Features
From Pranking Doc McGhee To Trading Punches With Malcolm Young: Anecdotes & Congratulations From Friends & Partners Of Wizard Live
To celebrate 20 years of Wizard Live, Pollstar reached out to friends and partners of both Ossy and Oliver Hoppe. Here’s what they had to say.
Böhse Onkelz
Our first meeting was an exciting and unexpected encounter, but also not the most pleasant. We don’t want to say any more about it. But you always meet twice in life! And the second meeting led to a long, harmonious and extremely successful collaboration and friendship.
We were looking for a concert agency to celebrate our reunion and finally get back on stage! Stephan knew Ossy through his partner at the time and met with him. The conversation was a complete success and Ossy promised us concerts that far exceeded our expectations – and in the end, his too.
One show at the Hockenheimring turned into six concerts within a year, each with 100,000 spectators. Together we wrote German rock history! No band or promoter in
Germany has ever achieved anything like it. We have been working together since mid-2013. Our reunion concert 2014 in Hockenheim, Germany, managed by Ossy and Oli was a milestone; 220.000 fans in two days and a huge stage with four towers. It was a real big bang comeback for us. In 2015 we repeated and doubled it across two weekends, with an even bigger stage.Over 350,000 fans in four days. It was the beginning of a great, successful and trusting collaboration that continues to this day.
Ossy is Ossy. He is unique. His personality, his special sense of humor, his history. As a band from Frankfurt, Germany, working with a company from Frankfurt makes it easy to understand each other perfectly. Laughing and crying together is feeling we are in the same tribe. And Ossy is the wise chief and bumper for every kind of headwind. We wish Ossy and Oli all the best for the 20th anniversary of Wizard Promotions. We say thank you for the successful cooperation up to this point and look forward to many successful years together!
Klaus-Peter Schulenberg, CEO, CTS Eventim
Congratulations to Ossy Hoppe and Wizard Promotions on 20 years of success! Ossy’s impact on the live music industry is unparalleled. Not only did he bring hard rock and heavy metal to the mainstream in Germany, but he also played a pivotal role in discovering and building new talents, turning them into stars. We at Eventim are proud of our
long-term cooperation with Ossy, having supported his journey over the years, and we look forward to continuing our successful partnership with both Ossy and Oliver in the years to come.
Rod Smallwood, Phantom Music, Manager, Iron Maiden
I have been working with Ossy and Mateo since the early ‘80s and on pretty much everything I have done in Germany like WASP and Helloween along with Maiden, of course. We are about the same age so my excuse for lack of memory of those times is that it is all a bit blurred now, much as it was then. Ossy was always a great raconteur and big personality and a lot of fun. So, of course we saw the birth and development of Wizard these last 20 years, and the gradual introduction of Oliver to put it all in order – and of course we must mention the wonderful Claudia who keeps it all together!
The last five Maiden studio albums have been No. 1 in Germany, and of course the live work partly drives this with sold-out stadiums, so we have to thank Ossy and Oliver and the Wizard team for a huge contribution to that long period of success.
But I must also mention Ossy’s generous side. I started a charity, The Truants Foundation, in 2010, basically doing charity bike rides around the world annually in aid of
children’s charities. Not only has Ossy been a generous supporter for many years he actually joined us for the ride in Argentina and Uruguay last year. He obviously didn’t train much, and of course spent most of the time in the bus, but he was with us, along with Oliver, who certainly can cycle. But one of the Truant traits is the consumption of beverage, and both he and Oliver were excellent at that. So despite not spending much time on the bike at our annual awards he was voted by all the “Most Entertaining Truant,” richly deserved.
In the photo you will notice Ossy is in yellow, the rest in light blue Truants cycle shirts. WOD it says, short for “Wanker of the Day,” – but that is a different story!
Stuart Galbraith, CEO, KMJ Entertainment
I first met him in the late 1980s, and how I remember him back then the same is true now, that he’s extremely hardworking and a massively effervescent character. Once you meet Ossy you’ll never forget him!! We worked on many things in the world of rock, but a standout memory for me is Sonisphere Festival at Hockenheimring.
Fred Handwerker, CEO, Handwerker Promotion
Ossy is a promoter legend. I remember first meeting him personally at the after-show party of the biggest German TV show, “Wetten dass”, in the early 1990s. Always busy, he
asked for the tour of my comedy artist Tom Gerhardt. He is open, direct, straight, always makes good jokes, and what I particularly like is that he hates people not honoring their word. He has hundreds of unique rock ‘n’ roll stories; he knows everyone in the business, and everyone knows Ossy. Oliver took over, Ossy is still involved, a perfect team ensuring rock ‘n’ roll will never die.
Wolfgang Rott, Managing Director, CMM Marketing
We’ve been working for Iron Maiden for more than 25 years now but I believe I met Ossy even before we started working for Maiden, when he worked for Marek. When we first
met, I was a real rookie and Ossy was already a legend then. In 2013, Wizard was planning a classic rock festival at the Loreley, and in Southern Germany. They got us involved in the whole branding and marketing planning. This was the first time I met Oliver and Ossy together. The festival had a fantastic line-up and we got great feedback and reviews. Unfortunately, the weather conditions we had were chaotic: heavy rain, thunderstorms, flooded streets and highways around both festivals. But the audience still loved it.
We’ve always appreciated discussing opportunities and sometimes even strategic planning with Ossy, just like for several other bands we worked with together, with us taking care of PR and marketing and Ossy and his team taking care of the touring side. Ossy is Ossy: a man with a vision. He is always honest, and has great empathy for artists, and a profound feeling for their needs. You can’t create such a network with worldwide respect and friendship if you don’t have a great personality like his!
Ossy, Oliver, I hope you both stay healthy, and continue to have such a great impact on the live music scene you’ve done so much for already!
Oliver Vordemvenne, CEO, I-Motion
We met for the first time at a DEAG company day in Hamburg. We had good conversations over dinner. Ossy has many funny stories to tell from the rock ‘n’ roll business of the last decades. I got to know Ossy as a warm-hearted, open and straightforward character. With an incredible amount of experience and a good sense of humour. All the best for the coming years! Looking forward to extending our partnership!
Jerry Appelt, Lighting Designer, Jerry Appelt Licht Design
We first met during the 2014 planning phase for the reunion of the Böhse Onkelz at Hockenheimring, and I said to myself: this is the right guy to share our vision of the gigantic production design. I like to remember how proud he was when the band saw the setup at Hockenheimring for the first time I remember it fondly. That night, it was 4
a.m., when an agitated discussion was taking place backstage about when we should clear the stage for the support acts to set up. Luckily, his son came in to settle the situation and we separated as friends. I think it’s great how the company works as a family business, and father and son work together so well.
Phil Banfield, Agent, Wasserman Music
Where to start? I first met Ossy around 45 years ago, and I have no idea where or why. I expect it had something to do with Ian Gillan, who I manage, and Ossy had worked for
Ian whilst he was in Deep Purple. Since then I have worked with him on many artists I represented: Sting, Black Sabbath, Hereos Del Silencio, Michael Flatley’s Feet of Flames, Zucchero and many more.
Ossy is unique in that he is a character, charming, knows the business inside out, and he will take a gamble on a act if he believes in them. There is a story of Ossy calling me at home one day about something that was not important. Unbeknownst to him, my wife was a breeder of scottie dogs. I was helping her, as the mother was giving birth at that point. She had five bitches, and there was a lot of noise and howling etc. Ossy asks, ‘what’s going on?’, and I replied, ‘our bitch is giving birth, she has
had five bitches’. Ossy says, ‘next one will be a boy’, and hung up.
Couple of minutes later out pops the sixth, the last one, and it was a male, so we named him Ossy. Now, I talk to Oliver and Claudia more than Ossy, so the company is in safe hands, and I look forward to working with them for many years to come.
Thomas Moser, Head of Music, Host, Rock Antenne
The first time I met Ossy wasn’t that long ago, at a KISS show in Munich. I was backstage, and he came storming in, complaining that there is no wine, and no setup whatsoever in his room – only to find out later that he was in the wrong room, and he apologized! He didn’t really know me then, but later he approached us at Rock Antenne, and we did, and are still doing, a podcast together! Both KISS open airs at the Königsplatz were truly incredible, also the latest Iron Maiden concerts in Munich. I was
standing backstage with Ossy, talking while he was smoking, but as soon as Steve Harris arrived, everyone had their cigarettes out like schoolboys who had been caught smoking.
Ossy is real, Ossy is funny, and I think Ossy always adapts to every situation, no matter how bleak. If there wasn’t the other Ozzy, you could truly say: there is only one Ossy! There’s not that many people I’d exchange lives with – but Ossy is one of them. As for Oliver: he does have big shoes to fill in ever changing times, but he learned from the best!
Georg Leitner, CEO, Georg Leitner Productions
I think I‘ve known Ossy since the time he was working with Marcel Avram (MAMA Concerts) in the 1990s, or even earlier. We had the idea of launching a funk/soul/Motown tour with some of GLP’s bands such as The Temptations Revue, The Supremes, Kool & The Gang around 20 years ago, but this project is still in the making.
Over the past 20 years, we worked closely together on expanding the marketing potential of Foreigner in Germany, and, more recently, Wizard did an amazing job on launching Dire Straits Legacy, which features four original members in Germany.
When Ossy and I come together, we always have a laugh. While people know him to be funny and (nearly) everybody’s darling – he is also extremely sharp minded, creative and proactive in his approach to get things done. I also very much appreciate Ossy´s unwavering loyalty – a philosophy that has become a bit rare in our industry in recent years.
With Oliver, Wizard has a young captain at its helm who upholds these values, and continues in the spirit of the founder, while at the same time bringing in a new, younger
vision. Wizard, as well as GLP, now have to look at tomorrow’s big stars, and new areas of entertainment. Whatever that may be, everybody at GLP is looking forward to
continuing the many years of great and fun cooperation for years to come!
Stefan Bernhard, CEO, Allgäu Concerts
Dear Ossy, dear Oliver, we would like to congratulate you on your company anniversary with much respect and joy. We decided to use this special occasion to thank you for
the decades of trustful cooperation during which we have realised many major projects together. We all remember Iron Maiden in Singen and the two recent Böhse Onkelz gigs
in Neu-Ulm, which we successfully organised for you. Many thanks and respect also to your employees Claudia and Can, and the rest of the team, with whom we have worked
together in a spirit of trust for many years. Here’s to the next 20 years. Stefan, Michaela, Franz and the whole team at Allgäu Concerts.
Stefan Löcher, CEO, Lanxess Arena
Twenty years of Wizard Promotions, 20 years of success in the live music business! Congratulations to Ossy Hoppe and his son Oliver! I have fond memories of many interesting conversations with Ossy – whether about upcoming projects or, away from work, about the next Klitschko fight. Then, of course, there are his legendary cowboy boots, which he wore here in the arena, while making top shows like Lady Gaga, KISS or the Scorpions a real success. All the best for the future and congratulations on an amazing journey so far!
Phil Rodriguez, CEO, Move Concerts
I don’t remember exact date but we crossed at either a Performance Magazine Summit ages ago or the ILMC in London, We hit it off. Hung out and had fun! It’s been over 35
years! Given our different markets we’ve never really had the opportunity to do much business together other than we had Böhse Onkelz on our Maximus Festivals in Sao Paulo
and Buenos Aires in 2017. We had a blast!
Ossy has a great sense of humor, and is a practical joker. There are countless stories but one that I love is that years ago, Doc McGhee was staying at Ossy’s villa in the South of France. Doc had a mishap and broke one of his pinkie fingers. Ossy took him to the local clinic and, since Doc did not speak French, Ossy asked the doctor to put the cast all the way up to his elbow. When Doc got back to the States and saw his doctor the first question his doctor asked him was, “why the hell did they put a cast up to your elbow for a pinkie fracture!”
Ossy is a maverick. A rock ‘n’ roller with class and heart, who loves music and the business. He’s a great promoter with a deep reservoir of experience. He’s done it all – circus as a kid, tour manager, manager, promoter, etc. They threw the mold away when they made him! Keep doing what you do, like you do. It’s magic!
Jayne Andrews, Manager, Judas Priest
I was Cozy Powell’s girlfriend, and he flew me over to some of the dates on the Whitensake tour. When we got to Germany I met Ossy. It was in 1986! Ossy made me feel very cared for and special when I first met him. We got on very well together from the very beginning, and over the years when I worked with him with Judas Priest nothing was ever too much trouble. He is a great storyteller: very entertaining, funny and caring, but a great businessman too. I always look forward to seeing him if he is coming to any of our shows, and I look forward to continuing the great relationship with Oliver.
Peter Schwenkow, Founder, DEAG
It must have been some 30 or 40 years ago that I met Ossy for the first time. A true yop with a great presence when he came into the room, but I was not quite sure that he
wouldn’t beat me. It was only many years later that I found out, that his strong self-confidence was based on his expertise, and not on his muscles! What makes Wizard Promotions stand out is expertise, loyalty and mutual enemies! Him and his son are the perfect couple: the combination of heart and brain, emotion and rationality, passion and professionalism at eye level is unbeatable!
Thorsten Kramer, Head of Sales, Events Ticketing & Services, FC Schalke 04
We must jump back to the early years of our Veltins-Arena, shortly after its opening in summer 2001. Ossy’s first concert production with Wizard Promotions must have been Metallica’s “Madly In Anger With The World” tour in cooperation with Marek Lieberberg. I was quite new in the event business, just a regular employee, so I was too unimportant to be able to have a talk with Ossy, to be honest.
But I already felt the kind of magic he was surrounded with, wherever he walked. Every show in the past Ossy was involved in, was a really big show. It’s not possible for
me to pick out a single one. But I still remember the project with the most obstacles: the Rock im Revier festival in 2015, which had to move short-term from the Nürburgring
to Veltins-Arena. I received the call with the request in April during my Easter holiday, with the festival date only a month away. I interrupted my holiday immediately, and got back to my office. It was a completely new concept for us, three stages on three consecutive days. So, we had to start from scratch together with the production managers and the local authorities. Rock im Revier wasn’t as successful as we hoped, so we couldn’t continue our work and improve our concepts. But the extremely positive partnership in those days with the people of Wizard, DEAG and Handwerker Promotion won’t be forgotten.
Ossy has the ability of giving people a feeling of being embraced. He can bring people together in a very familiar atmosphere and motivate them to give their best with his kindness. It’s great to find this ability and mindset in every member of his team, too, especially in his son Oliver, who fits perfectly into the father’s footsteps – a tough act to follow, I presume. But if you watch him doing his work, it seems to be the easiest thing in the world.
Dear Ossy and Oliver, I want to thank you in the name of our managing board and the whole event department for your long-lasting friendship and trust. For over 20 years it’s
been a pleasure to work with you guys. We all at FC Schalke 04 look forward working with you on the upcoming shows for the next years. All the best, and especially health and joy!
Jan Mewes, Managing Director, Mewes Entertainment Group
I met Ossy for the very first time in 2013 in Munich, he came to see one of my artists. We spent two wonderful evenings together. He was a legend in our business, and a highly respected promoter in Germany. He inspired and fascinated me with his stories. For someone like me, who also lives and dies for show business, it was an incredibly moving encounter, and we saw eye to eye. Ossy is a very kind person from whom you can learn a lot and who has always remained humble despite his incredible success.
When the Mewes Entertainment Group merged with DEAG in 2019, to which Wizard Promotions also belongs, our contact intensified. Since 2022, we have been regularly traveling to Los Angeles on business trips. I am incredibly grateful to Ossy for introducing me as a promoter, artist agent and manager to his many business partners, all of whom he has known for decades, and thus opening doors for me. I am forever grateful to him for trusting me and that he appreciates my work and drive.
I value Ossy as a person: he is humorous, open-minded and has a big heart. He is passionate about music and artists, just like me. That’s certainly because he used to be an
artist himself. He was the youngest elephant trainer in the world, he was already on stage at the age of four! He is very familiar with the life both back- and on-stage. He is passionate about showbusiness and everything around it. What I also appreciate about him is that he is honest: if he doesn’t like something, he’ll give you his piece of mind instantly.
I appreciate Oliver just as much as Ossy. His son had the difficult task of following in his father’s footsteps. He has earned my deepest respect, and is doing an incredible job. As a marketing expert, he has different approaches to certain problems, and is unlike his father in that manner. Oliver is a worthy successor and I wish them both another successful 20 and more years, and that we remain our highly valued relationship. Keep on rockin‘!
Andrea Blahetek-Hauzenberger, CEO, Global Concerts
We first met round about 25 years ago. I thought he was a rock star. Over the past years we had the pleasure to promote so many wonderful concerts for Ossy: Black Sabbath, Soundgarden, Iron Maiden, KISS, to name just a few. But Rockavaria 2015 in Munich with some 80 bands was a blast! Just an excerpt: Metallica, KISS, Muse, Faith No More, Judas Priest, Incubus, Five Finger Death Punch, Limp Bizkit, Babymetal, Kreator … There’s no one like him. I will really miss the deal negotiations with Ossy. Oliver, can you promise me that you will continue it exactly the same way?
Jorn Teske & Jochen Nerpel, Managing Directors, Hockenheim-Ring GmbH
We got to know Ossy many years ago, when Georg Seiler was still the long-standing managing director of Hockenheim-Ring GmbH. The two had, and still have, a very good, almost friendly relationship, and have organised many successful concerts at the Ring. Ossy Hoppe has always been a valued partner of the Hockenheimring and has made a lasting impression with his wild mixture of rock ‘n’ roll flair and absolute down-to-earth attitude.
The gigantic AC/DC concerts with over 100,000 visitors per show at the Hockenheimring over the years were certainly most impressive. We presented Wizard Live as co-promoters
with a ‘100 K Award’ especially for the “Power Up Tour” this year. And the Böhsen Onkelz concerts at the Motodrom certainly set a memorable record: A total of almost 700,000
fans came to the ring for their two comeback shows in 2014, the four concerts a year later, and the Matapaloz Festival in 2017.
An icon in his profession, he is also authentic, approachable, unpretentious and reliable. These are attributes that describe Ossy very well and are rather rare in this fast-moving industry. In addition, over the last few decades he has built up an impressive network that is second to none. We send our best wishes to Ossy and Oliver Hoppe for a continued successful future in the concert industry. May many great concerts follow, and may they continue to be pleasant and congenial business partners with an open and sympathetic ear for all involved. We wish Ossy in particular a lot of recreational time in his domicile in France. And we hope to see him again on the big stage at the Motodrom. Rock on!
Paul Woog, CEO, Russ Live
I first met him at an AC/DC show in 2010. He thought, ‘OK, a stagehand’, so he gave me his car keys and sent me to the car wash. His Jeep was really dirty. I think I did a pretty good job, because since then we’ve been partners and friends until today. In times of worldwide entertainment-companies Russ and Wizard have been best-in-class for all things tour and local for decades. My favorite show was Iron Maiden at Cannstatter Wasen in Stuttgart 2023. Just a normal rock show. That’s it. Ossy brings people together – even if they don’t want to. Rock ‘n’ roll will never die – as long as you and your fantastic team keep on doing such a terrific job!
Peter Klapproth, Founder, General Manager, Head of PR Agency
I came across Wizard as a company early as they developed fast and I was just starting out independently in music PR in 2004 in the rock and metal scene. Since then I had several touch points over the years handling the release PR of bands and artists which were booked by Wizard and we got to know each other more. To cut a long story short,
via a great PR partner in crime Duff Battye we got on the international team of KISS, supporting them for their European and German tour promo, which we did for about 10 years until the last show in Madison Square Garden at the end of 2023! Wizard has a very long and successful history with KISS and it was a fantastic team work from day one onwards with Ossy and the whole Wizard team. They are always all-hands-on-deck and very creative. That was and still is the case and thats what I love about Ossy, Oliver and colleagues and also that they are never afraid to give new people a chance to prove themselves, which is very important nowadays more than ever.
So here I am one day working promo on the KISS show day in Berlin making may way to the venue and someone stopped in an amazing red Italian convertible sportscar, pulling over and asking if I need a ride to the production – that was Ossy and that’s how he is – being one of the team. I tip my hat for the strength, quality and the persistence on how Wizard got developed over the past 20 years and it’s also great to keep seeing them being open for changes and new approaches which I’m sure will also prove them right in the next 20 years as well. So congratulations to Ossy, Oliver and the whole Wizard team and their next 20 years! PS: Ossy, can I borrow your car next time?
Marion Schöne, Managing Director & Nils Hoch, Deputy Managing Director, Head of Events, Olympiapark München
Twenty years of Wizard Promotions – what a great anniversary! Congratulations. We are always delighted when Wizard Promotions rents space in the Olympiapark and Ossy Hoppe ‘Mr Hardrock’ is in our house. We are happy about the many years of excellent co-operation and hope to be able to experience many more great shows in the park together. We would like to wish Ossy and his son Oliver all the best and continued success on their milestone birthday!
John Jackson, Founder, K2 Agency
We were backstage at a festival in Nürnberg, headlined by AC/DC in the mid-’80s. At that time they were without a manager so those duties were taken over by a moron called John Ferguson who was the tour manager. On arriving, Malcolm Young demanded to be given a better dressing room which Ossy duly arranged. However John had forgotten to ensure this new dressing room had beers and refreshments. Clearly Malcolm had been drinking and was pissed off with Ossy. The next thing, Ossy was trading punches with Malcolm. At this point I suggested to Ossy that it was perhaps not a good idea to be trading punches with the headliner. Things settled down and the band took the stage. However halfway through the show Malcolm passed out on the drum kit. The rest of the band carried on and left him there for another couple of songs. Malcolm later joined them and played a blinder!
Westfalenhallen Unternehmensgruppe
Congratulations on the 20th anniversary of Wizard Promotions – 20 years of rock ‘n’ roll! Over the years, your agency has impressively proven that it is an indispensable partner in the live entertainment sector – especially when it comes to the big names in the metal and rock genres. We like to think back to our first encounters, when your passion and determination made an immediate impression, and it quickly became clear that Wizard Promotions would play a leading role in the German concert landscape.
One of the outstanding milestones of our journey together was undoubtedly the evening when KISS performed at the Westfalenhalle as part of their farewell tour. It was not
only a gigantic show, but also impressive proof of the strength of our collaboration. From Black Sabbath to Aerosmith – your ability to bring the big names to our stage
has had a significant impact on the Westfalenhalle.
What makes you so special is your unrivaled instinct for what the fans want to see and your tireless energy to make the impossible possible. We wish Wizard Promotions, or rather Wizard Live, every success for the future and we look forward to experiencing many more unforgettable moments with you in the years to come.
Doc McGhee, Legendary Manager
I first met Ossy in 1983 or close to 84 in Japan, when we were doing the stadium shows, and Ossy was managing Whitesnake at the time. Ossy, obviously, is an outgoing person, very family oriented, and took me to my first bathhouse in Japan, where we almost go killed, which started our friendship, Every show I do with Ossy is funny. And it
hasn’t been 20 years, we’ve been doing this together for 40 years, since we both started. We’ve just done so many shows together, I can’t tell you what’s the craziest one. We once had to shut down a show, because they found live grenades, and stuff from World War Two. Ossy grew up in the circus. He trained animals. So we had a lot in common.
I think Ossy has taken it as far as he can go. He’s older than I am. Oliver, now it’s your turn to take this into the future. We have a lot of hopes for you. We’ve worked hard with you. You’ve worked hard with us. We wish you the best, and to be better than Ossy, which won’t take a lot, by the way.