Live Nation To Offer Plant-Based Everything Legendary Patties At Summer Concerts

Summer 2022 marks the start of Live Nation partnering with Everything Legendary to offer plant-based burgers to concertgoers. The vegan company rose to fame following a successful pitch on Shark Tank, which saw Mark Cuban invest $300,000 for a 22 percent stake. The Black-owned startup has since found visibility in Publix, Target, Safeway, and Ralphs.

Everything Legendary was founded by three friends who wanted to empower the Black community to enjoy healthy food. The startup will now be providing the majority of Live Nation events with its pea and hemp-based burger patties. The collaboration was announced earlier this month, with Live Nation citing investment into Everything Legendary as a route to securing its products.

Catering to plant-based concertgoers 

“Fans create lifelong memories enjoying live music, and everything they enjoy while at the show has the potential to make that memory even better,” Tom See, COO of Venue Nation told The Root. “By partnering with Everything Legendary we’re excited to bring plant-based items to our events so fans have even more sustainable options to choose from.”

For Everything Legendary, the partnership allows the thrill of healthy food to be shared outside the Black community, contributing to widespread dietary change. The brand will be put in front of millions of potential new consumers. This is a neatly cyclical nod to the fact that the entertainment sector initially helped it to gain prominence and now, continues to do so.

“We’re on a mission to not just win over taste buds but also eating habits, encouraging people across the country to adopt healthier alternatives, and I’ve been especially proud that we’ve helped power this movement in the Black community where veganism is on the rise,” Duane “Myko” Cheers, Everything Legendary’s co-founder told The Root. “With the investment and partnership of Live Nation we’ll be serving up our amazing flavor to millions of music fans.”

The appointment of Def Jam Recordings co-founder Russell Simmons to the Everything Legendary board cements the connection between the startup and the music sector.

Growing the Everything Legendary brand

In February, the plant-based meat manufacturer closed a $6 million Series A raise. Mark Cuban participated again, facilitating company-wide growth. Everything Legendary cited intentions to significantly increase its retail presence while developing brand new product ranges.

At the time, the startup was exclusively engaged in the production of burger patties and ground beef analogues. The founders revealed that with the fresh funding they planned to move into chicken wings, sausages and breakfast patties. Every line will follow the company’s clean label mandate, alongside the inclusion of surprising ingredients. Its beef substitutes contain raisins and orange peel, amongst other unconventional additions. 

Shark Tank as a plant-based launchpad

Though not always intentionally, Shark Tank is increasingly becoming a viable platform for plant-based companies to gain the exposure they need to disrupt the meat industry. 

Last month, Project Pollo was pitched to the panel of sharks, following Mark Cuban personally suggesting the founder should apply to appear. Founder and CEO Lucas Bradbury represented his startup but came away without a deal. The sharks cited concern over the speed at which Bradbury is trying to grow his company, who then doubled down on his assertion that he is aiming to put Chick-fil-A out of business. Project Pollo operates a pay-what-you-can pricing structure and takes over locations vacated by meat-centric fast-food companies. The startup aims to have 100 operational restaurants by 2025.

Also leaving the show without a deal was Deborah Torres, in 2019. The founder of vegan fried chicken brand Atlas Monroe refused a $1 million buyout offer from Mark Cuban. The decision proved prudent as today, the company is the world’s largest plant-based fried chicken manufacturer, producing more than one million pounds of product every year.

All photos by Everything Legendary.