Live Nation Entertainment CEO Michael Rapino told CNBC on Thursday its U.S. concert business is “fully open” now, as it brings back its packed summer lineup after more than a year of pandemic-related disruptions.
It comes as public-health officials are growing more concerned about the highly transmissible delta Covid variant and urging people to get vaccinated to provide a defense.
“We’re very excited about the American market. You know, 70% of our business is going to be the U.S. and the U.K. Those two markets seem on track,” Rapino said on “Power Lunch.”
“In America, we’re fully open at this point,” added Rapino, who joined CNBC’s Julia Boorstin from Sun Valley, Idaho, where tech and media CEOs returned for an influential annual conference after last year’s event was shelved due to Covid.
Live Nation, the owner of Ticketmaster, is hosting 30 nationwide amphitheater tours at full capacity beginning this week, Rapino said. Later in July, it’s putting on the Rolling Loud festival in Miami, which is expected to bring in around 200,000 people. There will be 10 to 15 music festivals this summer, he said.
Rapino expects Live Nation’s European market to reopen later this summer and in the fall. Asia will not be back in business in earnest until next year due to a delay in Covid vaccinations.
