Mike Thrasher Presents And Mammoth Announce Alliance

Courtesy Mike Thrasher Presents / Mammoth, Inc. – Allies
Regional promoters Mike Thrasher Presents and Mammoth, Inc., announced an alliance Wednesday.

Mike Thrasher Presents and Mammoth, Inc., announced an alliance Wednesday that will unite the two regional promoters, based out of Portland, Ore., and Lawrence, Kan., respectively.

The announcement follows the March 2020 death of Mike Thrasher, who founded his titular promotion company in 1994 and grew it to a Pacific Northwest powerhouse that today books upwards of 450 shows per year.

“We were all devastated by Mike’s death,” said Gordon Cross, who has served as Mike Thrasher Presents CEO since 2013, in a statement. “Mammoth has given us an exciting and fresh perspective of what the future may look like, and we look forward to working with [co-owners] Jeff [Fortier] and Josh [Hunt] to bring great music to the Pacific Northwest.”

Mammoth, which Fortier and Hunt founded in 2006, produces more than 700 events per year from clubs to theaters to amphitheaters, including many in Lawrence and Kansas City, Mo., two cities where it has offices.

“Mammoth is thrilled to partner with the Mike Thrasher organization, bringing great music to the Pacific Northwest,” said Fortier in a statement. “My partner Josh Hunt and I had known Mike for 25 years and we were both devastated to hear of his sudden death last March at age 48. Knowing that we can continue Mike’s legacy under the Mammoth name is an honor that we take very seriously, and we are committed to keeping his memory alive.”

Under the new arrangement, Sean Major, who joined Thrasher as talent buyer in 2014 after a stint at William Morris Agency, will serve as head talent buyer for Mammoth and Thrasher.

“Learning from one of the best independent promoters in the country provided me with invaluable insights into the music business,” said Major in a statement. “Mike’s innate sense of assessing talent along with his business acumen provided a strong foundation for what has become a very successful company. It is my privilege to assume the head talent buyer role for the Mammoth/Thrasher alliance as we move forward into the future.”

Both promoters have busy calendars of upcoming shows. Thrasher’s includes JPEGMAFIA at Portland’s Wonder Ballroom (Nov. 19), Caribou at Portland’s Roseland Theater (Feb. 21, 2022), and Omar Apollo at Portland’s McMenamins Crystal Ballroom (April 5, 2022), while Mammoth’s features Lucy Dacus at Lawrence’s Liberty Hall (Feb. 19, 2022), Tool at Omaha’s CHI Health Center Arena (March 12, 2022) and Pavement at Kansas City’s Uptown Theater (Sept. 20, 2022).

Mammoth made headlines in September 2020, when it co-promoted a Josh Turner concert at U.S. Cellular Center in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, which was thought to be the first paid arena concert since the start of the COVID-19 shutdown.