Brian O’Connell Honored With Bob Kingsley Living Legend Award

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Pictured (L-R): Keith Urban, Tim McGraw, Lauren Alaina, Brian O’Connell, Nan Kingsley, Dan Rogers and Tyler Hubbard.

Brian O’Connell was recently honored with the Bob Kingsley Living Legend Award.

O’Connell serves as President of Country Music Touring and Festivals for Live Nation. Over his more than 30 year career, he has worked with artists including Toby Keith, Rascal Flatts, Brad Paisley, Keith Urban, Dierks Bentley, Miranda Lambert, Thomas Rhett, Morgan Wallen, Lainey Wilson and more. He developed the Country Megaticket, and has developed festivals including Watershed, Faster Horses, Route 91 Harvest, and Seven Peaks. His Live Nation Country Nation division acquired Tortuga in 2018.

He has been honored with the CMA Touring Lifetime Achievement Award, is a ten-time winner of the Academy of Country Music’s Promoter of the Year award, a six-time winner of the Country Music Association’s Talent Buyer/Promoter of the Year award and currently serves on the CMA Board of Directors. In 2013, O’Connell was named Promoter of the Year by IEBA. He earned the 2006 Bill Graham Promoter of the Year Award, as well as the 2013, 2014, and 2017 Talent Buyer of the Year Award. Faster Horses and Tortuga have both been named Festival of the Year by the Academy of Country Music.

O’Connell was given the honor last night (March 9) at a sold-out event at the Opry House supporting the Grand Ole Opry Trust Fund. Lauren Alaina, Dierks Bentley, Clint Black, Rascal Flatts, Tyler Hubbard, Tim McGraw, Darius Rucker and Keith Urban each performed at the event. Dan Rogers, Bob Roux, T.K. Kimbrell, Joey Lee, Rod Essig and Curt Motley served as speakers.

The Bob Kingsley Living Legend Award was established over ten years ago to recognize the distinguished career of the veteran country radio host. Past honorees include Joe Galante (2015), Jim Ed Norman (2016), Lorianne Crook & Charlie Chase (2017), Clarence Spalding (2018), Lon Helton (2019), Bart Herbison & Erika Wollam Nichols (2023), Sarah Trahern (2024), and Scott Borchetta (2025).

Lauryn Sink
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