April 7, 2004

London rocks

By Karolina Rous
krous@uwo.ca

"I think we've had great support from concert goers for shows here, making London a desirable place for popular, big-name acts to play in," said Holly Kjeldgaard, assistant general manager of the JLC.

Photo by Karolina Rous

London's downtown core is benefiting from concerts held at the John Labatt Centre.

The JLC, a multiuse arena, is making Canada's music industry see London as a viable market for bigger shows by landing performers like John Mayer, 50 Cent or Nickelback.

This is good news for London, explained Kjeldgaard.

"Recent shows have helped fuel the fire for more acts to take notice that there is indeed a large audience base here in London. Larger size acts, like Shania Twain, Cher, Rod Stewart, B.B. King, 50 Cent - the John Labatt Centre has helped open the door for other acts who now see that there is an audience here," said Kjeldgaard.

These big acts are attracting more people, who in turn are spending more time downtown after concerts.

"The downtown core has become more alive and vibrant. With larger concerts coming through, it has added a different element to the downtown that wasn't there before."

Photo by Angela Smith

Performers such as John Mayer are helping put London on the map musically.

Marty Rice, manager of leisure travel and advertising for Tourism London, has also noticed the positive economic effect that the JLC has had on the city's downtown core.

"The John Labatt Centre has created a huge economic spin-off from the larger shows that it is bringing to London. It is not just the local population that is buying tickets. People from Toronto, all across Ontario, even from Michigan and Ohio are coming into London to catch shows. As a result they are staying overnight at local hotels, they are visiting our bars and restaurants, they are shopping here," said Rice.

Vit Shatkin, co-owner of Call the Office, London's most popular independent concert venue, agrees the JLC is helping to improve and promote London's reputation as a musical destination.

"London in the past has attracted bigger acts, but this was usually a seasonal thing, like with the summer months when the Western Fair would bring in bigger acts. It was seasonal only. With the John Labatt Centre, the focus is now on the downtown core," said Shatkin.

While the JLC currently appeals to more mainstream musical tastes, Call the Office and other local concert venues are benefiting from its popularity.

"The John Labatt Centre, if anything, has given us a few new customers. We may get more people come in here after the shows finish at the centre - if the show is the same kind of act that we have here, people might come in," he said.

Sal Pacifico, technical director at the Phoenix, a downtown nightclub, says that although the JLC has had a positive effect it does have a few limitations, which the Phoenix makes up for.

"We have a very different atmosphere than the John Labatt Centre. We are two very different venues. When people come to the Phoenix they can dance, they can drink alcohol, they don't have to sit down," he explains.

Since the JLC and smaller venues do not compete with each other, Pacifico said that both benefit from the music industry's recognition of London as a viable venue.

This also allows for smaller venues to stay true to the type of shows they host.

"We are more intimate here. You can do more here that you can't do at the JLC. We don't compete with them in terms of what kinds of shows we bring in, or what kind of venue we are, but the JLC is helping London's music scene become more well-known, so that helps us," said Pacifico.

London has begun to earn a reputation as a city with strong attendance numbers to support the larger acts and performers, said Bret Downe, publisher of SCENE Magazine.

London is getting more than just national attention because of its seating capacity, added Downe.

"More acts from Toronto and Detroit are starting to recognize London as a stop. More acts are coming here because we finally have a larger venue to support bigger acts," said the publisher.

"From a business perspective London is a developing market with a taste in quality musical performers, and local promoters are benefiting from that."

Despite its success, Andreas Gripp, music director at CHRW 94.9 FM campus radio, said that the JLC should have thought bigger.

"London has always been behind in terms of bringing in shows. If London had looked ahead by 10 years they would have seen that the John Labatt Centre is too small. They should have gone for a seating capacity of 12,000," said Gripp.

Seating capacity at the JLC is 10,491 seats for concerts with an end stage and 10,944 seats for concerts with a central stage.

"The John Labatt Centre is helping put London on the map as a legitimate stop-over for larger, more well-known acts, but they should have gone bigger. The John Labatt Centre is making it easier for smaller venues to be seen as part of the legitimate music scene that is growing in London."

With plenty of new shows on the horizon, the JLC's management team is focused on bringing more and more acts to London.

"As long as the JLC is doing well then London's downtown core and its other music venues should continue to flourish and benefit," said Kjeldgaard.

"People don't say 'where's London?' anymore. The John Labatt Centre is helping put London on the map musically."