As the live event industry is halted, Live Nation is moving towards an idea to allow socially-distant concerts: drive-in concert tours.
The idea first came to fruition in Germany, where D.ive opened its theaters for concerts, family shows, a circus, and a wedding, promoted by BigCityBeats. Then, news broke in the U.S. earlier this month when indie/alternative artist Marc Rebillet announced the first-ever drive-in concert tour in the states. The tour will see the Dallas musician visit drive-in theaters across the country like Tulsa’s Admiral Twin Drive-In, Forth Worth’s Coyote Drive-In, and the Showboat Drive-In in Houston.
Now, Live Nation announced that the “Drive In – Live” tour will visit four Danish cities between May and June. The tour is set to make stops in Copenhagen, Herning, Aalborg, Odense, and Aarhus, with confirmed Danish artists L.O.C., Danish radio show Mads & Monopolet, and family entertainer Onkel Reje.
“At a time when all spring events have been canceled or rescheduled, the Danes are hungry for concerts and family entertainment, so ‘Drive In – Live’ is a new way for us to bring live experiences to the fans, whilst taking all the official recommendations into account,” Christian Krage of Live Nation Denmark said in a press release.
Each event will allow 600 cars, with the audience placed further away from the stage than a normal concert. An extra high stage and three screens will be implemented to offer a better viewing experience, with sound distributed through the car radio. While prices will vary per event, the ticket cost is per car, with up to five people per vehicle.
Copenhagen’s show will take place at the P19 parking space of Copenhagen Airport. The space will be converted into a drive-in theater, marking the first time that area has ever been used for concerts, the local press reports.
“Right now there is a need for creativity and innovation in the music industry,” Live Culture CEO and director Juul Moller said in the release. “Both artists and fans long to be able to gather and enjoy music in a safe way, so we warmly welcome the collaboration with Live Nation, and we look forward to giving all the people some great live experiences this summer.”
Last week, Live Nation released its 2020 first quarter revenue report. In an investor earnings call, Live Nation President and CEO Michael Rapino reported that there was a 21% loss in revenue for the first quarter – ending on March 31 – due to widespread cancellations amid the coronavirus pandemic. Rapino said the company would test crowdless broadcasted shows, reduced capacity festivals, and drive-in concert tours this summer.
“It’s important for us to keep doing drive-in concerts, which we’re going to test and roll out, which we’re having some success with, fanless concerts which have great broadcasting opportunities, reduced capacity festival concerts, which could be outdoors, could be in a theater, could be in a large stadium floor where there’s enough room to be safe,” he said. “We have all these plans in place depending on the market and where the local city may sit in their reopening phases.”
