| (Tulsa, Okla.) October 20, 2016 – Two SMG Tulsa employees received nominations by Venues Today magazine for the Hall of Headlines Awards, the annual awards given to individuals who have made a significant contribution to the venue and live entertainment industry in the last 12 months, making headlines along the way. Recipients are nominated and elected by thousands of readers of Venues Today, a leading international trade publication that covers the business side of entertainment and sports.
Nominations are divided into five unique categories: News, Bookings, Operations & Technology, Marketing and Concessions. SMG Tulsa garnered two nominations: Jeff Nickler (Bookings) and Meghan Doyle (Marketing).
“We are proud to have SMG Tulsa employees nominated again for the Hall of Headline awards. It has been a blockbuster year at BOK Center and to have our hard work and innovation recognized by our industry peers is incredibly rewarding,” said SMG General Manager Jeff Nickler.
Additional information about each nomination follows:
Jeff Nickler, General Manager- Bookings Category
For developing a new five-day folk music festival that pays homage to Historic Route 66. Tulsa has emerged as one of the nation’s top destinations for live entertainment and Americana music. To build upon this momentum, Nickler developed Mother Road Revival Weekend, a September 7-11 celebration that encompassed live music at five different venues, a folk film series, food trucks, engaging panels with folk musicians and songwriters and a free pop-up concert outside on Historic Route 66. Over 15,000 fans took part in events during the inaugural weekend, highlighted by a ticketed concert at BOK Center featuring Grammy award-winning artist Jason Isbell, along with Shakey Graves and Lucero. The same day, national speakers convened at the award-winning Woody Guthrie Center for a symposium discussing Guthrie and his influence on musical legend Bob Dylan.
Meghan Doyle, Director of Marketing – Marketing Category
For creating the most memorable backstage experience ever for Ariana Grande. In October 2015, BOK Center stunned the pop star and her 85.7-million Instagram followers with a surprise that sparked national media coverage and generated awareness for a very worthy cause. Knowing of Grande’s love for animals, specifically rescue dogs, SMG staff surprised her in the green room with eight adorable puppies from the Animal Rescue Foundation of Tulsa. She fell in love with a Yorkie named Strauss and adopted him on the spot. In addition, her mother and tour DJ also adopted new pets. “This is the most memorable thing a building has ever done for me,” said Grande. She was so moved by the gesture that she paid the $150 adoption fee for 20 additional dogs to be adopted by fans. Grande’s Instagram posts that evening generated over 1.3 million likes and helped the Tulsa nonprofit grow their social media following by 600%.
Winners will be showcased and caricatured in the Venues Today year-end issue in December 2016. |
