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The SVOG grants were a lifesaver for so many in our industry, but you may be surprised to find out which big artists also benefited. Travis Scott continues to make waves across the world, The 1975 gets a bill from Good Vibes, and rumors are running wild around the Made in America festival cancellation.

🔔 Reminder: today is the last day to enter to win a copy of Lucas Meek’s book, The Efficient Hustle. Don’t miss out. 

Credit: shambhalamusicfestival.comThe 1975 ordered to cover Good Vibes damagesFuture Sound Asia, producers of Good Vibes Festival, have given The 1975 a week to pay $2.6 million (RM12.3 million) in damages following Matty Healy’s kiss and on-stage outburst that led to the Malaysian government shutting down the festival. They are citing breach of contract as the band agreed to “adhere to all local guidelines and regulations” prior to performing. The sum covers guest refunds, artist fees, and other costs resulting from the cancellation.  

SVOG gone wrongThe Shuttered Venue Operators Grant (SVOG) was created to keep small venues alive during Covid, providing them with grants to aid in recovery and support their staff. However, an investigation by Insider has revealed that over $200 million went to big-name artists like Post Malone, Chris Brown ($10 million each), Slipknot ($9.7 million), Smashing Pumpkins ($8.6 million), Korn ($5.3 million), and Nickleback ($2 million). Since the monies given out were grants, there is no obligation to pay it back and there were no restrictions on its use, including using it to pay the artists themselves.

Utopian earthquakeTravis Scott’s Circus Maximus concert in Rome last week was so rowdy that the nearby Italian fire service received “hundreds of calls” during it from people nearby thinking there was an earthquake. Turns out, it was just 70,000 attendees jumping up and down at an ancient monument. Additionally, there were at least 60 injuries at the event from someone spraying pepper spray into the crowd. During the show, Scott announced his North American tour dates, including a stop in Houston, TX, which has local police in “complete disbelief” that he would hold another concert in Houston following Astroworld.

$4.5 million reasonsSpeaking of Astroworld, it turns out that Travis Scott’s contract with Apple Music required him to complete his show in order to receive a $4.5 million payment, according to a 1,200 page report from the Houston Police Department that was recently released. While the report doesn’t directly tie the payment to the fact that Scott continued to play for 37 minutes after the festival was declared a mass casualty event, speculation abounds. Additionally, Travis Scott and Live Nation reportedly settled a third lawsuit from the festival. Terms have not been made public.

Secondary market funds Ticket Buyer Bill of Rights CoalitionThe Ticket Buyer Bill of Rights was created by the Consumer Federation of America, Fan Freedom, National Consumers League, Protect Ticket Rights, and Sports Fans Coalition as “a framework for ticketing legislation that can improve the live events ticketing market.” However, a look into the funding behind the organizations in an exposé by Pitchfork shows that each receives money from brokers, including StubHub and Vivid Seats, potentially undermining genuine efforts to provide fans with fair access to tickets.

Ones To Watch 🤝 Gala MusicOnesToWatch, Live Nation’s music discovery platform, has partnered with web3 music platform, Gala Music to bring emerging artists to large-scale festival stages. The partnership will debut at Catbird Music Festival where 2 artists will perform on stage, and continue at Music Midtown in Atlanta, GA and Oceans Calling Festival in Ocean City, MD. Voting for the next two events starts tomorrow, August 16th here.

Kylie crushes VegasTickets for Kylie Minogue’s upcoming Las Vegas residency at Voltaire, a new, intimate venue within The Venetian, caused the website to crash and sold out within hours of going on sale. Her November 3rd show will be the venue’s first-ever. Yesterday, she added 10 more dates to the residency, extending it through May 4, 2024. 

Shambhala drug bust$145,000 and 100 grams of drugs were recovered from Shambhala Music Festival in Salmo, BC. Police were alerted to a festival guest who was selling a “large amount of drugs” from his RV. The guest is facing criminal charges. 

Live Nation accused of misleading investorsLive Nation is facing a class action lawsuit where investors are accusing the company of misleading them and participating in antitrust practices. The lawsuit claims Live Nation engaged in anticompetitive behavior, charging excessive fees, bundling services, and retaliating against venues that opted for ticketing services other than Ticketmaster. It alleges that Live Nation's failure to disclose regulatory concerns resulted in significant losses for investors. 

AI & the future of musicAI is changing the music industry - and it’s not all bad? New tools are making it easier (and cheaper) for artists to make music. Meta recently launched AudioCraft, an open-source AI music generator and Google is in discussion with Universal Music on an AI-generated music tool that would license artists’ melodies and vocals. The technology is continuing to develop and evolve, who knows what’s next.

  Media.Monks is looking for a remote Events Manager with 3+ years of event marketing experience. Salary $60,000 - 80,000.    Sundance Institute is looking for a Festival Associate Manager, Safety and Security for the Sundance Film Festival in Park City, UT. The role starts September 6, 2023 and goes through February 9, 2024 and pays $24.17/hour.     On Location is hiring a Senior Manager, Guest Experiences in New York, NY and another in Raleigh, NC. Salary range: $61,875 - 82,500.

What do you think of AI changing the future of music?

Last Week's Results:

BOH readers equally like Harry, Taylor, and Beyonce.

Lineups, Festival & Tour Announcements

• Luke Bryan has canceled multiple dates, including his headlining slot at Watershed Festival in Gorge, WA due to vocal issues. He did his Thursday and Saturday shows as planned, but struggled through them and canceled more of his upcoming shows in an attempt to recover. 

• Live Nation/Playa Luna have announced their newest all-inclusive destination festival, Out of the Blue Festival, featuring Noah Kahan, CAAMP, Mt. Joy, and Lizzy McAlpine, January 7 - 10, 2024 at Moon Palace Resort in Cancun, Mexico.

• Live Nation/Playa Luna have announced their newest all-inclusive destination festival, Out of the Blue Festival, featuring Noah Kahan, Caamp, Mt. Joy, and Lizzy McAlpine, January 7 - 10, 2024 at Moon Palace Resort in Cancun, Mexico.

• Philadelphia’s Made in America Festival has been canceled less than a month from its intended September 2 opening. The official statement from promoters was due to “severe circumstances outside of production control,” but rumors are rampant. The mayor debunked the city being involved, but rumors around headliner Lizzo’s pending lawsuit, and low ticket sales are flying around. 

• After postponing shows in July, Paramour announced the cancellation of the balance of their tour due to Hayley Williams’s lung infection.

• Nathaniel Rateliff announced that his solo tour - originally planned for 2020 - is finally back on. First stop of the “And It’s Still Alright Tour” is November 1 in Boston, MA.

• The absurdly wacky Occasional Doo Dah Parade finally returns to Pasadena, CA on November 19, after 3 years.

• The Key Western Fest will feature an all female lineup, January 31 - February 3, 2024 in Key West, FL. Headliners include Wynonna Judd, Tanya Tucker and Jo Dee Messina.

Pearl Jam is giving away a signed 1998 tour poster from Hawaii to support the wildfire devastation in Maui. Donate to win here.

What do you get with an $11,000 NFT ticket at Exit Festival in Novi Sad, Serbia?

 A look behind the scenes of the collaboration between Pretty Lights, Tixr, and Seated for the “Soundship Spacesystem Tour,” Pretty Lights’ three day, above-and-below-ground festival at The Caverns in Pelham, TN. Tomorrow is the last day to enter TikTok LIVE's Gimme The Mic Competition, a global talent show to discover new musical talent and aspiring music creators. 

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