Live Nation, one of the largest players in the live music industry, has been hit particularly hard by COVID-19 venue closures. In May, the concert giant was forced to furlough 20 percent of its employees to reduce costs. However, it seems the move wasn’t enough, as a new memo obtained by Rolling Stone outlines dramatic changes to Live Nation’s cancellation policies.
The memo describes many policy changes, with a common theme of moving liability away from Live Nation and towards artists. For example, the memo states, “If an artist cancels its performance in breach of the agreement, the artist will pay the promoter two times the artist’s fee.” Additionally, “if a show is cancelled due to poor ticket sales, the artist will receive 25% of the guarantee.” Airfare and accommodations costs will also fall to the artists, a move out of the current standard practices of the music industry.
Read the full memo outlining the changes here.
