Johnny Hensley isn't wasting any time.
The newest member of the Augusta-Richmond County Coliseum Authority says he'll go back to the board at its next meeting in two weeks and ask for permission to run a full-page ad in The Atlanta Journal-Constitution aimed directly at megastar artists. He wants to get their attention with an image of James Brown and ask them what it would take for them to play in the arena named in his honor.
Mr. Hensley said he would like to run the ad either the Thursday before or the day of Elton John's March 14 concert at Philips Arena with Billy Joel.
It's likely to be a tough sell to the authority. At its last meeting on Dec. 23, Mr. Hensley just barely got $39,000 put in the budget for the plan. His fellow members seemed on the verge of nixing it until William Fennoy made a motion to appropriate the money with the condition that Mr. Hensley get permission -- in other words, six votes -- before spending any of it.
With only half of the board present, the motion passed 3-2.
The plan might not have come so far had it been someone else's. But Mr. Hensley brought an entertainment background to the authority when he was appointed by Commissioner Jimmy Smith last fall. He was a guitarist and singer for regional bands Johnny Hensley and the Red Hots and The Celestials in the late 1950s and early 1960s, then spent 12 years as a concert promoter.
"I looked at what other people are not doing," Mr. Hensley, now a real estate broker with RE/MAX of Augusta, said of his newspaper idea, "and there's not another city, another building, another venue doing this. And it's in your face."
In December, his fellow members expressed reluctance to pay for ads when the authority has already hired a management company, Global Spectrum, to recruit talent. They also questioned the bang for their buck, wondering if it would be better to woo artists through trade publications or mailings to their agents.
Mr. Hensley counters that Augusta's civic center complex needs a reviving jolt and that conventional tactics won't accomplish that. He said he's not trying to step on Global Spectrum's toes, but rather speed their efforts along by getting General Manager Monty Jones' phone ringing.
The message, Mr. Hensley said, is "we're back," letting the industry know that Augusta wants to book big-name acts.
"If you want the same ol' same ol', you buy a full-page ad in Billboard or Pollstar," he said. "It's not typical, and I'm looking for something atypical to stir things up."
Gary Bongiovanni, editor-in-chief of Pollstar, a concert industry trade publication, said he has never heard of anything like it being tried before.
"It's certainly unorthodox," he said, but as a strategy it doesn't seem wise to aim a message directly at musicians.
"That's why artists have managers and agents. They want them to deal with that stuff," Mr. Bongiovanni said. "I would think there's a more cost-effective way to reach Usher, if that's what you're trying to do."
Mr. Hensley said he envisions an artist seeing the ad, being intrigued and instructing his or her agent to look into it. Or artists' managers, friends or family members might see the ads and point them out to the entertainers. The ads give contact information for Mr. Jones, of Global Spectrum.
Mr. Hensley said he has spoken to advertising reps and a full-page Thursday ad in the Atlanta paper would cost $28,000; a Saturday ad would run $30,000. He's also proposing an ad in The Tennessean in Nashville to appeal to country music stars. Any weekday ad in that paper will cost $5,500.
Markups for the two newspapers list artists by name. For Atlanta, it lists Elton John, Ludacris, Sugarland, Alan Jackson, Widespread Panic and R.E.M, among others. In Nashville, it lists Brad Paisley, Tim McGraw, Faith Hill, George Jones, Reba McEntire, Dolly Parton and Rascal Flatts.
The $39,000 budget item allows for follow-up packages to be sent to these artists' agents, along with travel money for Mr. Hensley and Mr. Jones if they want to talk.
Noting that the civic center complex loses an average of $125,000 per month, Mr. Hensley called the money a drop in the bucket that would be well-spent even if just one performer bites.
"A building like this was never meant to make a profit. It's an economic generator," he said. "I honestly just want to see some shows."
Reach Johnny Edwards at (706) 823-3225 or johnny.edwards@augustachronicle.com.
HOW VALUABLE ARE BIG NAMES?
Augusta-Richmond County Coliseum Authority member Johnny Hensley estimates that to draw top-name music acts to the James Brown Arena, giving them and their promoters a viable profit margin, Augusta patrons must be willing to spend up to $80 per ticket. Would you be willing to spend that much to see the likes of Elton John, Alan Jackson, R.E.M., Ludacris, Faith Hill, Brad Paisley and Rascall Flatts?
TO VOTE, go to www.augustachronicle.com/polls/
Comments
Why not just paint up some pieces of plywood and cardboard and put them on the roadside in Atlanta like the "Hot Boiled P-nuts, Fresh Peaches, Pecans" folks do? I'm sure the first thing a rock star does when he gets to a new city is grab the local paper to look for a place for his next gig. Stay behind the mic, Johnny.......
Having a relic like Mr Hensley to promote entertainment coming to Augusta is certainly an example of extreme desperation.
Why does the Coliseum Authority refuse professional help and instead try to "reinvent the wheel" ? People know how to sell the venue and know which acts will appear at a price Augusta will support. Why not let them run the Coliseum in a professional manner? It's been amateur hour for the past 25 years. Isn't it about time to figure out knowledge and experience are necessary in this business? End the madness!
Amen PT, Amen!
I agree with PT, let professionals handle the Coliseum. How many of these entertainers actually read the Atlanta Journal newspaper??
Somebody needs to adjust his meds
Augusta's past event's have proven that Augusta does not have enough people show up to pay the A list of artist to come here. Now this is also the same town that always wants to shut down strip clubs even though they have a large part in keeping taxs coming from the downtown area. Everyone does not have to support the strip clubs but their taxs do help support Augusta. But our local Southern Baptist with Bible in hand puts pressure on the commissioners. If someone would post the legal fee's Augusta has paid attorney's to try & shut them down, you would find they spent enough money to balance our budget for years. So when the Comm. says we need more tax the public should tell them to cease wasting it on such foolishness & quit worrying about re-election & do your job.
BUT..I know this is asking a lot to expect our local goverment with no politicial education experience to know how to run a city's economy.
Polincor. That is exactly why the commission dosen't have a fully transparent BUDGET for taxpayers to see where the money is going. Its been that way for years and given the mentality of residents, will probably continue for more years to come. The basic document for operation of the city, is the CITY CODE and it is so outdated, it still lists Ed McIntire as a board member. Just go to the city web site and look under the legal department. That will give you a taste of the efficiency of our elected officials.
Wouldn't it make more sense to advertise in a New York or Los Angeles paper instead of toward 6 artists in Atlanta that don't really live there?
You could push for Masters week for an A list concert everyday that most will attend due to the party atmosphere we have here. How about selling JBA for a golf convention/ show the week of Masters? Then there is the 24 years of boat racing. How about a concert push for the Saturday night of the races?
I agree with you politicallyncorrect. How about the money they have wasted on XMart? I hope they exhaust every avenue soon. XMart will win in the end and open, it will make a ton of tax money from the sex offenders living near it in the hotels.
meds my hind end!! he needs to adjust to reality..... careful, if JH is involved, it's only for himself. careful of his "generosity".
This is just plain stupid. Name ANY civic center or venue such as this that would purchase a full page add trying to get artists to come to their venue. $30,000.00 for a ONE TIME full page add....are you freaking kidding me??? You can hire a full time person for the year to contact managers of artists, etc. and check on routing dates and other opportunites to book artists. This is a complete waist of money by individuals who don't have a clue as to what they are doing. You have hired a management company. If you really want to spend $30,000.00 that bad then offer them a $5,000.00-$10,000.00 bonus for each artist signed that sells out the complex or better yet, hold them accountable to to the job they were hired to do and stay away from that which you no nothing about. I'm sure the intentions are positive but there is a reason that venue's don't do this. Do you really think artists or their managers are reading the Thursday edition of the AJC, see a full page add and go Gee Wiz, we should really call them about playing there. First, newspaper readership off line is a joke and second, these managers would laugh at such an add as it clearly sends the wrong message.
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