Live Nation, Xfinity Center Among Recipients of Jack Johnson’s All At Once Sustainability Awards

Emily Kask / The Advocate via AP – Jack Johnson
Jack Johnson performs during the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival at Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots April 28.

U.S. honorees included venues (Mansfield, Mass.’s Xfinity Center; Bend, Ore.’s Les Schwab Amphitheater; Saint Augustine, Fla.’s Saint Augustine Amphitheatre), the Sea.Hear.Now festival in Asbury Park, N.J.; and Live Nation. International honorees included the Sydney Opera House and Chilean promoter Lotus Productions.

Queens, N.Y.’s Forest Hills Stadium, Nashville’s Ascend Amphitheater, and George, Wash.’s The Gorge were recognized with honorable mentions.

Presented by Johnson’s All At Once organization, which promotes climate-conscious charities, the Sustainability Awards honored music industry organizations that met — and in many cases exceeded — the parameters of Johnson’s tour rider for his 2017-18 All The Light About It Too World Tour.

“I’m grateful to these venues, festivals and promoters for showing real leadership in the movement to green the music industry,” Johnson said in a statement. “They are thinking outside the box to make concerts more sustainable, which also offers a better experience to the fans. We are exploring ways to promote reusables and wipe out disposable plastics and I loved looking out at the crowds each night and seeing so many people using reusable cups. I am proud of these All At Once Sustainability Award winners for their commitment to reduce single-use plastic and for leading by example.”

According to a press release, more than 9,600 gallons of recyclables and 1,370 gallons of compostable food were collected at venues during Johnson’s tour.

The bulk of the tour — including the dates held at the three U.S. venues honored by Johnson’s awards — took place in 2017, a year where Johnson sold 403,814 tickets across 46 concerts for a gross of $22.9 million. The gigs held at the eventual honorees were lucrative: His June 9 Xfinity Center concert sold 17,515 tickets for a gross of $717,718; his July 20 concert at Les Schwab Amphitheater sold 7,568 tickets for a gross of $493,137; and his Oct. 2 and 3 concerts at St. Augustine Amphitheatre sold 7,990 tickets for a gross of $518,253 across two nights.

Previous All At Once Sustainability Awards recipients include Santa Barbara Bowl, Merriweather Post Pavilion and the Nikon at Jones Beach Theater. And Johnson’s commitment to sustainable live music is well-documented: The folk-rocker spoke at a 2016 Pollstar Live! panel about the very topic.

In 2018, many industry professionals continued to push for sustainability in the live music space. In the U.K., an association of more than 60 festivals launched the “Drastic on Plastic” campaign to eliminate single-use plastic by 2021. Stateside, Live Nation removed single-use plastic straws from all 45 of its amphitheaters; Staples Center and Microsoft Theater did the same.

Check out the full list of All At Once Sustainability Awards winners below, and visit Johnson’s website for more information about the initiative.