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Filipino concert promoters on the ins and outs of setting up concerts and festivals in the Philippines

Filipino concert promoters on the ins and outs of setting up concerts and festivals in the Philippines

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The world of concerts and festivals is as magical as it is complex. With so many moving parts, on event day and the months before it, it takes a whole lot of work to put together a live music experience worth remembering. 

In the latest episode of Bandwagon Conversations on Twitter Spaces, Karpos Multimedia's John Uy, Insignia Presents' Peter Delantar, and Make It Live Asia's Aya Villa-Real took us music fans through the ins and outs of what it's like setting up some of our favourite concerts and festivals in the country, everything from booking the artist to maintaining health and safety on the day itself. 

The first step in setting up a concert is, of course, getting an artist but it's not as simple as it seems. From selecting which artist can sell out a show to countless emails and bidding, it's an entire process of its own. 

"We really go through agents to book these artists and it'll also depend on their touring schedule. But I think one of the main things that we really look into, in terms of acts, is [...]  because we do have strong partners with brands so if we think that the brands also like them, then that's one of the big considerations that we have [to bring artists for an event]. But at the same time, we really consider a lot of artists and songs that really do trend on social media platforms, especially for our target market," said Aya on how Make It Live Asia curates a K-pop show.

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Once you have an artist, it's now time to find a venue but in a country like the Philippines where good and accessible venues are hard to come by, it's a whole other barrier to overcome. 

"It's actually really challenging to produce a show in the Philippines just because we're quite limited in terms of venues. While there's MOA Arena and Araneta, we also have to factor in the fans—we always think about how accessible the show is. Some venues also don't have a standing portion or the acoustics are not that great so you have to bring in more equipment. So for us, we start with doing research on the artist and shortlisting venues [...] and go through the process of matching dates and touring plans. It's really like playing Tetris and figuring out the best case scenario," said Peter. 

While there's a muddle of complicated logistics and technicalities that weave its way in between booking a show and the actual show date, one of the most considerable components of a concert is the tickets, whether it's choosing when tickets go on sale or deciding the prices. 

"When it comes to tickets, we always think about how much a fan can pay for a certain artist, and we put in a guaranteed offer based on that. One of the reasons why the prices normally go up is because we're competing with other promoters so there are certain scenarios wherein some promoters outbid us and then we end up bringing up the talent fees. We always want to listen to the fans and as much as we'd like to give all their valid demands, it's impossible because we have to take into all the taxes and costs as well," said John. 

With concerts and festivals aplenty once again, Filipino concert promoters are back to celebrate and honour live music in the best way they know how. Listen to the full episode of Bandwagon Conversations: Let's Talk About Concerts and Festivals to know how some of your favourite shows come to life, especially in these new times where the pandemic still rages on and life continues to turn in whatever which way. 

Bandwagon Conversations on Twitter Spaces is a digital spin-off to Bandwagon's live discussions on all things music. Tune in every 1st and 3rd Wednesday of the month for a new episode on Twitter Spaces. Follow @BandwagonAsia on Twitter for more details.

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