Impact International: UK/Euro 2024 Honoree Marek Lieberberg

A ONCE IN A LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT,
A TRUE MILESTONE IN MUSIC HISTORY

Marek Lieberberg has led the charge on many great events in Germany’s live history in more than 50 years as a promoter. A pioneer of the country’s live entertainment industry, Lieberberg, born 1946 in Frankfurt am Main, officially began promoting concerts in the 1970s, starting with a tour by The Who, and working alongside Marcel Avram, with whom he founded the legendary Mama Concerts, which operated until 1986 when the men decided to go separate ways.

What followed was the era of MLK, the Marek Lieberberg Konzertagentur, which shaped the rock and pop scene in Germany like no other. Coldplay, Depeche Mode, Celine Dion, Bob Dylan, Billy Joel, Mark Knopfler, Linkin Park, Madonna, Metallica, Queen, R.E.M., Santana, Bruce Springsteen and Sting, are just some of the international superstars, who were able to build their international careers in Germany, and beyond, thanks to Lieberberg. He also promoted some of the country’s biggest national stars, like Herbert Grönemeyer, Marius Müller-Westernhagen and Xavier Naidoo.

MLK formed an alliance with CTS Eventim in 1999, when the concert business turned into a full-fledged industry. The deal benefited him at the time. The deal will benefit CTS Eventim forever. Lieberberg founded Rock am Ring, often described by local media as the “mother of all German festivals,” followed by Rock im Park ten years later. Rock am Ring turns 40 next year, Rock im Park 30. Marek Lieberberg joined Live Nation in 2016, and gradually left the organization of RaR/RiP to Eventim. Since 2022, he is no longer involved in the events, but the name Marek Lieberberg will forever be synonymous with the two festivals.

He brought WWE and UFC to German fans for the first time, as well as some of the world’s biggest musicals, including “Cats,” “Les Misérables,” and “Mamma Mia!”. He worked as a producer, launching “Hairspray” in Cologne at the end of 2009 together with Michael Brenner, starring local superstars Uwe Ochsenknecht and Maite Kelly; and “Rent,” alongside Thomas Krauth of Düsseldorf’s Capitol Theater, setting new standards for what a German-language musical production could be.

Lieberberg presented Saltimbanco, one of the most popular Cirque du Soleil shows, inside arenas across Europe. “In the continuing quest to be involved with innovative projects,” he says, “we are truly excited about our upcoming co-production with Cirque du Soleil in Berlin. This unique residency combining the best of circus artists and surreal magic will commence in the fall of 2025.”

Throughout his career, Lieberberg has been vocal against racism and bigotry, hosting events to spread social awareness. The most prominent example is the Berlin Live 8, which Lieberberg organized for his longtime friend Bob Geldof in 2005. “Modern music has always been a driver of political and social progress. We must help to maintain this focus and oppose reactionary development,” he says.

All of these individual moments are but a highlight reel of a life dedicated to entertaining the people, driven by a love for live that was sparked “as a young kid, seeing the dawn of rock’n’roll in the late ‘50s, being absorbed by the beat,” Lieberberg remembers. “It made me long to be a part of it. It became the soundtrack of my life.”

In 2024, Lieberberg helmed a “once in a lifetime achievement, a true milestone in music history”: Adele’s 10-date residency in Munich in August, welcoming a total of 750,000 fans to a bespoke pop-up amphitheater and a surrounding Adele-themed adventure park.

“Never before has there been such a unique symbiosis of event, audience, city, and environment, especially designed and specifically created for an artist. The monumental, yet elegant production with unparalleled sound quality and overwhelming visuals made Adele in Munich so precious and almost impossible to repeat.

“Such an epic undertaking required an unprecedented effort, paired with complete concentration and creativity. There had been no previous experience or any kind of blueprint. Everything had to be developed from scratch. It was quite a task to bring what had been a mere fantasy to life in a limited amount of time with a splendid team of collaborators. The fact that we succeeded and achieved such an overwhelming outcome does not cease to amaze me. However it demonstrates true professionalism and absolute dedication.”

How does one, who’s been part of every era the live business has been through, see the future? “The live industry will continue to draw even more fans to a wide spectrum of artists from many genres,” says Lieberberg. “The growing demand will come with the responsibility to deliver the best possible experience in sync with securing the safety of our audience and our artists. Live evokes enormous passion by connecting the fans to their music which can be considered as the most intense current cultural phenomenon per se.”