Rival reserved the first concerts in Atlanta for Kanye West, Twenty One Pilots and Chappell Roan. He held a frenzied album launch party at 6 am for Jay-Z in 2006 in the center of the scene. The same year, Elton John rented at the center of the stage for two months to record an album. Rival organized both Outkast reunion in 2014 at Centennial Olympic Park and several concerts from André 3000 last year. The company also supervised which would end up being the last prince’s concerts at Fox Theater in 2016, before his unexpected death.
Credit: Ben Rose / Wireimage.com
Credit: Ben Rose / Wireimage.com
“We have experienced many successes and many deaths, but we still maintain,” said Anutécci, 50, at the Atlanta Journal-Constitution while discussing the 20th anniversary of the Rival. “In one way or another, 20 years old fell on us.”
He and Lawler-Frieas, 49, worked hard to generate goodwill among artists, managers and other independent Atlanta promoters who frequently co-produce shows with them.
“They were still cringing him with me,” said Richard Dunn, an Atlanta promoter with The muddy water group Who directed a record house with acts such as PJ Morton, Aaron Shust and Anthony David. “I think that collectively, we were all able to take nice risks and have learned a lot together.”
Craig Garrett, who co -produced shows by André 3000 with his rival in Atlanta as an independent promoterH Events of the following levelsaid: “Rival is a competitor on paper but, in reality, we are more partners who work in collaboration. They show you respect.
If Garrett has a spectacle that is not going well, he added: “They give me ideas. They want you to win, which is why I go back many times. When you enter, they hug you. This spirit is omnipresent, from production director to security guys to box office people. »»
Brandon Mize, the talented buyer of his rival since the first day, summed up the basic philosophy of the company: “If we cannot beat the big dogs, we must at least treat everyone better than the big ones dogs. “
Credit: Phil Skinner / AJC
Credit: Phil Skinner / AJC
Lawler-Freas, from Gainesville, began his career in a company that would be part of Live Nation. As a student, she began reserving concerts in 1996 for southern concerts / promotions, learning the profession of legendary promoters Alex Cooley and Peter Conlon. At the beginning of the twenty, she was able to reserve acts at the Cotton Club, Roxy and Tabernacle, such as Foo Fighters and June Carter Cash, as well as Music Midtown. But she did not like the work atmosphere there and left in 2000 for the House of Blues competition.
After the House of Blues Booking Operation Dissolved, and Tom Cook, then Leasing Center Internship, Sought Help Filling That Midtown Space, He Recruiteed Lawler-Freas and Annécci, Who Came from the trio Saw a void in the market for an independent to The great actor of the city at the time, Clear Channel, who would be renamed Live Nation in 2005. They nicknamed their solid rival entertainment in a invigorating way.
Credit: Phil Skinner
Credit: Phil Skinner
“We were told at the time that we could not do this,” said Lawler-Freas. “So why don’t we call him rival?”
Anitécci added: “At first, I thought it was too much in your face, but it was left.”
Rival swung for the fences its first year. He sold two pixie reunion concerts at the Fox Theater and a Beastie Boys show in Gwinnett Arena. Other efforts did not work. Lollapalooza, the legendary alternative rock festival, had to get rid of his Atlanta stop after a bad sale of tickets. And soulfest of two days of rival in the parking lot of what was then Turner Field at the end of the summer, with LL Cool J and Big Boi, was one and made.
Credit: AJC
Credit: AJC
Despite a solid programming and media support and the community, Soulfest sales were soft and became “an almost catastrophic financial failure,” said Anutécci. “It also triggered our passion for building live events from the soil in public spaces. He taught us that there is more to a festival than a program. »»
Rival hung on and refreshed its energies to build more sites inside the central scene of the scene: vinyl (capacity: 300) in 2004 and the loft (650) two years later. The latter was in response to the closure of the Midtown’s Cotton Club, which was of comparable size. These two additional spaces have allowed a rival more than triple the number of events in the building and to give acts such as Marc Broussard and Sabrina Carpenter a chance to perform in larger sites while they were building bases fans.
“We knew we needed more than one room to be sustainable,” said Anutécci.
“It helps this building be built like a bombs shelter,” said Lawler-Freas. “There is no bleeding (sound) between the front of the stage (with its capacity of 1050 places) and these rooms. »»
They also continued to present major shows outside the stage when the opportunities arose. One of their most proud moments: orchestrate the reunion concerts of Outkast in 2014 at Centennial Olympic Park.
“The city kissed it and showed love,” said Lawler-Freas. “When the show was put up for sale, I stood in our common space in our office below, it sold so quickly, we could not follow the speed with which the tickets sold. We immediately drove in a second show. At the end of the afternoon, we went to a third show. We sold 75,000 tickets over three days. »»
She was pregnant with her first son and remembered having watched the crowd of the scene, taking the positive strength of energy. “It was magic,” she said. “We knew that we created something epic.”
Today, its rival has a dozen full -time employees and more than 100 partial timer. It reserves 450 acts per year in its building as well as one or two largest acts per month in larger sites. The recent shows that the company produced include Morrissey, Samara Joy and John Legend at Fox, and Straight No Chaser in Gas South Arena.
She and Anutécci also organize occasional festivals, in particular Candler Park Music Festival From 2011 to 2023 and the resurrection last fall of the large 99x evening in the old skatepark in the fourth district with the group’s cake. This closed window event attracted 6,500 people. Rival plans to make a big evening later this year.
Credit: entry rival
Credit: entry rival
“Old Fourth Ward Skatepark is not an area that is necessarily adapted to a concert,” said Steve Craig, program director for 99x, who has known the fees of law for more than a quarter of a century. “But they created an excellent match plan to ensure a wonderful experience of fans of the disposition to the lines of view in the VIP zone.”
The rival succeeded despite the hurricane Helene flooding the park two days before the concert. With pumps and dryers, they got rid of what looked like a lake 55 hours earlier.
“The grass was not even wet,” said Craig. “It was a crowning achievement for them after 20 years. It went without a hitch.
Notable rival entertainment moments
2004: Two shows with closed counters at the Fox Theater for the Pixies Reunion Tour (First rival product concerts)
Credit: contributed
Credit: contributed
2006: Elton John rents in the center of the stage for two months to record “The Captain & The Kid”
2006: Jay-Z promotional concert at 7 a.m. on the stage
Credit: Robb D. Cohen
Credit: Robb D. Cohen
2009: Katy Perry and Lady Gaga perform at the loft in the week of each other
Credit: Robb Cohen
Credit: Robb Cohen
2011: Three nights of Duran Duran at the central scene
2014: Outkast Reunion Concerts, Centennial Olympic Park
2016: Final concerts of prince’s life at Fox Theater
Credit: MTV @
Credit: MTV @
2018-2019: Three seasons of Nick Cannon’s long television series “Wild ‘n out” at Center Stage
2019: Foo Fighters at Georgia State University Center Park Stadium
Credit: contributed
Credit: contributed
2020: In plush swimming at the attic
2023: Chappell Roan at Loft
2024: Big evening with cake at Historic Fourth Ward Skatepark