ALL MY FRIENDS FESTIVAL RETURNS FOR A SUCCESSFUL SECOND YEAR (EVENT REVIEW)

Originally published in Raver Rafting on October 22, 2019

By Willy Song

This past weekend, Destructo brought back his All My Friends Music Festival to the music lovers in downtown Los Angeles. After a successful debut last year, All My Friends returned to the urban yet beautiful area at the Row. Contrasting from last year’s diverse line-up of hip-hop and EDM, this year’s line-up specialized more in the deeper side of electronic music, with a primary focus on house music.

This year, AMF also scaled their size down from last year’s three stages to this year’s two stages. Not a problem though. The festival was still able to bring a crowd of 10,000 attendees across the two days. The downsize also made the space much easier to navigate through and also made the festival seem more intimate. The stages were only a short walk apart and it never felt too crowded anywhere in the grounds.

This year, AMF also shortened their hours, starting each day at 6PM and ending around midnight. Again, not a problem. Each DJ performed right after another, perfectly transitioning into their set right after a performer’s last song. Everything just seemed so seamless. Speaking of DJ’s, this year’s line-up was stacked with an incredible line-up of the greatest house DJ’s, including Justice, Blondish, DJ Harvey, Black Coffee, and so much more.

On the first night, Actor turned DJ, Idris Elba performed on the Friendzone Stage, which was the same monumental and bright stage used in last year’s set-up. Idris played a fun and energetic house set that proved he can do much more than acting. He mixed classics with new-age tracks as he danced along with the crowd.

On the second night, Diplo performed a special, never before done b2b with MK. Together, the duo turned the festival into a huge house party as lights and fog sparked up the night. Later that night, Diplo performed a special surprise set at the hidden stage that was only accessible through a very secret porta-potty. Local favorites such as Mike B and LA Riots were also seen at this stage.

Despite all the changes to this year’s festival, Destructo and AMF were able to work out the kinks and make the festival another success. This year brought in a more intimate crowd and a better focused line-up, along with better vibes. We’re glad to have experienced another year at AMF and we’re excited to see this festival keep growing. Like the many flags and t-shirts we saw this past weekend, “In Gary We Trust”.

All Photo Credit: Willy Song

Connect with ALL MY FRIENDS:
https://www.facebook.com/AMFAMFAMF
https://twitter.com/amfamfamf
https://www.instagram.com/amfamfamf
https://amfamfamf.com

AMF HIRES TAYLOR STEVENS FOR BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT

By Francisco Rendon

Originally published in Pollstar on April 1, 2019

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The LiveStyle property AMF has hired a new West Coast director of business development, leadership announced April 1.
Taylor Stevens, who most recently has been running his own production and promotion company the CLCTV (previously Collective Effort Events), will expand the AMF and LiveStyle brands on the West Coast. He will report to LiveStyle president of North America Gary Richards.
“Taylor has an undeniable passion for the scene and creating exciting events,” Richards said in the announcement. “We look forward to him working on behalf of our brands and events, and for us to expand upon the events he is bringing to the LiveStyle family.”
Several CLCTV events are now being brought under the Livestyle umbrella. The company is promoting upcoming shows from Zedd, Flosstradamus, Slushii, Rufus Du Sol, Bob Moses and Galantis, all in California or Hawaii.
Earlier this year, AMF Presents also named Justin Marine director of business development.
Livestyle is the rebranded revival of SFX, and encompasses companies like Made Event, Disco Donnie Presents, B2S and React Presents, and includes festival properties like Mysteryland, Life In Color, Tomorrowland and All My Friends.

SPRING AWAKENING MUSIC FESTIVAL ANNOUNCES HEADLINERS: DJ SNAKE, GRIZ, ILLENIUM, MARTIN GARRIX, REZZ, AND ZEDD

 

SPRING AWAKENING MUSIC FESTIVAL ANNOUNCES HEADLINERS:

DJ SNAKE, GRIZ, ILLENIUM, MARTIN GARRIX, REZZ, AND ZEDD

2019 FESTIVAL TO BE HELD JUNE 7–9 IN HOFFMAN ESTATES, IL

GA AND VIP PASSES ON SALE NOW

CHICAGO, IL – March 11, 2019 – React Presents is thrilled to announce today the initial six exciting headliners and confirmed location for Spring Awakening Music Festival (SAMF) 2019. The Midwest’s largest all-electronic music festival will return to the Chicagoland area for its eighth year on June 7 through 9 at Poplar Creek at 59-90 Entertainment District in Hoffman Estates, a Northwest Chicago suburb.

 

Headlining SAMF 2019 is an all-star lineup including Grammy-nominated hit-maker DJ Snake; Grammy-award winning producer/DJ/multi-instrumentalist/songwriter, ZEDD; DJ Mag‘s three-time No. 1 Top 100 list DJ, Martin Garrix; Juno Award-winning Canadian DJ/producer, REZZ;  funk/electro-soul/future-funk DJ/producer/sax master GRiZ; and melodic bass producer extraordinaire DJ ILLENIUM. Tickets for SAMF 2019 can be purchased at www.springawakeningfestival.com.

 

For 2019 in Poplar Creek, more than 90 artists will perform across five unique stages, demonstrating a dynamic variety of genres within the electronic music spectrum. Spring Awakening Music Festival will also feature stunning stage production, interactive art installations, carnival rides, and much more. More announcements on artists, stages and more will follow shortly.

 

The new 2019 location boasts 27 acres of land, nearly double that of last year’s site, which allows for bigger and better stages, more production, and additional experiential environments. Complimentary shuttles from nearby Metra stations to the festival grounds will be provided to fest-goers. Additionally, the grounds are less than ten minutes from multiple hotel options, and for the first time in SAMF history, the location will allow for festival parking on site.

 

React Presents’ co-general managers Patrick Grumley and Matt Rucins said, “We are excited to announce that SAMF ’19 has relocated to Poplar Creek, a perfect festival location with a rich musical history – adjacent to the Sears Centre Arena, and by the former site of the Poplar Creek Music Theater. This decision was made with our fans in mind, in order to deliver them the best Spring Awakening at a site that will offer a superior experience.  Thank you for supporting us and we look forward to seeing you at Spring Awakening 2019!”

React Presents is a LiveStyle, Inc. company.

 

ABOUT REACT

Founded in 2008, React Presents was born out of a passion for curating top-tier live music events that has helped propel Chicago to the forefront of the US music scene. Over the past decade, React has grown into one of the largest concert promoters in the Midwest, producing several major music festivals and over 600 concerts annually in Chicago, Milwaukee, Detroit, Ann Arbor and more.

 

ABOUT LIVESTYLE, INC. 

One of the world’s largest music event producers, LiveStyle boasts a wide variety of leading live music properties.  LiveStyle produces and promotes single and multiday music festivals across North America, Europe, South America, Australia, and Asia. North American key operating entities include Made Event, React Presents, Disco Donnie Presents, and Life In Color, along with festivals and brands such as Electric Zoo, Spring Awakening, FriendShip, LIC Miami, BLNK CNVS, Mamby on the Beach, and AMFAMFAMF. In Europe, the company boasts key operating entities such as Monumental, B2S, ID&T, i-Motion, and Q-Dance, and festivals and brands including Decibel, Mysteryland, Awakenings, back2school, Air, Qlimax, Nature One, and Sensation. In Brazil, LiveStyle owns PlusNetwork, which has produced the enormously successful Tomorrowland Brasil festival and tours by internationally acclaimed DJs and artists. Together with the Belgian Tomorrowland organization, LiveStyle launched TomorrowWorld, the first international version of the Tomorrowland festival, and promoted the first South American Tomorrowland festival. LiveStyle continues to work with the Belgian Tomorrowland organization as its international partner to bring Tomorrowland to new territories outside Europe and to return to the USA and Brazil. LiveStyle also owns Beatport, the preeminent e-commerce platform for DJs, producers and dance music fans that helps launch the careers of the best underground artists and define global music culture.

 

For more information, visit www.livestyle.com

 

# # #

 

For high-resolution SAMF photos, visit: https://spaces.hightail.com/receive/sfxKkkn2yT

 

PRESS CONTACT:

[email protected]

Scoop Marketing for LiveStyle, Inc.
Erik Stein, [email protected]
818-761-6100

ALL ABOARD! THE DEBUT OF FRIENDSHIP PROVES THAT THE LOVE IS ALIVE AT SEA

Originally published on MixMag on December 21, 2018

By Zach Schlein

There’s no love lost for Gary Richards’ new boat excursion

Somewhere in the Gulf of Mexico aboard a cruise liner, 2manyDJs, Busy P and Boys Noize step into an elevator with a DJ rig on wheels. It sounds like the setup to a late aughts joke, but it’s December 2018, and the quartet are about to wreak madness upon a private suite onboard the inaugural voyage of Friendship.

They’ve been summoned to the 12th floor with a “Dial-A-DJ” card, a coveted piece of laminated paper allowing its wielder to call selectors of their choosing at a moment’s notice. Boys Noize kicks things off and gets to work on the decks before the elevator door even opens. As he runs alongside the mobile DJ booth to mix en route to the room, he’s joined by a group of eager onlookers that continues to grow in size.

What happens next is nothing short of biblical: spinning before a packed room of two dozen — including electro virtuoso Danny Daze and Friendship mastermind Gary Richards himself — the vinyl veterans tap into a well of sonic chaos that would floor even the most hardened of ravers. The iconic sounds of Cassius’ ‘I Love You So’ and Daft Punk’s ‘Superheroes’ blast between flashing lights and screams of disbelief as elbows are tossed and inflatable genitals bounce around the room. The party is re-situated outside the elevators once things grow too hot for the room, at which point Busy P begins tossing Ed Banger merchandise into the ravenous crowd. Not long after Boys Noize mixes bloghouse classics ‘A Bit Patchy’and ‘We Are Your Friends’, Richards gets behind yet another set of turntables right around the corner and attracts yet more onlookers to the scene.

“Busy P what the fuck?!” indeed.

These sorts of once-in-a-lifetime moments were found all across Friendship, even if they didn’t always reach the same manic heights. As the first Richards-curated cruise since the HARD and Holy Ship founder left his own brands to join LiveStylein 2017, questions swirled around Friendship up to the moment the Celebrity Equinox set sail from PortMiami: as a brand new venture, could it live up to the standards established by eleven preceding Holy Ships? Would the schism between devotees of the Holy Ship brand and the Gary Richards faithful prove insurmountable?

As it turns out, 3,000 shippers can’t be wrong. Seasoned Ship Fam and newcomers alike tell Mixmag Friendship was among the best musical gatherings they’d ever participated in, at sea or otherwise.

“I think a lot of people were a bit hesitant about whether or not we should change to something new,” says Andrew, who attended Holy Ship four times before opting for Richards’ new venture. The Seattle resident says he and his Friendship crew of almost 30 wrestled heavily with the choice of sticking with the familiar or leaping into the unknown.

“Holy Ship was something we knew well: we knew the lineup was going be great, we knew that the staff and all the organization would be phenomenal… But at the end of the day, we realized that Gary started it all originally. And with him starting up Friendship, we also saw this as a new opportunity to show our support for him as well,” he says before calling Friendship “the most phenomenal ship by far.”

“We have no regrets at all; of all five that I’ve been on this is definitely the best, mainly because of the people involved here,” he continues.

Although the lineup — sporting legends such as Giorgio Moroder and Josh Wink as well as Golf Clap and former Trash resident Rory Phillips among others — was alluring unto itself, the Friendship revelers Mixmag spoke with repeatedly emphasized it was the people who ultimately made the party. Michael Robrock, a San Diego denizen with three Holy Ships under his belt, says it’s the people that’ve kept him continually setting out to sea.

“The one thing I love about it the most is the small, intimate crowd,” Robrock says. “At a big festival you meet somebody and maybe you’ll run into them again, whereas here you just keep running into everyone and it’s like ‘Oh, it’s you!’”

 

The camaraderie on display helped ease the few growing pains Friendship endured. Unfortunately, neither Jackmaster nor Peggy Gou were anywhere to be heard despite being present on the printed schedules and topping several partygoers’ must-see set lists. However, complications seemingly more egregious than MIA artists wound up proving negligible or even boons in disguise; a return trip to Miami due to a medical emergency didn’t stop Âme or Dixon from mixing on a private Bahamian island as scheduled, and when the main stage had yet to be finished on the first night, Madam X made several welcomed return appearances for fiery b2bs with J. Phlip and Nina Las Vegas, and 2manyDJs simply swapped venues to play an extended set for a supremely sweaty audience.

Winston Chiang, a 26 year-old Brooklynite well-acquainted with the likes of New York’s festival circuit and Dirtybird Campout, tells Mixmag Friendship marks his first time stepping aboard a cruise.

“I missed the Holy Ship ship [era],” he confesses. Chiang was brought on Friendship by his brother, an experienced Holy Shipper. “He had been to five or six [Holy Ships] and was like ‘Yo, they’re restarting – you want to be a virgin? You might as well join when everyone else is too.”

With his ship cherry now popped, Chiang says he’s in it for the long haul.

“It’s so evident that everyone here legitimately loves and respects the music, each other and themselves,” he says. “That combination of things is just incredible to see out on display so openly.”

It’s early Saturday morning, and as most don their best sequin and theatrical moustaches for guest of honor Giorgio Moroder’s set, a rowdy crew huddles in the cafeteria to try to make sense of the Boys Noize b2b Busy P b2b 2manyDJs set and the absurdity it conjured.

“Every single person on this boat has walked up to me and said it’s been their best ship they’ve ever been on,” Gary Richards tells Mixmag. The Friendship figurehead says it’s the closest he’s come to manifesting the ideal dance music cruise thus far.

“We put our full detail and attention into trying to make it better and also different [from Holy Ship],” he explains, citing the consideration paid to the tiniest of features, including an instrumental Pink Floyd megamix Richards assembled to be played over the ship’s speakers. “My goal is to make this different. I didn’t want it to be just a repeat of the same with a different name. It truly is my friends and all the friends of the people that have come.

“We’ve had the best weather, we hit the private island twice, 2manyDJs are here, what could be better?”

Looking to Friendshippers themselves, not much. The shared sense something special was underway was palpable from the first night, aided by performances that set a pattern of leaving mouths agape and minds shattered. Equally brimming with bodies and excitement, Rüfüs Du Sol’s live show in the ship’s theatre underscored the exceptional circumstances at hand; in a space nominally reserved for mild, polite entertainment, hundreds of people stood captive as one of the world’s most-followed electronic bands played for as small a crowd in as tight a space as you’re likely to ever find them. The three members that make up Rüfüs have smiles cracked wide across their faces, and are glowing – not from the stage spotlights – but from the love roaring back at them and bouncing around each and every costumed character in the theatre. Suddenly it’s not such a distant idea that Friendship was the only name this journey could have ever gone by.

Photos courtesy of Jake Pierce and Friendship

Zach Schlein is a freelance writer based in Miami. Find more of his work here

 

 

GARY RICHARDS SPEAKS ON FRIENDSHIP CRUISE MAIDEN VOYAGE

Originally published in Pollstar on December 21, 2018

By Francisco Rendon

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With one year in the books as LiveStyle’s President of North America, Gary Richards spoke to Pollstar today about the inaugural Friendship Cruise, which docked Dec. 15, and his plans for 2019.
The trip on the Celebrity Equinox was put on by LiveStyle’s AMFAMFAMF Presents (All My Friends), which also staged the first All My Friends Music Festival in Los Angeles Aug. 18-19.
Before being hired at LiveStyle, Richards – who also performs as DJ Destructo – founded HARD Events, which is now owned by Live Nation, and created the iconic EDM festival HARD Summer and the Let’s Be Friends tour.
Richards told Pollstar the Friendship Cruise never really had much of an onsale. He had email addresses for many of the friends he had made from the Holy Ship! cruises, so he just reached out to them personally and offered an early crack at tickets. The response was so overwhelming that the event sold out mostly by presale, without a lineup.
“What carried over [from Holy Ship! to Friendship] were the people that were tightest throughout the years, and that’s what made it super special,” Richards told Pollstar. “This is the first time, in my entire career, we’ve had zero damage to the ship. The people were so respectful, the staff of the cruise ship was blown away. They couldn’t believe how amazing the Friendship family was.”
The cruise embarked from Miami and voyaged to Coco Cay, Bahamas for two private island beach parties, with all kinds of musical performances and special events along the way from Dec. 11-15. While Richards has tons of experience creating and running various kinds of events, he said he previously had always used partners for the cruises and had never had so much freedom in changing the schedule and arranging spontaneous events.
“I always had these ideas (for cruise-specific events) and they were always shut down. But now it all came to fruition and I think the fans really appreciated it,” Richards said.
“In the beginning we had too many DJs performing in a small area. I went to [these artists] and I told them I knew they missed their set and asked if they wanted to perform in another area. And they said they wanted to perform in the smallest place in the boat you could play. So we found the staff bar for the people that work on the boat. They ended up grabbing Boyz Noize, Busy P and dj-ed for the staff of the boat, it was in this smokey little dungeon bar, it was incredible. There were all these things we did that wouldn’t have happened in the past. ”
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Richards spoke to Pollstar while he was on a boat, looking at possible ships for the 2019 edition of the Friendship Cruise, indicating that the voyage will no doubt be returning. Another big part of LiveStyle’s 2019 plans are its festivals, which include Electric Zoo in New York; Spring Awakening in Chicago; Ubbi Dubbi in Forth Worth, Texas; Freaky Deaky in Houston; Sunset Music Festival in Tampa, Fla.; and, of course, All My Friends Music Festival in Los Angeles.
“Now I’ve got a year-plus under my belt. I understand the company, the numbers, and most importantly, I understand the people and their position. I’ve really incorporated [everything we can do] and we’re putting it all together.”
Richards said the success of his events in his first year with LiveStyle is a testament to the people that have supported him and he looks forward to sharing new information, including some festival lineups, soon.
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ELECTRIC ZOO WELCOMED OVER 100,000 ATTENDEES FOR ITS 10TH ANNIVERSARY

By Taylor Mims
Originally published in Billboard on September 6, 2018

 

Wendell Teodoro/FilmMagic
Atmosphere during Electric Zoo in New York City.

Electric Zoo The Big 10 completely sold out two of its three days.

New York City’s Electric Zoo music festival hosted more than 100,000 attendees over Labor Day weekend (Aug. 31-Sept. 2) for its 10th anniversary. Held at Randall’s Island Park in New York City, Made Event’s top EDM festival sold out on Saturday (Sept. 1) and Sunday (Sept. 2) with headliners including KaskadeMartin Garrix and Tiësto.

Electric Zoo The Big 10 attendees saw star-studded sets from over 120 acts including MarshmelloRezz and Alesso. As well, the festival’s 10th edition featured technically enhanced main stage production with an over 160’ wide by 30’ tall curved screen, allowing Martin Garrix and Porter Robinson’s Virtual Self the opportunity to bring their major festival shows to New York City for the first time.

“Watching Electric Zoo come back strong to become, once again, a staple of the New York City electronic music scene, reminds me of Coachella when it turned the corner in 2009,” said Randy Phillips, CEO of LiveStyle, parent company of MADE Events, the producer of Electric Zoo in a statement. “Wading through the crowd on Randall’s Island, the vibe was as off-the-chart as the music our artists delivered.”

In addition to massive headliners, Electric Zoo brought curated stages throughout the weekend. On Friday, the Sunday School Grove stage featured a partnership with Anna Lunoe‘s Beats 1 Radio show Hyperhouse and AC Slater’s Night Bass. Saturday night Zeds Dead’s Deadbeats took over the Hilltop Arena for the day with sets from TroyBoi, Mija and more. L.A.’s party series Brownies & Lemonade took over the Hilltop Area on Sunday with bass-heavy sets from Gryffin, Ekali and Cray.

On the heels of the Big 10’s success, organizers Made Event and LiveStyle have announced that the EDM festival will return to New York City for Labor Day 2019.

ELECTRIC ZOO MUSIC FESTIVAL NYC COMPLETES ITS 10TH EDITION WITH GREAT SUCCESS AUGUST 31- SEPTEMBER 2

Originally published in Imprint on September 6, 2018

DRAWING OVER 100,000 ATTENDEES
TO NYC’S RANDALL’S ISLAND

 

NYC’S PREMIER ELECTRONIC MUSIC FESTIVAL
TO RETURN IN 2019
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New York City’s premier electronic music festivaELECTRIC ZOO THE BIG 10 celebrated its tenth turn at Randall’s Island this past Labor Day Weekend (August 31-September 2) with great fanfare. The three-day MADE EVENT production-which sold out on Saturday, September 1 and Sunday, September 2welcomed more than than 100,000 fans over the weekend (*see photos below).
Attendees were treated to star-studded sets from over 120 acts throughout the weekend set against the backdrop of New York City’s east side skyline. A key new feature to ELECTRIC ZOO was its technically enhanced main stage production with an over 160′ wide by 30′ tall curved screen which boosted viewing sightlines from left to right across the main stage field of play. Headliners such as Martin Garrix and Porter Robinson’s Virtual Self were able to bring their major festival shows for the first time to New York City.
From titanic headliners to underground favorites and scene championsencompassing a wide range of styles from deep house and techno to trance,trap and future bass,  ELECTRIC ZOO: THE BIG 10 did not disappoint. Kicking off the festival on Friday, August 31, with their first trip to Electric Zoo was Billboard Dance 100 #4 artist Marshmello and Virtual SelfFriday’s Sunday School Grove stage featured a partnership with Anna Lunoe’s HYPERHOUSE and AC Slater’sNight Bass.
Saturday, September 1′s mainstage was helmed by juggernaut Kaskade, who appeared at the first festival in 2009 and DJ Mag Top 100 DJ’s #1 artist Martin GarrixZeds Dead’s Deadbeats took over the Hilltop Arena for the day with sets from TroyBoiMija and more. DESTRUCTO and friends brought the beats to the ALL MY FRIENDS stage at Sunday School Grove rounding out with an impressive B2B set with Wax Motif, Shiba San, Justin Martin, Mija and GG Magree. Another stage highlight was Wu-Tang Clan luminary Raekwon joining Stooki Sound to perform “Cream,” “Incarcerated Scarfaces” and “Ice Cream.”
L.A.’s essential party series Brownies & Lemonade took over the Hilltop Area Sunday, September 2 with bass-heavy sets from GryffinEkaliCray and more. The Riverside Stage was Anjunabeats highlighting a special triple b2b set from label artists Ilan Bluestone & Jason Ross with Andrew Bayer. Germany’s HYTEpresented the best acts in techno over at the Sunday School Grove including German producer Gregor Tresher‘s first time at EZoo, a classic set from Pete Tong and a rare B2B set from HYTE boss Chris Liebing & Dubfire.
“Watching Electric Zoo come back strong to become, once again, a staple of the New York City electronic music scene, reminds me of Coachella when it turned the corner in 2009,” says Randy Phillips, CEO of LiveStyle, parent company of MADE Events, the producer of EZoo.   “Wading through the crowd on Randall’s Island, the vibe was as off-the-chart as the music our artists delivered.”
Look for Electric Zoo to return to New York City Labor Day Weekend in 2019.

 

RUFUS DU SOL, BOYS NOIZE & MORE HEADLINE FIRST FRIENDSHIP FESTIVAL CRUISE

By Kat Bein

Originally published on July 16, 2018 in Billboard 

The countdown begins to the first-ever Friendship Festival cruise. Gary Richards, aka Destructo, embarks on a new kind of entertainment, and as promised, he’s bringing all his best DJ pals. It’s a big moment for the Holy Ship! founder as he proves to fans and artists alike that he can bring that magic to a new endeavor as part of his new role as president of event conglomerate LiveStyle.

The headliners are stacked with a big bill from Australian trio RÜFÜS DU SOL, a band primed to have its best year ever when it’s forthcoming album SOLACE drops. German acid-techno god Boys Noize will drop experimental bass bombs, as will his fellow countryman Dixon serve the cutting edge in underground house and techno. The lineup also includes 2mnydjsPeggy GouClaptoneJackmaster, and many more.

Fans who sailed on the first Holy Ship! will be pleased to see a repeat inaugural performance from living burlesque legend Dita Von Teese, and everyone will throw their hands up in approval for a performance from disco icon, electronic music granddaddy and Friendship the guest of honor Giorgio Moroder.

The first-ever Friendship Festival sets sail Tuesday to Saturday, Dec. 11-15. It leaves the Port of Miami and heads to Coco Cay in the Bahamas for four nights of music, debauchery and togetherness. Cabins are sold out, but if you want to win a chance to go with three of your friends, you can enter the Friendship giveaway online. Check the full lineup for Friendship’s maiden voyage and hear a Spotify playlist highlighting the lineup’s artists curated by Destructo below.

RL GRIME, ANNA LUNOE, YO GOTTI & MORE PLAYING ALL MY FRIENDS FEST 2018: FULL LINEUP

By Kat Bein

Originally published in Billboard on May 22, 2018

 

“In Gary Richards We Trust.” That’s what the kids who loved his work at HARD and Holy Ship! were always saying. It was their rallying cry, and when Richards, aka Destructo, announced he was standing down from the company he founded, they were shocked. He joined the team at LiveStyle, and he’s already announced two new festivals in the style fans have come to know and love. There’s the new seabound festival Friendship, and his new downtown Los Angeles summer fest All My Friends.

Headliners for All My Friends were announced in April, including RL GrimeGucci ManeJhene AikoM.I.A.Jamie xx, and Armand Van Helden. Today, the full lineup is announced, with dance and hip-hop performances from Anna LunoeYo GottiJustin MartinBarclay CrenshawChris LakeMoon Boots and many more.

All My Friends comes to ROW in downtown LA Saturday and Sunday, Aug. 18 and 19; performers will be spread across three stages. Tickets are on sale now and everyone 18 and older is welcome to the party.

Check the full lineup and an announcement teaser video below, plus a Spotify playlist of the artists on the lineup.

JAM PRODUCTIONS, REACT PRESENTS PARTNER TO BRING NEW EVENTS TO THREE MAJOR CHICAGO VENUES

By Deborah Speer

Originally Published in Pollstar on May 3, 2018

Riviera Theatre

Photo: Keith Griner ; Riviera Theatre- in Chicago

React Presents, a company of  LiveStyle, is partnering with independent promoter Jam Productions of Chicago to bring events and electronic, hip hop and R&B artists into venues booked by Jam including the Riviera Theatre, The Vic, and Park West.

Jam Productions, headed up by longtime promoters Jerry Mickelson and Arny Granat, has been a force in the Midwest for more than 40 years, exclusively books the three clubs as well as the Palace Theater in St. Paul, Minn., and the California Mid-State Fair in California.

In addition to bringing events to Jam’s Chicago-area venues, React will continue to develop artists with other new venue partners including Sound-Bar, Studio Paris, Bottom Lounge, Chop Shop and Sleeping Village.

What the partnership means, according to a source with knowledge of the deal, is that React and Jam will co-promote dance, hip hop and R&B shows in the venues long promoted by Jam, bringing new events into the established venues that are among the premier rooms of their size in the region. Jam will continue to promote the shows it always has.

The clubs are an integral part of Jam’s portfolio and Chicago’s live music scene. The Vic, with a 1,300 capacity, averages 1,271 tickets per event and $34,936 gross sales. Recent shows have included They Might Be Giants, OMD, and “Celebrating David Bowie.” Its upcoming calendar includes Breeders, Flatbush Zombies, Andrew W.K., and Broken Social Scene.

Park West, with 1,000 capacity, averages 688 tickets and $17,403 gross per show, including recent events with Rag N’ Bone Man, the Posies, and the Melvins. Upcoming shows feature JGB featuring Melvin Seals, Ani DiFranco and an Infamous Stringdusters/Leftover Salmon co-bill.

The jewel in the crown is The Rivera, which holds more than 2,500, averages 2,431 tickets per show and a gross of $72,284. Its calendar includes upcoming concerts with Jimmy Eat World, Alice In Chains and My Bloody Valentine, and recently dates include with Glen Hansard, Miguel and Robert Plant & The Sensational Shapeshifters.

React was founded in 2008, and grew to become one of the largest promoters in the Midwest, particularly in the festival space with events including Spring Awakening and Mamby On The Beach, among others. All told, React promotes about 600 concerts annually in the Chicago, Milwaukee and Detroit markets.

After LiveStyle CEO Randy Phillips brought in Hard Events founder Gary Richards as president of the company, the company elevated React Presents’ talent buyer Matt Rucins and marketing director Patrick Grumley as co-managers of React. They, in turn, work with React operations director Amy Butterer and LiveStyle venue operations director Ned Collett to “prepare the company for creative and strategic growth in the years ahead,” according to a statement.

Jam Productions owner Jerry Mickelson wasn’t immediately available for comment.