William F. (Billy) Levy was just 16 years old when he promoted his first event, a battle of local bands that raised more than $20,000.00 for a food bank.
After earning a degree from the University of Texas, Billy ran off and joined the circus. Working as a promoter for Feld Entertainment he gained valuable event marketing experience promoting Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey and Disney on Ice. Billy worked throughout the Northeastern US finishing his Feld tenure in the New York Metro area.
After several years on the road, Billy returned home to Houston to lead the business development and marketing departments of the Houston Aeros Hockey Club. With the Aeros, Billy earned a reputation for creating inventive sponsor-based promotions that led the team to all-time highs in sponsorship revenue. Billy managed sponsorship promotions for Anheuser-Busch, Coca-Cola, AIM Funds, Shipley Donuts and others. He also created the award winning “Houston Aeros Hockey: Check It Out” ad campaign. Billy most enjoyed being a part of the team during the 1999 championship season, and has his championship ring on display in his office.
The concert business came calling in 2000, and Billy joined SFX Entertainment/Clear Channel Entertainment/Live Nation, as a regional director of sponsorship sales, where he created sponsorship programs for major brands like AT&T, Chrysler, Reliant Energy, Memorial Hermann Hospital and others.
His success led to a promotion, and Billy was named Vice President of Business Development for the Internet division of CCE/Live Nation. He spearheaded the national launch of the on-line loyalty program, getAccess and was later named General Manager of the company’s ticketing division, NEXT Ticketing (now Live Nation Tickets).
During his time with CCE/Live Nation, Billy executed ticket-based promotions for American Express, Kraft Foods, Doritos, Monster Energy, Jägermeister, Citi, Best Buy, Verizon Wireless and WaMu. He also managed fan club ticketing for world-renowned music artists Trans-Siberian Orchestra, Josh Groban, John Fogarty and Ozzy Osborne. He was instrumental in the successful distribution of more than 425,000 free tickets for Ozzfest 2007, one of the largest promotional ticket giveaways in history.
In 2007, Billy was hired by ODS-Petrodata to lead the business operations for EnergyCurrent.com, where he lead the website to prominence among Oil and Gas News publishers.
Billy founded Levy Marketing Group in 2008. He is married with two kids and lives in Bellaire, TX.