The Power 50: #5 - Roger Field

Roger Field got his start in ticketing at a Stoll Moss call centre during a gap year in London in 1995, then moved to Ticketek the following year when its Victorian operation opened. In 2000, Field took on the role of Box Office Manager for Melbourne & Olympic Parks Trust and then joined Michael Coppel Presents three years later. In 2010, Field and colleague Luke Hede opened Live Nation offices in Australia and New Zealand, and in 2012 the company acquired Michael Coppel Presents. Field became Chief Operating Officer in 2014 and Chief Executive Officer in 2017.

It was another massive year of touring for Roger Field and Live Nation Australasia, with sell-out runs from acts like U2, Fleetwood Mac, Red Hot Chilli Peppers, Post Malone, Maroon 5, Childish Gambino and Amy Shark. 

Festivals played a big role in Live Nation’s 2019 too; November and December saw the brand new Festival X (a collaboration with Hardware and Onelove) come to fruition with Calvin Harris headlining events in Sydney, Brisbane, Melbourne and Auckland over four days to 100,000 punters. Download Festival Australia grew too, expanding to Sydney in 2019 following its debut 2018 event in Melbourne. The festival brought with it heavy hitters Slayer, Ghost, Halestorm, Judas Priest and more, and 50,000 attendees across the two cities. 

July saw the opening of Fortitude Music Hall in Brisbane; the 3,300 capacity venue that Live Nation launched in collaboration with The Triffid’s John ‘JC’ Collins, Secret Sounds’ Paul Piticco and Hutchinson Builders’ Scott Hutchinson.

Field and Live Nation’s work with the Palais Theatre Community Fund continued, with 50 cents of every ticket sold at Melbourne’s Palais Theatre going to the fund to support community organisations. In June, Live Nation announced their partnership with Dylan Alcott’s Get Skilled Access organisation to make shows accessible for everyone. "Every fan has the right to equal access of live entertainment," said Field in a joint statement with Ticketmaster Australia and New Zealand's Managing Director Maria O’Connor about the partnership at its announcement.

Field took part in the 2019 Around The Bay In A Day fundraiser with fellow Live Nation colleagues to raise $24,000 for Rohan Brooks and Support Act, and continued his support of not-for-profit food service The Big Umbrella. He also presented to NSW Parliament as part of the Joint Select Committee on Sydney’s Night Time Economy, joined the board of the Night Time Industries Association and was a judge for American Express’ Music Grant Backers Program.

"2019’s crowning achievement would have to be Live Nation’s work in accessibility. We believe that every fan should have equal access to the events they love and as a large contributor to the industry we have the ability to make a significant impact not just at Live Nation shows or on Ticketmaster, but across the industry. Last year, we led a collaborative effort across our industry with input from our partners, and delivered a level of access like never before. From increased Auslan interpreters to dedicated accessibility consultants onsite at festivals, we are very proud of what we achieved. One major achievement in this was delivering an unprecedented level of access for U2’s The Joshua Tree show in partnership with Marvel Stadium in Melbourne, and this will set the benchmark for our future shows. There is still a fair way to go, and we are fully committed to keep working at it and continue to lead the way in making this better for this important part of our entertainment community."