The Rail, a new live music venue being built within Lexington, Kentucky’s Commons Entertainment District, has announced its first wave of shows ahead of an opening planned for early 2027. The initial lineup spans country, rock, hip-hop and electronic acts including Lynyrd Skynyrd, Umphrey’s McGee, Cole Swindell, BigXthaPlug, BUNT. and Billy Currington, with shows scheduled from January through June 2027.

The venue is co-owned and operated by concert promotion company Peachtree Entertainment in partnership with The Commons. According to the announcement, The Rail will hold up to 2,200 guests with a flexible floor plan, six full-service bars, premium VIP areas and more than 1,000 seats available for theater-style events.

Peachtree Entertainment CEO Nathan Baugh said the lineup reflects the company’s intent to offer programming for a range of music fans as part of the broader development of The Commons, a 43-acre mixed-use district built on a former tobacco processing site. Tickets for the announced shows go on sale November 6 via Ticketmaster and the venue’s website, with additional bookings expected to be announced in the coming months.

Based on a press release provided to Music Industry Weekly by Andy Wilson, elevatemarketingpr.net.

PRG Projects, the custom engineering division of production technology company PRG, has opened Project Studio, a new collaborative space in central London. The facility is designed to connect production designers and creative teams directly with PRG Projects’ engineering specialists from the early stages of live show development, according to the announcement.

PRG Projects, led by managing director Frederic Opsomer, has developed custom technical solutions for touring productions including Coldplay’s inflatable LED spheres, Eric Prydz’s modular LED sphere for Holosphere 2.0, U2’s carbon-fiber SPACEFRAME staging system, and the INFINIFORM modular scenic platform used by Post Malone, The 1975 and Tate McRae, the company says. Project Studio will offer access to services spanning concept development, budgeting, sourcing, engineering, integration and sustainability.

The new space is located at 84 Marchmont Street in London, with Kahren Williams, PRG Projects’ commercial manager, based on site. Opsomer said the London presence is intended to help the company scale its work supporting ambitious creative concepts for live productions.

Based on a press release provided to Music Industry Weekly by hustleandco.com.

Airtab Music has announced a new edition of its Open for an Icon competition, which offers an unsigned or emerging artist the chance to have three songs produced by Rodney “Darkchild” Jerkins. The contest is tied to the forthcoming concert film “Janet Jackson: Control 40 — Four Decades of Hits,” directed by Leslie Small, though the companies stress the announcement does not imply Jackson’s endorsement or participation in the competition.

Judges for the competition include Jerkins, Small and Airtab Music founder and CEO Dennis Cunningham. According to the announcement, the initiative is designed to give an emerging artist direct access to a producer who has worked with acts including Michael Jackson, Beyoncé, Whitney Houston, Brandy, Destiny’s Child, Lady Gaga, Sam Smith, Rosalía and SZA.

The competition also benefits Save Our Musicians Foundation, a nonprofit affiliated with Airtab that supports independent musicians through outreach, showcases, job placement assistance and music education programming. Airtab says past editions of Open for an Icon have connected artists with performance opportunities at SunFest and the iHeartRadio Jingle Ball tour. Submission dates, eligibility rules and further details are expected to be posted at the competition’s website.

Based on a press release provided to Music Industry Weekly by The Press House.

Oak View Group (OVG) has entered a new agreement with Independent Artist Group (IAG) to handle sponsorship and brand partnership opportunities for the agency’s roster of music and comedy touring artists, according to the announcement. The deal lets OVG offer touring and music assets from IAG artists to its network of brand partners and sponsorship sellers across North America, working alongside IAG’s Brand Partnership Division.

Under the arrangement, OVG will operate as an independent contractor providing sponsorship services, with its sales team working alongside IAG’s agents, managers and artists to identify branding opportunities tied to booked tours. The companies say potential activations could include title sponsorships, artist presales, on-site fan activations and meet-and-greets.

Dan Griffis, OVG’s president of Global Partnerships, said the move builds on the division’s sponsorship sales track record, which the company says includes a record 40 naming rights deals across major sports leagues and music venues. IAG’s Jarred Arfa and Peter Pappalaordo said the expanded relationship with OVG is intended to boost their artists’ marketability.

Based on a press release provided to Music Industry Weekly by OVG PR, oakviewgroup.com.

Irving Azoff’s Music Artists Coalition has joined a proposed amicus brief alongside actor Cate Blanchett and talent agency CAA in support of the New York Times’ copyright lawsuit against OpenAI. The filing argues for stronger AI licensing protections for creators whose work may be used to train generative AI systems without permission or compensation.

Separately, a coalition of music industry bodies including the RIAA, NMPA, ASCAP and BMI, along with five other organizations, filed their own proposed brief backing the Times’ position. The parallel filings signal broad alignment across music publishing, performing rights and talent representation sectors on the need for licensing frameworks governing AI training data.

Read the full story at Music Business Worldwide.

Live Nation’s Ticketmaster is expanding its face-value ticket resale efforts, bringing festival ticketing subsidiary Front Gate Tickets into partnership with CashorTrade. Fans who purchased festival passes through Front Gate can now list them for resale on CashorTrade, with prices capped at the original purchase amount.

The move extends an existing resale framework aimed at curbing scalping and markup pricing in the festival market. By routing resale activity through a face-value platform, Ticketmaster and Front Gate aim to give fans a legitimate secondary option while keeping prices in line with what organizers originally charged.

Read the full story at Music Business Worldwide.