One year in, the ticketing pioneer on why Pandora’s $450 million investment was a “fair price,” and the future of the secondary market
As music industry trailblazers go, Andrew Dreskin stands in rarefied company, having pulled off two ticketing-business feats during his 25-year career. He co-founded TicketWeb, the first online ticketing platform, which was sold to Ticketmaster in 2000 for $35.2 million. then, in October 2015, Ticketfly, a 2.0 version of Dreskin’s vision (for which he serves as co-founder/CEO, overseeing a staff of 208), was acquired by internet radio giant Pandora for $450 million.
It’s a long way from New Orleans’ Tipitina’s, where the new Jersey native promoted his first show while at Tulane university. Post-college, Dreskin eventually landed at Bay Area-based indie label Beserkley records (Greg Kihn Band, Jonathan Richman and The Modern Lovers), where he built the company’s website during the Internet’s infancy. Later, partnering with Rick Tyler, who was developing an online ticketing platform, TicketWeb was born, making its first sale in December 1995, 11 months before Ticketmaster.
Dreskin’s former TicketWeb associate Dan Tyree would help launch Ticketfly in 2008, and early believers included Peter Shapiro of Brooklyn Bowl and Seth Hurwitz of Washington, D.D.’s 9:30 club. As Ticketfly grew, securing exclusive contracts with such venues as Forest Hills stadium in New York and the troubadour in Los Angeles, it attracted $50 million in investment and the interest of Pandora, with its 80 million listeners, which saw its entree into live music.
The 47-year-old father of two, who resides in San Francisco’s East Bay area with his wife, Dr. Maria Raven, marked the one-year anniversary of the Pandora acquisition with Billboard.
How had your approach to outside investment changed from TicketWeb to Ticketfly?
This story is from the October 8, 2016 edition of Billboard.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the October 8, 2016 edition of Billboard.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
The Three Amigos
A rowdy trio raised together in North Atlanta, Migos cut a singularly now path to pop stardom: STEP 1 Launch a dance craze. STEP 2 Score a No. 1 with the help of a meme. STEP 3 Spend Grammy night partying with superfans Chance the Rapper and Chris Brown — as Billboard tags along. “I try not to be cocky,” says Takeoff, “but hey, we the shit, man”
California's Hero Of Cannabis Legalization
Lieutenant governor Gavin Newsom has rock star friends, his own clubs and a progressive agenda that got his state’s landmark Proposition 64 legislation passed — and the music industry rallying behind him
The Green Album
As vinyl sales hit a nearly 30-year high, Slightly Stoopid’s managers create a novelty that music-loving potheads could only dream of: an LP made entirely of hash
Simon Cowell, the Svengali's Second Act
From 1D to Fifth Harmony, the TV and music mogul owns pop culture. Now 56, he’s going in front of the camera again as he heads to America’s Got Talent, talks Harry Styles solo, plays with his 2-year-old son and reveals a certain sentimentality about American Idol: ‘I like to torture myself’
Twenty One Pilots on Their Musical Bromance and Fleeting Fame
Twenty One Pilots have blown up at top 40 radio, sold out massive arenas and even drawn the ire of millennial-bashing columnists with an unapologetic mashup of suburban angst, rap and reggae. But to Tyler Joseph and Josh Dun, all that matters is their bond - with each other and their (millennial) fans. “It probably seems like two good-looking guys making pop music. But really it’s just the opposite.”
Gone Girl
Camila Cabello Kicked Off Her Solo Career and Her Band Sisters in Fifth Harmony Unexpectedly Denounced Her for It. Now She’s Got a Top Five Single, a Much-anticipated Album Coming and Zero Second Thoughts: “you Have to Honor That Inner Voice”
The Rise And Fall And Rise Of Nicky Jam
Born in the USA, catapulted to teen fame in Puerto Rico and practically washed up by his 20s, Nicky Jam went to Medellín, Colombia — a city haunted by its drug kingpin past — to find sobriety, love and greater-than-ever success. Billboard spends 48 hours with the reggaetón superstar in his adopted home as he prepares for his wedding — and, oh yeah, scores a No. 1 Latin album
Fifth Harmony: Pretty Little Fighters
Girl groups were supposed to have been kaput when The X Factor threw together five ambitious teens with hard-knock childhoods. But as Fifth Harmony finally attains the upper reaches of the Hot 100, the tight-knit group finds itself “traumatized” by the strain of prepackaged fame, isolated from family and struggling to stay balanced. Now, they’re eager to assert their opinions on the industry, politics and Kanye West: “We finally have a damn voice.”
Jennifer Nettles: A Star Goes Back To Her Roots
Four years after Sugarland’s split, Jennifer Nettles is supporting Hillary and advocating for female artists (bro country be damned): “It’s in my blood”
Life's Been Good To Niall (So Far)
A year-and-a-half ago, Niall Horan was basking in the shrieks of One Direction superfans. Now, with the group in limbo and his mates making moves in everything from R&B to acting, “the cute one” is painstakingly crafting an album as a California rocker — and hanging with astronauts, Selena Gomez and (yes) the Eagles. All while staying truly hashtag-humble: “I’m a simple old soul, me”