Australia: Exec Changes At Ticketmaster, Village Sounds; NZ Artists Step Up After Mosque Attacks

In its federal budget unveiled April 2, the Australian government committed A$30.9 million ($21.9 million) in fresh funding over four years to strengthen the live sector domestically and to break more acts globally. The Australian Music Industry Package includes A$22.5 million ($15.9 million) to assist thousands of small businesses with grants of up to A$10,000 ($7,096) each to book more artists and upgrade live music venues. There is A$2 million ($1.4 million) to increase performance opportunities while music export body Sounds Australia gets A$1.6 million ($1.13 million) to expand activities in emerging markets in Asia. An extra A$2.1 million ($1.49 million) is to help women get training in contract negotiation, marketing and finance while A$2.7 million ($1.96 million) is for a development program for Indigenous acts for touring and recording strategies.

Arts minister Mitch Fifield said, “This investment is about removing roadblocks for Australian musicians and boosting their profile in a competitive global market. The government understands the enormous potential for growth in this dynamic sector and is delivering real world measures to strengthen the diversity and reach of our music industry.” Fifield acknowledged that the measures were a result of a parliamentary inquiry last year into factors that contributed to the growth and sustainability of the local music sector.

Dean Ormston, chief executive of the joint Australian Performing Right Association and Australasian Mechanical Copyright Association – which has under its umbrella Sounds Australia and Live Music Australia – applauded the package for its “diverse and multi-layered approach” and specifically for its women and indigenous funding, for whom his association has many programs. 

Ormston added, “The funding for Sounds Australia recognises the enormous potential of Australian music exports and music is used by leading nations to project their image to the world. Whether it’s Nashville, London, Tokyo or São Paulo, there are now more Australian musicians and songwriters than home-grown sport stars who are globally recognised household names – Sia, Courtney Barnett, Vance Joy, Flume, 5 Seconds of Summer, Ruel, Amy Shark to name just a few.”

Ticketmaster Australia & New Zealand tapped corporate and sports veteran Michael Brown as head of strategy and business. He’ll work across the two countries focusing on business and corporate development and strategic planning in private and public sectors. In his most recent role as chief executive of Victoria’s Kardinia Park stadium, he secured over A$100 million ($70.9 million) in funding for the redevelopment of Stage 5 of the stadium. Brown held top roles in football, cricket and rugby codes, and adjunct professorship at the University of Queensland and Deakin University. Managing director of Ticketmaster Australia and New Zealand, Maria O’Connor, said: “Michael Brown is one of the most respected executives in the industry and he brings with him incredible experience and leadership that will greatly benefit both the culture of Ticketmaster and our offering to partners.”

 Katie Rynne has joined Village Sounds agency as booker. Village Sounds was set up in 1999 by Jessica Ducrou, now co-CEO of Secret Sounds, of which the agency is a part. Rynne spent eight years at Select Music agency, working with The Preatures, All Our Exes Live In Texas, Montaigne, Japanese Wallpaper, LANKS, Electric Fields and Ziggy Alberts.

Ticketek Australia is handling all event ticketing for the 30,000-seat rectangular Bankwest Stadium in western Sydney, set to open April 14. It is managed by the NSW government agency Venues NSW and operated by VenuesLive. Venue CEO Daryl Kerry commented, “We are particularly excited about Ticketek’s innovation in mobile ticketing and technology.” Ticketek, a division of TEG, has Sydney’s ANZ Stadium, Melbourne Cricket Ground, Sydney Cricket Ground, Brisbane’s Suncorp Stadium, Adelaide Oval and Melbourne’s AAMI Park. TEG CEO Geoff Jones said, “Bankwest Stadium represents a step change in the live entertainment experience in Australia. The breathtaking design, the sightlines and the proximity of seats to the action will produce atmospherics that will set new benchmarks.”

The Australian stable of Rupert Murdoch’s News Ltd. newspapers reported that the death of INXS singer Michael Hutchence will remain a mystery. His death in suite 524 at Sydney’s Ritz Carlton on November 22, 1997, was followed by speculation it was suicide or an auto-eroticism sex act gone wrong. The papers revealed March 30 that this will never be known, as the singer’s brother Rhett Hutchence intervened in 2017 to ensure that coronial papers on the death be sealed. Retired NSW state coroner Derrick Hand who investigated the death said all evidence pointed to a suicide. The auto-eroticism angle, he suggested, was made up by a journalist who had been reading a Patrick Cornwall novel which featured the act, and thought it a “sexy” angle.

Lorde, Shihad, Marlon Williams, Stan Walker, Shapeshifter, Dave Dobbyn, Fat Freddy’s Drop, Six60, Anika Moa, Sol3Mio, Bene, Bic Runga, Hollie Smith and Teeks are among major New Zealand acts playing two large fundraisers for those affected by the March 15 Christchurch mosque attacks. Under the banner You Are Us/Aroha Nui, the first is at Auckland’s Spark Arena April 13 (which sold out in 24 hours) and the second at Christchurch Stadium April 17.

The shows are pulled together by Live Nation NZ’s Mark Kneebone and Brent Eccles of Eccles Entertainment. Eccles said that they met with the city’s Muslim community to get its blessing; leaders suggested the concert name. All funds go to the One People, One City fund. New Zealand media reported that New Zealand-born, U.S.-based artist manager Angus Vail, currently business managing KISS, is locking in dates for Los Angeles and New York in April, with further shows eyed for London, Sydney and Melbourne. On March 28, a remembrance day service in Christchurch featured performances from Yusuf Islam/Cat Stevens, Marlon Williams, Maisey Rika, Hollie Smith and Teeks.

New Zealand events are still on high alert. A section of the 20,000-strong crowd at the March 23 HomeGrown festival in Wellington was evacuated while police searched the immediate area after a “person of concern” (speculated to be sporting a white nationalism tattoo) was spotted in the audience. The show resumed half an hour later calling the incident “an innocent mistake”. Street festival CubaDupa in Wellington, moved its performances indoors March 30 for safety reasons but that did not deter 100,000 from attending the festival, organisers said.