Within the last few weeks, artist announcements dropped for both the 2026 iHeartRadio Music Festival and HOT 97 Summer Jam.
The iHeartRadio Music Festival brings BTS, Cardi B, Kenny Chesney, Snoop Dogg, Weezer, Lainey Wilson, Muse and more to Las Vegas’ T-Mobile Arena for two nights in September. HOT 97 Summer Jam returns to Newark’s Prudential Center in July with Fetty Wap, French Montana, Max B, Ice Spice, Rick Ross and DaBaby.
For listeners, the announcement is simple: Here’s the lineup. Buy your tickets.
For radio station teams, the lineup is just one corner of the 1,000-piece jigsaw puzzle that is event production.
Been There, Done That
I spent much of my career producing large-scale music events — including six years leading HOT 97’s Summer Jam team, overseeing marketing, sponsorships, content, and more. I also worked on booking, marketing, and producing Audacy’s tentpole events. What I learned: pulling off events at this scale takes a village. And the listener experience depends on thousands of details the audience never sees.
Before the First Artist Hits the Stage
The largest radio events today operate more like major television productions than traditional concerts.
Consider what has to happen before showtime. Artist contracts. Hospitality requirements. Transportation plans. Security protocols. Credential systems. Sponsorship activations. Backstage operations. Ticketing integrations. Staffing plans. Every artist arrives with their own management team, technical specs, and expectations. Some need elaborate stage setups. Others need customized dressing rooms or special accommodations for their crews.
The Production Itself
At Summer Jam or the iHeartRadio Music Festival, changeovers between artists happen in moments — not minutes. Crews remove and rebuild entire stage configurations while thousands of fans watch from their seats. Audio, lighting, video, pyrotechnics, and broadcast teams must execute those transitions flawlessly. There is no second take.
The challenge grows when radio adds a broadcast component. Radio companies aren’t simply producing a live event — they’re creating content that extends beyond the arena. The iHeartRadio Music Festival airs across iHeartRadio stations nationwide and streams on Disney+ and Hulu. Every performance, camera angle, host segment, and sponsor integration must work for both the in-venue crowd and the remote audience. That level of coordination rivals many televised award shows.
Sponsors and Staffing
Most major radio events depend on strategic partnerships to make the economics work. Capital One’s involvement with the iHeartRadio Music Festival is a prime example. Beyond logo placement, sponsors need dedicated hospitality experiences, fan activations, exclusive performances, and custom content. Delivering those assets matters just as much as delivering a great concert.
Staffing is equally critical. On show day, hundreds of people work behind the scenes. Production managers, stage managers, runners, credential teams, security, marketing staff, social media teams, photographers, videographers, engineers, and venue employees all play a role. The audience interacts with only a handful of them. But every single person shapes the experience.
Some of my favorite memories from HOT 97’s Summer Jam at MetLife Stadium involve watching the staff move like ants across the vastness of that stadium — everyone locked into their own task, all of them pushing toward one collective goal.
Expect the Unexpected
The most important skill in producing a signature radio event? Adaptability.
No matter how much planning goes into a show, something unexpected will happen. A flight gets delayed. An artist arrives late. Equipment fails. Timelines shift. The teams that succeed aren’t the ones that avoid problems. They’re the ones who solve them fast — before the audience notices.
At HOT 97’s Summer Jam in 2018, Meek Mill decided he wanted to helicopter into MetLife Stadium and ride a dirt bike from the chopper pad to the stage. Our crew stayed late the night before and figured it out. The results were legendary.
At Audacy’s Beach Festival in 2022, we got reports of an active fire in the crowd. It turned out to be a menorah fans had brought — the event fell during Hanukkah. Fun to navigate.
I could rattle off a hundred more examples. Many involve NDAs I’ve long since lost track of.
The Unsung Heroes
The doers of this industry thrive in these moments — the market leaders willing to take risks, the promotions people, the event people, the programmers whose roles sometimes get overlooked. These are often unsung heroes. And right now, their roles are under attack. Downsizing happens monthly across our business. Producing signature events keeps getting harder.
But these events are core to station brand identity and radio’s long-term health. Having the doers on staff is what separates great radio events from good ones. It’s what creates core memories for listeners and longevity for your brand.
Fans remember seeing their favorite artist perform. They remember surprise collaborations and unforgettable moments. They won’t remember the planning meetings, production schedules, and contingency plans that made those moments possible.
That’s exactly how it should be.
The best-produced events are the ones where nobody notices the production at all.
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Bethany Kent is a Music Radio Editor for Barrett Media. She spent nearly 20 years bringing radio to life on stages, across the airwaves, and through unforgettable listener experiences. Her career spans local markets including Providence, Philadelphia, and New York City, most recently serving as National Director of Music Initiatives for Audacy. From producing major live events like HOT 97’s Summer Jam to leading strategic national marketing initiatives, she has built a career at the intersection of music, media, and culture. She can be reached at bethany@barrettmedia.com.
