Live Nation Entertainment, the world's leading live entertainment company, today announced that its Women Nation Fund has selected three female-led businesses for its first round of funding: Tina Farris Tours, Conscious City Guide, and Kingdom of Mind. Launched in May 2018, the fund is an early-stage investment opportunity designed to provide resources and capital for women in the live entertainment industry.
The three businesses selected for investment span different areas of the live music industry: touring, festivals and promotions. Live Nation is working with each company to offer the appropriate resources, mentoring and support to help grow and develop the companies.
Tina Farris Tours is a touring company founded by Tina Farris that handles tour management for an artist roster including The Roots, The Internet, Anderson .Paak, Lil Wayne, Black Eyed Peas and Chris Rock. Her company also co-produces Roots Picnic, Broccoli City and newcomer Queensfest. Additionally, Farris launched a women's mentoring group in 2016 called "Decades," which has produced several successful events and conferences in four different countries. Farris noted, "Getting artists out on the road in front of their fans has been the heart and soul of Tina Farris Tours for over a decade, and I know Live Nation believes in this mission which is why I'm so honored to have their support."
Conscious City Guide, co-founded by Mel Nahas and Kiki Falconer, is an online platform that identifies and promotes live events across the globe that foster awareness for the self, the community, or the planet. Conscious City Guide has featured more than 12,000 events since its inception and also offers ticketing for events. Nahas said, "As more people than ever seek out IRL experiences, Conscious City Guide is here to unite intentional creators and seekers so we can improve ourselves and our communities. It's clear that Live Nation created the Women Nation Fund because they care about elevating the community through live events, and we're extremely grateful to have their support."
Kingdom of Mind, founded by Isabella Kelly, is an event production and promotions business. Kelly's past promotions work has focused on secondary/tertiary markets in California and will be expanding moving forward to the Pacific Northwest. Kelly has produced benefit concerts as well as events for universities and colleges. Kelly added, "At Kingdom of Mind we're curating unique events that bring talent to cities they might not have visited on a typical tour route. To have the world's largest live entertainment company not only believing in, but also investing in this model is a dream opportunity and will help us create some incredibly memorable live shows for artists and fans."
"We started the Women Nation Fund to help expand the pool of female entrepreneurs in the live music space, and this first group of female founders we are investing in is incredibly impressive, diverse and ambitious," said Michael Rapino, President and CEO, Live Nation Entertainment. "By backing these women, we hope to help them grow their companies in new directions and set the stage for even more women to lead the future of live."
The Women Nation Fund continues to accept applications on a rolling basis. To learn more about the Women Nation Fund or to apply, please visit https://womennationfund.livenation.com/.