Tag: music festivals

Inaugural edition of Lollapalooza India: Schedule, line-up,  tickets and more

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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The Inaugural edition of Lollapalooza India festival will take place at Mumbai’s Mahalaxmi Racecourse on January 28-29. The first edition of the festival in India is promoted and co-produced by Indian ticketing platform and entertainment company BookMyShow, along with global producers Perry Farrell and C3 Presents owned by Live Nation.

The Mumbai leg will also mark the Asia debut of the American-origin festival, which over the past decade expanded to Santiago, São Paulo and Buenos Aires in South America, and Berlin, Paris and Stockholm in Europe.

After a long wait, Lollapalooza India finally dropped its entire line-up of 40 international and Indian artists for the two-day festival.

THE MOMENT WE’VE ALL BEEN WAITING FOR!

40 artists across a wide variety of sounds, styles & eras. This is Lollapalooza India 2023!

Tickets out now on 𝘄𝘄𝘄.𝗹𝗼𝗹𝗹𝗮𝗶𝗻𝗱𝗶𝗮.𝗰𝗼𝗺 pic.twitter.com/mBH54XwwBK

— Lollapalooza India (@LollaIndia) November 3, 2022

Artists and the line-up

The star-studded line-up for Lollapalooza India features arena-rock band Imagine Dragons and indie-rock favourites The Strokes as headliners. Rockers Greta Van Fleet, pop artist Jackson Wang, and electronic artists Zhu, Imanbek and Madeon are also headed to India for the festival. The UK rock band The Wombats, indie-pop act Japanese Breakfast, singer-songwriter Alec Benjamin and singer-producer Chelsea Cutler, are also set to make their India debut.

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Returning to India will be the EDM frontrunner and producer Diplo and dream-pop band Cigarettes After Sex. They will be joined by electronic artists Kasablanca and Apashe, plus there will be a special country debut for Indo-American pop artist Raveena.

Apart from them, Indian artists AP Dhillon, Prateek Kuhad, Divine, The Yellow Diary, and Bloodywood are also in the line-up.

Other electronic artists like Sandunes, Kumail, hip-hop beat-smith Parimal Shais, singer-songwriter Kavya, indie rock band The F16s, nu-disco/funk act Madboy/Mink, post-rock act Aswekeepsearching, singer-songwriters Tejas, Tanmaya Bhatnagar, Mali, Pune band Easy Wanderlings are also part of the line-up.

Bengaluru act T.ill APES, Mumbai singer-songwriter and producer-DJ Kayan, rapper Siri and brass group Bombay Brass will also perform at the Lollapalooza India. Mumbai-based bassist and producer Hashbass aka Harshit Misra is also said to be curating a set titled House of Hashbass for the festival. Aswekeepsearching is expected to bring a scaled-up production, while Mumbai DJ-producer Abhi Meer is set to perform a special house music set.

Among the freshest acts are hip-hop artiste Tracy De Sa and singer-songwriter Aadya, according to a Rollingstones report.

There are 40 acts expected to be performed to an audience of nearly 60,000 people in Mumbai featuring four stages with over 36 hours of live music performed by some of the biggest names in music.

Tickets:

Tickets for the two-day music festival are available on the Lollapalooza India website and bookmyshow.com.  The general tickets cost about Rs 8,999. The VIP packages start from Rs 19,999 per head while the platinum ticket, which offers tabled seating, deck access, air-conditioned restrooms and transport between stages is priced at Rs 64,999.

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World Music Day 2022 — Top events taking place in India and the world

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Music plays an important role in our lives. World Music Day is just another excuse to let it play on. The day is celebrated on June 21 every year to thank singers and musicians for their contributions in the field of music.

The theme of World Music Day 2022 is ‘Music on the intersections,’ and music lovers can celebrate the day by listening to their favourite kind of music or attending various musical events held across the world.

Here are the top events taking place across the globe:

1. Symphony orchestra at The National Centre for the Performing Arts (NCPA)

Mumbai is bringing a 36-piece orchestra for three shows on World Music Day 2022. The shows will be held from June 17 to 19.

Symphony Orchestra of India (SOI) is India’s first professional orchestra, which will lead the ensemble and perform an overture to Mozart’s comedic opera The Marriage of Figaro, Beethoven’s Pastoral symphony, and Bizet’s Carmen Suite in the evenings.

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2. Fête de la Musique celebrations in Paris

For World Music Day or Fête de la Musique, stages spring up all over Paris’s major squares and parks. The best-known events are generally in the Jardin des Tuileries, the Petit Palais, the Institut du Monde Arabe, the Louvre, Jardin du Luxembourg, on Place Denfert Rochereau and along the banks of the Seine. Bands, musician and artiste gather to play different kinds of music and for this special night. Public transport offers discounted travel and some lines run all night.

3. Fête de la Musique celebrations at Johannesburg

This year, the French Institute of South Africa (IFAS) is set to bring the Fête de la Musique (FDLM) back for its 11th year.

The event will take place across four different venues simultaneously around Johannesburg and Soweto on June 18, and entry is free for all. The events will feature 27 artists across six stages.

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4. A fest for all

Fête de la Musique is back in Bangalore to provide a free platform to musicians after the COVID-19 break. The theme of the music festival is ‘Back To Life’ and opens on June 17, continuing till next week. It will be held across three venues and about 45 musicians are set to perform.

5 Kolkata Music Concert

Pianist-vocalist musician duo Sourendro-Soumyojit are back with their annual World Music Day concert in Kolkata. The duo has been organising the event since 2010 and this year an eclectic line-up of artistes are performing in the City of Joy. The show will be held on June 21, and it will also pay a special tribute to Lata Mangeshkar, who died earlier this year.

6. MG Music Awards

Musicians Guild (MG) will be holding the MG Music Awards 2022 on June 18 at Regional Centre of Excellence for Music & Performing Arts (RCEMPA), Jotsoma near Kohima, Nagaland. The award ceremony will start from 5 pm onwards and entry will be free for all.

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7. World Music Day Concert

The Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR), Guwahati Horizon series and the Task Force for Music and Arts (TaFMA), government of Nagaland, are organising a ‘World Music Day Concert’ at Room03 Dimapur, Nagaland. The concert will begin at 5 pm on June 21.

8. Make Music Day Miami

Make Music Day is also celebrated on the same day as World Music Day in America. On this special occasion, a free musical celebration on June 21 is being organised as Make Music Miami with concerts on streets, sidewalks, beaches and parks across the city.

9. Fete de la musique celebrations at Hyderabad

Goethe-Zentrum Hyderabad is organising the Fete de la musique 2022. The event will be held at various metro stations in Hyderabad from June 21 to 26, and all music lovers are free to join the city’s largest music festival.

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How to organise a music festival in India? Read on to get a complete lowdown

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Megastar Katy Perry is all set to headline the inaugural OnePlus Music Festival, which will be organised on November 16, in Mumbai. As a matter of fact, this music event will be a debut for both, the pop sensation and the tech giant, in India.

Unlike in the West, the music bonanza in India begins towards the end of the year. However, this set trend is a mixed blessing for the organisers in the country. If you wonder how, here is a complete lowdown on organising a music festival in India.

Organising a music event takes a lot more than what it appears to be. For audience, it might just be a source of entertainment for a few hours or so. However, for organisers, it’s a daunting task to manage the cost and gain profit out of it.

To understand better, CNBC-TV18 reached out to members of different organising teams, who have been conducting events of such stature in the past.

Supreet Kaur, festival director of Bacardi NH7 Weekender, says cost to hold a music festival is subjective. “It depends on various aspects such as how large your audience is — 5,000 or 50,000, how many stages do you have (build, artistes, technical equipment, manpower), for how many days the festival is taking place, which city is it in as licensing costs differ from state to state, or whether it is a destination festival with camping or a city festival. The variables are too many to comment with a specific figure,” she said.

“However, at Bacardi NH7 Weekender, the cost to build – infrastructure – is the highest,” Kaur added.

Getting the green light

Apramjeet Singh Lamba, co-founder of Paradigm Entertainment, has stressed the importance of obtaining clearances. “For organising a music event in India, certain things have to be kept in mind, and getting permission tops the priority list. This year, when DJ Snake came to perform in Delhi, due to some permission issue the event was shifted from night to day. Now imagine a DJ playing in broad sunlight. Hard to call it successful,” Lamba commented.

Cost distribution

This is again very subjective. At NH7, the cost to build infrastructure is the highest.

Typically, there are 2-3 key revenue streams which contribute to the profit margin — ticketing, food and beverages, and merchandise.

The festival season in India is primarily from October to February, which makes India a one-off location for most International artistes, thus making it a lot more difficult to book them.

Besides, Kaur pointed out that preparation to prevent any security breach is the key. “You cannot foresee what might go wrong during a show, but you need to be prepared for everything to go wrong. The number one priority is to keep your audience safe and ensure they have a good time,” she noted.

Lamba believes that India offers one of the biggest markets for music, and therefore an artiste would not back off unless there is any big issue with the management or with the permissions.

So while booking, it is important to inform the performers in advance about the whole scenario and try providing them the utmost comfort, considering the fact that they are travelling from a different environment and should not face any inconvenience.

Compensation rules

In 2011, Byran Adams’ Delhi concert was denied due to security issue. Is there any compensation provided in such cases?

“At Bacardi NH7 Weekender, our fans come to the festival for the experience first and artistes second. We’ve built a strong community over 10 years. When you purchase a ticket to a festival that offers you over 80 artistes over a weekend, you don’t really apportion a percentage of the ticket price to a specific artiste, to be able to offer any compensation. In a concert format, however, when you purchase a ticket for a specific artiste’s show, the rules change,” Kaur informed.

Role of recreational activities

Millennials demand top billing artistes and a variety of things to do at a music festival, besides listening to music. It has transformed into a culture and lifestyle experience.

Speaking of her experience at Bacardi NH7 Weekender, Kaur said, “For our properties, our sponsors are more than just brands associated with the properties. We work with our sponsors as partners in building value beyond logo presence. Owing to relatively lower ticket pricing, festivals in India are still largely dependent on sponsorship for sustainability.”

She further observed, “When brands began to connect with the youth through music associations, it unlocked viability in the live music scene. What that has done for the live music industry is create opportunities to produce better shows, to book bigger artistes, associate with global agencies and talent, and in turn introduce those global agents to Indian talent. All of which has happened in the last few years which has been incredible to watch.”

Drugs and alcohol

Bacardi NH7 Weekender has strict policies against substance abuse. This is communicated to the artistes and audience beforehand and during the festival.

They also have a code of conduct every artiste contracted to perform at the festival signs and agrees to — which not only dictates action in the case of substance abuse, but also sexual harassment and general conduct.

“Videos on women safety, general conduct and substance abuse are played across all our stages at the festival in intervals, for our audiences,” Kaur pointed out.

Process of inviting artistes

Lamba also has an artiste management company. “A big name artiste like Wiz Khalifa costs somewhere around Rs 2 to Rs 3.5 crore, to perform in India. This doesn’t include their travel, accommodation and other expenses,” he said.

“Our festival team speaks with agents through the year to curate the international line-up at Bacardi NH7 Weekender. Additionally, considering most international artistes are paid in US dollars globally, the Indian rupee conversion rate makes the viability of hosting an artiste in India significantly different from elsewhere in the world. We’re extremely cautious about being realistic with evaluating the value each artiste brings to the festival before making any offers,” Kaur added.

Security arrangements

“We have security, we have bouncers, and 40 guards to ensure safety. And just in case something wrong happens, there are always VCRs standing right at the gates, to pull out the person and hand him over to police to take the legal action in the right manner,” Lamba said.

Success factors

Today, there are at least a hundred events across various entertainment forms – from large scale to boutique festivals to concerts. Ten years ago, there were not more than two or three.

“Each year we see around 20-30 new properties. Unfortunately most don’t last for more than a year or two. You need to have a plan for sustainability; I mean evaluate your revenue and expenses. That will decide your eventual success. You can be the most exciting event with top artistes but if you don’t make enough revenue, your success is limited,” Kaur observed.

“To ensure the success of the event, the organising team must put efforts in marketing. Often, people don’t show their interest unless there is a big brand and artiste name associated with the event. That is something small organisers are struggling to deal with,” Lamba added.

Even a food stall at a venue like Sunburn costs Rs 70,000. Therefore, to ensure profit out of it, the event organisers need to make the right contacts and right deals. Big sponsors often make the process easy and add value to the event. Companies like Pepsi, Budweiser, Absolute, and others, provide things at comparatively cheaper rates and attract eyeballs.

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Artists and fans push music festivals to take on sexual harassment

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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When Emma Friedman went to her first rock festival at the age of 17, she was so excited to get to see bands she loved in a festival environment. But as she was leaving, she recalls her mom making a comment like, “Are you sure you want to wear those shorts?”

Friedman didn’t think anything of it until she got groped at the festival.

“They were what I felt confident in and what made me feel comfortable,” said Friedman, who is now 20 and going to school in Asheville, North Carolina. “And then I was crowd surfing and some guy was trying to be inappropriate.”

Friedman said her friend who accompanied her was groped so hard she bled.

Friedman is one of many music fans who have spoken up about sexual harassment and groping at musical festivals recently as the #MeToo movement has emboldened more people to talk about harassment in public spaces. With increased focus on the longstanding problem but little statistical data on how often it happens, music fans and even artists are asking the live music industry to make cultural changes.

This year, Friedman went back to the same festival, called Carolina Rebellion, this time armed with a sign that said, “Stop Sexually Assaulting Female Crowd Surfers.” She said the response was overwhelmingly positive with both women and men thanking her for her sign.

“I just want there to be a conversation and for people to feel safer and be able to enjoy concerts and festivals without the fear,” Friedman said.

Some festivals are responding to these complaints by training festival staff and volunteers on how to respond to harassment, adding booths or signs with information on where to report sexual violence, and having clearly posted anti-harassment policies.

Some artists have spoken out on stage to try to stop groping that they can see in the crowd, including Drake and Sam Carter from the British band The Architects. Pop singer Madison Beer said during one show, she called out a man who was being aggressive to a woman in the crowd.

“She kept pushing him off, pushing him off, and he wouldn’t stop yelling at her and telling her to shut up and all this stuff,” Beer said. “I stopped the show and I was like, ‘Leave her alone.’ Everyone applauded and was whatever. I don’t even do things like that for a reaction or applause. I genuinely don’t like seeing that. I’ve definitely had my fair share of guys being a little too much with me and they think just because they follow me on Instagram they know me.”

CHVRCHES singer Lauren Mayberry experienced it as a music writer when she was reviewing a show.

“I stood on a small square box table thing to look up to write on my notepad how many people were in this band and somebody put their hand up my skirt when I was doing that. That’s not a minority of cases. It happens a lot at shows,” Mayberry said during an interview in Chicago where her band was performing at Lollapalooza.

“I think it’s about power and taking advantage in a situation, which is a societal theme,” Mayberry said. “I think it’s good that more conversations are being had around those things off the back of things like #MeToo. I don’t know how you change these things other than trying to create a community and create security and back up women’s voices when they raise them.”

Some artists are leveraging their platforms by having anti-harassment policies as a part of their tour contract, or even giving fans a way to report harassment directly to the band.

Sadie Dupuis, the lead singer of the indie rock band Speedy Ortiz, set up a hotline a couple of years ago for fans to text if they experienced harassment and didn’t know where to turn. She said the most recent example of someone using their hotline was when someone reported that a person in the crowd was using transphobic language and harassing someone.

Shawna Potter, of the feminist band War on Women, has created a guidebook about creating safer public spaces after working with many venues in the Baltimore area. She said that she understands that smaller, independent bands don’t always feel like they have the authority to insist that venues make changes to their safety policies.

“There might not be a lot that you feel you can do without risking that opportunity in the first place,” Potter said. “By the time you make it to the stage, you’re already cashing in on that opportunity. So use that microphone. Let people know that even if they are harassed in that venue and you don’t know if that venue is trustworthy, let them know you can talk to you.”

Much of the discussion about addressing harassment in public spaces has been spearheaded by local anti-violence or anti-abuse agencies.

In Chicago, two anti-violence agencies in the city created a campaign called Our Music, My Body about three years ago. They help festivals create anti-harassment statements or public policies and show up to festivals to give people information about where to report violence or harassment.

Lara Haddadin, 23, has been volunteering with Our Music, My Body at festivals like Lollapalooza, Riot Fest and more in the Chicago area for the past three years.

“Every single place that I have been to, people have come up to us, mostly women, and said like ‘I literally just got assaulted by someone, like a half an hour before I came to this booth,'” Haddadin said.

A music and social activism group called Calling All Crows started working on sexual violence prevention at shows. Kim Warnick, who runs their campaign called Here for the Music, worked with Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival in Manchester, Tennessee, to give voluntary training to about 250 members of their staff this year and went on tour with the band Dispatch to train volunteers and venue staff on their tour stops.

“Harassment and assault aren’t new to these spaces, but they are newly talked about as unacceptable behavior,” Warnick said.

Festivals like Bonnaroo, Lollapalooza and Austin City Limits have prominently posted policies on their websites about harassment and how to report it, as well as signs throughout their festival grounds. Laura Sohn, Bonnaroo’s director of sustainability, said they wanted to be proactive in their response to a growing cultural movement around #MeToo.

But Warnick said for the vast majority of festivals and venues, fans and even artists are left in the dark about their safety when they enter those spaces.

“Very few festivals and venues share these (safety policies) publicly,” Warnick said. “And even when we put it in a contract rider for a band, we’re still getting a lot of ‘We can’t legally share that with you.'”

Local police generally report a litany of drug and alcohol arrests after a major festival but when sexual assaults are reported, which is rare, it generally becomes big news and can be damaging to a festival’s reputation. At this year’s Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in Indio, California, local police had two reports of sexual battery and one report of sexual assault over the two weekends of the festival.

Multiple women reported to police that they were raped at the Woodstock ’99 festival, which was roundly criticized for overall violence and destruction. Sweden’s largest music festival, Bravalla Festival, was canceled this year after several reports of sexual assault at the 2017 festival.

There are a lot of barriers for people to report sexual harassment or abuse. Large scale festivals where tens of thousands of people are spread out over large campgrounds or fields make it difficult for harassers to be identified. Similarly, victim blaming or shaming can also arise.

“A lot of people feel like, ‘Oh I was drinking, so am I just going to get that blamed on me for being drunk or for not wearing enough clothing?'” Warnick said. “The challenge is that it’s a really inconsistent experience. You can’t reliably report and know that you’re going to be taken seriously.”

Haddadin said that anti-harassment policies are important, but staff training and having advocates on site show that a festival isn’t just giving lip service to dealing with the problem.

“They say zero tolerance, or we will not tolerate harassment, but they don’t say what steps they take if that is a thing that actually happens,” Haddadin said. “I think that a lot of festivals mean well, but do I think any festival or music hall is doing enough? No. I think there is always work left to be done.”

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KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow