Albany Med wins naming deal for SPAC, Live Nation events

SARATOGA SPRINGS - Saratoga Performing Arts Center and Live Nation announced that Albany Med Health System will be the new naming partner for Live Nation events at the 60-year-old venue on Thursday morning. The partnership will launch this summer.

Though Live Nation declined to discuss specifics, including any financial pledges, per company policy, Sean Argaman, vice president of sales for the eastern region, confirmed it is a multiyear commitment. Broadview Federal Credit Union was the previous naming rights partner and concluded the term of its agreement last season.

In addition to branding, Argaman said Albany Med will sponsor free attendance for kids at some Live Nation concerts, launch a fast lane access benefit for nurses, and support Live Nation's designated driver initiatives.

For Albany Med CEO Dan Pickett, who grew up in Mechanicville, the venue holds beloved teenage memories.

"I learned the language of Dave (Matthews) here," he joked.

The partnership also mirrors values held by Albany Med and Saratoga Hospital, according to Pickett and Jill VanKuren, CEO of Saratoga Hospital, who stressed that the arts are integral to health. Saratoga Hospital became a member of the Albany Med Health System in 2017.

"This is a place where generations gather and have been gathering," Pickett said. "The arts are an area that brings everyone together. It allows us to pause and take a break and recharge. We all know how important that is. It helps strengthen our emotional, social (well-being), and that all contributes to our physical well-being."

VanKuren echoed the sentiment.

"SPAC is more than a venue; it is part of the identity of Saratoga," VanKuren said. "It's where families gather, where memories are made, for music and culture to bring us together. At Saratoga Hospital, we believe health is about more than what happens inside the hospital walls. It's about supporting places and experiences that strengthen our community."

The new partnership also aligns with SPAC's 60th anniversary season.

"Collaboration is truly at the heart of everything we do," said SPAC CEO Elizabeth Sobol. "In the years since COVID, we've all been reminded just how essential live performances are, not only for joy and connection, but for our collective health and well-being."

Live Nation has been a partner with SPAC since 2000 when, in an effort to expand the nonprofit's revenue stream, SPAC brought what was then Clear Channel Entertainment aboard to help promote popular music events.

In the 26 years since, Live Nation has grown to become one of the world's biggest concert promoters. In 2010, Ticketmaster, one of the world's biggest ticketing companies, and Live Nation formed Live Nation Entertainment through a controversial - and, currently, federally contested - merger that has been accused of monopolizing the market since its inception.

Last summer, one of Live Nation's most unpopular policies banning outside lawn chairs took effect at SPAC, making it one of the last Live Nation partner amphitheaters to do so.

For an up-to-date list of announced Live Nation events at SPAC, visit spac.org.

Copyright 2026 Tribune Content Agency. All Rights Reserved.

This story was originally published February 20, 2026 at 3:51 PM.