'Atlanta' creator Donald Glover speaks at Ojai council meeting on Libbey Bowl future

Donald Glover was just another Ojai resident last week.

The actor, writer, comic, producer, singer and hip-hop artist — and creator of "Atlanta," the lauded TV show, among other accomplishments — showed up at the Oct. 22 Ojai City Council meeting to support a new group applying to be the next concert producer for the Libbey Bowl.

He wasn’t alone. Other local musicians spoke in support of Ojai Valley Music, including Wilco keyboardist Mikael Jorgensen, who also lives in Ojai.

The Ojai City Council voted unanimously to enter negotiations with Ojai Valley Music to produce concerts at the city-owned venue starting next year, taking over for Sterling Venue Ventures LLC, which has been at the helm since 2017.

Glover, who has lived in Ojai for nearly four years, said Libbey Bowl, which seats approximately 1,200 people, is special. He, like the majority of speakers, supported Ojai Valley Music because of their local and industry connections.

“The future is really all I think about, and I think Marko and them have great taste and can really make this a special place,” Glover told the council during the public comment portion of the meeting.

Ojai Valley Music is a partnership with Marko Shafer, David Berger and Martin Fleischmann. Shafer is co-owner of The Hotel Cafe, a live music venue in Hollywood, and Ojai Noodle House in Meiners Oaks. Berger owns the Ojai Playhouse and is CEO of the VIP ticketing service One More Time. Fleischmann runs the live music production company Rum & Humble, which has operated in the Libbey Bowl and the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles.

Glover, also known as musical artist Childish Gambino, is known for his portrayals of music manager Earnest "Earn" Marks in FX's “Atlanta” and junior college student Troy Barnes in “Community." More recently, he co-created a television adaption of "Mr. & Mrs. Smith," about married spies, which aired this year on Amazon Prime Video.

He started his comments to the council with a joke.

"Hey guys, I didn't write anything down. Look, I just owe Marko a lot of money, so like … no I'm kidding,” Glover said to laughter from the audience. “No, I thought I would improv this because I thought it would wake everybody up a little bit. I know we've been here a minute."

In video of the meeting, Glover can be seen sitting in the audience for some time prior to stepping up to the microphone.

Libbey Bowl's future

The city council was considering whether to renew its contract with Sterling Venue Ventures. In September, the city sought applications from concert promoters for the downtown venue. Of three proposals received, Ojai Valley Music was selected over Libbey Bowl Entertainment and Ineffable Music.

Lance Sterling of Sterling Venue Ventures also wanted to continue his concert contract, although he didn't submit a proposal. He had offered to pay the city more per event for onsite sheriff’s deputies, according to the staff report.

Glover was among a group of residents interested in seeing a new chapter for the Libbey Bowl. Glover, who is originally from Georgia and got his start in Hollywood writing for the comedy show “30 Rock,” said he loved Ojai.

“Me and my wife, we were like, ‘Where are we going to raise our kids?’ We could not agree,” Glover said. “We came here for the turtle sanctuary and I was like, ‘Oh, here.’ Here is where I wanted to spend the rest of my life. I could die here.”

Glover said he wanted to play the Libbey Bowl and believes other artists will play there even if they lose money.

“Artists play where they want to,” Glover told the council. “I’ve lost money at venues like (Colorado’s Red Rocks Amphitheatre) just because it was special and just because I wanted to stay in town for a week. A lot of my friends just want to stay here because it’s beautiful and … they didn’t know this place existed. They didn’t know any place like this could be like that, and that’s how I felt when I first came here.”

Ojai Valley Music proposes to offer tickets with reduced service fees at the Ojai Playhouse box office, according to a staff report. The group wants to offer priority access to residents and frequent visitors to major events.

Sterling operates multiple Southern California venues including the Oxnard Performing Arts and Convention Center and the Canyon Club in Agoura Hills. The company has brought Ben Harper, Buddy Guy, Thievery Corporation and Vampire Weekend to the Libbey Bowl. But critics say there have been many cover bands lately.

Jorgensen, of the band Wilco, said he supported Ojai Valley Music and believed their programming would allow new voices and “young vibrant artists to come to this town to share in the incredible community we have here in Ojai.”

He also wanted a marquee at the venue to display upcoming acts.

Council members voted to negotiate with Ojai Valley Music.

“I think we heard from a really impressive number of artists about how strongly they feel about their relationship with the group that's behind OVM,” said Councilmember Andrew Whitman.

The council will likely vote on the contract for Ojai Valley Music at its Nov. 26 meeting, said Kristy Rivera, Ojai spokesperson.

The city's agreement with Sterling Venue Ventures, LLC is set to expire on Dec. 31, according to the staff report.

Wes Woods II covers West County for the Ventura County Star. Reach him at [email protected], 805-437-0262 or @JournoWes.

This article originally appeared on Ventura County Star: Donald Glover, 'Atlanta' creator, weighs in on Ojai's Libbey Bowl