International News: Summer Sonic Goes Big For 25th; A Blue Print For Australian Festivals & More

ASIA

by Phil Brasor

JAPAN

Summer Sonic’s Super Silver Anniversary

Summer Sonic, one of Japan’s premiere summer music festivals, celebrated its 25th anniversary by extending its usual two-day weekend schedule to three days. The festival was held July 14-16 simultaneously at the Zozo Marine Stadium and Makuhari Messe Convention Center in Tokyo (actually Chiba, just east of the capital) and Expo ’70 Commemorative Park in Osaka, and featured 199 acts. According to Creativeman Productions, which organizes SS, the Osaka end attracted a total of 110,000 people for the weekend, while Tokyo’s numbers topped 198,000, including sell-outs on Saturday and Sunday (63,000 each day), as well as two installments of Midnight Sonic on Friday and Saturday nights (12,000 and 7,000, respectively). 

The Tokyo end managed to dodge a weather bullet. On the eve of the festival, large parts of Chiba Prefecture, where the venues are located, were hit by a huge, unexpected rainstorm that dumped more than 100mm per hour on the area, causing massive flooding that shut down public transportation, knocked out power, stranded thousands of motorists, and killed about a dozen people. By the time the festival opened at 9 am on Friday, the water around the venues had drained, but trains were still delayed until mid-afternoon. The festival, a decidedly urban-oriented commuter event, went on without any change in plans. In fact, the only act that cancelled was the Korean rock band Xdinary Heroes, who were set to play Friday, but the cancellation had nothing to do with the fact that the closest international airport, Narita, had been closed down the previous night due to the storm. Apparently, the leader of the group had quit the day before their performance because of a scandal.

Technically, the 25th anniversary commemorates the festival making its permanent homes in Chiba and Osaka. The first edition was held in 2000 at an amusement park in Shizuoka Prefecture, west of Tokyo, on only two stages. In an interview with the Japan Times, Creativeman President Naoki Shimizu pointed out that while that edition sold out, the number of acts totaled 29 and attendees only 15,000. The headliners were Green Day and Jon Spencer (who returned this year with a mid-afternoon performance on the secondary Mountain Stage), but support acts included James Brown, Coldplay and Sigur Ros. 

Shimizu admitted that the situation surrounding pop music festivals in Japan has changed considerably in the last quarter century. Like the other major Japan summer festival, Fuji Rock, which unlike SS takes place in the countryside as a kind of campout event in the style of Glastonbury, Summer Sonic has always endeavored to book as many high-profile Western acts as possible. But as the festival demographic shifted away from Boomers and Gen-Xers, both festivals now highlight more top-flight domestic artists, as well as K-pop and other Asian acts, since these artists appeal more to younger people.

For sure, the biggest attractions of the weekend were J-pop, J-rock and K-pop artists, as could be seen by the mobilization of crowd control measures. Restrictions were placed on entry to the main Marine Stadium Saturday morning for the J-pop female idol group Hana, as well as for the J-rock band Sakanaction, the penultimate act at the Mountain Stage on Saturday. Following that performance, almost the entire crowd moved over to the Marine Stage to catch the remaining hour of headliner Ado, a J-pop singer who performs without showing her face. She opened her show with a cover of Metallica’s “Enter Sandman” and then repeated the number as an encore for the people who arrived too late to see it the first time.

ln fact, the Strokes were the only main stage headliner that was not Japanese, playing on Friday, which wasn’t sold out. Sunday was given over to the “visual-kei” hard rock band L’arc-en-Ciel, who were celebrating their own anniversary as a top Japanese attraction. One of the sticking point with booking foreign artists right now is the chronically low yen. Paying dollars has become prohibitive in the last year. (For the record, Creativeman revealed that originally A$AP Rocky was supposed to hold down Ado’s headlining slot but eventually negotiations broke down.)

The only Western act that got the restricted entry treatment this year was Jamiroquai, a huge draw in Japan in the 90s and 00s, but he may have benefited from still being on the Mountain Stage when L’arc-en-Ciel finished their stadium-capacity set on the Marine Stage.

Other highlights of the weekend in Tokyo included a very well-received concert by David Byrne on the Mountain Stage that the former Talking Head prefaced with a slide show of his tourist wanderings in Tokyo; packed performances by K-pop girl groups Babymonster and Le Sserafim, as well as a headlining set by Jennie of Blackpink; Japan debut appearances by two Philippine idol groups, Bini and SB19; Japanese superstar Fujii Kaze playing piano behind British singer Elmiene; and headlining shows by FKA Twigs and Steve Lacy. In addition, the Sonic Stage on Sunday was “curated” by the Japanese metal idol group Babymetal, including a performance by mgk (formerly Machine Gun Kelly), who played four times over the weekend—twice in Tokyo and twice in Osaka. The festival also repeated its successful Latin night of music on the Beach Stage from last year with a set of Spanish-speaking acts including Latin Mafia and Carin Leon. 

When asked about next year, Shimizu said he wasn’t sure how many major overseas artists he would be able to book at these rates. Nevertheless, he thinks that Japan’s summer music festival business has a great future, mainly because Summer Sonic and similar events have developed such a dedicated fanbase. 

TAIWAN & HONG KONG

IHG, Live Nation Team Up For ‘Greater China’ Partnership

IHG One Reward, the loyalty program of IHG Hotels and Resorts, announced a partnership on August 17 with Live Nation Asia that covers the Greater China region. Specifically, the partnership iwill allow IHG One Reward members access to exclusive travel deals in Hong Kong and Taiwan that pair stays at IHG Hotels and Resorts with select concerts. 

In a statement, James Dick, executive vice president for partnerships and media at Live Nation Asia, wrote, “More fans in Asia are choosing to travel to experience their favorite artists live, whether that means visiting a new city or travelling across borders. [This] experience extends beyond the show itself—it’s about the journey to the destination, where they stay and the memories they create along the way. [We’re] excited to partner with IHG Hotels and Resorts to bring exclusive experiences and benefits to IHG One Rewards members across the Greater China Region.”

In addition, Rita Jiang, chief commercial and marketing officer Greater China at IHG Hotels and Resorts, said, “Partnering with Live Nation Asia across the Greater China region allows us to bridge live entertainment and hospitality and loyalty, offering our members seamless access to performances, destination exploration and exclusive benefits in Hong Kong and Taiwan.”

AUSTRALASIA

by Christie Eliezer

AUSTRALIA

AFA Drops Festival Blueprint For NSW Promoters

In an Australia-first, the Australian Festival Association (AFA) published the Festival Blueprint as a cross-referencing guide to navigating the music festival sector.

Funded by the New South Wales government, 70 reps from festivals, regulators, government agencies, emergency services, accessibility and crowd safety specialists and international event experts cover everything from legal responsibilities and crowd management to First Nations cultural sensitivities and food waste.

Adelle Robinson, AFA chair and CEO of Fuzzy Operations said that with the pressures felt by the sector, “We want to make sure festivals are leading the way with best practice. The AFA was founded to bring industry together and raise the standard collectively, the Festival Blueprint is that vision realised.”

More Live Music Speakers At BIGSOUND

More live sector names were among additions to Brisbane’s BIGSOUND (Sept. 1 to 4).

They were Queensland night-life economy commissioner John ‘JC’ Collins, Adelle Robinson of the Australian Festival Association, Sound NSW head of sound Emily Collins, Sounds Australia export music producer Glenn Dickie and Oxtix head of music Brad Hinds.

Promoters were repped by Live Nation, TEG, Untitled Group, Dark Mofo, Laneway, Unified, Lonely Lands Agency and Greyline Live.

From venues were Oxford Art Factory, Crowbar, CG Live, Mo’s Desert Clubhouse and Tivoli Group.

Artist managers were Claire Collins, Lorrae McKenna, Lucas Canzona, Amelia Jenner, Dan Woolston and Jade Nazareth.

Singer songwriter Paul Kelly will speak on the impact of Australian songwriting abroad, while another new panel focuses on the relationship between Australia and Latin America.

Jonas Bros. Headlining NFL Melbourne

Jonas Brothers are headlining halftime entertainment at the debut NFL season in Australia. The duke-out between the Los Angeles Rams and San Francisco 49ers is held at the Melbourne Cricket Ground Sept. 11.

The game airs on Seven Network in Australia, globally on Netflix, and on local broadcast stations in San Francisco and Los Angeles.

A three day celebration around the game includes sets from Peking Duk, Sneaky Sound System, Grinspoon, Hot Dub Time Machine, Kita Alexander and Public Figures.

Biz Challenges Election-Bound Victoria

With Victoria’s state elections on Nov. 28, the state’s biz is lobbying for greater investment from political parties.

Demands are for a permanent Victorian Music Trust to be set up to govern a levy from major live shows to go to grassroots venues and artists, investment in contemporary music to rise to $9 million a year, skills-raising programs and entertainment precincts to protect venues.

Victoria accounts for 31% of national ticket sales and revenue. But since 2019, the number of venues showcasing live music dropped 19.4%.

Music Victoria CEO Fiona Duncan said, “Victoria has one of the strongest and most distinctive music industries in the world, but we are relying on short-term programs to support an industry that needs long-term confidence and investment.”

NEW ZEALAND

Ed Sheeran, Ultra, Add To Wellington Visitor Spend

A Jan. 21 Ed Sheeran show at Sky Stadium to 35,000 and the 40% out-of-towners who made up the 25,000 at the inaugural Ultra NZ in April were among events which saw WellingtonNZ post a spike in its 2025-26 financials.

Visitor spend was NZ$60.7 million ($35.7 million), up NZ$4 million ($2.35 million) from the previous year, and almost half a million attendees attracted to the region.

Head of major events, Tiana Rakete, said events “contributes to the vibrancy of the region and makes people want to live here and visit again and again.”

Upcoming music events are the Wellington Jazz Festival in October which drew 24,000 last year, and System Of A Down at Hnry Stadium Feb. 7.