Artists and Industry Pay Tribute to Hollywood Bowl Bookers Andy Hewitt and Bill Silva

As part of the Pollstar November 2026 cover story commemorating the 35th anniversary of Andy Hewitt and Bill Silva’s ongoing tenure booking the storied Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles, friends, colleagues and artists share some kind words about their times at the Bowl.

See Also: Bill Silva & Andy Hewitt Go BOWL-ing For History, Celebrate 35 Years of Booking Iconic

“I’ve known Andy since I was starting out with the Police, and he’s still with me today, alongside Arthur Fogel. Some of the most memorable nights of my career happened at the Hollywood Bowl – including two sold-out shows for my 40th birthday. We’ve done over 10 nights there since, including an orchestral concert and I’ve enjoyed every one of them. None of that happens without people like Andy Hewitt and Bill Silva. I’m lucky to have had them in my corner for so long and I’m grateful for their partnership all these years.” – Sting

“Andy & Bill – seems like we’ve been working with them for-EVER! It’s great to see you still keeping the Hollywood Bowl jumpin’ & a-boppin’ & a-rockin’… Power to you fellas – you thoroughly deserve this and long may you continue.” – Simon Le Bon, Duran Duran

“WME is incredibly fortunate to have such longstanding and meaningful relationships with both Andy and Bill. We have the privilege of working closely with Bill and his team in his role as manager of Linkin Park. And with Andy, there is rarely a day that goes by when we aren’t talking about one of our artists – or, in my case, where we’re meeting for our Saturday lunch rituals. But that really speaks to what makes these relationships special. After all these years, they go far beyond business. Andy and Bill are trusted partners, great friends, and two people who have devoted their careers to supporting artists and making live music better.” – Richard Weitz, Co-Chairman of WME

“There’s a small handful of venues in the world that actually enhance ticket sales, and right in that group is the Hollywood Bowl. It’s an asset not only to the greater Los Angeles community, but really to the whole country. When we do shows there, we can count on people traveling in for them, and it’s always been a great experience for the fans and the artists. As a manager, I’m really appreciative of what Andy and Bill have helped create there alongside the LA Phil.” – Coran Capshaw, Founder of Red Light Management

“Bravo Andy and Bill on 35 remarkable years at the Hollywood Bowl! There are great venues all over the world, but only one Hollywood Bowl — well done, boys! You are trustworthy, reliable and don’t cheat the artists… I hope!” – Sir Rod Stewart

“Black Sabbath first performed at the legendary Hollywood Bowl in 1972 and were subsequently banned for being ‘too fucking loud.’ Finally, after 42 years, Andy Hewitt and Bill Silva invited Sabbath back to perform at the Bowl in 2014 and then again in 2016. Ozzy absolutely loved the Hollywood Bowl. It was his favorite place to play in Los Angeles. We loved going to shows there… and Ozzy never liked to go anywhere. It just felt comfortable, and it helped that he had a great relationship with Andy, one of the few promoters he would actually talk to. Ozzy had to cancel his only scheduled solo performance at the Bowl due to illness, which was just devastating to him. Andy and Bill have been booking the Bowl for 35 years, can you believe that? I keep saying to myself, where has the time gone? I’ve been to a show there since Ozzy passed, and I couldn’t stop thinking of him, because he just loved it there.” – Sharon Osbourne

“Bill and Andy are simply two of the very best at what they do. Their instincts, passion for artists and ability to make great things happen have always set them apart. Depeche Mode’s four nights at the Hollywood Bowl in 2017 remain incredibly special to all of us. Bill, Andy and the entire Live Nation team helped make those three shows a real moment in the band’s history. After four decades, I’m fortunate to call Bill and Andy not just brilliant promoters and great partners, but great friends.” – Jonathan Kessler, Baron Inc. (Depeche Mode, Coldplay)

“Over the past 55 years of my involvement with The Who we have played countless shows in LA, and in particular at the Hollywood Bowl. Along the way I have enjoyed a great relationship with Bill Silva and Andy Hewitt, Promoters par- excellance, who were involved in a great number of those shows, plus the shows of other Artists I have acted for, in particular Robert Plant/Jimmy Page. To join with Promoters of their calibre takes most of the stress out of Management. Every detail is taken care of so professionally, so the only thing left is for the Artist to deliver a good show. Many thanks Bill and Andy for some brilliant memories.” – Bill Curbishley

“Bill Silva is one of those rare people in our business that will put the artist and his friends first – even over his own interests. His taste is impeccable, his passion for true artists and the work of protecting them is unmatched. Over the last 20 years, Hewitt Silva has promoted dozens of epic Bowl shows for Activist clients including the Lumineers and Dead and Co. My partners and I trust him with our most important clients. My wife Jaime loves him too. What else can I say – other than congrats to Hewitt Silva on 35 years stewarding and protecting one of the most culturally important venues in the world.” – Bernie Cahill, Activist (The Lumineers, Dead & Co.)

“This iconic venue deserves the respect, the level of care and attention they show the artists that perform there as an extension of that heart and soul.” – Sam Feldman, Macklam Feldman Management (James Taylor, Elvis Costello, Sarah McLachlan, Diana Krall)

“Bill and Andy are legends. They’ve added their mark to undoubtedly one of the world’s finest venues with an unrivaled track record. The Hollywood Bowl is a bucket list play. Bill and Andy have always been there to make every show special out front and behind the stage.” – Tom Chauncy, Partisan Arts (Jack Johnson, Angelique Kidjo)

“Devo playing the iconic Hollywood Bowl in 2025 was a dream 34 years in the making. And it reunited us with Andy Hewitt, introduced to us by Bill Gerber in 1981 when we had tapped Bill to join Elliot Roberts’ Lookout Management to supercharge our artistic aspirations. Bill resonated with Devo’s conceptual world and had the business acumen and music business connections to make the right things happen. So when Bill began singing Andy Hewitt’s praises months before we would meet the young Andy Hewitt at Flipper’s Roller Disco in West Hollywood we were ready to buy whatever Andy might be selling. Together we witnessed Prince shock the dense-packed, young crowd as he dazzled in nothing but a trench coat, bikini undies, a garter belt and high heeled boots. Starting that night a bond developed between Andy, Bill and Devo. Andy as it turned out was an “influencer” 30 years before the term was ever hatched. He had a natural instinct for promoting new music. His parties were legendary, always curated with a spicy mix of old and new Hollywood and a big dollop of “beautiful people”. Recounting those pre-aides fast times now seem apocryphal – a parallel reality to the devolved present. As Devo soared professionally so did Andy and Bill. They enabled the best concerts Devo ever performed. But the Hollywood Bowl, for whatever reason having nothing to do with Andy’s efforts, remained elusive. Whether it was because a theatrical, Multi-media Devo required playing after dark, or touring schedules around the world refused to align with the Bowl’s available dates, or filling 18 thousand seats seemed daunting as Devo drifted apart from main stream culture, Devo at the Bowl never happened – until November 18th and 19th 2025 headlining with the B-52’s. Those two epic, sold out shows were a real homecoming for Devo -full circle. Having joined forces with Bill Silva and Live Nation decades earlier Andy was finally able to lasso DEVO and put us on stage at the BOWL! The incredible after party seemed like a time warp as Bill Gerber, Andy Hewitt and DEVO celebrated with a champagne toast. It tasted like 1981!” – Devo

“Andy and Bill have turned the Hollywood Bowl into the go-to and most enjoyable place to see the best of popular music in Southern California. They have created a family environment and have always taken great care of the artists we represent. Here’s to the next decade or two.” – John Branca, Ziffren Brittenham LLP

“I’ve been doing shows with Andy and Bill since my very earliest days with Oingo Boing. I’m still doing shows with them 45+ years later! With them in my corner, I have done 13 ‘Nightmare Before Christmas’ concerts at the Hollywood Bowl and when I decided to perform as a solo artist after a multi-decade break, they provided some of my most memorable nights ever performing at the Bowl. Thank you Andy & Bill.” – Danny Elfman

“People often ask about the best place to see a show, and my answer hasn’t changed in a longtime: the Hollywood Bowl. The stunning setting plays a part, but it’s Andy and Bill’s dedication to crafting an unforgettable experience for everyone who ventures up the hill for the night, whether they’re taking the stage or a seat, that keeps my answer unchanged.” – Mike Greisch, THE·TEAM (Dave Matthews Band, Phish)

“Andy, from that day in 1981 when I rear-ended your car on La Cienega, we have been close! Our career paths have moved in beautifully parallel directions and together we have produced and witnessed many amazing musical events over the years. You and Bill’s names are now synonymous with all the cool shows at the Hollywood Bowl and you are always our first call for the ‘LA play.’ Congratulations – No one deserves the recognition more, as nobody does it better!” – John Taylor, Duran Duran

“Andy and Bill understand what it takes to put on a great show, but they also realize, at the heart of it all, it’s about people, relationships and creating moments that last. Andy and Bill have always brought the same things to everything they do: incredible passion, integrity, creativity and, most importantly, a genuine love for the artists and the music.” – Lionel Richie & Bruce Eskowitz, Red Light Management

“I was at Elliot Roberts’ Lookout Management when Andy came back into my life, running into each other at Flipper’s Roller Boogie Palace in West Hollywood. Andy was ready to make his mark in music, and we discussed that South Bay was an underserved market for concerts. Andy was prescient enough to find the right location, Annabelle’s Redondo Beach. We started giving him dates which went beyond the original club and into theaters and arenas. Andy quickly became a fixture in the Southern California market and Lookout continued to work with him and, eventually, his partner Bill Silva. It was the beginning of a relationship with the artists and the descendants of Lookout that has lasted until today and included Tom Petty’s final concerts when he played three sold-out nights at the Hollywood Bowl.” – Bill Gerber, Lookout Management

“Bill and Andy have wrangled the Bowl for 35 years, surviving Presidents, record labels, agents, promoters and an entire industry that his them up for tickets. In all seriousness, they are living proof that good guys win in the long run. Throughout it all, they conducted themselves with class, deep knowledge and gentlemanly dealings. Now, about that pair for Andrea Bocelli…” – Donald Passman, Gang, Tyre, Ramer, Brown & Passman, Inc.

“I’ve known Bill for more than 40 years, and that kind of friendship is built on trust, shared history and knowing you’re in good hands. I can’t imagine Willie’s 90th birthday, or Willie’s performance with the LA Phil doing ‘Healing Hands of Time,’ happening anywhere else. Bill has a feel for the artist and the moment. But if I’m being honest, I like doing shows there because I just like hanging out with Bill.” – Mark Rothbaum, Mark Rothbaum & Associates (Willie Nelson)

_Originally reported by [Pollstar](https://news.pollstar.com/2026/10/20/talkin-bout-the-bowl-industry-artists-pay-tribute/)._