Arthur Fogel is at the top of the Leaderboard as Billboard Canada’s Power Player of the Year, but he’s not the only one at Live Nation making a big impact in the Canadian live music space. President Erik Hoffman led the national concert team in a year that included a record show count at Toronto’s Budweiser Stage and many of the biggest tours in North America at venues throughout the country. Hoffman has served as promoter for international acts like Zach Bryan and hometown star Drake, as well as domestic acts like Daniel Caesar, Sum 41 and Arkells. Chairman Riley O’Connor, meanwhile, was the tour promoter for the Bruce Springsteen Canadian tour and has been the lead promoter for Blue Rodeo for over three decades. Under their leadership, Live Nation has evolved by focusing on the growing markets of Latin and Punjabi music (focused on by Ricky Taco and Baldeep Randhawa), which included a record-breaking event by Indian superstar Diljit Dosanjh in Vancouver. And after a campaign from musicians, the company stopped taking merch cuts in 2023 and raised the minimum wage in its club venues. It hasn’t been without controversy though, as Live Nation’s big push into venue ownership (including recent acquisitions of historic independent venues the Opera House in Toronto and the KEE to Bala in Muskoka) has increased its market share to the point that many rival promoters are complaining they can’t compete.