2026 Impact 50 Honorees: Lesley Olenik & Brad Wavra

LESLEY OLENIK + BRAD WAVRA
SVPs, Global Touring
Live Nation

BY THE NUMBER: 15,000. Plant-based meals served at UBS Arena during Billie Eilish’s “HIT ME HARD AND SOFT: The Tour.”|

WORDS TO LIVE BY: “Take things one day at a time. This is a very relationship-driven business, but it’s important not to take everything personally.” – Lesley Olenik

Lesley Olenik and Brad Wavra both serve as SVP of Global Touring at leading promoter Live Nation, driving some of the biggest tours in the world, spanning pop, Latin, R&B, alternative, EDM and beyond. Here, the esteemed executives discuss milestone moments for clients including Billie Eilish, Pitbull, Backstreet Boys, Rosalía, CA7RIEL and Paco Amoroso, along with sharing upcoming plans for JOJI, John Summit, Gracie Abrams and more.

Pollstar: What are your most impactful accomplishments and initiatives over the last year and what made them so?
Lesley Olenik: Working across Billie Eilish’s “Hit Me Hard And Soft: The Tour” over the past few years and seeing the impact we’ve been able to make on the sustainability front has been incredibly rewarding. On the 2024/2025 tour, we worked to ensure plant-based options were available at every venue globally, with some markets taking it even further. At venues like SAP Center and UBS Arena, menus went fully plant-based for Billie’s shows, while at Kaseya Center, plant-based items performed so well they became permanent menu offerings. At UBS Arena alone, more than 15,000 plant-based meals were served with an overwhelmingly positive fan response. We partnered with Maggie Baird’s nonprofit, Support+Feed, on a 360 campaign tied to the tour that included non-perishable plant-based food drives at many of the shows, as well as culinary workshops for venue teams focused on implementing more plant-forward menu defaults and climate-friendly food ratios, alongside support from Greener by Default. The campaign generated more than 63 million social impressions while helping redistribute thousands of pounds of food locally in communities across the tour.

Brad Wavra: One of the most impactful accomplishments over the last year has been helping establish Pitbull as a truly global touring force at an even larger scale. Watching him sell out 30,000-, 40,000-, 50,000-, and 60,000-capacity venues across Europe has been incredible. He really is Mr. Worldwide.

What innovative initiatives have you seen in the industry that inspired you and why?
Olenik: Rosalía’s avant-garde approach on the “LUX Tour” really stands out to me. She’s bringing artistry and cultural experiences back into the live space through ballet, local live orchestras in each market, references to iconic works like the Mona Lisa, and famous paintings displayed during transitions. Rather than relying heavily on traditional production elements, she uses choreography and movement to transform the stage in a much more intentional and emotional way.

I’ve also been inspired by CA7RIEL & Paco Amoroso and the evolution from their Papota era into the “Free Spirits Tour.” A big theme of the project is burnout and the pressure that comes with constantly moving at the speed of culture and social media. Their new era leans into wellness and self-care in a way that feels both entertaining and relatable, from cold plunges and saunas to fitness and recovery.

Wavra: I’ve loved seeing artists create moments that encourage fan participation on such a massive scale. The Backstreet Boys all-white crowd trend at Sphere and Pitbull fans showing up in bald caps are great examples of this.

What’s ahead for you and your business for the rest of 2026/’27? What projects are you especially excited about?
Olenik: I’m looking forward to CA7RIEL & Paco Amoroso continuing their global tour, as well as JOJI kicking off his U.S. Solaris Tour this June. We also just announced John Summit’s first arena tour, “CTRL ESCAPE,” this fall, which is a major milestone. I work closely with Lizzo and am excited for her new album releasing June 5, and the next chapter of touring around it. Gracie Abrams and Malcolm Todd also have new music coming. Overall, there’s a really strong pipeline right now across every level of the business, from emerging artists building quickly to global superstars continuing to scale.

Wavra: There are a lot of exciting things to come that I can’t speak to quite yet. On a personal note, it was also great to see Sade recently inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.