Why Public-Private Partnerships Are Key to Oak View Group’s Global Expansion Plans
The Oak View Group (OVG) will soon enter a key phase of its long-planned pivot to international markets with the opening of Coop Live in Manchester, United Kingdom, next month. After its record post-pandemic run — which included opening seven arenas in 16 months, including Climate Change Arena in Seattle, UBS Arena in New York and Acrisure Arena in Palm Springs, Calif. — the Tim Lewieke-led management and development company will transition from U.K. venue developer to U.K. venue operator in one of Europe’s largest concert and live entertainment economies. First Manchester, then the world, says Francesca Leiweke-Bodie, OVG’s COO (and Leiweke’s daughter). She explains the United Kingdom will be the launch point for expanding the company’s private-public partnership model, which looks to government groups to aid in land acquisition in exchange for fully private financing and development work. Leiweke-Bodie says the model is key to driving expansion opportunities into Africa, Asia and the Middle East, where huge gaps in the world’s touring infrastructure prevent popular arena and stadium tours from accessing hundreds of millions of fans. Trending on Billboard Billboard recently caught up with Leiweke-Bodie to discuss the opening of Coop Live and detail OVG’s near-term expansion plans around the globe. Why did OVG decide to begin their international expansion efforts with the Manchester project? London and the U.K. have always been a frontrunner for where we as a company want to plant a flag and show the other countries and municipalities that we’re speaking to about public-private partnerships and prove what is possible when the private sector can step in and invest. That doesn’t happen as much overseas, where the market is really heavily driven by municipal financing. Having this project in the U.K., a $375 million privately funded arena with huge community support and more than $1 million going back to the local business — when other potential partners come to Manchester and see what we are doing, there is no doubt that we’re the real deal and will deliver on our promises. What’s the biggest challenge OVG faces in its efforts to expand internationally? I think the hardest thing to come by, whether it’s domestically or internationally, is land. We want to build in the urban core. We want to be where the fans want to be — in the city centers. We can do everything else. We’ll build it. We’ll finance it. We’ll book it. We’ll take the risk. But the partnership that we’re always looking for is the land opportunity. Most of these cities are much older than the United States with dense urban cores that we can’t even fathom. To find four or five acres available to build these types of projects with access to public transit is the crux of what we’re trying to create with these city partnerships. There’s also inbound opportunities from local owners and developers that see an opportunity to take land that they might have identified for retail and say, “Let’s rethink this.” Once the Manchester facility opened, what’s next for OVG? Hamilton, Ontario is next. It’s an existing 18,000-seat arena we’ve already started work on, taking the building down to its studs and [which] will reopen in late April. It’s the first project in Toronto that was a public-private partnership and ultimately became a renovation project, but it’s effectively a new arena. In North America, there’s only a few strategic markets left where one could make a really big difference with another arena. But overseas, we have a tremendous amount of opportunity because of the growth internationally of global music, from American country music to Latin. What other metropolitan characteristics appeal to OVG? Countries or cities that not only attract from surrounding countries but serve as the point of destination for a much broader area. One example is Sao Paulo in Brazil. From a financial perspective, Sao Paulo is an incredible point of destination for not only Brazil, but for Latin America. That’s why we want to plant our flag there because it doesn’t have an arena. Vienna, Austria is the same thing. You know, it is central to continental Europe. You can get to it from six different countries via car. We have about two dozen cities like that we’ve identified. How does programming and booking drive the OVG strategy? That’s such a key element. The first domino that we were really thinking about and analyzing from a construction and design perspective is making sure that the building is both turnkey and equipped with all acoustic treatments and back-of-house amenities to accommodate major tours. We talk to local promoters, and figure out what is coming in the rider and work with our partners at the building to alleviate costs. Arenas have to compete with the stadium shows and we have to make the economics work so we’re really looking at the take-home revenue for an artist to make sure that their touring costs are competitive and can exceed the expectations of fans and market partners.
Jelly Roll, Lainey Wilson, Bailey Zimmerman & More Among First Round of 2024 CMT Music Awards Performers
The fan-voted CMT Music Awards, slated for April 7 at Moody Center in Austin, Texas, are getting even hotter. Bailey Zimmerman, Jelly Roll, Keith Urban, Lainey Wilson and Sam Hunt are the first round of performers who will join previously announced performer (and CMT Music Awards host) Kelsea Ballerini on the CMT Music Awards stage, in the heart of the live music capital of the world. Jelly Roll, Ballerini and Wilson are among the evening’s top nominees, alongside Cody Johnson and Megan Moroney, who each have three nominations apiece leading up to the show. The CMT Music Awards will air on CBS and stream live and on demand on Paramount+. Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news Last year, Jelly Roll dominated the CMT Music Awards, taking home the most trophies that evening, with three career-surging wins. This year, he is again nominated for three accolades, including the coveted video of the year. Trending on Billboard Zimmerman, who is currently on a sold-out solo touring run, will offer a first-time performance of his current single, the top 20 Country Airplay hit “Where It Ends.” A three-time Billboard Country Airplay chart-topper, Zimmerman is also looking to earn his first CMT Music Awards win this year, in the male video of the year category. Urban will make history when he takes the CMT Music Awards stage, for his 20th performance — marking the most in CMT Music Awards history. He’ll offer a rendition of “Straight Line,” the first single from his forthcoming 12th studio project. Fresh off her inaugural Grammy win earlier this year, singer-songwriter-actress Wilson will perform her new song “Country’s Cool Again,” which is also the namesake for her upcoming headlining tour, launching in Nashville in May. Hunt, who is currently on his arena-headlining Outskirts Tour, has earned nine CMT Music Awards nominations during his career, and previously won the breakthrough video of the year accolade. His current single “Outskirts” is in the top 20 on the Country Airplay chart, but Hunt will offer new music during his performance, debuting a new song during the CMT Music Awards broadcast. The CMT Music Awards relocated to Texas last year, moving from its longtime home in Nashville. The awards show, originally known as the Music City News Awards, held its inaugural event in 1967; the awards celebration has been known as the CMT Music Awards since 2005. Voting is currently open at vote.cmt.com, through April 1, while voting for the video of the year honor, presented by Hilton, will remain active into the show. Additional performers and presenters for this year’s CMT Music Awards will be revealed at a later date.
Kobalt’s New Credit Facility, Securitization Give It Over $1 Billion For Dealmaking
Kobalt Music Group, the publishing home to such names as Paul McCartney and Karol G, has landed a new $450 million revolving credit facility (RCF), the independent music publisher announced Tuesday (March 19). Explore Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news Coupled with the previously announced joint venture with […]
Loaded Lux Is Not Dead Despite Rumor Posted Online
HipHopWired Featured Video CLOSE Loaded Lux, one of the top names in the sport Battle Rap, was reported to be dead by a YouTube streamer but it appears that wasn’t the case. It has been confirmed that Loaded Lux is very much alive, however, it’s been said that one of his family members was shot and killed recently. By way of the Sub 0 BLACK URBAN NEWS YouTube channel, the host Sub 0 shared a Washington, D.C. outlet’s story of a shooting over the weekend that left two men dead. In his reporting, Sub 0 said that Lux was one of the victims of the deadly shooting. As news began to spread online, colleagues and others close to Lux shot down the rumors and stated that one of his family members was killed on Sunday (March 17). It isn’t known if the victim in that shooting was indeed Lux’s relative. On Tuesday (March 19), Lux’s name began trending with many of the replies shooting down Sub 0’s report and saying that this was a clout-chasing moment for the streamer. Further, outlets like Gully TV, who spoke with Un Kasa, uncovered that Sub 0’s report was false. Some online are also blasting Gully TV for using “R.I.P. Loaded Lux” in the thumbnail for their report. [embedded content] As the news continued to spread on X, formerly Twitter, folks began taking personal shots at Sub 0 for spreading news of Loaded Lux’s death. Reactions are still pouring in and we’ve got some of them listed below. — Photo: Getty
Megan Thee Stallion Had Cheeky Reaction to Her Bikini Tour Announcement Being Flagged By Instagram
Megan Thee Stallion definitely made some waves with the poster announcing the dates for her upcoming 2024 Hot Girl Summer tour. The poster for the outing featured a magazine cover-like image of the rapper laying on her stomach in a shallow pool while wearing a silver thong bikini. Explore Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news According to HipHopDX, the provocative image got flagged by Instagram, which reportedly suggested the pic was a bit too sexy for public consumption. “HOTTIESSS GET READY TO COME HAVE SOME FUN WITH ME AT THEE HOT GIRL SUMMER TOUR,” read the caption on the original post, which urged hotties to get their “outfits ready nowww!” In a subsequent Insta Story, Meg posted a screenshot of a warning she reportedly got from Instagram informing her that the cheeky shot may have run afoul of the social media company’s guidelines, which could lead to limits on her account. Trending on Billboard “Nooooo it’s just a lil cheek lol,” Megan reportedly commented. At press time a spokesperson for Instagram could not be reached for comment. At the time, Meg only announced the cities on the tour, with the venues and final dates slated for reveal on Wednesday (March 20). What we do know for now is that the tour is slated to kick off in Minneapolis and hit Chicago, Detroit, New York, Philadelphia, Baltimore, Memphis, Atlanta, Raleigh, Hollywood and Tampa, FL, New Orleans, Dallas, Austin, Houston, Denver, Phoenix, Los Angeles and Las Vegas before hopping overseas for a run of European shows. Meg’s tour will come on the heels of her scoring her first solo No. 1 hit on the Billboard Hot 100 with “Hiss” in February. “Hiss” is still hanging around the chart, where it sits at No. 94 this week. Though at press time there was no announcement, fans have been hoping that the MC could drop a new album before hitting the road, which would mark her first LP since 2022’s Traumazine. Check out the tour announcement below.
Megan Thee Stallion Had Cheeky Reaction to Her Bikini Tour Announcement Being Flagged By Instagram
Megan Thee Stallion definitely made some waves with the poster announcing the dates for her upcoming 2024 Hot Girl Summer tour. The poster for the outing featured a magazine cover-like image of the rapper laying on her stomach in a shallow pool while wearing a silver thong bikini. Explore Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news According to HipHopDX, the provocative image got flagged by Instagram, which reportedly suggested the pic was a bit too sexy for public consumption. “HOTTIESSS GET READY TO COME HAVE SOME FUN WITH ME AT THEE HOT GIRL SUMMER TOUR,” read the caption on the original post, which urged hotties to get their “outfits ready nowww!” In a subsequent Insta Story, Meg posted a screenshot of a warning she reportedly got from Instagram informing her that the cheeky shot may have run afoul of the social media company’s guidelines, which could lead to limits on her account. Trending on Billboard “Nooooo it’s just a lil cheek lol,” Megan reportedly commented. At press time a spokesperson for Instagram could not be reached for comment. At the time, Meg only announced the cities on the tour, with the venues and final dates slated for reveal on Wednesday (March 20). What we do know for now is that the tour is slated to kick off in Minneapolis and hit Chicago, Detroit, New York, Philadelphia, Baltimore, Memphis, Atlanta, Raleigh, Hollywood and Tampa, FL, New Orleans, Dallas, Austin, Houston, Denver, Phoenix, Los Angeles and Las Vegas before hopping overseas for a run of European shows. Meg’s tour will come on the heels of her scoring her first solo No. 1 hit on the Billboard Hot 100 with “Hiss” in February. “Hiss” is still hanging around the chart, where it sits at No. 94 this week. Though at press time there was no announcement, fans have been hoping that the MC could drop a new album before hitting the road, which would mark her first LP since 2022’s Traumazine. Check out the tour announcement below.
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