Metropolis and CT Touring join Live Nation

Live Nation has formed a new promotions company in the UK, to trade as Metropolis Music. The new venture will be a reconfiguration of the established UK promoters Metropolis, integrating into the Live Nation team. The team will include Bob Angus as Chairman; Raye Cosbert as Managing Director; Andy Robbins, Kiarn Eslami and Tony Dobson on Artist Bookings; Sophie Pitchforth as Executive Booking Coordinator; and Ronnie Lee as Production Coordinator. And in its second deal with an independent British promoter in the space of three days, Live Nation has announced the acquisition of a controlling stake in Preston-based Cuffe & Taylor. Founded in 2009 by Daniel Cuffe and Peter Taylor, Cuffe & Taylor’s portfolio include Greenwich Music Time, in south-east London, and the local Lytham Festival. It also has exclusive booking rights to the Scarborough Open Air Theatre (6,500-cap.).

And Creston Thornton has sold CT Touring, the company he started five years ago in Boise, Idaho, to Live Nation and becomes president of its new Mountain Region booking Idaho, Montana, Wyoming and eastern Washington.  With the sale, exclusive contracts and agreements with venues including Eagle River Amphitheatre and CenturyLink Arena are inherited by Live Nation. Thornton retains ownership of the 2,200-capacity Revolution Concert House & Event Center in Garden City, Idaho.

In other news, LNE rival Eventim has launched a subsidiary live music promotions business, Vaddi Concerts GmbH, in Germany’s Freiburg area. Vaddi Concerts becomes part of Eventim’s Medusa Music Group arm, and will be run by Managing Director Marc Oßwald.