Getting To Know Your Pollstar Live! Panelists: Colette Weintraub

Pollstar Live!, the world’s largest gathering of live entertainment professionals, returns to the Beverly Hilton in Beverly Hills, California, Feb. 21-23. The three-day conference is a flagship event for Pollstar magazine with compelling keynotes, panels, roundtables and the Pollstar Awards, celebrating the best in the business, along with plenty of opportunities to network and engage in insightful discussions.

Pollstar Live! kicks off with Production Live!, the one-day companion conference that features panels on all topics related to staging live events including lighting, video, stage management, sound technique, concert production, video, regulations, security and more.

Click these links for the Production Live! schedule and the Pollstar Live! schedule. Register for Pollstar Live! here.

Getting To Know Your Pollstar Live! Panelists

Colette Weintraub
Head of Music, Stand Together Music
Panel: Staying Sane & Sober in an Insane World
Date/Time: Tuesday l Feb. 21 l 12 p.m.
Bio: Since joining Stand Together Music in 2021, Weintraub has focused on working alongside the music industry to co-create solutions around addiction recovery, education, free speech and ending the war on drugs. She kicked off her career at the forefront of innovation in the music industry, leading digital, mobile, gaming integration and marketing campaigns with artists including Rihanna, Christina Aguilera and Led Zeppelin. Weintraub is also a founding member of the team that launched (RED), U2’s Bono and Bobby Shriver’s initiative to help eliminate AIDS in Africa, and formerly worked as SVP Brand for WWE.

Why must everyone go to your panel?
Addiction disproportionately affects the music industry. Let’s rewrite that! For people who don’t struggle with mental health or addiction, you probably know someone who does. Or who will. We know the problem exists; this conversation will focus on solutions. Hear from leaders in the music industry about how they’re tackling these issues and learn more about the important role we all play and resources and solutions we can implement today.

What story will you tell during the panel?
We’re supporting new ways for sober fans to enjoy shows, ensuring touring musicians and crews have access to resources on the road, and engaging in conversations about sobriety that are free from shame and stigma and full of possibilities. We believe community is core to recovery, that sobriety doesn’t have to be isolating, that those of us who don’t have challenges with substance use are well-positioned to be a community of support for those who do.

What’s the story you won’t tell?
I’m not going to tell you we should eliminate “Sex, Drugs, and Rock & Roll.” Instead, we’ll focus on how we can expand the music business to be inclusive and supportive of health and wellness.

What may cause tempers to flare?
There are differing opinions when it comes to topics like mental health and addiction. But the one thing I think we can all come together in agreement on is having open discussions to support one another and seek out solutions!

What was the best part of your 2022?
Working with some phenomenal partners to create sober-supportive spaces at events, including some unexpected places – like Bourbon & Beyond! Joining me on our panel is Chamie McCurry, CMO of Danny Wimmer Presents (DWP). At DWP’s Bourbon & Beyond and Louder Than Life festivals last year, we partnered to create a 1 Million Strong wellness retreat, complete with alcohol-free cocktails and a spa-like atmosphere to wind down and relax in. I enjoyed meeting festival attendees and hearing their stories and gratitude for feeling “seen” and accepted at the festival, families who were able to include their sober family members in the festival experience, and fans using the 1 Million Strong Wellness Retreat as a place to meet up with other fans and go to stages together to create “sober mosh pits.” Our partner, SPIN, was backstage, having open conversations with artists about addiction recovery and mental health. Musicians sharing their stories on SPIN Impact is a step toward destigmatizing the issue and letting other artists and their fans know they’re not alone.

Your predictions for 2023’s live industry highlights?
After the pandemic caused a huge, hard stop followed by starts and stops that have been really tough on everyone, I’m looking forward to a year where we continue moving forward.

Career tent poles you are most proud of?
I’m particularly proud of Stand Together’s partnership with Oak View Group. We are one of eight Founding Partners and the exclusive Social Impact Partner of their new Acrisure Arena in the Coachella Valley. Through our partnership, Stand Together and Acrisure Arena are creating a space to support activations that give musicians, fans, and members of the community an opportunity to make a difference on some of the country’s biggest challenges, featuring social entrepreneurs and innovative solutions.