MANCHESTER, TN (CelebrityAccess) — Live Nation and AC Entertainment are weighing developing new events for the Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival grounds in Manchester.
According to the Manchester Times, AC Entertainment's Jeff Cuellar, director of community relations for the festival, told the Manchester Rotary Club that there was a "strong possibility" that the companies would stage new events at the site.
“There’s a strong possibility [for other festivals]. We were in conversations last year for an event we were looking to have in the fall, but I think there’s a lot of competition out there and we’re being very strategic in terms of what we are trying to have out there,” Cuellar said while addressing the group on Monday, the Manchester Times said.
“It is going to happen. When and what, I don’t know. It’s a risky business,” Cuellar added.
Cuellar also recounted the challenges faced by Bonnaroo, noting that the festival faces stiff competition.
“We’ve got competition. I can’t even count the number of festivals going on in Chattanooga, in Nashville, in Louisville, in Lansing. The competition is there,” Cuellar said, per The Times. “People are understanding that live music is a way to generate entertainment revenue from outside sources so we’re not constantly taxing residents and citizens.”
Bonnaroo organizers have been hard at work adapting the festival after a precipitous drop of nearly 30,000 in attendance at the 2016 edition of the festival. Changes include a new stage focused on hip-hop and EDM, as well as bolstering their headliner offerings, which includes U2 this year.
“This year’s going to be a strong year. I don’t think [the attendance drop] necessary changes our approach; it’s just how it evolves. Sometimes you win and sometimes you lose, but the fact that we’ve had such an amazing track record, we look at it as a blip on the screen and as an anomaly,” Cuellar told the Rotary, according to the Times. – Staff Writers
