Brandi Carlile To Open Fillmore Minneapolis With Three February Shows

“We’re proud to announce an exciting and diverse list of artists for our opening lineup to the music-loving community of Minneapolis,” Tamsen Preston, senior promoter at the Live Nation-operated, 1,850-capacity venue, said in a statement. “The attention and time we’ve taken to invest in building something special and unique will all be worth it when fans experience their favorite artists inside this amazing new venue. The sound system we are putting in and the sight lines are really just incredible.”  Sharing booking duties at the venue alongside Preston is Live Nation talent buyer Zack Chazin, who recently joined Live Nation after years of promoting club shows and festivals including Snowta NYE in Minneapolis and Alive 515 in Des Moines as a local independent.

The Fillmore Minneapolis expects to produce 175 annual concerts and events and is operated by Live Nation, which operates Varsity Theater in Dinkytown and has produced shows at Target Field, U.S. Bank Stadium, Xcel Energy Center, Target Center, The Armory and The Hennepin Theaters.

The 36,000-square-foot venue features two floors, with box seats and premium tickets on the venue’s mezzanine level alongside food and beverage offerings and dedicated hospitality. A new restaurant, Trax Burgers and Bar, is opening next door in early February as well.

“It was being talked about before any of the Grammy nomination stuff happened,” Carlile told Pollstar for a recent cover feature. “My managers (at Red Light Management) were talking about it and I’m laughing, like, ‘You people are crazy, you’re absolutely crazy. There’s no way we’re getting booked at Madison Square Garden, let alone sell enough tickets for it to look good.”  

Carlile’s Fillmore openers will be a little different each night, with a trio performance Feb. 12, full band on Feb. 13 and Feb. 14 being a full band set as well as performing all the songs from her EP, XOBC.

Tickets for all Fillmore Minneapolis shows go on sale to the public Oct. 18, with a Citi presale Oct. 15 and Live Nation and select artist presales beginning Oct. 16.

The Minneapolis opening is similar in timing as the Fillmore New Orleans, which opened this year in February with Coheed And Cambria followed by two shows with Duran Duran. Foo Fighters were supposed to open the venue before being forced to postpone citing an injury to a band member, although they rescheduled for May.  

The venue has had a full slate of shows in 2019, with recent boxoffice reported to Pollstar including two nights of Kacey Musgraves Sept. 27-28, which sold out a combined 4,166 tickets and grossed $212,032, and two shows by Lizzo Sept. 7-8, which sold 4,308 and grossed $238,375.

Fillmore Minneapolis opening lineup: 

•         2/12/20: Brandi Carlile – Grand Opening Show – Trio is performing

•         2/13/20: Brandi Carlile – Grand Opening Show – Full band

•         2/14/20: Brandi Carlile – Grand Opening Show – Full band performing XOBC

•         2/15/20: Motion City Soundtrack 

•         2/16/20: Motion City Soundtrack 

•         2/17/20: Ty Dolla $ign

•         2/21/20: Yung Gravy 

•         2/22/20: $uicideboy$ 

•         2/27/20: Buddy Guy

•         2/28/20: Rüfüs Du Sol 

•         3/3/20: Hayley Kiyoko 

•         3/4/20: Sublime with Rome, w/Jon Wayne and The Pain

•         3/7/20: Three 6 Mafia

•         3/12/20: LANCO

•         3/13/20: The Revivalists

•         3/20/20: The Floozies w/ SunSquabi 

•         3/21/20: Dillon Francis

•         3/27/20: Yultron Presents “RAVE PROM” with special guests

•         3/28/20: Hippie Sabotage 

•         4/10/20: The Disco Biscuits 

•         4/11/20: The Disco Biscuits 

•         4/17/20: Jonny Lang 

•         4/29/20: Citizen Cope

•         5/14/20: Evanescence