Opry Entertainment Group (“OEG”), a subsidiary of Ryman Hospitality Properties, Inc. (NYSE: RHP) (“Ryman”), announced that it has acquired a majority interest in Southern Entertainment, a live events, hospitality, and production company based in Charlotte, N.C. Southern Entertainment’s portfolio of owned or promoted music festivals includes Carolina Country Music Fest in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina; Barefoot Country Music Fest in Wildwood, New Jersey; Lovin’ Life Music Fest in Charlotte, North Carolina; the Greenville Country Music Fest in Greenville, South Carolina; and the upcoming Field & Stream Outdoor Music Fest in Winnsboro, South Carolina, launching in 2025.
Patrick Moore, Chief Executive Officer of Opry Entertainment Group, said, “In just 10 years, the Southern Entertainment team has grown their business into one of the strongest independent festival businesses in the United States. With this investment, we are entering a dynamic and growing sector of the events business with seasoned operators who share our passion for creating unforgettable experiences for artists and fans. This investment will allow us to expand our reach to a large and loyal fan base that is complementary to our current audience.”
Bob Durkin and Rob Pedlow co-founded Southern Entertainment in 2015 and will continue to lead the business.
“Joining forces with OEG will add immediate value to our existing events and allow us to accelerate our plans to bring festivals to new markets,” said Durkin and Pedlow. We are confident our fans, the artists who play our stages and the cities where we operate will benefit from our alliance with such an iconic name in country music.”
Southern Entertainment will integrate OEG’s artist development programs in their flagship country music festivals where many Opry members and Opry NextStage artists have performed in recent years. The teams also plan to develop additional artist-centered experiences in the years ahead.
Moore continued, “We view festivals as a tremendous opportunity to deepen our commitment to artists at all phases of their careers, and we especially look forward to joining forces with Southern Entertainment to bring even more of the up-and-coming artists who play our stages to their large-scale events.”
Subscribe to our FREE Newsletter!
, a subsidiary of Ryman Hospitality Properties, Inc. (NYSE: RHP) (“Ryman”), announced that it has acquired a majority interest in Southern Entertainment.){kind=link}