John Giddings (born 1 May 1953 in

St Albans St Albans () is a cathedral city in Hertfordshire, England, east of Hemel Hempstead and west of Hatfield, Hertfordshire, Hatfield, north-west of London, south-west of Welwyn Garden City and south-east of Luton. St Albans was the first major ...

Hertfordshire Hertfordshire ( or ; often abbreviated Herts) is one of the home counties in southern England. It borders Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire to the north, Essex to the east, Greater London to the south, and Buckinghamshire to the west. For govern ...

) is an English music agent and promoter who has run the Isle of Wight Festival since its revival in 2002.

Early career

Giddings graduated from

Exeter University , mottoeng = "We Follow the Light" , established = 1838 - St Luke's College1855 - Exeter School of Art1863 - Exeter School of Science 1955 - University of Exeter (received royal charter) , type = Public , ...

Interview: John Giddings
with a Philosophy & Sociology degree. He worked booking bands at the university as social secretary and later entertainment chairman.John Giddings Interview, Isle Of Wight iLife, 2011
/ref>
''

London Evening Standard The ''Evening Standard'', formerly ''The Standard'' (1827–1904), also known as the ''London Evening Standard'', is a local free daily newspaper in London, England, published Monday to Friday in tabloid format. In October 2009, after be ...

'', 16 February 2004

Solo Music Agency and Promoters

After forming Solo, Giddings was employed as the agent responsible for

David Bowie David Robert Jones (8 January 194710 January 2016), known professionally as David Bowie ( ), was an English singer-songwriter and actor. A leading figure in the music industry, he is regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the ...

's concert at

Wembley Stadium Wembley Stadium (branded as Wembley Stadium connected by EE for sponsorship reasons) is a football stadium in Wembley, London. It opened in 2007 on the site of the Wembley Stadium (1923), original Wembley Stadium, which was demolished from 200 ...

"The Man Behind The Music"
''When Performance Is Everything'', Issue 2 Summer 2013, pp. 14-15 followed soon afterwards by a stadium tour with

Genesis Genesis may refer to: Bible * Book of Genesis, the first book of the biblical scriptures of both Judaism and Christianity, describing the creation of the Earth and of mankind * Genesis creation narrative, the first several chapters of the Book of ...

."Live Music Back On The Road To Wembley"
''

Music Week ''Music Week'' is a trade publication for the UK record industry distributed via a website and a monthly print magazine. It is published by Future. History Founded in 1959 as '' Record Retailer'', it relaunched on 18 March 1972 as ''Music W ...

'', 5 June 2007 In 1990

The Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones are an English rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for six decades, they are one of the most popular and enduring bands of the rock era. In the early 1960s, the Rolling Stones pioneered the gritty, rhythmically d ...

took on Giddings as European promoter and the likes of U2,

Madonna Madonna Louise Ciccone (; ; born August 16, 1958) is an American singer-songwriter and actress. Widely dubbed the " Queen of Pop", Madonna has been noted for her continual reinvention and versatility in music production, songwriting, a ...

and

Celine Dion Céline Marie Claudette Dion ( ; born 30 March 1968) is a Canadian singer. Noted for her powerful and technically skilled vocals, Dion is the best-selling Canadian recording artist, and the best-selling French-language artist of all time. Her ...

The Breakfast Meeting with John Giddings
/ref> were soon added to his roster of clients. Over the past 30 years Giddings has represented artists such as The Corrs,"Baby Dome reborn as huge screen and shows venue"
''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

'', 30 March 1999

The Police The Police were an English rock band formed in London in 1977. For most of their history the line-up consisted of primary songwriter Sting (lead vocals, bass guitar), Andy Summers (guitar) and Stewart Copeland (drums, percussion). The Police ...

Lady Gaga Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta ( ; born March 28, 1986), known professionally as Lady Gaga, is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. She is known for her image reinventions and musical versatility. Gaga began performing as a teenag ...

Westlife Westlife is an Irish pop vocal group formed in Dublin, Ireland in 1998. The group currently consists of members Shane Filan, Mark Feehily, Kian Egan, and Nicky Byrne. Brian McFadden was a member, until he left in 2004. The group temporarily di ...

,"Famous Everywhere Else"
''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

'', 21 October 2006 Boyzone,

N*E*R*D N.E.R.D. (stylized as N⋆E⋆R⋆D and N.E.R.D, a backronym of No-one Ever Really Dies) is an American hip hop and rock band, formed in Virginia Beach, Virginia, in 1999. Pharrell Williams and Chad Hugo were signed by Teddy Riley to Virgin Reco ...

and

Pharrell Williams Pharrell Lanscilo Williams (; born April 5, 1973) is an American record producer, rapper, singer, and songwriter. Alongside close colleague Chad Hugo, he formed the hip hop and R&B production duo the Neptunes in the early 1990s, with whom he ...

Simple Minds Simple Minds are a Scottish rock band formed in Glasgow in 1977. They have released a string of hit singles, becoming best known internationally for "Don't You (Forget About Me)" (1985), which topped the '' Billboard'' Hot 100 in the United St ...

and Spandau Ballet.''The Soloist'', IQ Magazine, Issue 28, March 2010, P36-58
/ref> In 2008, Solo Agency & Promotions managed three of the five top-selling concert tours around the world. The Sticky & Sweet Tour by

ranked highest, grossing $281.6 million. The second-highest tour was by

, at $236.6 million, and the fifth-highest tour was by

, at $120.6 million."Solos stars soar in 2008"
''

'', 17 January 2009, p. 6 In 2009 Giddings was recruited as the global agent and promoter of

Universal Music Universal Music Group N.V. (often abbreviated as UMG and referred to as just Universal Music) is a Netherlands, Dutch–United States, American multinational Music industry, music corporation under Law of the Netherlands, Dutch law. UMG's cor ...

Formula 1 Formula One (also known as Formula 1 or F1) is the highest class of international racing for open-wheel single-seater formula racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The World Drivers' Championship, ...

live music event, F1 Rocks."F1 Rocks Appoints Global Agent, Promoter"
''

'', 22 July 2009 Also in 2009, ''

'' named three of Giddings' clients as the top-grossing tours of the previous decade -

at number 1 with $869m, U2 at number 2 with $844m and

at number 3 with $801m."Top Touring Artists of the Decade"
''

'', 11 December 2009

Isle Of Wight Festival

In 2002 the 1971 Isle Of Wight Act''Isle of Wight County Council Act 1971'', Hansard
/ref> (which banned events on the island with more than 5000 attendees) was overturned in time for the Queen's

Golden Jubilee A golden jubilee marks a 50th anniversary. It variously is applied to people, events, and nations. Bangladesh In Bangladesh, golden jubilee refers the 50th anniversary year of the separation from Pakistan and is called in Bengali ''"সু ...

''The Isle Of Wight Festival'', Isle Of Wight Tourist Guide
/ref> and Giddings was recruited to revive the Isle Of Wight Festival

Daily Telegraph Daily or The Daily may refer to: Journalism * Daily newspaper, newspaper issued on five to seven day of most weeks * ''The Daily'' (podcast), a podcast by ''The New York Times'' * ''The Daily'' (News Corporation), a defunct US-based iPad new ...

, 29 January 2012 - a festival that he first attended as a teenager in 1970."John Giddings: The Music Fan with the Rolodex of a Rock God"
'' GQ Magazine'', 14 May 2014] The first Isle of Wight Festival since 1970 was called

Rock Island 2002 Rock Island was the first revived Isle of Wight Festival to take place on the Seaclose Park site in Newport on the Isle of Wight. It was a one-day event held on 3 June 2002. The event had a capacity of 22,000, however only around 8 to 10,000 at ...

and it took place on 3 June 2002 with Giddings and Solo acting as promoter rather than organiser. It was headlined by The Charlatans and featured appearances from the likes of

Robert Plant Robert Anthony Plant (born 20 August 1948) is an English singer and songwriter, best known as the lead singer and lyricist of the English rock band Led Zeppelin for all of its existence from 1968 until 1980, when the band broke up following the ...

, Starsailor and

Ash Ash or ashes are the solid remnants of fires. Specifically, ''ash'' refers to all non-aqueous, non- gaseous residues that remain after something burns. In analytical chemistry, to analyse the mineral and metal content of chemical samples, ash ...

. It was single day festival attended by around 8-10,000 but the event reportedly lost the Isle Of Wight Council around £380,000.''Festival safe, but less cash for council'', Isle Of Wight County Press, 23 May 2003
/ref> Giddings took over the running of the festival from the council in 2003 and, despite losing an estimated £500,000 that year,''IOW boss John Giddings speaks to eFestivals'', eFestivals, 22 November 2010
/ref> the festival has become a multi-day event that currently has an annual attendance of between 50,000 and 60,000 and contributes between £10-15m to the local economy.Agreement for the use of Seaclose Park as part of the Isle Of Wight Music Festival site, 28 July 2009
/ref> In this time Giddings has been responsible for booking headliners such as

Bruce Springsteen Bruce Frederick Joseph Springsteen (born September 23, 1949) is an American singer and songwriter. He has released 21 studio albums, most of which feature his backing band, the E Street Band. Originally from the Jersey Shore, he is an originat ...

,Ticketmaster meets I.O.W Festival booker John Giddings, 3 February 2014
/ref>

Pearl Jam Pearl Jam is an American rock band formed in Seattle, Washington, in 1990. The band's lineup consists of founding members Jeff Ament (bass guitar), Stone Gossard (rhythm guitar), Mike McCready (lead guitar), and Eddie Vedder (lead vocals, guita ...

, Coldplay,

The Who The Who are an English rock band formed in London in 1964. Their classic lineup consisted of lead singer Roger Daltrey, guitarist and singer Pete Townshend, bass guitarist and singer John Entwistle, and drummer Keith Moon. They are considered ...

Paul McCartney Sir James Paul McCartney (born 18 June 1942) is an English singer, songwriter and musician who gained worldwide fame with the Beatles, for whom he played bass guitar and shared primary songwriting and lead vocal duties with John Lennon. One ...

and

. On 5 November 2007, the Isle of Wight Festival was named 'Best Major Festival' at the UK Festival Awards. At the same event Giddings won the award for 'Outstanding Contribution to UK festivals'.

Personal life

Giddings has three daughters from his relationship with his first wife (who he met whilst at Exeter University - where he studied Philiosphy and Sociology), and has one stepdaughter resulting from his marriage to his second wife, Caroline who has a daughter from her first marriage.

References

External links

Solo Agency Website

Isle of Wight Festival Website

Isle of Wight Festival YouTube
{{DEFAULTSORT:Giddings, John Living people Music promoters People from St Albans 1954 births Alumni of the University of Exeter