2025 Impact Intl. UK/Euro Honoree: Geoff Ellis

GEOFF ELLIS
Managing Director
DF Concerts

40 YEARS ON: FROM MAKING RADIOHEAD SOUP TO OASIS & CHAPPELL ROAN

The wonderful thing about this industry is that you are always working on something new,” says DF Concerts Managing Director Geoff Ellis, based in Scotland. “That could be another tour with an artist and all the enjoyment that comes with it, or it could be making proposals to an artist who wants to do something very different from what they have done before. Nothing stands still – it’s dynamic, exciting and keeps us all on our toes.”

One of the things that kept Ellis on his toes in 2025 was Oasis’ three shows at Murrayfield Stadium in Edinburgh this summer. “For DF Concerts to play a part in bringing this cultural and historical moment to life was incredible for the whole team,” he says.

Ellis, a Manchester native, is a festival legend in his chosen home of Scotland. His name has become synonymous with T In The Park, the country’s most famous festival, even though it wasn’t him who founded it back in 1994. He never fails to credit Live Nation UK/Ireland chairman Denis Desmond and DF Concerts founder Stuart Clumpas as the two individuals who did, but Ellis undoubtedly formed the festival into one of the UK’s most beloved, and tried everything to save it when bureaucratic hurdles made its continuation impossible in 2017.

One of the reasons he never dwelt too much on the loss of this Scottish cultural icon is the fact that he succeeded it with TRNSMT in Glasgow, which has quickly conquered the hearts of fans and artists alike since launching in the same year T in the Park was folded. The festival, though an utterly different proposition from TITP, bears Ellis’s trademark approach to this business.

“Always put yourself in the position of the fan and the artist,” he explains. “If you make their experience a wonderful one, you will have a successful business. That also means going the extra mile – whether that’s making soup for a support band called Radiohead at King Tut’s or arranging a petting zoo with some large Scottish animals backstage at a major festival.”

The meal he prepared for a fledgling Radiohead back in 1991, when the band first performed at the legendary Glasgow club, also included baked potatoes – not as sparse as it sounds – and Radiohead never forgot this act of kindness. When TRNSMT premiered in 2017, Radiohead was the first act to confirm its headline spot, making the rest of the stellar debut lineup easier to book.

The reason Ellis is so passionate about festivals in particular is because of their impact on the entire business of live. “When our festivals succeed, it’s not just a win for our business, but a win for the Scottish live music ecosystem, and over the years we have helped to break so many new artists at TRNSMT and, previously, T in the Park, who have then gone on to headline,” says Ellis. “Our most recent example of an impactful success was bringing Chappell Roan to Edinburgh Summer Sessions for one of the two biggest headline shows of her career to date. Reading & Leeds festivals were the anchor dates, but in a great example of teamwork, Jon Mac had booked her for Reading and Leeds, and MCD’s Zach Desmond played a blinder with his resilience and gritted determination to deliver both Electric Picnic and Edinburgh for the artist. This ensured that we could deliver two exciting and successful shows, proving that Chappell Roan is now a stadium-level act.”

When Ellis thinks about the state of the international live business, he mostly sees opportunities, which “are abundant as the appetite for live music is so strong. More people are looking for that live experience than ever before, which has grown the market, as well as many people seeing concerts and festivals as an inclusive, welcoming space. It’s something they’re willing to spend their hard-earned cash on, which is great news for our industry.”

2025 marks Ellis’s 40th year in live music. Throughout his career, Ellis has continued to deliver a huge contribution to the UK’s arena business, helping to bring world-class artists to venues including the OVO Hydro in Glasgow as well as P&J Live in Aberdeen. And that’s not even mentioning the artists that got their first break at King Tut’s Wah Wah Hut, the history of which would make for an entertaining book.

Ellis’ first-ever concert was Ritchie Blackmore’s Rainbow at Manchester Apollo as a teenage schoolboy, which he says was “exciting and memorable for several reasons.” The first show Ellis actually booked and ran was A Certain Ratio at Middlesex Poly, “one of my favourite acts at the time. I loved every minute of it (even when the PA failed to arrive before doors!) and caught the bug. Booking The Stone Roses a couple of years later and seeing the future unfold on stage in a nondescript refectory in Tottenham confirmed that this was what I wanted to do for life.”

Speaking with Ellis, it becomes clear that he lives for this. “I love live music and am a fan, first and foremost,” he says. “I stood on my own in the middle of the crowd at the final Oasis show at Wembley this summer and experienced the sheer joy of the occasion. Getting to wake up every day and lead a great team in delivering these life-affirming moments is a pleasure. I always appreciate how lucky I am that this is actually my job.”