COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 1, 2025--
Venu Holding Corporation ("VENU" or the “Company”) (NYSE American: VENU), a developer, owner, and operator of upscale live music venues and premium hospitality destinations, today announced it will host the official groundbreaking ceremony for The Sunset Amphitheater at McKinney powered by EIGHT Beer, on Friday, June 13, 2025. While construction began in April, the invite-only ceremony will be a celebratory milestone marking McKinney’s official welcome of this premium landmark entertainment destination.
This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20250501157957/en/
Strategically located northeast of Dallas-Fort Worth near Interstate 75 and Highway 121, The Sunset Amphitheater at McKinney closed on its 46-acre site in January 2025. The multi-seasonal ultra-lux venue is being developed as part of a public-private partnership between VENU, the City of McKinney, the McKinney Economic Development Corporation, and the McKinney Community Development Corporation. Slated to open in 2026, the $300 million venue is projected to generate more than $3 billion in economic impact over its first 10 years of operation—spurring job creation, local tourism, tax revenues to support schools and public services, infrastructure improvements, small business growth, and broader community development.
“We’re beyond excited to celebrate this moment with our partners, stakeholders, investors, and the incredible crews making this all possible,” said J.W. Roth, Founder and CEO of VENU. “Watching this project come to life is truly special. This is our biggest and most luxurious development yet, and we’re so proud to bring it to this community as we elevate McKinney to the epicenter of live music in Texas. We’re not just turning dirt—we’re turning heads as we kick off this remarkable journey together.”
The amphitheater will seat up to 20,000 fans at full capacity and includes an innovative multi-season configuration for more intimate events that will accommodate around 5,000 guests—enabling year-round programming and diverse offerings. The Sunset Amphitheater powered by EIGHT Beer puts fans in the center of the action, promising to elevate the experience from the moment they arrive. Premium features include LuxeFire Suites, the exclusive members-only Aikman Club ( detailed below ), and a stunning canopied roof designed with innovative heating capabilities—providing protection from inclement weather without compromising that iconic outdoor music experience. Guests will also enjoy elevated food and beverage options and so much more.
“This new music venue is a huge win for McKinney,” said Mayor George Fuller. “It’s going to bring incredible energy to our city by boosting tourism, creating jobs, and giving us the chance to welcome some of the biggest names in music. More than that, it’s another big step in building on the vibrant arts and culture scene we’re so proud of. McKinney isn’t just growing; it’s becoming a true destination.”
In collaboration with NFL Hall of Famer and EIGHT Beer Founder Troy Aikman, the venue boasts The Aikman Club —a beautifully appointed members-only club offering world-class cuisine and nestled at the very center of the amphitheater. This one-of-a-kind space offers unmatched views, premium seating, and an array of high-end amenities for its elite members.
About Venu Holding Corporation
Venu Holding Corporation ("VENU") (NYSE American: VENU), founded by Colorado Springs entrepreneur and 2023 VenuesNow All-star, J.W. Roth, is a premier hospitality and live music venue developer dedicated to crafting luxury, artist-centric, experience-driven entertainment destinations. VENU’s campuses in Colorado Springs, Colorado, and Gainesville, Georgia, each feature Bourbon Brothers Smokehouse and Tavern, The Hall at Bourbon Brothers, and unique to Colorado Springs, Notes Eatery and the 9,570-seat Ford Amphitheater. Expanding with new multi-season Sunset Amphitheaters in Oklahoma and Texas, VENU’s upcoming large-scale venues will host between 12,500 and 20,000 guests, continuing VENU’s vision of redefining the premium live entertainment experience. Click here to view our company overview.
VENU has been recognized nationally by The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, Denver Post, Billboard, VenuesNow, and Variety for its innovative and disruptive approach to live entertainment. Through strategic partnerships with industry leaders such as AEG Presents and NFL Hall of Famer and Founder of EIGHT Elite Light Beer, Troy Aikman, VENU continues to shape the future of the entertainment landscape. For more information, visit venu.live
Forward-Looking Statements
Certain statements in this press release constitute "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the federal securities laws. Words such as "may," "might," "will," "should," "believe," "expect," "anticipate," "estimate," "continue," "predict," "forecast," "project," "plan," "intend" or similar expressions, or statements regarding intent, belief, or current expectations, are forward-looking statements. While the Company believes these forward-looking statements are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on any such forward-looking statements, which are based on information available to us on the date of this release. These forward-looking statements are based upon current estimates and assumptions and are subject to various risks and uncertainties, including without limitation those set forth in the Company's filings with the SEC, not limited to Risk Factors relating to its business contained therein. Thus, actual results could be materially different. The Company expressly disclaims any obligation to update or alter statements whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by law.
Sunset Amphitheater at McKinney Official Groundbreaking Ceremony
Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powellsaid Sunday the Department of Justice has served the central bank with subpoenas and threatened it with a criminal indictment over his testimony this summer about the Fed’s building renovations.
The move represents an unprecedented escalation in President Donald Trump’s battle with the Fed, an independent agency he's repeatedly attacked for not cutting its key interest rate as sharply as he prefers. The renewed fight will likely rattle financial markets Monday and could over time escalate borrowing costs for mortgages and other loans.
The subpoenas relate to Powell’s testimony before the Senate Banking Committee in June, the Fed chair said, regarding the Fed’s $2.5 billion renovation of two office buildings, a project Trump has criticized as excessive.
Here's the latest:
Stocks are falling on Wall Street after Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said the Department of Justice had served the central bank with subpoenas and threatened it with a criminal indictment over his testimony about the Fed’s building renovations.
The S&P 500 fell 0.3% in early trading Monday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 384 points, or 0.8%, and the Nasdaq composite fell 0.2%.
Powell characterized the threat of criminal charges as pretexts to undermine the Fed’s independence in setting interest rates, its main tool for fighting inflation. The threat is the latest escalation in President Trump’s feud with the Fed.
▶ Read more about the financial markets
She says she had “a very good conversation” with Trump on Monday morning about topics including “security with respect to our sovereignties.”
Last week, Sheinbaum had said she was seeking a conversation with Trump or U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio after the U.S. president made comments in an interview that he was ready to confront drug cartels on the ground and repeated the accusation that cartels were running Mexico.
Trump’s offers of using U.S. forces against Mexican cartels took on a new weight after the Trump administration deposed Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro. Sheinbaum was expected to share more about their conversation later Monday.
A leader of the Canadian government is visiting China this week for the first time in nearly a decade, a bid to rebuild his country’s fractured relations with the world’s second-largest economy — and reduce Canada’s dependence on the United States, its neighbor and until recently one of its most supportive and unswerving allies.
The push by Prime Minster Mark Carney, who arrives Wednesday, is part of a major rethink as ties sour with the United States — the world’s No. 1 economy and long the largest trading partner for Canada by far.
Carney aims to double Canada’s non-U.S. exports in the next decade in the face of President Trump’s tariffs and the American leader’s musing that Canada could become “the 51st state.”
▶ Read more about relations between Canada and China
The comment by a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson came in response to a question at a regular daily briefing. President Trump has said he would like to make a deal to acquire Greenland, a semiautonomous region of NATO ally Denmark, to prevent Russia or China from taking it over.
Tensions have grown between Washington, Denmark and Greenland this month as Trump and his administration push the issue and the White House considers a range of options, including military force, to acquire the vast Arctic island.
Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen has warned that an American takeover of Greenland would mark the end of NATO.
▶ Read more about the U.S. and Greenland
Trump said Sunday that he is “inclined” to keep ExxonMobil out of Venezuela after its top executive was skeptical about oil investment efforts in the country after the toppling of former President Nicolás Maduro.
“I didn’t like Exxon’s response,” Trump said to reporters on Air Force One as he departed West Palm Beach, Florida. “They’re playing too cute.”
During a meeting Friday with oil executives, Trump tried to assuage the concerns of the companies and said they would be dealing directly with the U.S., rather than the Venezuelan government.
Some, however, weren’t convinced.
“If we look at the commercial constructs and frameworks in place today in Venezuela, today it’s uninvestable,” said Darren Woods, CEO of ExxonMobil, the largest U.S. oil company.
An ExxonMobil spokesperson did not immediately respond Sunday to a request for comment.
▶ Read more about Trump’s comments on ExxonMobil
Trump’s motorcade took a different route than usual to the airport as he was departing Florida on Sunday due to a “suspicious object,” according to the White House.
The object, which the White House did not describe, was discovered during security sweeps in advance of Trump’s arrival at Palm Beach International Airport.
“A further investigation was warranted and the presidential motorcade route was adjusted accordingly,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a statement Sunday.
The president, when asked about the package by reporters, said, “I know nothing about it.”
Anthony Guglielmi, the spokesman for U.S. Secret Service, said the secondary route was taken just as a precaution and that “that is standard protocol.”
▶ Read more about the “suspicious object”
Trump said Iran wants to negotiate with Washington after his threat to strike the Islamic Republic over its bloody crackdown on protesters, a move coming as activists said Monday the death toll in the nationwide demonstrations rose to at least 544.
Iran had no direct reaction to Trump’s comments, which came after the foreign minister of Oman — long an interlocutor between Washington and Tehran — traveled to Iran this weekend. It also remains unclear just what Iran could promise, particularly as Trump has set strict demands over its nuclear program and its ballistic missile arsenal, which Tehran insists is crucial for its national defense.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, speaking to foreign diplomats in Tehran, insisted “the situation has come under total control” in fiery remarks that blamed Israel and the U.S. for the violence, without offering evidence.
▶ Read more about the possible negotiations and follow live updates
Fed Chair Powell said Sunday the DOJ has served the central bank with subpoenas and threatened it with a criminal indictment over his testimony this summer about the Fed’s building renovations.
The move represents an unprecedented escalation in Trump’s battle with the Fed, an independent agency he has repeatedly attacked for not cutting its key interest rate as sharply as he prefers. The renewed fight will likely rattle financial markets Monday and could over time escalate borrowing costs for mortgages and other loans.
The subpoenas relate to Powell’s testimony before the Senate Banking Committee in June, the Fed chair said, regarding the Fed’s $2.5 billion renovation of two office buildings, a project that Trump has criticized as excessive.
Powell on Sunday cast off what has up to this point been a restrained approach to Trump’s criticisms and personal insults, which he has mostly ignored. Instead, Powell issued a video statement in which he bluntly characterized the threat of criminal charges as simple “pretexts” to undermine the Fed’s independence when it comes to setting interest rates.
▶ Read more about the subpoenas
President Donald Trump speaks to reporters while in flight on Air Force One to Joint Base Andrews, Md., Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)
President Donald Trump waves after arriving on Air Force One from Florida, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, at Joint Base Andrews, Md. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)
