Ever played the boardgame Monopoly and witnessed someone on a hot streak plopping down red hotels every second as the scent of domination filled the air? Well swap those red hotels for music festivals, and you’ve got a pretty good picture of what Live Nation has been able to accomplish these past couple of months. Last December, the entertainment company goliath acquired majority stake in C3 Presents, the promoter behind Austin City Limits, HARD, Insomniac, and Cream. A few months later, Live Nation purchased Stureplansgruppen Live (SPG Live), placing their firm festival grip in Europe as well.
But their latest conquest comes in the form of a partnership with Superfly and AC Presents, which results in the coveted controlling stake of Bonnaroo Music Festival. And although plenty fear the Live Nation tentacles will destroy the spirit of Bonnaroo, Superfly co-founder Rick Farman begs to differ, “We are strengthening our commitment to create the best possible experience at Bonnaroo. Through this partnership with Live Nation, we’re even more empowered to enhance the festival while preserving the integrity of the event that we’ve thoughtfully built over the past 14 years.”
Guess we’ll have to wait until summer to find out. Bonnaroo will be taking place June 11-14 in Manchester, Tennessee.
