Six60 performing at Eden Park on Saturday. Photo / Photosport NZ
After Six60 became the first band to ever perform at Eden Park, in front of an audience of 50,000 on Saturday night, all eyes are on who could possibly follow up such a success.
With a number of gigs cancelled last year, and lockdowns still stopping large gatherings across most of the world, musicians from around the globe could - travel restrictions allowing - be gracing the stadium stage.
In January 2021, the venue was granted permission to host up to six concerts per year, meaning it does not have to apply to the council for resource consent again for the next five gigs. The decision will save money and time for concert promoters looking to use the venue.
According to CEO Nick Sautner, since permission was granted, Eden Park has been "inundated with requests from local and international promoters wishing to pencil book the venue when stadium tours begin again throughout Australia, New Zealand and the rest of the world".
A rumour has been circulating that Barbra Streisand could be the next performer to grace Eden Park.
It all started in March, when Sautner was fronting up to in a live-streamed meeting with Auckland councillors.
Responding to a question from Auckland Mayor Phil Goff on the ability of the Auckland stadium to be financially self-sufficient, Sautner name-dropped the 78-year-old Streisand - who has sold 150 million records worldwide.
"Obviously there's commercial sensitivities around each of the events, and it differs from Six60 through to Barbra Streisand," Sautner said.
"What I would say is our corporate suite interest has been enormous since we've announced concerts and the annual price of the licence for the suites have gone up approximately $25,000 almost overnight."
Several Auckland councillors jumped on the comments from the Eden Park chief executive, including Desley Simpson who was chairing the council Finance and Performance meeting.
"Did I hear you might be bringing Barbra Streisand? Or was that just a name you …"
Sautner jumped in with a half chuckle responding: "This isn't being recorded is it?"
He then made playful reference to another rumour in 2018 that the Spice Girls might play at the Auckland stadium.
"We also had the opportunity a couple of years ago about the Spice Girls," Sautner said.
An Eden Park spokesperson later said Sautner's comments were "not an announcement but rather an example of the broad genres we are exploring".
"Previously Phil Collins, Eminem, Bon Jovi, Billy Joel and the Spice Girls have either floated the idea of touring Auckland or have toured other parts of Aotearoa, bypassing the country's largest city," the spokesperson said.
In a statement provided to the Herald in March, following that meeting, Sautner said the stadium has "a list of local and global artists just waiting for the opportunity".
"Eden Park has been inundated with inquiries from local and international promoters seeking pencil bookings for 2022," Sautner said.
"Artists and fans have been starved of opportunities to experience stadium tours over the past 12 months and we are confident that 2022 will see us host six concerts in line with the conditions of our resource consent.
"We are encouraged by the level of interest and excitement in Six60's history-making concert and we now have a key role to play in contributing to Aotearoa's economic recovery through the successful hosting of major events."
On the list could also be a number of artists who were forced to cancel or postpone their New Zealand concerts due to the pandemic in 2020.
Harry Styles was scheduled to play one show at Auckland's Spark Arena on November 23. It never happened.
Lenny Kravitz also cancelled his New Zealand and Australian tour dates last year amid coronavirus restrictions.
Crowded House and Sol3 Mio also had to postpone their gigs, due to restrictions on the size of gatherings at the time.
New Zealand is one of the few countries on the planet where it is currently possible to attend a music concert without any restrictions, as the coronavirus pandemic keeps much of the rest of the world shut.
Kiwis are keen to get to Eden Park for some more music, after the venue successfully hosted its first gig last weekend.
An informal vox pop on the Herald Facebook page asked readers who they would like to see perform at Eden Park.
Six60 was a raging success. What band — Kiwi or international — would you like to see at Eden Park next? 📸 Infinitum Studios
Posted by nzherald.co.nz on Sunday, April 25, 2021
Fleetwood Mac is one of the bands numerous New Zealanders said they would like to see live.
The Foo Fighters would also be well attended, judging by the number of people who suggested the band play at the stadium next.
Bruce Springsteen, U2 and Metallica also got several shoutouts each, and would likely draw a very sizeable crowd indeed.
It's not just international acts Kiwis want to see on the stage. New Zealand reggae band L.A.B. was mentioned a few times in the thread on Facebook, with several people saying they'd love to see them perform at Eden Park.
Six60 made history on Saturday as the first band to ever perform at Eden Park.
The concert drew a crowd of 50,000 people to the stadium in Mt Eden - a rare sight that made headlines all over the world, as most countries continue to grapple with the Covid-19 pandemic and music concerts and other gatherings are but a distant memory.
According to Sautner, the concert was a success. He called it the beginning of "a new era for New Zealand's national stadium as a truly multipurpose venue".
"Tonight's concert was an inclusive and inviting experience for fans of all ages – from kids enjoying their first concert to grandparents who have been waiting a long time to let the music play at Eden Park," he said on Saturday.
"Eden Park is New Zealand's largest, most accessible and well-connected stadium, with excellent transport connectivity, facilities for all demographics and proximity to urban centres where fans can stay, eat and drink," Sautner added.
"A lot of hard work has paid off tonight, and I'm enormously proud of our team."
As well as 50,000 Six60 fans, the concert included 3,500 event staff, from cleaning and catering to security, facilities and traffic management. There were 500 staff on pack-in alone.
But the number of beer and RTD cans and wine bottles found on the street near the venue on the Sunday morning after the gig left one Kingsland resident dismayed.
The resident said she was a big music fan and supporter of the historic Saturday night gig, but urged concertgoers in the future to think about the environment after she found more than 25 bottles and cans on a strip of New North Rd.
An Eden Park spokesperson said it was unfortunate the behaviour of a few had negative impacts on members of the local community, but that a number of additional waste management measures were implemented.
"When 50,000 people attend a concert or major event, there are often unintended consequences to manage – all of which need to be balanced against the overwhelming benefits of people coming together."
The spokesperson said there are always areas for improvement and it would continue to work with the community to understand and mitigate concerns.
Eden Park rolled out 13,000 square metres of special turf flooring and added 300 extra toilets for the gig.
The venue had 67 food and beverage outlets, including 17 food trucks in the outer oval.
A total of 100 volunteers were on hand to help concertgoers on the night and the company also increased security by 40 per cent.
"This goes well above and beyond even our biggest sporting fixtures in terms of driving patronage to businesses in the surrounding area," Sautner said.