA; New York, NY or remote. Salary: $72,600 - $155,200

Last Week's Results:
59% of BOH readers have sourced items for an event from Asia.

Headliners, Lineups, and Festival Announcements 

• Metallica will play a virtual concert in Fortnite June 22 - 23.

• Riot Fest announced a move to SeatGeek Stadium in Bridgeview, IL, headliners Fall Out Boy, NOFX, Beck, and Slayer and a new immersive, “choose your own adventure” RiotLand, September 20 - 22. 

• “The Long Goodbye Tour” gets a little bit longer as the Eagles announce an 8-date residency at the Las Vegas’ Sphere, September 20 - October 19. 

• Washington, DC’s HFStival is making a comeback after a 13 year hiatus with The Postal Service, Death Cab For Cutie, Incubus, Bush, and Garbage, September 21 at Nationals Park.

• Same Same But Different Festival will feature Big Gigantic, LSDream, and Ganja White Night, September 27 - 29 in Lake Perris, CA. 

• Renée Rapp, Muna, Chappell Roan, and Janelle Monáe will headline All Things Go Festival, September 28 - 29 at Forest Hills Stadium in Queens, NY.

• Skrillex, Jamie XX, and James Blake will perform at the long-awaited return of FORM, October 4 - 6 at Arcosanti in the Arizona desert, north of Phoenix. 

• A new event will hit Las Vegas this fall: Giddy Up Music Festival with Lynyrd Skynyrd, Megan Moroney, and Turnpike Troubadours, October 18 - 20 at the Downtown Las Events Center.

• Country Bay Music Festival will feature Zac Brown Band and Carrie Underwood, November 9 - 10 at Miami Marine Stadium, in Key Biscayne, FL.

• Rolling Loud Thailand will return to Pattaya, November 22 - 24 with A$AP Rocky, Wiz Khalifa, and Tyla.

• Sunset Cove Amphitheater in Boca Raton, FL, will once again host Subtronics' Cyclops Cove with Boogie T, Mersiv, Level Up, Tippy, and Smoakland, December 6 - 8.

• Moon Crush "The Sea & ME" will feature Melissa Etheridge and Sierra Ferrell in Miramar Beach, FL, May 5 - 7.

Cancelations

• Sold-out Kickoff Jam, originally scheduled for August 30 - September 1 has been canceled. According to a statement from the organizers, “After the success of Gulf Coast Jam this past weekend in Panama City Beach, we realized the weekend after Memorial Day is a much better time to host a festival. So, we are going to cancel Kickoff Jam and provide refunds.” 

• Travis Tritt is the third headliner to pull out of Michigan’s Bay City Music Festival, following Nelly and Flo Rida.

• Glastonbury is planning to take a fallow year in 2026.

November 13-15 (San Diego, CA): 2024 ESA’s Event Safety Summit addressing a wide range of issues affecting live events, including crowd management, emergency planning, production safety, risk management, mental and physical wellness, and much more. Virtual options are also available.

• New York City is ending its Cabaret Law, which bans dancing in venues without a specific license. 

• Flavor Flav bought out the entire Red Lobster menu and is now featured in the struggling chain’s Crabfest promo.

• The lost art of the music festival poster.

• 9 Ways to get the most out of your Google Calendar.

• 12 Books every event pro should read this summer.

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