Aussie act wins coveted Oasis tour support slot
Every Aussie act was desperate to open for Oasis on their sold-out reunion shows this year and the British rock legends have finally chosen the lucky band.
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Reunited British rock legends Oasis have anointed beloved indie Brisbane chart-toppers Ball Park Music as the local support act for their huge Australian stadium tour kicking off in October.
Every music manager worth their commission had lobbied the Gallagher brothers to win the coveted support slot for the Oasis Live ‘25 shows in Melbourne and Sydney later this year, for the chance to perform in front of hundreds of thousands of people.
Industry insiders and fans had Sydney rockers DMA’S as the frontrunners for the sought-after opening gig, as they have a long association with Liam Gallagher who booked them to open on his 2019 tour of the UK and Ireland.
The confirmation Ball Park Music will tour with Oasis came as the local indie rockers celebrated the No.1 debut of their eighth studio record Like Love last week.
The record was not only their first-ever chart-topper since launching their recording career in 2011, but the only Australian album to claim the top spot of the ARIA charts in 2025.
The Australian music industry is in dire straits as it fails to get local fans and gatekeepers excited about domestic artists.
About 20 lobby groups and representative bodies are attempting to make the parlous state of the Aussie soundtrack an election issue with the Vote Music 2025 campaign.
They want whoever wins the May vote to make it a priority to get more Aussie acts supporting international artists on tours here, “restoring a long-held industry norm”.
That decades-long “norm” is no longer a priority for major concert promoters or the acts they bring to Australia.
Often the big pop, rock and hip hop stars bring their mates to play in Australia, or are lobbied by their overseas label or booking agent to take out another American, UK or European act from the same roster to take down under.
A year ago, the Association of Artist Managers pushed for promoters to support “Michael’s Rule”, named after the late Hoodoo Gurus manager Michael McMartin, which implored every international artist to include an Australian opening act.
There is no doubt that giving a strong Aussie performer the chance to play in front of a superstar’s audience can have a career-changing impact.
ARIA award winners Teen Jesus and the Jean Teasers impressed Eddie Vedder and his bandmates so much with their opening sets at the Dark Matter stadium shows in November, the American box office kings invited the rising rock band to play at their upcoming US concerts next month.
Singer Anna Ryan said the band was overwhelmed when not only Vedder took the stage to introduce their set, but that thousands of Pearl Jam fans turned up early to see them open the show.
“It was just unreal; everyone was really into it,” the singer said. “It was a different demographic than we’re used to, and it was cool when I could feel people’s minds change to ‘Oh, actually, I do like this music,’ and jamming along.”
Ryan said the band’s social media interactions and streaming numbers soared after the shows; Pearl Jam fans even recognised them walking down the street and shouted out their approval weeks after the tour ended.
The singer believes the government and promoters should work together to put more Aussie acts on our biggest stadium and arena stages when the big-name artists come to town.
“It can be disappointing when we hear one of our favourite international artists is coming over to Australia and you hope you can get a foot in the door (to support) but then they announce they’re bringing someone (from overseas) with them,” Ryan said.
“That could have been an opportunity to sort of lift up smaller, local artists to Australian crowds; it can be a game-changer.”
Tones and I won also tens of thousands of fans over when she opened for Pink’s record-breaking Summer Carnival stadium concerts last year.
Industry insiders were crushed when Taylor Swift tapped her friend Sabrina Carpenter to open on the Australian leg of the Eras tour last year instead of supporting a local artist. The “Espresso” pop star’s career skyrocketed after those shows.
Coldplay included one Australian artist, their friend and collaborator Emmanuel Kelly, out of the three opening acts at their Music of the Spheres concerts in November.
The Weekend also had just one local artist - pioneering DJ Anna Lunoe - as one of his three support acts.
International artists who didn’t book local artists to join their Australian tours over the past year included Billie Eilish, Olivia Rodrigo, Drake, J Balvin, Niall Horan, SZA, Fred Again, Travis Scott and Tate MacRae.
Ricky Martin has announced Rita Ora as his opener and Gracie Abrams will bring American singer-songwriter Ashe to open at her shows next month.
Global superstars to choose Aussies as support acts include Dua Lipa (Kita Alexander), Cyndi Lauper (The Veronicas), The Killers (Radio Free Alice), Luke Combs (Lane Pittman) and Benson Boone (Bella Amor).
Oasis, now with Ball Park Music, play Marvel Stadium in Melbourne on October 31, November 1 and 4 and then Sydney’s Accor Stadium on November 7 and 8.
Originally published as Aussie act wins coveted Oasis tour support slot
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