Madonna’s Reinvention Tour will be honored as the top tour of the year at the Backstage Pass Awards, to be presented Nov. 9 at the Roosevelt Hotel in New York. The awards recognize the top performers of the just-completed touring season, and are based on box-office data gathered from Billboard Boxscore reports.
Produced by Clear Channel Entertainment (CCE), Re-Invention grossed $125 million from 56 performances, of which 55 were sold out. The trek was topped by a six-night stint at New York’s Madison Square Garden that grossed nearly $13 million.
Additionally, Madonna’s manager, Caresse Henry, will receive the top manager award, awarded to the person with the top-grossing artist or artists.
Prince’s Musicology tour will be named as the top draw, in the award for attendance. Prince’s total of 1.47 million tickets sold topped that of all other artists. The tour was routed, produced and promoted by AEG Live subsidiary Concerts West.
Josh Groban nails the honor for top small-venue tour, and Linkin Park will be named top breakthrough artist. The Red Hot Chili Peppers’ summer shows at London’s Hyde Park, which grossed $17.19 million, will be named Top Boxscore.
Among the other companies to be honored are CCE (top promoter), Jam Productions (top independent promoter), Creative Artists Agency (top agent/agency), Madison Square Garden (top arena), Tweeter Center for the Performing Arts in Mansfield, Mass. (top amphitheatre), House Of Blues Chicago (top club) and the Bonnaroo Festival in Manchester, Tenn. (top festival).
In special honors, Canadian promoter Michael Cohl will be presented with the inaugural Legend of Live Award — bestowed to an individual who has made a significant impact on the touring industry. CCE will receive the Humanitarian Award, given to a person or company that has made a significant charitable contribution through music events.
The Backstage Pass Award will be the culmination of the first Backstage Pass conference, which begins Nov. 8 at the Roosevelt Hotel in New York.
For the complete list of winners, click here.
