City’s Bamboozle profit will not exceed $200,000 minimum guarantee
Discussions underway about continuing festival in Asbury Park
After last month’s Bamboozle music festival, the city of Asbury Park stands to receive $200,000 from concert promoter LiveNation — the guaranteed minimum it expected.
The city’s agreement with LiveNation promised Asbury Park more money if certain ticket sales goals were met, but numbers did not reach those expectations, according to city manager Terence Reidy. Details of this portion of the agreement are considered to be LiveNation trade secrets and will not be released to the public, he said. The city’s agreement with LiveNation guaranteed the minimum payment of $200,000.
LiveNation will also pay all the city’s costs associated with the festival — police, fire, emergency medical treatment and more, Reidy said.
Logistically, the festival was considered to be a success by most. Still, the city and LiveNation have not yet struck an agreement as to whether more Bamboozle festivals will be held in Asbury Park in the future, he said.
“There has been no agreement signed on that,” Reidy said. “There’s clearly a lot of conversation … I think what the city demonstrated was our ability to manage a major festival and really do it well.”
The city will also look at the possibility of holding other large-scale concerts, he said.
“I think the city where music lives is a great place to hold festivals, whether it’s Bamboozle or others,” Reidy said.
Meanwhile, LiveNation has established a permanent presence in Asbury Park.
In an interview with the triCityNews newspaper this week, Scott O’Donnell, LiveNation’s executive director of festivals and programs, said he has moved his home to Asbury Park and LiveNation has opened an office on the beachfront. “I get the opportunity to work all over the country and now I’ll use Asbury Park as a hub,” he said.
O’Donnell also told the paper that he envisions Bamboozle evolving into a multi-day festival comparable to well-known gatherings such as the South-by-Southwest festival, the Sundance film festival or the New Orleans jazz festival. “It’s the perfect long-term end game scenario,” he said. “I hope in ten years time, we’ll be the model everyone else is after.”
(Photo courtesy of Gisela Rochelle.)
