Australia: Rolling Loud / C2C Arrive, Lorde, Kylie Minogue

Two international festival brands make their debut Down Under next year.  Coincidentally, the UK-based country music C2C and Miami, Fla.-based hip-hop Rolling Loud both began in 2013.

C2C (Country To Country) which stages UK and Europe, sees TEG Live and AEG Presents tap Tim McGraw as headliner at Sydney Qudos Bank Arena (Sept. 28) and Brisbane Entertainment Centre Sept. 29. U.S. acts Kelsea Ballerini and Midland are also confirmed. More acts from the US and Australia will be announced. C2C will in 2019 also debut in Germany and the Netherlands.

 Rolling Loud founders Matt Zingler and Tariq Cherif teamed with production and event company HSU Events for their s bow January 27 at Sydney Showgrounds. The first round of acts is unveiled by Nov. 17.  HSU co-founder Oliver Finley said, “In four short years, Rolling Loud has become the biggest festival brand in rap, buoyed by an impressive line-up and innovative vision.  We have a huge amount of respect for what Matt and Tariq have created and cannot wait to bring it to Australian audiences this summer.”

Australian-born London-based Kylie Minogue’s Golden Tour hits her home country in March – her first dates here since the Kiss Me Once Tour in 2015.  Opening act is her occasional collaborator Jake Shears, of Scissor Sisters fame, with another major name to be revealed.

Frontier Touring has her at ICC Sydney Theatre (March 5), Adelaide Entertainment Centre (March 11), and Sidney Myer Music Bowl, Melbourne (March 13).  Minogue and Shears, along with Australian act Hatchie, also do three A Day On The Green winery shows in between, March 9 to 17.

U.S. producer-performer Maggie Rogers plays five theatres May 21 to June 1 for Penny Drop and Chugg Entertainment.

Live Nation has U.S. rappers Juice WRLD and The Kid Laroi for two theater sideshows in Sydney and Melbourne in January after his appearances at the multi-city Falls Festival.

SBW Presents, the joint venture by Select Music and Blue Murder, have Canada’s Propagandh for seven Australian and New Zealand theatre and club stops May 9 to 19.

An independent review of the Live Music Office (LMO)’s first five years found the live music sector rates its achievements highly, and financial commitment from the government is essential.  Rights management association APRA AMCOS , hosts the LMO’s operations in its Sydney offices began the review in August with 200 stakeholders, They represented federal, state and local government, industry, venues and creators located in regional, remote and metropolitan areas.

Eighty percent found the LMO effective in promoting the interests of the live music scene, 80 percent believed it reduced barriers to live music, and 85 percent regarded it advocated on behalf of live music scene. APRA AMCOS chief executive Dean Ormston said the review showed the LMO was “successful in transforming the regulatory barriers in many places across the country and embedding live music as an important cultural and economic activity” but there was “room for improvement” in how shareholders were harnessed. “We will now work with industry, government, venues and creators on finalising a blueprint and securing ongoing government funding for the Office to ensure that its work is focused and effective because we now know this work is vital.”   

The City of Sydney unveiled a series of proposals to make it  a “more diverse, late-night city.” Most notably, it would extend 24-hour trading across the CBD. Shops, businesses and food and drink venues could trade until 2 a.m., and music venues stay open for an hour after performances. Lord Mayor Clover Moore said, “More than 10,000 people gave us their feedback and the overwhelming majority said they want Sydney to have a diverse and exciting night-time economy with events and activities for people of all ages and interests.” The City will debate the proposals Nov. 19.

Lorde has become the second patron of the MusicHelps charity, saying, “It’s an honour to be joining Neil Finn (of Crowded House) as a patron of MusicHelps. Since the start of my journey, our local music industry has consistently shown me so much support and compassion, and it’s a privilege to be able to help give back.” The newly rebranded MusicHelps was previously the New Zealand Music Foundation, during which time it invested $300,000 in 66 projects, with 42 partners. These included music therapy for children with developmental conditions, breaking down barriers and reducing isolation for disabled people or providing music-based early intervention for people experiencing mental health issues.