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INDIO - For most Stagecoach Country Music Festival goers, the 3-day music event is all about the performances and the music. But it's also big business and the mastermind behind Stagecoach and it's more famous sister-festival, Coachella, is a man named Randy Phillips, President and CEO of AEG Live.

 

Phillips tells KMIR6's Gino LaMont in an exclusive interview that Stagecoach is a right of passage for country artists just as Coachella is to the alternative rock crowd. The festival is actually out-pacing Coachella in terms of growth, expanded back three days this year, the first time since 2008, with an audience of more than 55,000 concert goers each day.

Phillips say there's interest in adding a third weekend of Coachella and a second weekend for Stagecoach, but a decision won't be made any time soon.

The weekend concerts are a huge windfall for the City of Indio and for virtually all Coachella Valley retail businesses. But some residents haven't always been thrilled by the massive under-taking that is involved in the mega-concerts. But Phillips says they have a great working relationship with the host city and credits the city for improving each year as the shows get bigger.

Phillips says following the festivals, his team reflects on the challenges and successes associated with producing three of the largest outdoor concerts in the world.