Usually when Lyle Lovett performs, the stage does not move. But the 2010 Cayamo music festival took place on a luxury liner in the Caribbean — and 14-foot waves shook him out of his usual stoicism. “I grew up being the carsick kid. Couldn’t ride in the back seat,” says the Texas singer-songwriter. “I was doing an interview with Steve Earle for his Sirius radio show [while on board], and I had to step out of the room and come back in.
In 2023 and 2024, Sixthman’s headliners include 311 , guitar hero Joe Bonamassa , Stevie Van Zandt and Lamb of God . “If it’s a passionate community, that is an opportunity for us,” says Jeff Cuellar, Sixthman’s vp of events, community management, marketing and branding. “We’ve done our research. We know their numbers.”Although the COVID-19 pandemic dealt music cruises a one-two punch in 2020, when both cruises and concerts were shut down, the sectors have returned to full strength.
And for such headliners, a ship is one giant marketing and branding opportunity. Train, which has its own wine company, holds tastings on its Sail Around the Sun cruises; singer Hayley Williams has sold her Good Dye Young hair color on Paramore’s Parahoy! cruises in recent years; and Melissa Etheridge raised money for her charitable foundation, which supports scientific research on opioid addiction. “That’s invaluable advertising,” Cuellar says.
But other artist reps say expenses are low compared with traditional arena, amphitheater and festival dates. “The narrative you are going to hear from agents and managers is a justification for charging outrageous guarantees, because ‘you are locking up our band for a week and asking them to play multiple times,’ ” says Mark Willis, host partner for pro wrestler Chris Jericho’s Rock ’N’ Wrestling Rager at Sea, a Sixthman cruise that sails every January and stars Jericho’s own metal band, Fozzy.