2023 Women Of Live: Josephine Vaccarello
Executive Vice President, Live | Madison Square Garden Entertainment Corp.
For 25 years, Josephine Vaccarello has been with Madison Square Garden Entertainment. During that span, she’s overseen Billy Joel’s ongoing run at The Garden, Phish’s annual New Year’s Eve run and, most recently, Harry Styles’ “Harry’s House” takeover for 15 nights — a show that managed to transform the venue.
“We successfully transformed MSG into ‘Harry’s House’ and made it an incredible experience for fans — including creating custom food and beverage options,” Vaccarello said.
While the British superstar’s run will live on at MSG in the form of a banner hung from the rafters commemorating the occasion, Vaccarello is also making history at the venue.
This year saw her promotion to executive vice president of live.
She’s responsible for booking concert residencies at the new MSG Sphere in Las Vegas, scheduled to open in September, with U2 already signing on to open the venue for a run of dates.
Additionally, she oversees MSG Entertainment’s live entertainment bookings business across all of the company’s venues including Madison Square Garden, The Theater at Madison Square Garden, Radio City Music Hall, and Beacon Theatre; and The Chicago Theatre.
As a powerhouse player in the live music industry, Vaccarello has seen it all.
She encourages younger women aspiring to make their mark to remain focused, calm and collected.
“Know that remaining calm under pressure will give you the best chance to grow and unlock new opportunities to help move your career to the next level,” she said. “I believe it’s so important to understand the ‘why’ behind what you’re doing, as it will inform your actions and help guide you in working with others.”
This is shaping up to be Vaccarello’s year. In addition to landing on this list, she took home the Pollstar Award for Venue Executive of the Year.
As she focuses on her next venture with the MSG Sphere at the Venetian, she’s proving there is much more still to come.
