National Independent Venue Association Presents The 2025 Live List in Partnership with Paste, SARA Live, and The Black List
NIVA’s Third Annual The Live List Elevates Rising, Must-See Artists that Have Launched Their Careers through Independent Venues and Festivals Across the U.S.
January 22, 2025 – The National Independent Venue Association (NIVA) presents the third annual The Live List in partnership with Paste Magazine, SARA Live, and The Black List. The Live List is the definitive list of 2025's must-see artists as curated by top independent entertainment industry insiders. NIVA aggregated votes from more than 1,000 NIVA members – consisting of independent performance venues, festivals, and promoters – to uncover the most exciting up-and-coming and established artists over the past year.
The 2025 Live List highlights 49 artists including The Beaches, Doechii, CMAT, 49 Winchester, Jalen Ngonda, Mannequin Pussy, Mon Rovîa, Orion Sun, Tommy Newport, Maggie Antone, Joe P and more.
A year-long celebration of The Live List artists will kick off in Austin with a SXSW official event, The Live List Showcase at Antone's Nightclub, on March 12, 2025.
The Live List is a survey of NIVA members who identify must-see musicians, comedians, performing artists, and other rising acts. It utilizes the expertise of live entertainment professionals who dedicate their lives to live shows and building artists’ careers.
Through NIVA, Paste Magazine, The Black List and SARA Live partnership, The Live List serves as a catalyst for artists to build sustainable careers and is a definitive source for fans to discover acts.
“I am so honored to be a part of NIVA’s The Live List this year. Playing live shows is the most important part of being an artist and without independent venues, so many people, including myself, wouldn’t have anywhere to perform directly to people. We’d all be stuck home live-streaming in our basements,” says Joe P, “Playing shows is the one part of music that has NEVER changed since day one. People buy tickets and artists perform their songs. That’s why we need independent venues to uphold that very simple but important transaction between artist and fan. Thank you to everyone out there making sure that happens.”
“Independent stages are the launch pad for up-and-coming artists and they have been for generations," says Stephen Parker, Executive Director of NIVA. "The Live List elevates the role that everyone from bookers to the box office plays at our venues and festivals to make sure the world continues to have a next generation of artists over and over again. We applaud the artists on this list who put their heart and soul into touching the audiences and live professionals that they played in front of last year. Go and see how special they are on the smaller stages before they are playing arenas all over the world."
NIVA initially partnered with The Black List in 2023 to release the inaugural The Live List. The Black List is an online platform that connects writers in film, television, and theater with industry professionals in those industries via its annual list of most liked unproduced screenplays, online writing database, writer's labs, and corporate and non-profit partnerships.
“The Live List 2025 is the result of over 1,000 NIVA members that actively book, promote, and attend hundreds – if not thousands – of shows throughout the year. They are ground zero for emerging talent and have the proven ability to identify those that will have long and sustainable careers,” says Jordan Anderson, Troubadour Talent Booker and The Live List Task Force Co-chair. “The Live List has been the perfect initiative for NIVA to help foster these acts in our venues and beyond.”
“Now in its third year, The Live List is a testament to independent venues, festivals and promoters, providing a platform for artists to cultivate their talent. We see acts that really have the ability to go the distance and, with that, we believe The Live List is a way for us to continue to help develop and foster these artists as they move forward in their careers,” says Diamond, the Marketing Director for Union Stage Presents and The Live List Task Force Co-chair.
The 2025 Live List of featured up-and-coming artists includes:
ABOUT NIVA
The National Independent Venue Association (NIVA) is the national trade association representing thousands of independent live entertainment venues, festivals, promoters, and more. NIVA works to preserve and nurture the ecosystem of live entertainment. NIVA empowers members and their teams with member benefits, advocacy on the state, local, and federal levels, an annual industry-leading conference, and more.
NIVA led the Save Our Stages campaign, culminating in landmark legislation in 2020 that established the $16.25 billion Shuttered Venue Operators Grant program, the largest arts investment in U.S. history.
NIVA is committed to equity in its support of independent stages. It seeks to create and encourage opportunities for venues, promoters, and festivals owned, operated, and staffed by people of color, women, non-binary, LGBTQ+, veterans, and people with disabilities.
ABOUT PASTE:
Since 2002, Paste Magazine has been focused on music discovery and much more. The award-winning website has recorded thousands of up-and-coming and established acts through the Paste Studio Sessions and shined a light on signs of life in music, movies, television, games, books and lifestyle. Paste prides itself on great writing and an audience hungry for authenticity and creativity.
ABOUT THE BLACK LIST:
The Black List, an annual survey of Hollywood executives' favorite unproduced screenplays, was founded in 2005. Since then, at least 440 Black List scripts have been produced, grossing over $30 billion in box office worldwide. Black List movies have won 54 Academy Awards from 273 nominations, including four of the last 14 Best Picture Oscars and eleven of the last 28 Best Screenplay Oscars.
Currently, the Black List hosts over 5,000 scripts by approximately 3,700 writer members. These scripts are available for download by industry professionals ranging from agency assistants, to studio and network presidents, to A-list actors and directors. For more information on The Black List, visit https://blcklst.com/.
ABOUT SARA LIVE:
SARA Live is a company dedicated to discovery, innovation, and community in live entertainment.
MEDIA CONTACTS
Lucky Break PR
Kris Ferraro, Kris@luckybreakpr.com
Mike Stommel, Mike@luckybreakpr.com
