(CelebrityAccess MediaWire) —
The finalists for the Billboard Touring Awards to be presented October 26 at a reception at The Roosevelt Hotel in New York that wraps the second annual conference, Roadwork ‘05 have been unveiled. The awards are based on box office data gathered from Billboard Boxscore reports from November 24, 2004-September 30, 2005.
U2’s Vertigo tour is a finalist in the most categories–four: Top Draw, Top Tour and Top Boxscore as well as U2’s management company, Principle Management, is a finalist for Top Manager. Neil Diamond and Kenny Chesney join U2 as finalists in the Top Tour category, which reflects gross dollars. U2, Chesney and Dave Matthews Band are finalists in the Top Draw category, which reflects total attendance. Chesney is also a finalist in a third category, Top Package, for his “A Place in the Sun” tour.
Another multiple finalist is the Bonnaroo Music Festival in Manchester, TN, which is among the top performers in the Top Boxscore and Top Festival categories. The Breakthrough Act award recognizes an artist or band in its first decade that cracks the top 25 tours listings for the first time. Coldplay and Rascal Flatts fit that description this year.
“The huge success of U2’s Vertigo tour has in some ways overshadowed a lot of other really strong tours and events this year,” said Ray Waddell, Billboard senior touring editor. “While Vertigo is a remarkable achievement, other artists and touring professionals have also done very well in a tough touring environment.”
Finalists for the Billboard Touring Awards:
Top Tour–U2, Vertigo;Kenny Chesney, A Place in the Sun; and Neil Diamond, Neil Diamond Live
Top Draw:
U2,
Kenny Chesney and
Dave Matthews Band.
Top Package: Kenny Chesney w/Gretchen Wilson, Uncle Kracker and Pat Green;
Anger Management 3; and
Ozzfest.
Breakthrough Act:
Rascal Flatts and
Coldplay.
Top Small Venue Tour:
Bruce Springsteen.
Sarah McLachlan and
Mark Knopfler.
Top Amphitheater:
Tweeter Center for the Performing Arts, Mansfield, MA;
Tommy Hilfiger at Jones Beach Theater, Wantagh, NY; amd
PNC Bank Arts Center, Holmdel, NJ.
Top Arena:
Madison Square Garden, New York;
Wachovia Center, Philadelphia; and
Continental Airlines Arena, East Rutherford, NJ.
Top Small Venue (Non-Resident):
Fox Theatre, Atlanta;
Gibson Amphitheatre at Universal Citywalk, Universal City, CA; and
Radio City Music Hall, New York.
Top Small Venue (Resident booking):
The Colosseum at Caesars Palace, Las Vegas.
Top Boxscore:
U2, Croke Park, Dublin, June 24-27;
U2, Twickenham Stadium, London, June 18-19; and
Bonnaroo Music Festival, June 10-12.
Top Independent Promoter:
Jam Productions, Chicago;
Outback Concerts, Nashville; and
Aiken Promotions, Dublin.
Top Festival:
Lollapalooza, Grant Park, Chicago and
Bonnaroo Music Festival, Manchester, TN.
Top Agency:
William Morris Agency,
Creative Artists Agency, and
Howard Rose Agency.
Top Manager:
Principle Management,
Front Line Management and
Dale Morris & Associates.
Top Promoter:
Clear Channel Entertainment,
AEG Live and
House of Blues Concerts.
–Bob Grossweiner and Jane Cohen
