2022 Impact 50: Tara Traub

LIVE NATION
SVP, Global Touring

Touring has long been the way for musicians to grow sustainable careers – and promoters build the infrastructure needed to make that happen. They also build whole new models when the original method is no longer tenable.  “Live Nation worked really hard to bring shows back last year by rolling out vax/test protocols – which was a really collaborative effort between Live Nation and the artist community, including Harry,” says Traub, who started at Live Nation 20 years ago as an intern. That “Harry,” of course, is superstar Harry Styles, who had 2021’s biggest tour, selling nearly 720,000 tickets at indoor venues in the fall, when the highly contagious Delta variant had become a concern and uncertainty was once again the only certainty. 

“I was fortunate enough to manage the team on the talent side to ensure the vaccine and testing protocols were rolled out across shows in North America. 15% of fans said that going to a show or festival was their main motivation for getting vaccinated – which is something I’m very proud to be a part of. We continue to adjust to meet the moment and I’m excited for what’s ahead – in 2022.”

Building means building back, with artists, fans and industry alike having to get back up to speed following the prolonged shutdown and challenges that are still taking shape. 

“Consumer confidence is higher than ever,” says Traub. “Overall, we are seeing an increased demand for live events with a stronger  pipeline and more tickets sold so far than where we were in 2019.” 

Booking tours for major artists and figures including Michelle Obama, Hootie & The Blowfish, The Chicks, Glass Animals, Haim, 5 Seconds of Summer, Pentatonix and more would be enough on its own, but Traub says her team is different in one notable way. 

“I’m also very proud that I have the only all-female promoter team within the industry, full of talented, creative, and hard-working women,”  she says, adding, “Live Nation values sustainability and inclusivity and works hard to be a positive force within the industry.”