At this point everyone is well aware of the Fyre Festival debacle that took place a short while ago that was spearheaded by self-proclaimed tech entrepreneur Billy McFarland and the entertainer Ja Rule. Whether the Fyre Festival failure was due to a lack of foresight and knowledge or an excess of hubris and greed is still to be determined as the two promoters will likely be wrapped up in multiple court cases for a good long while. Although it can be argued that McFarland and Ja Rule (a.k.a. Jeffrey Atkins) were overly ambitious in their attempt to create an exotic high-end concert experience, it should also be understood that — regardless of the various extenuating circumstances involved — there are certain basic requirements that need to be fulfilled to ensure for a successful venture of this sort.
First, A Little History
Not to be overly snarky, but the industry has gleaned quite a bit of proficiency in festival production in the 48 years since the infamous Woodstock “Three Days of Peace and Music.” While that festival was a huge success as a culturally defining moment, it was for all intents and purposes a financial and production failure that succeeded in spite of itself. Of course, it is failures of this type that promise a large payday and only inspire others to try their hand at festival production. Six months after Woodstock, The Rolling Stones closed out the 1960’s by performing at the Altamont Race Track, which — as we all know — ended poorly and was a production nightmare from the beginning.
The Summer Jam at Watkins Glen, staged at the Watkins Glen International Speedway in Watkins Glen, NY in 1973, scored an entry in Guinness World Records as “the largest audience at a pop festival.” While the show came off with only a minor interference from the weather, there was the issue of a 100-mile traffic jam leading to the event. Also, despite having a record-breaking 600,000 music fans at the festival, only about a quarter of those attending had purchased tickets. Compounding the problem of the huge crowd was the lack of the proper amount of bathroom facilities and a shortage of food and water. The failures of these early megafestivals — though lacking in a certain production expertise — were merely prototypes for future promoters to hone their skills and discover the proper way to stage huge events.
Experts and Expertise
At the present time, there’s a long history of festival production and a plethora of producers who have been very successful at running them. Therefore, if one should have the money and inclination to stage and promote a music fest, it would be in the best interest of everyone involved to seek out one of the many successful individuals or companies with the necessary credentials and expertise to produce or co-produce the event.
Two of major players in the festival world are: AEG Live, and of course the mega-entertainment company Live Nation. Coachella, one of the country’s main music festivals, is produced by their creators Goldenvoice — now a division of AEG Live. Recently, Live Nation bought a controlling stake in C3 Presents, the founding company of Lollapalooza as well as striking up a partnership with Bonaroo producers Superfly and AC Entertainment. The Philadelphia based Made in America Festival started by Jay Z is now a Live Nation product. In New York City, Live Nation has also taken over the production of Governors Ball by acquiring a majority stake in Founders Entertainment and thereby adding another notch in their belt as they now control more than 60 festivals worldwide.
Festivals are a huge source of revenue that can bring in millions of dollars not only to the producers and bands, but to the local economies as well. Many cities and small towns put up with having thousands of people descend upon them for a few days at a time because of the income they bring. Unfortunately, there are also great costs and risks that accompany these massive productions, which is why many of the startup companies end up selling controlling stakes in their business to industry giants, such as AEG Live and Live Nation.
Of course, there are still some long-running and successful festivals that are produced by companies not yet under the umbrella of either AEG Live or Live Nation. The Philadelphia Folk Festival is one of them. The Festival has been in existence for 55 years and is a non-profit event still run by The Philadelphia Folk Song Society. Festival Productions is another independent festival company that came into existence as far back as 1954 and was founded by music promoter and impresario George Wein. Mr. Wein began by producing the Newport Jazz Festival and became one of the pioneers of corporate sponsorship for festival events. He later went on to establish the New Orleans Jazz Festival as well as the JVC Jazz Festival, which staged festivals around the globe under the banner of his company name Festival Productions. In 2007, Festival Productions became a division of Festival Network headed by another festival entrepreneur, Chris Shields.
Planning is Everything
The audio community is part of a production-based business that hands a range of events varying in size and content. Regardless of whether one is doing concerts, corporate or private events, production and planning are of the utmost importance for ensuring a successful endeavor. As any of us know, it’s often hard enough putting a full show together in a contained and controlled environment — let alone trying to coordinate a luxury festival on an island that is unaccustomed to being deluged with a huge amount of party people. If the Fyre Festival was to truly work, then McFarland and Atkins should have started their planning at least two years ahead of the event. They should have figured out transportation and accommodations, from food and water to toilets and security as well as egress and tactical ways of getting from one place to the other. If they were serious about making their festival a success they also needed to start working with the local police, sanitation and fire departments as well as the local politicians as they got all their permits in place.
Securing solid staging, power and lighting for the site as well as the stage is a must as is all the transport to and from the island. They would need to hire the correct amount of labor to build and operate the festival with a separate labor crew to oversee the guests and give assistance and provide hospitality. It’s important to provide medical facilities with doctors and nurses who would be able to handle emergencies and — if a dire medical emergency should rear its ugly little head — then transportation from the island to the nearest hospital should be in place. These are only a few of the production issues that need to be given attention and finalized before the promoters even get around to booking the bands and tending to their needs. The days of throwing together haphazard festivals are over, and the production for these massive events should be handled by professionals who have the experience and means to do it properly.
Festivals are a huge multi-million dollar business and should be handled as such. As stated earlier, there are plenty of qualified people and companies available with whom one can partner or hire as consultants or full production coordinators. So, if you or a friend have a little extra cash lying around and might be dreaming of putting together a large-scale event, don’t hesitate to seek the advice of those qualified few who might be able to help you to avoid the treacherous pitfalls that might be encountered on your way to glory. At the very least, if you are reluctant to seek assistance, get the Festival & Event Promotion Handbook by Larry Ward and read it from cover to cover before starting something you might be unable to finish.
