P!nk’s ‘Summer Carnival’ Tour: Go Behind-The-Scenes With Live Nation and The Push Mentees
Success, it is often said, has many parents.
P!nk’s record-busting Summer Carnival tour of Australia is a success story built from an entire village of support — and owes some thanks to Emma Mannix and Jazabel Longworth, mentees from The Push’s Music Industry Mentoring program.
Mannix and Longworth were beneficiaries of a program through which Live Nation and The Push joined forces to enable young people the opportunity to join the enlarged family on P!nk’s tour.
The pair got the chance to work closely alongside the team at LN, which produced the latest stadium trek, for an insider’s grasp on the workings of the live industry, from production and logistics, tour operations, ticketing, back of house, and more.
Mannix and Longworth weren’t just tagging along; they were “official” members of crew.
“I haven’t toured before,” comments Longworth in a behind-the-scenes clip, “so my first impressions were like, wow, this is what it actually is. There’s a lot of moving parts and a lot of jobs that I didn’t know that existed.” One day, with the confidence and know-how collected from this experience, Longworth is keen to tour manage.
“It’s so awesome to see a whole team come together and put on a production,” adds Mannix.
The Push program is an important one for an industry that “doesn’t work with a typical recruitment model,” says LN production coordinator Sarin Moddle. “And the whole point of the Push is to try and break open that loop a little bit to include people who historically have not had access to it.”
Featuring Tones And I as support, P!nk’s Summer Carnival was a tour for the ages.
Nearly one million people passed through the gates in ANZ to see the Philadelphia pop superstar, the biggest box-office hit for a solo female artist and No. 2 all time, behind only Ed Sheeran’s Divide Tour. P!nk’s 20 stadium shows are the most ever performed by any artist in Australia and NZ on a single tour.
The traveling juggernaut is shortlisted for best Australian music tour at Variety Australia and Twilio’s inaugural Live Business Breakfast, to be presented June 13 in Sydney.
“Emma and Jaz rocked it on the Summer Carnival tour and I thank them for their energy and passion,” comments P!nk in a statement. “Programs like this are exactly what we need to build incredible futures for young people.”
This year, The Push will give 60 young people the chance to be placed and mentored in some of Australia’s biggest music companies to hone their talents, confidence and networks a range of behind-the-scenes activities.
The Push Music Industry Mentoring Program is delivered with support from The Ian Potter Foundation – one of Australia’s major philanthropic foundations, delivering grants to support charitable organisations working to benefit the community.
“We know that our Australian music sector is experiencing significant skills shortages right now,” comments Kate Duncan, CEO of The Push. “The Push is committed to delivering initiatives such as the Music Industry Mentoring Program to directly respond to this – fostering a new generation of music industry practitioners.”