Pollstar

History and profile

Founded in 1981 in Fresno, California, Pollstar is a trade publication that covers the concert industry in the United States and internationally. They supply information to professional concert promoters, booking agents, artist managers, facility executives and other entities involved in the live entertainment business. Pollstar produces a weekly print magazine for industry professionals and publishes on their website.

Pollstar previously operated a separate website for professionals, but later announced it would merge the site with Pollstar.com.

Today, Pollstar has an office in London and correspondents in six countries. The magazine is a member of the Associated Press (AP). Its subscribers receive the weekly magazine and access to its online databases.

In May 2018, Pollstar announced it was moving its headquarters from Fresno to Los Angeles. The following month, co-founder and editor-in-chief Gary Bongiovani retired from the publication. Pollstar also produces Pollstar Live!, a three-day concert industry conference at the Beverly Hilton in Beverly Hills, CA. Originally titled the CIC – Concert Industry Consortium, it brings together a mix of talent buyers, venue managers, artist agents and managers. Conference speakers have included Garth Brooks, Jon Bon Jovi, Eddy Cue, Michael Rapino, and Nicki Minaj.

Pollstar Awards

Since 1990, the publication has given annual Pollstar Awards to companies, venues, artists, tours, and executives in the live entertainment business. The first awards show was hosted by Penn Jillette at Radio City Music Hall in New York City.

Initially, winners were chosen by industry voters and, to a lesser extent, by the magazine's subscribers. Since 2019, Pollstar has used box office performance to choose the winners.

References

References

1. (October 24, 2008). "Pollstar is the Concert Industry's leading business trade publication, publishing for more than 25 years". [[Music Week]].
2. "It's official: Oak View Group acquires Pollstar". [[IQ Magazine]].
3. (February 13, 2002). "Morning Report; Arts and Entertainment Reports From the Times, News Services and the Nation's Press.". [[Los Angeles Times]].
4. Caro, Mark. (January 24, 1992). "Cubby Bear named venue of the year by Pollstar". [[Chicago Tribune]].
5. Hunkin, Joanna. (December 5, 2007). "Vector Arena nominated for top concert venue award". [[The New Zealand Herald]].
6. (February 15, 2019). "Ed Sheeran, Beyoncé & Jay-Z, Paradigm Agency Win Big at Pollstar Awards". [[Yahoo! Finance]].
7. (2017-07-12). "Oak View Group Acquires Pollstar".
8. (2017-02-22). "Pollstar Sale Hits a Snag With Massive Website Project".
9. "Pollstar Moving From Fresno to Oak View Group's HQ; Co-Founder to Retire".
10. "Playlist Data".
11. Baltin, Steve. (2019-02-13). "Dave Grohl Compares Billie Eilish to Nirvana in 1991". [[Variety (magazine).
12. (15 September 2009). "Pollstar announces inaugural Pollstar Live! conference for 2010".
13. Frankenberg, Eric. (February 14, 2019). "What Doesn't Kill You Makes You Stronger: Touring Executives Discuss 'The Great Slump of 09' & Its Lasting Impact at Pollstar Live!".
14. (2018-02-09). "Pollstar Conference Draws Top Talent, Live Music Luminaries and a Little Controversy". [[Variety (magazine).
15. Hissong, Samantha. (February 6, 2020). "Nicki Minaj Sounds Off on Trump, Regrets and Fake Retirement in Wild Talk".
16. Speer, Debbie. (August 9, 2019). "Gary Smith Rides Into The Sunset After 38 Years Leading Pollstar - Pollstar News".
17. "Pollstar Awards".