Opry Entertainment Group (OEG) has acquired a majority stake in Southern Entertainment, a North Carolina-based live events, hospitality and production company. Southern Entertainment’s portfolio of owned or promoted live music events includes the country music festival Carolina Country Music Fest (Myrtle Beach, South Carolina); ), Barefoot Country Music Fest (Wildwood, New Jersey), Lovin’ Life Music Fest (Charlotte, North Carolina), Greenville Country Music Fest (Greenville, South Carolina), and the upcoming Field & Stream Outdoor Music Fest this year in South Carolina Scheduled to be released in Winnsboro, State.
Founded in 2015 by Bob Durkin and Rob Perrow, Southern Entertainment has produced more than 200 events in the United States.
“The festival business has always been a significant opportunity for us given our shared focus on live events and live venues,” Patrick Moore, CEO of Opry Entertainment Group, told Billboard. I’ve been thinking about it,” he said. “Rob and Bob are in their 10th year in this business, creating unique experiences for fans and artists in some truly exciting destination markets.”
“(OEG) has brought similar synergies in terms of growth, customer service, hospitality and other things that we think will drive the business,” Durkin said.
For OEG, a subsidiary of Ryman Hospitality Properties, this new investment signifies further expansion of the company’s footprint in the live music space. OEG’s portfolio includes country music icons like the Grand Ole Opry (which will celebrate its 100th anniversary in 2025) and Ryman Auditorium, as well as WSM Radio and the Blake Shelton-inspired Ole Opry. It also includes new facilities such as Red Brand and Luke. Category 10 of Combs-inspired venues, bars and restaurants. In 2022, Ryman Hospitality Properties signed deals including: ACL Live at the Moody Theater, an iconic venue in Austin, Texas. OEG is also a minority non-controlling investor in country lifestyle brand Whiskey Riff.
Moore did not specify the specific percentage of OEG’s majority stake in Southern Entertainment, but noted that the combination “will allow both companies to tap into markets, demographics and communities that they would not be able to reach on their own.” did.
One of Southern Entertainment’s biggest priorities this year is the inaugural Field & Stream Music Festival, scheduled for October 3-5 with headliners including Eric Church and Miranda Lambert. It’s a fest. The festival is co-produced by Field & Stream with major investors Church, Morgan Wallen and Southern Entertainment.
“We’re really excited about Field & Stream because it gives music festivals a unique feel,” Durkin said. “We celebrate music and community with our friends, but this time it’s in the middle of the woods, so we have to take advantage of everything outdoors. It also includes elements of fishing, hiking and mountain biking. It’s very unique. What’s also interesting is that it’s driven by an artist, Eric Church, who is from (North) Carolina. And so Field & Stream Magazine and this brand are iconic. I think all we can do is help each other.”
Importantly, this investment will allow both companies to share a common focus on artist development and spotlighting up-and-coming artists. “We have a similar general vision strategy and approach, and that applies to developing emerging artists and artists as well,” Moore says. As part of the deal, Southern Entertainment will integrate OEG’s artist development program into its flagship country music festival, which has featured many Opry members and Opry Next Stage artists in recent years. The Opry’s NextStage class of 2024 includes artists 49 Winchester, Ann Wilson, Charles Wesley Godwin, Chase Matthews, Ella Langley, Wyatt Flores, Flatland Cavalry, Josh Ross and Madeline Edwards. Flores, Flatland Cavalry and Ross are among the current Opry NextStage artists who have performed at the Southern Entertainment festival.
