Live Nation Entertainment, Inc. has released financial results for the quarter ended March 31, 2022.

Live Nation continues to see the momentum of the return of live events from the previous quarter, delivering operating income of $27 million and AOI of $209 million. Ticketmaster’s strong first quarter performance drove the company’s overall profitability, showing that concert and sponsorship businesses are positioned to deliver record results this year. The company also has over 70 million tickets sold for shows in 2022, up 36% compared to this point in 2019, with committed show count up 44% through late April relative to 2019.

Sponsorship activity also fully returned in Q1, delivering financial results that well exceeded Q1 2019 and growth in expansion of existing relationships, new categories expanding their breadth of partners and new ad units being created both on-site and online.

“Looking ahead to the summer and the rest of the year, we remain optimistic that we are just getting going as all leading indicators reinforce record activity levels and financial results,” notes Michael Rapino, President and Chief Executive Officer. “Ticketing sales were at a record level in Q1, with momentum building over February and March. We have sold almost 20 million more tickets to our concerts this year than at this point in 2019, with a large number of tours still to go on-sale. Concert fans are showing no signs of slowing down–they are paying more for the best tickets, attending the shows, and spending more onsite as they create lifetime memories.”

He continues, “I continue to expect this to be the start of our run. The global addressable market for concerts, ticketing and sponsorship all provide a long runway for continued growth. We have over 60 tours already under discussion for 2023–our earliest indicator of next year, and great positioning for ongoing growth.”

Highlights:
Operating Income of $27 Million and AOI of $209 Million
Ticketmaster Delivers Another Record Quarter – Operating Income Up 3x, AOI Up 2x, Transacted GTV Up 39% (vs Q1 2019)
Ticketmaster Growing Client Base – 7 Million Net New Tickets Added
Sponsorship Operating Income Up 83% and AOI Up 75% (vs Q1 2019)
OCESA Financial Performance At 2019 Levels

2022 Outlook:
70 Million Tickets Sold for 2022 Concerts, On Track for Double-Digit Fan Growth This Year (vs 2019)
Concert Bookings Up 44% Through Late April (vs 2019)
$3.5 Billion in Event Related Deferred Revenue, Up Nearly 2x (vs Q1 2019)
Fan Demand for Best Seats Drives Concert Ticket Pricing Up Double-Digits (vs 2019), While Entry Level Tickets Average Under $35
Fan Base at Operated Venues Growing – 20 New Venues in 2022 Pipeline, 38 New Festivals
Over 90% of Planned Sponsorship Net Revenue for 2022 Committed

Read the full financial report here.

Jameson Rodgers is giving fans a taste of his live show on his new album, Live from Oxford, MS, available everywhere now.

The Batesville, Mississippi native heads back home literally and figuratively on the eight-song project, which was recorded during a sold-out show at the Lyric Theater in Oxford, Mississippi. The record reveals the live-show foundation of Rodgers’ sound and features songs from his debut album Bet You’re From a Small Town, plus his first viral hit “Midnight Daydream.”

Rodgers is set for Luke Bryan’s 2022 “Farm Tour” later this year, plus select dates with Darius Rucker. He’ll also appear at fairs and festivals, including CMA Fest, Carolina Country Music Fest, Pepsi Gulf Coast Jam, Faster Horses, Watershed, and Batesville Springfest on May 21.

 Live From Oxford, MS Track List:
1. Bars Back Home
2. Girls That Smoke
3. Cold Beer Calling My Name
4. Missing One
5. Girl with the Broken Heart
6. Good Dogs
7. Midnight Daydream
8. Some Girls

RecordingTheMasters, a leader in reel-to-reel tape manufacturing, will release its latest cassette-only music series in conjunction with ThinkIndie Distribution.

The series features a new full-length album from Patty Griffin comprised of demos and home recordings titled Tape, alongside a number of reissues available on cassette for the first time ever: Built to Spill‘s Plays the Songs of Daniel Johnston, John Prine’s The Tree of Forgiveness, Suzanne Vega’s An Evening of New York Songs and Stories, Mother Nature’s Sznz and Versus’ Ex Voto.

The albums will be released on RecordingTheMasters’ RTM C-60 high quality audio cassette tape, offering best-in-its-class sound quality in an analog cassette. The cassettes will be available at participating indie record stores beginning June 17.

Additionally, RecordingTheMasters’ B-1000 Portable Cassette Player, features a built-in microphone and external microphone recording, will be available via select indie retailers.

Previous cassette releases from RecordingTheMasters and ThinkIndie include Sturgill Simpson’s Cuttin’ Grass, Vol. 1: The Butcher Shoppe Sessions, Major Lazer’s Peace Is The Mission, Maren Morris’ Girl, Lupe Fiasco & Kaelin Ellis’ House EP, The Mavericks’ En Español, The Story So Far’s Proper Dose, Killswitch Engage’s Atonement, and more.

ACM Lifting Lives has announced that its 2022-2023 grant cycle will open for submissions beginning May 16 through June 16.

With support from Gibson Gives, Country Thunder, and other donors, this month-long application window continues ACM Lifting Lives’ history of supporting mental health organizations, as well as individuals struggling with those issues.

With the submission window opening tied to May’s Mental Health Awareness Month, the 2022-2023 grant cycle moves ACM Lifting Lives’ landmark COVID-19 Response Fund into its next phase.

“We are proud to re-open submissions for our grant making process and support the essential work being done by organizations providing music therapy as a way of healing,” says Lyndsay Cruz, Executive Director of ACM Lifting Lives. “We also have listened carefully to the members of our country music community who suffered emotional and mental setbacks from loss of work during the pandemic. We are proud to continue to support those that qualified for our COVID-19 Response Fund to get the additional help they need to thrive and participate in an industry that celebrates healing through the power of music.”

Eligible beneficiaries for the 2022-2023 grant cycle will fall into one of three primary areas:

• Individuals working within the country industry requesting funding for mental wellness services,
• Organizations providing direct aid to benefit the mental and emotional health of members of the country industry, or
• 501c3 eligible organizations that provide music therapy programs for health-related needs

More information on how to submit, along with further details on eligibility requirements, can be found at acmliftinglives.org. Recipients for this grant cycle will be notified in summer 2022 with funds arriving shortly thereafter.