– Jay Marciano

A(E)Giant Returns Along With Climate Positive Touring

Despite deep furloughs and layoffs and the cancellation of its myriad tours and festivals, AEG Presents weathered the pandemic. Now, under the continued and steady leadership of chairman and CEO Jay Marciano, the company, which ranked No. 2 in both gross and tickets sold on Pollstar’s 2019 worldwide promoters chart, seems poised to take full advantage of live’s return. 

The promoter already has high-profile tours on tap for this fall, including Machine Gun Kelly and Kane Brown, and for 2022, when major arena acts including Roger Waters and Justin Bieber will return to the road. Also up: The resumption of Elton John’s wildly successful “Farewell Yellow Brick Road Tour,” which topped Pollstar’s 2020 worldwide touring chart with $87.1 million grossed before the pandemic-related shutdown – and won Major Tour of the Year at the 2020 Pollstar Awards.

And as it awakens from its slumber, the world’s second-largest promoter is welcoming back the employees with whom it parted ways during the pandemic.

“The company has distributed an outline for a full reemergence from our COVID-related workforce plan,” AEG said in March.

With its full operation back up and running, AEG will look to continue the forward-thinking initiatives it began during the pandemic. For one, AEG proved a tireless advocate for the live industry, lending crucial leadership to the Save Live Events Coalition, which included other key players such as Live Nation, WME, CAA, UTA and Paradigm, as it fought to secure government relief.

The company has also served communities throughout the country, whether opening venues like Los Angeles’ STAPLES Center to serve as early voting centers or joining the #Vax4Live campaign, where AEG, the National Talent Organization, the International Association of Venue Managers and other industry partners have worked to encourage music fans to receive the COVID-19 vaccine.

Significantly, AEG announced the formation of Climate Positive Touring in April, which will work to reduce tour-related carbon emissions and bolster environmental and climate justice programs.

“AEG Presents has the ability and structure to really make a global impact in moving our entire business – which has had a traditionally significant carbon footprint – toward a zero emissions future,” Marciano said upon CPT’s announcement. “The company’s reach enables us to execute at every level of the live experience: from clubs and theaters to arenas, global tours, and festivals.”

Meanwhile, the company has continued to develop its business, from new partnerships between ticketing subsidiary AXS and JAM Productions and Pabst Theater Group to a livestreaming deal between AEG partner The Bowery Presents and platform Twitch to AEGX, a joint partnership with Japanese company Avex that will increase AEG’s clout on the global stage.

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