Johnny Flynn as Ziggy Stardust
If January 2021 wasnât all about telly, now it surely is. On 15 January, following â ever so slightly â in the footsteps of
Bohemian Rhapsody and
Rocketman another great musical biopic will land, this time with David Bowie as the focal point played by Johnny Flynn. The Brixton-born genius (who has reached practical god-like status since his death in 2016) is no simple part to play, which is why actor and musician Flynn turned down the role when the filmâs director Gabriel Range first emailed him. It was only years later in 2018, when Flynn visited the âDavid Bowie Isâ exhibition in Brooklyn, New York, that he decided to take on the role and embrace his spirit.
By: Deborah Speer
cover of Pollstar 12/21/20 issue
Ben Bart might have seemed like another unremarkable music fan as a young man from Knoxville, Tenn., in the 1930s, other than a penchant for traveling between Memphis and Nashville to see the orchestras and bands of the day perform live. The main object of his affection was “race music” – the euphemism of the time for what evolved into R&B and soul music, and the (segregated) domain of Black musicians.
He’d gotten a job at the Gale Agency booking the artists he loved and, by 1945, was ready to break out on his own – taking some of the era’s biggest acts with him. The agency he created, Universal Attractions Agency, celebrated its 75th anniversary on May 15.
Ennio Morricone, noted film composer, defining the Spaghetti Western soundtrack.
Four of the top five Charlie Daniels Band headlining grosses came from his long-running Volunteer Jam, including the Charlie Daniels 80th Birthday Volunteer Jam, Nov. 30, 2016 in Nashville, which drew 17,007 fans and included Chris Stapleton, Kid Rock and Luke Bryan. The performance grossed $657,921 and followed Daniels’ induction into the Country Music Hall of Fame just six weeks earlier.
Mitch Slater partnered with Ron Delsener to form Delsener / Slater Presents in 1988 before the company was acquired by SFX Entertainment in 1996, and later acquired Metropolitan Entertainment Group. Slater became a key figure at the core of SFX Entertainment’s business, being elevated to executive vice president and continuing to work with SFX head Robert Sillerman after he sold his business to Clear Channel Entertainment, the precursor company to what is now Live Nation.
By: Deborah Speer
cover of Pollstar 12/21/20 issue
Ben Bart might have seemed like another unremarkable music fan as a young man from Knoxville, Tenn., in the 1930s, other than a penchant for traveling between Memphis and Nashville to see the orchestras and bands of the day perform live. The main object of his affection was “race music” – the euphemism of the time for what evolved into R&B and soul music, and the (segregated) domain of Black musicians.
He’d gotten a job at the Gale Agency booking the artists he loved and, by 1945, was ready to break out on his own – taking some of the era’s biggest acts with him. The agency he created, Universal Attractions Agency, celebrated its 75th anniversary on May 15.