FKP Scorpio Wins Big At LEA

Germany’s live entertainment professionals were awarded for last year’s achievements at the 12th edition of the PRG Live Entertainment Award in Frankfurt’s Festhalle, April 3.  

– LEA 2017
at Messe Festhalle in Frankfurt, Germany

Some 1,400 guests saw FKP’s Folkert Koopmans and Stephan Thanscheidt accept the coveted promoter of the year award.

Company founder Koopmans thanked Live Nation for relinquishing the prize to FKP, the majority of which is owned by CTS Eventim. Despite the toughest year ever for the company’s flagship festivals Hurricane and Southside, both of which had to be aborted prematurely due to miserable weather, the promoters had a successful 2016: 220 tours with more than 1,000 concerts in Germany alone in the past season earned the company its first LEA in that category.

Earlier this year, Thanscheidt took home the Promoter’s Promoter award at ILMC’s Arthur Awards. Semmel Concerts Entertainment won twice. Firstly, for promoting the Concert Hall Tour of the Year with German songwriter legend Wolfang Niedecken, who celebrated his band’s 40th anniversary last year.

The tour comprised some 70 concerts, and Niedecken, who accepted the award alongside company founder Dieter Semmelmann, said that there hadn’t been many more venues in Germany left to play in.

The LEA jury also awarded Semmel Concerts with the Special Jury Award, which is reserved for outstanding projects. Together with German singer and refugee child Fetsum, Semmel Concerts had organized the Peace by Peace Festival (PxP Festival) at Berlin’s Waldbühne on June 5, where a host of German artists played for free to raise money for children in and fleeing from war zones.

Fetsum performed a song live on stage, accompanied by Guy Chambers. Wizard Promotions won arena tour of the year, for promoting the German concerts of Italian singer/songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Zucchero. Company founder Ossy Hoppe, who recently handed over the reins to his son Oliver, said: “I’m accepting this award on behalf of my new boss – my son – who’s on holiday.”

Another German promoter that just underwent a generation change is Karsten Jahnke Konzertdirektion, which is now managed by Karsten Jahnke’s grandson, Ben Mitha, who accepted a LEA for the Club Tour of the Year with German songwriter Max Giesinger.

Austria and Switzerland were also among the winners: Barracuda Music took home the Concert of the Year award for David Gilmour’s concert at the historic Schönbrunn Palace in Vienna.

OpenAir St. Gallen was named Festival of the Year. The festival’s vice president and CFO Cyrill Stadler, who accepted the LEA alongside COO Andy Mestka, said it was a special award, as the OpenAir St. Gallen AG may be considered a large promoter in Switzerland but a tiny one in Germany.

Commerzbank Arena Frankfurt, which enjoyed the home-turf advantage, was named Arena of the Year.

CEO Patrik Mayer said he had the “nicest workplace in the world.”

German manager legend Dieter Weidenfeld was given a lifetime achievement award.

 Another legend, the 70-year old singer/songwriter Udo Lindenberg, toured again in 2016, and his promoter Roland “Balou” Temme took home the award for stadium tour of the year.

Lindenberg also closed the ceremony with a live performance.

Prof. Jens Michow, producer of the award ceremony and president of the Bundesverband der Veranstaltungswirtschaft (Federal German Association for the Concert and Promoters Business), said “2016 was a particularly difficult year – increased security risks, hurricane-like storms, torrential rains and violent thunderstorms presented the industry with significant challenges. I am all the more pleased by the level of professionalism with which these were overcome.”