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IEBA has seen plenty of exciting changes in 2008. We have definitely been busy! Just two months after I joined the organization as executive director in January, IEBA found a new home in the heart of Music Row. The headquarters, across from Sony Publishing on 17th Avenue, is a charming, 100 year-old Victorian like many offices on the Row. We certainly hope you will stop by whenever you are in the neighborhood. Over the summer, IEBA's Interactive program welcomed its first crop of interns: Patrick Brand and Cassandra Hui from Nashville's Belmont University and Andrew Farwell from the University of Massachusetts Lowell. Upon graduation in August, Andrew joined the staff of IEBA as an assistant. The enthusiasm of these three for the music business is a wonderful indication of what we can expect from the next generation of industry leaders. Along with our exciting new staff and home comes our freshly renovated website. The website, along with our revamped newsletter, The Rider, will serve as your "go-to-guide" for everything IEBA. You can visit our website at ieba.org for news, information and our industry events calendar. I have spoken to many of you about what IEBA means to you—including what you enjoyed about the conference, what areas need improvement, and what you hope to see IEBA accomplish in the future. Our team has taken your feedback and is working hard to integrate your ideas and suggestions into the organization’s future plans. I’d like to thank the board of directors for their guidance and support, the committee members for their time and effort, and the members of IEBA for their continued enthusiasm. I wish all of you a happy and safe holiday season as we look forward to 2009! Tiffany Davis For a limited time IEBA members who refer a friend to join will receive $25 off their dues next time they renew. After the applicant has submitted their application online at ieba.org send us an email to let us know you referred them. All membership applications are subject to the approval of the board of directors and must meet professional criteria set forth by the organization's bylaws. IEBA welcomes the 2008-2009 Board of Directors IEBA Board Member Sally Williams Named GM of Ryman Auditorium BOK Center GM John Bolton Named Top "Hall of Headlines" Winner Congratulations to Todd Boltin and Terrie Young For full stories, visit the news page. Do you have a headline that you would like featured in the Member Marquee? Submit it here. The Blanks are our featured artist on the website and in this issue of The Rider. You've likely seen them on TV's hit comedy "Scrubs." For more information, theblankswebsite.com. Email us for information on how to become a Featured Artist. For advertising opportunities in The Rider, click here.
October 12-14, 2008 – Nashville, Tenn. "The Buying Starts Here" was the tagline of this year's conference, but perhaps it should have been, "More! More! More!" The 2008 IEBA Conference saw more of everything: the highest attendance ever, the most showcases ever, and more than double the sponsorship participation from 2007. APA's opening reception kicked off the showcases in style with a carnival-themed celebration and Paradigm closed the first night with a wild late-night showcase downtown. The first discussion of the conference featured Greg Oswald of William Morris, Rick Roskin of CAA, Dwight P. Wiles of Smith Wiles & Co., Gary Weinberger of Red Mountain Entertainment, Ross Schilling of Vector Management, and Karen Clark of Suntrust Bank. The stirring discussion offered an insightful eye to the current state of the U.S. economy and its affect on the live entertainment industry. Utopia Artists got everyone moving on Monday, and CAA's and William Morris Agency's lunch showcases packed the house both days. The newly revamped Agent's Alley sponsored by Tickets.com was a rousing success offering participants more elbow room at its new location, the Sommet Center. Monday and Tuesday's late-night entertainment was presented by Buddy Lee Attractions, The Agency Group, Paradise Artists, William Morris Agency, 360 Artist Agency, New Frontier Touring, Rocky Comfort Records, APA and Sweetwater Jade. The final day of the conference was full of breakout discussions, even more showcases and a rare behind-the-scenes glimpse at the Beatles courtesy of Ken Mansfield. The three-day event was of course capped off with the annual IEBA Honors Dinner. Lifetime Achievement Award winners Loggins and Messina headlined the night while host Joe Piscopo had the audience laughing until it hurt. Congratulations to this year's IEBA honorees and award winners. Check out photos and video of this year's conference. Saw an act that you want to book? Click here for the full list of showcase artists as well as booking information. Special thanks to Carl Black Chevrolet of Nashville for donating two vehicles for the conference—and a big thank-you to all participants and sponsors for making the 2008 conference a huge success. See you in 2009! We greatly appreciate our 2008 Artist Auction participants: Rodney Atkins, Bowling for Soup, Billy Currington, and Diamond Rio for donating the income from one of their shows to benefit IEBA programs and the IEBA Scholarship Foundation! If you are interested in booking one of these artists you'll find their booking information on our site.
Benefitting The Shalom Foundation IEBA was proud to partner with Steve Moore and The Shalom Foundation for the first Hope for Kids Ride. Senior vice-president of AEG Live!, Moore, is also chairman and founder of The Shalom Foundation. The Shalom Foundation has served children living in acute poverty in Guatemala for more than 10 years. Shalom provides direct services in four program categories: the Medical Initiative, Construction Program, Education Program and Nutrition Program. The Hope for Kids Ride raised much-needed funds for The Shalom Foundation’s growing Medical Initiative serving children in cooperation with Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt and other organizations. Moore was recognized for his tireless efforts with the 2008 IEBA Humanitarian Award. For this year's annual gift, IEBA will be donating $500 to The Shalom Foundation—a sum that will take care of a child for an entire year. To make a donation or for more information on The Shalom Foundation, please visit theshalomfoundation.org.
The International Entertainment Buyers Association Scholarship Foundation, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation with a mission to provide and fund grants and/or scholarships to deserving students enrolled in accredited institutions of higher learning and for other charitable, scientific, literary and educational activities and missions. Congratulations to this year's scholarship recipients: Jessie Fisher (J.P. Williams Scholarship) Photo: Foundation Chairman, Barry Jeffrey, J.P. Williams recipient, Jessie Fisher and former IEBA Board Member, John Juliano of The Big E
One of the rewarding new projects that we launched is IEBA Interactive. The program is a hands-on learning experience for college students who are planning a career in the entertainment industry. Applicants must be currently enrolled in college or graduates that have been out of school for less than one year. Through IEBA Interactive young leaders will have the opportunity to intern with IEBA for college credit, scholarship money, and field experience in numerous areas of the entertainment industry. Our mission is that graduates of IEBA Interactive will continue to utilize IEBA as a resource throughout their career and one day mentor the next generation of leaders. We are currently looking for industry professionals who would be interested in becoming an IEBA Interactive mentor. Students planning a career in the entertainment industry will be able to utilize these professional mentors for networking, education and opportunity to delve deeper into a specific niche of the industry. If you are interested in mentoring email info@ieba.org or call 615-251-9000. Special thanks to Chris Cagle and Josh Gracin for their generous donations to the IEBA Interactive fund! Photo: Live Nation's Brian O'Connell stays after an IEBA member event to speak with local music business students.
IEBA members are offered the first look at the hottest acts for the upcoming buying season as well as the first opportunity to showcase their artists at the IEBA conference and on ieba.org. Membership allows you access to the member directory to stay connected with peers, voting rights for the board of directors and IEBA Honors awards as well as participation in member events throughout the year. These are just a few reasons to be an IEBA member. Benefits are continuously being added so check ieba.org frequently so you don’t miss anything. Members—send us your News and Calendar Events to post on the site. We welcome your thoughts on content you’d like to see, so drop us a note anytime to tell us what you want. This is your site. TRENDS IN LIVE ENTERTAINMENT - September 23, 2008 IEBA's Trends In Live Entertainment at the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum offered a compelling discussion about current and upcoming trends in talent buying and touring. Over 100 industry members and college students participated in this intimate exchange of ideas. Members can watch video from the discussion and download the full audio podcast here. We'd like to extend a very big thank-you to our guest speakers: Brian O'Connell, president of country music touring Live Nation, Rob Beckham, senior vice-president William Morris Agency, Pam Matthews, owner Du Voyant Music and Gil Cunningham, president Neste Event Marketing.
ERIKA WOLLAM NICHOLS - Manager The Bluebird Cafe presented their Songwriters Showcase at the 2008 IEBA Conference. If you missed it, you missed a rare look at the masterminds behind the songs. This show is available for bookings. For information, please contact The Bluebird Cafe c/o Erika Wollam Nichols, 615-383-5308. What makes the Bluebird Café unique? EWN: Part of it is that Nashville is a city where people like to collaborate and the Bluebird has really taken advantage of that. I’ve seen a show at the Bluebird where John Prine played and Bonnie Raitt got out of the audience to join him; that doesn’t happen anywhere, even in Nashville. Who are some of the notable artists who have performed at the Bluebird Café? EWN: Dixie Chicks, Justin Townes Earl, Tyler Hilton, Dierks Bentley, LeAnn Rimes, Marty Stuart, Rascal Flatts, just to name a few. What are some personal highlights that you have experienced? EWN: One of everybody’s most memorable nights was the night Garth Brooks was discovered here. He wasn’t supposed to perform that night, he was just stuck in at the last minute. Some of the folks from Capitol Records just happened to be there, so it’s like a comedy of errors that put him into his deal and now look where he is. Where do you see the live entertainment industry going in the next ten years? EWN: Personally for the Bluebird, there will always be a market for people to get closer to the entertainment, which is what we offer. As for the bigger live entertainment acts, I think prices are dictating what everyone does. The business is really cautious about how artists can go on the road. We have a lot of people who are based here in Nashville so we don’t have to be so concerned about whether we can get the semi-trucks here. We have a little bit different kind of a focus. I hope that people will always want to hear live music, they need to. For the full interview with Erika and more on the Bluebird Cafe, please visit the news page.
GIL CUNNINGHAM - 2008 Entertainment Buyer of the Year Tell us about your clientele. GC: Our client base runs the gamut from fairs, festivals, corporate, casinos, rodeos, fundraisers, radio station shows and nightclubs. Neste Event Marketing is the largest producer of country music festivals in the industry. What resources do you use to buy entertainment? GC: We focus in on popular trends in the industry, so we follow acts on the charts to gauge their popularity and see who’s up-and-coming. We also use the trade magazines like Pollstar and Billboard to keep on top of current events and high-profile acts. I think a lot of talent buyers use these resources to keep up with popular trends. What do you see as the biggest issue/problem in live entertainment today? GC: High ticket prices are making it difficult for all parties involved. In the current state of the economy everybody is hurting. Ticket prices are going up and people are buying tickets for the one big show they’d like to go to instead of multiple shows like they have in the past. To adapt to this, we’re seeing more package tours in big arenas. What does winning the Entertainment Buyer of the Year award mean for yourself on a personal level, and what does it mean for your career? GC: It means a lot to be recognized by your peers; it certainly gives a sense of accomplishment on both a personal and professional level. Not only does it enhance my reputation as a talent buyer, it also reflects well on Neste Event Marketing's reputation. For the full interview with Gil and more on his achievements, please visit the news page. Congratulations to Gil for winning the 2008 IEBA Entertainment Buyer of the Year Award!
JOHN JULIANO – Talent Buyer, The Eastern States Exposition (The Big E) Tell us about The Big E. JJ: We’ve been in Springfield, Massachusetts since 1916 and we’re the ninth largest fair in North America according to Billboard; we draw over one million people every September. Last year was the second largest fair ever recorded as far as attendance. Friday through Sunday our average day is 100,000-150,000 people, but we can have upwards of 150,000 on any given day. What makes your festival unique? JJ: We have something no other fair has: the Avenue of States. Participating states—Massachusetts, Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Connecticut and Rhode Island—each have a building on the grounds almost precisely to scale, and they own that property. You can literally walk the six New England states in one day. When you go to Vermont to get your maple syrup, you’re actually going to Vermont! Share a personal highlight of the festival that you've experienced. JJ: In 2000 our president [Wayne McCary] and I teamed up to go to New Orleans, and we actually worked the Mardi Gras parade for a week. We learned how they did it—and now we actually host a real authentic Mardi Gras parade every night here at the Big E. We throw upwards of 300,000-400,000 beads every year and feature 70-80 people on the floats every night. What do you see as the biggest issue/problem in live entertainment today? JJ: Consolidation. Consolidation of venues, agencies and promoters. It’s a problem for the smaller buyers; we’re the ninth largest fair in North America but we only buy talent for 17 days. The big promoters are out there 365 days. For the full interview with John and more on The Big E, please visit the news page.
KELL HOUSTON - Talent Buyer What type of entertainment do you usually book? KH: Talent Buyers Network is basically a talent buying company, and our main focus is Indian casinos around the country. It’s primarily, almost exclusively high-end national entertainment. Name acts you’ve bought? KH: Just about everyone you can imagine, including Rodney Carrington, Foreigner, Smokey Robinson, Cheap Trick, Hootie & the Blowfish, Josh Turner, Gretchen Wilson, Randy Owen, LeAnn Rimes just to name a few. What is your involvement with the casinos? KH: We work with the casinos to basically educate them as to which acts will work well with their venue. For example, there are a couple different types of acts: casino acts and promoter acts. Casinos are in the gaming business not the promotions business so we educate them as to which acts are going to promote gaming. What do you see as the biggest issue/problem in live entertainment today? KH: The variables in artist pricing is always a problem. Variable pricing for acts can be extreme sometimes and not really justified by ticket sales. Another problem is uneducated talent buyers. I don’t mean it in a negative way, but more as people who don't understand the business who are trying to book entertainment. It’s not something that you can walk out on the street and do; there’s a lot of detail and there’s a lot of respect needed in the industry. For the full interview with Kell and more on his insights, please visit the news page.
CHARLIE BLUM - President, Star Plaza Theatre Name some artists who have performed at your venue. CB: Bette Midler, Liberace, Whitney Houston, George Carlin, Jay Leno, Christina Aguilera, Velvet Revolver, Genesis, Wayne Newton, Johnny Mathis, David Copperfield, Jackie Brown, James Brown, Richard Pryor, Jamie Foxx, B.B. King, Aerosmith. What makes your venue unique? CB: We have a hotel/restaurant next door to the theater so in some ways we’re considered a Midwest destination. An old saying I often use is “for some, it takes 40 minutes to get home from the Star Plaza Theatre, for others it takes all weekend!" What marking vehicles have you used recently? CB: We try to stay on the cutting edge, but what we’ve done is gone back to the basics. That’s the grassroots campaign: posters and flyers. We still do a tremendous campaign in the paid medium through newspaper and radio, but to support that we’ve gone back to the basics and really hammered in on: “Where do they eat, where do they drink, where do they shop?” People have to eat so we think “let’s go there." What do you see as the biggest issue/problem in live entertainment today? CB: Probably the pricing. People say that there are no new artists, but I don’t see that as a problem for this particular venue because if an artist has had success here and gives a good performance, people will come back and artists will come back. For the full interview with Charlie and more on the Star Plaza Theatre, please visit the news page.
SCOTT MULLEN - Executive Director, i wireless Center What makes your venue unique? How have fluctuations in ticket prices affected your business? SM: This really isn't all that new for many arenas. We were implementing energy retrofits and recycling programs in Long Beach, CA in the early '90's that generated about $200K annually in savings, and I have been involved with similar projects in several venues since then. There are always new technologies and new ways to save energy and we are always looking to upgrade whenever possible. For the full interview with Scott and more on the i wireless Center, please visit the news page. |
