D
ID OUTSIDE LANDS
just win 2019?
The long-running festi-
val is the highest-grossing
event reported to Billboard Boxscore
for the month of August — and the
year so far. The 12th annual festival,
which took place in San Francisco’s
Golden Gate Park Aug. 9-11, brought
in $29.6 million in ticket sales and
reported a 205,500 cumulative atten-
dance (68,500 per day). It also had
its highest-grossing year since the
festival launched in 2008.
Festival co-founder Allen Scott,
who serves as head of concerts and
festivals for promoter Another Planet
Entertainment, credits the success of
Paul Simon’s closing set, which marks
his only performance this year after
retiring from touring in 2018. Just
days before APE’s other major festival,
Life Is Beautiful, kicks off in Las Vegas
on Sept. 21, Scott discussed how the
independent promoter is defying the
odds in one of North America’s most
competitive live-music markets.
What’s the story behind booking
Paul Simon for Outside Lands?
We had tried to get him last year on
his farewell run, but this year the
stars aligned for us. He only performs
concerts to benefit charities now, and
our work with several environmental
charities is what I think attracted him.
And I think he loved the idea of being
in Golden Gate Park.
What’s your booking philosophy
with headliners?
We’re not necessarily looking for
what’s extremely hot at the moment
— more so current career artists and
future career artists. Fortunately with
the Bay Area, there are fans of all ages
with many different tastes that love
to go to concerts year-round. So we
hope maybe a young fan discovers Paul
Simon or maybe an older fan discovers
Kacey Musgraves. I’m always hearing
that people are bringing their parents
or their kids, and that means we have
to book this event for all ages.
Why was it important for Out-
side Lands to be the first major
music festival to allow the legal
sale of cannabis?
We’ve always wanted to celebrate
what makes the Bay Area great. We
were the first festival to incorporate
local restaurants and develop a culi-
nary lineup, and we were the first to
embrace [the wineries of ] Napa and
Sonoma, so the idea felt like the next
evolution with the legalization of [rec-
reational marijuana sales in California
in 2018]. Going into a dispensary can
be intimidating: There’s a long line,
there’s so much to chose from. People
have a lot of questions, and Grasslands
[the festival’s cannabis activation site]
gave consumers the chance to ask
about THC and CBD products. And
just like with wine, the state has a long
history with cannabis cultivation. It
felt natural that we would be the first
ones to do this. We were the first event
in San Francisco to get a permit for the
sale and consumption of cannabis.
A lot of your contemporaries are
selling to Live Nation and AEG.
Have you ever thought about doing
the same?
I’ll say this: There are some really
aggressive multinational companies
out there, and the growth of national
tour deals where one promoter does
all the shows is something we have
to deal with. But we know we have
the best venues in the Bay Area, and
artists want to play our festivals. That
means we work with artists who want
to work with us, and we seem to be
doing OK. It’s competitive, but we
focus on the things we do really well.
One thing we don’t do very well is
answering to other people.
BEHIND THE BOXSCORE
GRACED LANDS
With help from Paul Simon, Outside Lands had its best year
yet. Co-founder Allen Scott explains the indie fest’s appeal
BY DAVE BROOKS
13
ED SHEERAN
Laugardalsvöllur; Reykjavik, Iceland;
Aug. 10-11
$ 7,18 0 , 912
$266.91/$222.41/
$177.91/$142.31
43,830
2
AEG Presents,
Sena Event
14
METALLICA
Olympiastadion, Munich,
Aug. 23
$6,805,574
$99.91
68,117
1
Live Nation
15
HUGH JACKMAN
Qudos Bank Arena, Sydney,
Aug. 2-7
$6,502,850
$112.59/$39.03
76,483
6
TEG Dainty
16
METALLICA
Letnany Airport, Prague,
Aug. 18
$6,494,648
$88.30
73,555
1
Live Nation
17
METALLICA
Maimarkt; Mannheim, Germany;
Aug. 25
$5,917,606
$92.44
64,017
1
Live Nation
18
BILLY JOEL
Coors Field, Denver,
Aug. 8
$5,684,083
$149.50/$49.50
44,744
1
Live Nation
19
JANET JACKSON
Park Theater, Las Vegas,
Aug. 2-3, 7, 9-10, 14, 16-17
$5,650,473
$500/$79
33,105
8
Live Nation,
MGM Resorts
International
20
METALLICA
Ernst Happel Stadion, Vienna,Aug. 16
$5,347,522
$98.7154,176
1Live Nation
21
ARIANA GRANDE
O2 Arena, London,
Aug. 17, 19-20
$5,313,530
$133.49/$57.62
49,950
3
Live Nation
22
JONAS BROTHERS
Madison Square Garden, New York,
Aug. 29-30
$5,210,049
$543.95/$33.95
29,812
2
Live Nation
23
METALLICA
PGE Narodowy; Warsaw, Poland;
Aug. 21
$4,829,962
$89.65
53,877
1
Live Nation
24
FLEETWOOD MAC
Brisbane Entertainment Centre;
Brisbane, Australia; Aug. 20, 22, 24
$4,554,409
$244.56/$69.82
31,973
3
Live Nation
25
GEORGE STRAIT
T-Mobile Arena, Las Vegas,
Aug. 23-24
$4,465,304
$499/$50
34,562
2
Messina Touring
Group/AEG
Presents
26
P!NK
Malieveld; The Hague, Netherlands;Aug. 11
$4,214,772
$110.84/$88.4546,271
1Marshall Arts,
Mojo Concerts27
P!NK
Scotiabank Arena, Toronto,
Aug. 18-19
$4,177,053
$278.74/$37.67
34,886
2
Live Nation
28
QUEEN + ADAM LAMBERT
Madison Square Garden, New York,
Aug. 6-7
$4,148,957
$189/$119/$93.50/
$73.50/$43.50
29,622
2
Live Nation
29
HIGHFIELD FESTIVAL
Stormthaler See; Grossposna/Leipzig,
G e r m a n y ; A u g . 16 -18$3,927,010
$560.91/$5.56
26,253
3
FKP Scorpio
Konzertproduk-
tionen30
AEROSMITH
MassMutual Center; Springfield,
M a s s. , A u g . 2 1 , 24 , 2 6 , 2 9
$3,664,487
$499/$89
21,295
4
MGM Resorts
International
ARTIST(S)
Venue
Date(s)
GROSS
Ticket Prices
TOTAL
AT T ENDEE S
No. of Shows
PROMOTER(S)
TOP BOXSCORES
TOURING RECAP / AUGUST
Simon at
his farewell
concert in
Queens in 2018.
ERIKPENDZICH/SHUTTERSTOCK170 BILLBOARD • SEPTEMBER 21, 2019