WOMEN OF INFLUENCE
Stacie George
Senior Vice President of Booking – NY Market
Live Nation
Live From New York
From a start in Philly clubs, she’s risen to responsibility for more than 30 NYC venues
By Eric Renner Brown
Stacie George oversees booking for some of the marquee venues in America’s highest-profile live music market, but her success can be traced to the tiny Philadelphia clubs where she worked in the early 2000s.
“Right out of college I was the talent buyer for The Khyber Pass and North Star, two 250-cap venues in Philadelphia,” she said. “Those two clubs were where a lot of bands played that were coming through Philadelphia for the first time. I got to book some of the first shows for bands like The National, The War on Drugs, The Decemberists, Iron & Wine, Kurt Vile, The Killers, and Kings of Leon, all in these tiny punk rooms.”
Then a recent grad of Philly’s Drexel University, George credits her early success partly to the late Bryan Dilworth, the respected City of Brotherly Love promoter who helped George break into the industry.
“He gave me a chance fresh out of college with no experience when I didn’t even know it was possible to have a job in the music industry,” she said. “He taught me that I had to know every aspect in order to be a great promoter: booking, ticketing, production, marketing and artist settlements.”
In 2006, Dilworth encouraged George to join Live Nation, where he worked at the time, and she’s remained there since, shaping booking in the D.C. and Baltimore markets, then working her way up the Eastern Seaboard to Philadelphia in the late ’00s and eventually New York in 2013.
“The music business is funny in the way one day you can be on the same team and the next day fierce competitors,” she said of Dilworth, who died in March and spent his final years at AEG. “The key to success is forming long-lasting relationships with people that will support you and want to see you succeed no matter what team you play for.”
George has brought that philosophy to the Big Apple, where her team is responsible for more than 30 venues, including The Rooftop at Pier 17, Irving Plaza and Gramercy Theatre.
“The environment we work in breeds creativity and celebrates diversity which provides the inspiration to be creative and challenging,” said George, who was named Small Venue Talent Buyer of the Year at the 2020 Pollstar Awards.
In her leadership role, the veteran promoter has prioritized diverse hiring and applauds Live Nation for its recent “concrete commitments to promote diversity,” further challenging “every executive in power … to do the same.” Added George, the “only way to have change is to be the change.”
Like most in the business, George will have plenty of that in the months ahead, as her team confronts New York’s post-coronavirus landscape, but she predicts the region’s outbreak early in the crisis — and the fact that it flattened its curve as cases elsewhere in the country continued to surge — could help future viability once reopening venues is safe.
“I think the impact ongoing will be more of a national question than a New York one specifically,” she said. “We remain optimistic that the live business will return strong in 2021.”
HOT TAKES
First job in the business?
Right out of college I was the talent buyer for The Khyber Pass and North Star – two 250-cap venues in Philadelphia. Those two clubs were where a lot of bands played that were coming through Philadelphia for the first time. I got to book some of the first shows for bands like The National, The War on Drugs, The Decemberists, Iron & Wine, Kurt Vile, The Killers, and Kings of Leon all in these tiny punk rooms.
Biggest career/business success?
My current role as senior vice president of booking for Live Nation New York. The Live Nation NY senior buying team has decades of experience living and breathing the New York concert scene with over 30 venues we are responsible to program. Because of the diversity and depth of my team in New York I am able to choose projects that fit my individual passions while contributing and collaborating with colleagues who support me in return. The environment we work in breeds creativity and celebrates diversity, which provides the inspiration to be creative and challenging.
Mentor?
Bryan Dilworth, a longtime Philadelphia concert promoter for AEG who sadly passed away in March. He gave me a chance fresh out of college with no experience when I didn’t even know it was possible to have a job in the music industry. He taught me that I had to know every aspect in order to be a great promoter: booking, ticketing, production, marketing, and artist settlements. He advocated for me to go to Live Nation, where he worked at the time, after three years of running his independent booking company. In one decade he went from my mentor/boss, to colleague, to my competitor. The music business is funny in the way one day you can be on the same team and next day fierce competitors. Because of this I have learned that the key to success is forming long-lasting relationships with people that will support you and want to see you succeed no matter what team you play for.
Favorite meal?
A plant-based burger and a kale salad.
Last live event attended before the shutdown?
The Brothers 50th anniversary show at Madison Square Garden. It was two days before New York City shut down and there was a magical feeling in the room as if we all knew it was going to be our last party for a while.
Plans for the rest of 2020?
This is the first time in two decades I haven’t had to be out 3-4 nights per week for concerts. Because of this, I am taking advantage of quality time with my family and continuing a daily practice of moving meditation through yoga or running. These days, it is important to maintain healthy habits to ensure you are mentally, physically, and spiritually healthy. More than ever I realize how much I rely on an amazing team of people in my group and appreciate how everyone contributes to my success. Checking in on my colleagues and peers to let them know I care about their well being is important during this time and moving forward as we are all humans with the same basic needs. Kindness costs nothing.