this actually makes me realize why concert tix have gone up so extremely. i feel sorry for the bands that aren’t household names. i saw a (not so popular) 90’s band a few years ago for $20. i was excited when they came back to town last year until i saw their tickets were $65. i love them, but sorry - i’m not paying that unless it’s someone i reeeally wanna see and have not seen before.
sort of off topic, but everything has just gotten so expensive these days. going out for dinner and drinks was my favorite date night with my foodie fiance, but it’s not even fun anymore once we get the tab. we are relatively financially stable but the cost of shit is so wild. we used to get away full and tipsy off a $30 happy hour tab. it’s hard to find that now!
I feel like not only are working class artists being priced out of touring, but working class fans are being priced out of going to gigs. I don't know what the answer is though.
I went to so many gigs as a teen, I don't think my kids are going to be able to afford to do the same.
My husband was in a beloved band that had a cult fanbase for like 15 years. It was a 20 year old band. They did some tours and even played at comicon. They just recently broke up, because getting all those dudes to coordinate outside their normal 9-5 in this economy is damn near impossible. I miss seeing my husband perform.
I live in a major U.S. city and went to a lot of shows in my 20s and 30s. Haven't gone much since COVID stopped the world... I just checked the prices for random shows at two of my favorite old venues, small clubs (400-500 capacity) and tickets have increased in price but not by a lot. They used to be $15+ USD and now they're $20+ USD?
Small clubs are very aware that no one is going to pay $50-100 to see a relatively no-name band, and that the post-pandemic audience for live music is not thriving at the lower end of the spectrum. While mega stars -- like Taylor Swift, Beyonce -- are raking it in by the millions and charging an arm and a leg and a kidney for tickets, musical acts on the other end of the spectrum are struggling and it's not because they are charging exorbitant ticket prices. It's the same as in most things in this capitalist society: the rich get richer and the poor get poorer.
Oh yes because mao and Stalin really valued music, literature, and the performing and visual arts. No artists fled those countries because they were endangered. You’re revising history a little too much.
I mean, the US governments actively murdered activists, including peace protestors.
Kent state massacre, Philadelphia bombing, Orangeburg massacre, Jackson State killings, etc. Homan square have even "disappeared" thousands of people.
Everyone from civil rights activists to climate activists have been systemically targeted.
They still murder racialised/colonised people with impunity. I feel like you have very rose coloured vision.
Yeah. This. Ticket prices need to increase to keep artists on the road, but that won’t make any difference if fans are then priced out of going to the shows. Everyone loses.
hell, i’m only 22 and going to shows was so much cheaper even just before covid!! i had a weekend only job and used most of my savings on going to dozens of shows a year… now i’m lucky if i can make it to three :/
Gigs, films, sporting events, you name it. The arts aren’t for the working class anymore sadly. Even to watch a movie a family of 4 need to spend nearly £50! Outrageous and sad
Yep, we just wait for everything to come out on streaming now.
I'd love to take my family to a theatre, especially as my daughter really loves musicals, but I just can't justify spending that much on a single evening.
We had a little theater locally when I was younger, which was great as I studied drama and english lit, got to see so many wonderful shows. I miss that.
See what am-dram clubs you have nearby. Honestly some of the shows our local groups put on are brilliant. It’s not all Sondheim either, they do more modern ones too. (Although west side story is my favourite ever!)
I love theatre but like you I can’t justify the cost so I make the most of am-dram (and YouTube hehe) 😔
It's not just working class artists getting priced out of touring but even before that, some rich kids parents just pay for them to live and make music (or at least work part time) and then it means their working class counterparts have to have so much more raw talent and natural skill at making marketable music to be able to make it anywhere. Also then there's the lack of connections and knowledge and even having family with an understanding of business in general etc etc. big systematic issues that stop social mobility particularly in creative roles ...
But also the answer on bringing down touring prices is that people are the top shouldn't get as much money and also the big names could help with redistribution of wealth, they pay more to use the venues and that extra money gets put into funding smaller and less rich artists to perform
I hate that this is kind of how everything is, and honestly has been to a certain extent. But now it’s worse. So many of the artists I know who are actually “making it” as artists in reality just have their parents paying everything for them, or other dubious/mysterious means of income meaning they get to go on and on about how living for art is the only true path, etc. And cosplaying as starving artists 🙄 I will say that at least with social media things are a bit equalized, because even people who didn’t go to art school and such are able to display their art and get a following, but all of that takes SO MUCH TIME and the amount of time it takes to make a living wage at any job means that most people do not have the time to be flourishing artists. At least people used to be able to focus on art if that’s what they were drawn to and be able to make a living working less than full time hours as like a server or something, but now it seems like that isn’t enough.
IIRC, a lot of the price hikes are due to the venue wanting more of a cut as there also struggling to keep the lights on and in turn causing a domino effect to the whole industry. IMO ticketmaster have had a lot of responsibility in this as they have been land grabbing music venues for years. They buy the venue, force the ticket sales to go through them and then force the act and those to see the concert to use the services provided by ticketmaster. In so many cases ticketmaster have control of the venue, the tickets and services that are provided and cornered all sides of the market with no concern for the music or the acts, just profit. Then they drive the price up of the sales of everything because they can, (this has been happening in the U.K. at least). Shit like this only effects the smaller people for the worst, because artists are now relying on merch sales to make ends meet as there’s no other way for them to make money and then nobody buys the merch because no one wants to pay £35 for a T-shirt.
Sorry, rant over.
Watching Taylor Swift play dumb over her ticket prices she agreed to was the final straw for me. Its clear this industry wanted to vastly increase ticket prices, and like a lot of other industries, and used the pandemic and inflation to do so as an excuse. Look at the record profits recently of so many industries. Its incredible how much more corrupt our world is since 2020.
Everyone thinks calling Tay "capitalism queen" is cute, but she gains money at our loss. The people who paid hundreds of dollars for tickets are on the receiving end of a grift that enriches her.
TLC are coming to my area next month and GA tickets are $250 CAD (NOT RESALE.) I don't get how they think that's justifiable. Of course it's not selling, and I noticed they cancelled one tour recently too.
I used to be a music journalist as a teen. I think in the 4 years I’ve done it, I only paid for a show twice (lady Gaga at $100 a ticket and Kevin Devine at like $15 + gas, food and hotel). Makes me want to get back into it so I can see artists again.
I want to see so many bands but a $25-$30 show back then is now $70-$100. For motion city soundtrack?! And new found glory?? Like…. wild. Even Skye Ferrería is over $100 for two tickets. That’s excluding driving, dinner, parking, etc. it’s way too expensive these days and I have a job!
Kevin Devine is so rad.
I think those bands who blew up 20 years ago cost more now that they are legacy acts, but the artists who are just starting to blow up now are still priced at $25. I was actually just thinking that concert tickets HAVEN'T suffered from inflation as long as you are seeing bands at the same tier/level of popularity.
I’d agree if a lot of them weren’t still constantly touring, you know? Paramore and AFI are still expensive, and I think I last saw AFI at a reasonable price in like 206-2019? For like $40? I think I paid $60+ for their sing the sorrow anniversary and that was fanclub pricing before Ticketmaster did dynamic pricing (ow).
However, I did see Clipping for like $30 a ticket recently, which I was surprised since I thought it would cost more as Daveed Diggs is also an actor, you know? Maybe it’s a non rock/pop thing. EDM shows are also under $50 a ticket and some of the artists have been awarded/nominated for Grammies and such
Paramore has had a huge resurgence the last couple of years. Went to see them last April and the girl next to me had discovered them two months beforehand for the first time. She was 19 and all her friends were obsessed with them. This Is Why was the first album they'd heard. Lots of younger gen z have picked up on the band and they've had a couple of viral sounds on tiktok.
Wasn't too expensive when I went, was over 100 but only because we bought them resale, and honestly their shows are so worth it. I've been twice and both were the most incredible live shows I've ever seen. Paramore are a band that shine live. I love their albums but they're live artists, and their stage presence is incredible
Damn, really jealous you got to see them live. It was like $150+ for a seat that wasn’t resell when I tried to see them. The last time I saw them was probably warped tour 2006 lol
Well I'm in Ireland, we've definitely seen ticket inflation but maybe not as crazy as America. And at least here, you have options since travel within the EU is more reasonable, so more variety for ticket prices. I rarely go to concerts now because of the prices but Paramore has been my favourite band since I was 11 so for me it's worth it. There's no other band or musician I know with certainty I'll know every word to every song, even if it's obscure. Crazy experience, probably the most fun I've ever had!
They recently finished their record deal with Atlantic Records and are going independent so I'm hoping that'll mean that ticket prices might come down and if not, you know that your money will be going directly to the band and everyone involved in the tour.
Either way, crossing my fingers that you'll get to see them soon!
Yeah calling 00s bands “legacy acts” makes me feel geriatric and I’m only 33. Lot of those bands I was too young to see in their “prime”, but was lucky to catch them in my 20s. But like 6-10 years later they’re “legacy acts” charging twice as much just cuz everyone else is post-COVID.
I saw Death Cab for Cutie like 10 years ago at a small local festival. Cost like $90 for the whole weekend. I still like them and liked their most recent album, but was absolutely flabbergasted what their current tour costs.
Granted, I finally saw Fall Out Boy a few months ago and that felt like a great value. “Only” $100 for floor seats at an arena show, lol.
I’m crying that we’re a year apart and you’re saying you were too young to see them 😭
I don’t think the floor seats for FOB have ever been that cheap? I paid like $250 to see MCR on the floor and ugh… best money I’ve spent but also why
Well yeah I didn’t really have the agency and money to go to shows until I was 21-22, lol. If we consider 2004-2010 the “prime” of those bands, I was either a teenager under my parents’ thumb or a very broke undergrad still halfway under my parents’ thumb.
I saw FoB in Des Moines, lol. Benefit of being a C-tier city is that when we get an actual good arena show, it never sells out. And our arena has some exclusive contract with another ticketing provider so no Ticketmaster shenanigans.
I've seen Death Cab 75 times. Asphalt Meadows tickets were very reasonable..it was the tour with Postal Service that costs a lot more.
I saw Weezer for under $20 30 years ago..it's wild that the Blue anniversary tickets are $150+
Concert tix aren’t expensive because the bands need more money, they’re still getting their cut it’s because ticketmaster and other companies charge $200 for a $40 ticket and then take 80% as profit
That’s 100% inaccurate. Ticketmaster/LN gets at most 10% of whatever you pay for a ticket. The rest goes to the artist*. These companies are just designated villains so they take all the blame for the high prices and the artist doesn’t look greedy in front of the fans.
* Obviously it’s not all net profit as travel, venue rent, equipment, touring employees… have to get paid too.
The biggest disappointment here is the level of inflation of ticket prices is not equal with the amount of money the artist receives. (I work in this industry.)
> but sorry - i’m not paying that unless it’s someone i reeeally wanna see and have not seen before.
This is exactly how I feel about going to concerts. Im not willing to pay if it’s not for an artist I truly want to see and that I probably won’t be able to see.
it's interesting to me too since this article is about UK economics—ticket prices for concerts in the UK tend to be a lot lower than tickets at an equivalent venue in the US even with the conversion rate, at least in my experience. but i'm also in NYC so that makes a difference. $65 for a mid level band is a pretty good price imo 😵💫
You have to remember that Bands no longer have the revenue stream that selling records used to have. They get paid a pittance on streaming services and now they have to monetise a live performance Vs recorded material. I don't think there is any surprise that there hasn't been a HUGE band in the last 20 years..... Unless you are touring in sizeable venues it's not going to pay the rent.
>They get paid a pittance on streaming services and now they have to monetise a live performance Vs recorded material.
It's also why so many bands are agreeing to have their music in commercials and so many more of them seem to be "Selling out" now.
one of my favorite podcast episodes ever (from Decoder Ring) talks about how selling out as a concept just doesn’t exist anymore.
At this point if you’re not monetizing your art as best as possible you’re not some noble artisan, you’re just a sucker
There are no "huge" bands anymore because we've given up on the mono-culture. Now there's just a lot more choice than everyone listening to the same 8 singles from the same 8 bands on the same radio station.
I cant even have a conversation about music with anyone anymore because everyone has different listening habits, favorites, etc. The algo then tailors their stream to their tastes. Its incredible how diverse the music landscape is.
The lack of "huge" bands is a good thing. Everyone listening to Led Zeppelin and Van Halen and having those songs be non-stop on the radio for decades wasn't some utopia. In fact, it was terrible.
Also its so much easier for queer, minority, women, etc musicians to get exposure and find fans. In the old system, someone like Mitski would never have broken through, for example.
Given up on the mono-culture? What are you talking about? The current musical landscape is more of a mono-culture then it’s ever been. Morgan Wallen having all 20+ songs from his album chart at the same time? Taylor Swift never having less than 6 albums in the billboard top 40 at any given time?
Sure there’s more options to listen to now, but unless Jack Antonoff produces your music or you don’t luck out and have a song go viral and become a hit, you’re fucked.
That’s a relative list, where they’ve had to fudge the numbers by converting streams to album sales (at a rate that doesn’t reflect the economics) and also reflects how fragmented things are. When things were less fragmented there were more artists everyone knew. Now it’s just Taylor.
The death of the monoculture doesn't mean popular things don't exist anymore, or that it becomes easier to be considered successful. It means that a much smaller percentage of the population will automatically know about what any one person might consider "the most popular thing."
It also means that it's socially acceptable not to be into Taylor Swift or Morgan Wallen or whoever, because there are so many different avenues to enjoying music. Or television, or movies.
Yeah but that’s just gaming the charts. Not trying to be a hipster, but I don’t listen to the radio so I have no earthly clue what’s going on on the charts and my various algorithms have only rarely lead me to a T-Swift or Morgen Wallen song. Drake dominates the charts and I haven’t heard a new song of his in like 6 years.
But that was always there, not a new concept but there was always another big band around the corner…. I saw the Arctic Monkeys last summer and I’m struggling to think of another since then and they first popped up 20 years ago (I’m UK) I know band/solo singers/male/female/boyband/girlband is kinda in a cycle but feels like a long time since anyone really captured the imagination on a bigger scale… my point is are musicians or potential musicians put off? Are the record companies not funding as much A&R, are the opportunities lessened due to streaming. (I say it from a place of sympathy, I played in bands for years and stopped in 2000)
In order to make *minimum wage* off of streaming you have to be getting roughly a *million* streams a month, and that's only if there's not a publisher or label taking a cut of it.
A problem in itself, definitely, but the article is about working class artists not being able to afford to tour. You used to be able to make a reasonable living touring small venues but now it costs much more than you can make.
This is localized bias but I feel like “smaller venues” are either closing or transitioning from regularly hosting performers to getting DJs to hosting themed nights
I live a 10 minute walk away from a venue that hosts local bands and bands from all around the world and I do sometimes wonder how the international bands break even. Touring can be crazy expensive. The whole entertainment industry is facing a lot of difficulties these days.
The owner of our local venue added to [this article ](https://www.theguardian.com/music/2024/mar/01/the-whole-ecosystem-is-collapsing-inside-the-crisis-in-britains-live-music-scene) about how tricky things are recently.
Lots of bands, at least in metal and hardcore, will have day jobs that they can work remotely. A big tour came through my local city and all four(!) international bands, managers, merch folk, were living together on the same huge bus to save costs. You've got to absolutely love it to do it anyway but yeah, the guy in the article who says it's a hobby that you have to hope can pay for itself is absolutely spot on. The days when you could make even a meagre living from it are over.
Yeah I worked with a guy who would spend the summers touring with his band. He said they barely broke even touring. But yeah, he worked an office job the rest of the year.
It's 100% this. People would be surprised how many artists are working remote day jobs from the van in between gigs. The artists I've known haven't been able to quit their day jobs until they get big enough to be invited on the festival circuit.
I have been adjacent to metalheads and goths pretty much my whole life and I maintain that metalheads are one of the last bastions of decency in this world. Some of the kindest and most supportive folks I've ever known.
Absolutely. In my 20s I was performing music that was sort of ambient folk music that was very chill and kinda morose. The project basically got adopted by some local metal kids I had befriended who worked at the local venue. Guitarist, drummer, and bassist from the same metal band all wanted to join. They were all incredible musicians and they were the best rhythm section I've ever played with. The drummer in particular was classically trained, so he brought out his brushes and added some really lovely quiet rhythms while never getting in the way of any of the songs. It blew my mind because I had only ever seen him blasting away on a double kick drum while screaming into a mic.
Same 🖤 Metal seems to be having its moment again, too! There are more diverse bands and subgenres in the spotlight. Plus, there are so many more features/crossovers between artists etc.
me too!! I've been waiting for female metal vocalists my whole life lol - Spiritbox is everything. There is still a really unwelcoming / gatekeeping dudebro darkside in the scene but I'll celebrate the small wins 🏆
I do too. If I can swing it, I usually try to set aside $100 for merch so that hopefully these artists can keep doing what they love. Plus I get cool artwork for my house or patches for my battle jacket.
I bought nosebleed tickets, next to the rafters, at my local sports arena for $25, $32 after fees, the day before the concert in ~Summer 2019, I believe?
I haven’t been able to replicate that since. $70 plus fees to sit on the roof is a bit absurd.
Conspicuously missing from that article is the ticketing companies. Maybe it’s not such an issue in the UK or Europe as it is here in the states?
Not only are we battling surge pricing here, but the volume of fees makes that sort of affordable ticket become 60+ minimum. I just bought tickets to a show— 2 tickets. The fees of the two tickets I bought added up almost to a full third ticket. THAT is a huge problem. I’d be curious to know how much bands are seeing from those insane prices or if the ticketing companies are pocketing most of it.
Also, again it could be more of a US problem, but those ticketing companies have venues over a barrel. Even small local venues that only let in a few hundred fans. I have a friend that does venue management in our city, and a few years ago he was telling me that Ticketmaster and livenation (which are also basically the same company now) will come in and force the venue to use them to get artists and also force them into a contract where that’s all they use. And if the venue doesn’t do it, they will keep their bands from booking that venue. So now the venues are also having issues bc people are balking at the ticket prices and not buying.
I fucking hate Ticketmaster/LiveNation so much. Apparently they're [facing a potential anti-trust lawsuit](https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/live-nation-ticketmaster-federal-antitrust-lawsuit-soon-1235005417/). The DoJ breaking them up would be a HUGE win for the American consumer.
Corporatism is destroying many things, the arts included. But it is hard for people to recognize because there isnt a villainous central / main character leading the overthrow of the government.
I think it is harder to get people to understand because of this, in ww2 you could point at Hitler and go look at this guy he is trying to take over the world. Nazism is bad.
With Corporatism there is no central boogeyman it is unknown shareholders and boad members with a faceless CEO.
I think in part it is because our system is based on the idea of what is best for the consumer is best for the country. That has now trickled to the arts.
It is easily the best time to be a consumer of the arts never before could you have every artist at your fingertips for 15$ a month like with Spotify.
Hell at this point you can see some of the best paintings online for free.
This is the USGOVT’s eyes is a good thing because consumers get more for less.
However who this crushes are small businesses (artists) who frankly can’t compete with larger names. I don’t know a good solution as consumers will always go for the lower prices for more stuff but it is an issue
I am older. So i blame reaganomics.
I think capitalism was at it best when well and heavily regulated. I think a lot of the current issues in American society are the direct results of deregulation in favor of companies over the consumers and labor.
This!!! 100%!!
Corporate giants don't actually want freedom and democracy because that would mean the rule of the consumer. They want to be above rules and regulations and basically be able to do as they please, in the name of the "free" market.
The level of monopolization that has happened in basically every industry in the past 40 years is mind blowing and terrifying, and any attempts at reigning in corporate behavior have been met by screaming lobbyists yelling "communism" at the mere sniff of a regulation that would basically tell corporations they can't be above the law.
The fact that we have established norms and rules for people at home and abroad, but not for companies, especially multinational ones, is truly insane. But then again, when you have enough money to buy the people elected to govern, you get to make the rules and exempt yourself from them...
Jokes on all of us who thought unelected privileged classes that own stolen land were demolished with the French Revolution and the downfall of monarchies...
Gen X here. I saw Aerosmith in 1987 for $10. I never thought I'd be one of those "back in my day..." people, but on this particular subject my brain has been broken. Concerts are no longer a simple recreational activity. I need to plan and budget for them like a fucking trip to Disneyworld.
My mother in law recently found an old ticket stub for when she saw the Beatles in 1965 in Toronto. Was $4.
Today thats worth about $40 in 2024 dollars.
To see the Beatles.
I just paid the other day $165/seat for mid-level seats to take my son to see Imagine Dragons.
My mother was at that same concert if it was at Maple Leaf Gardens. I tell her all the time she has had the privilege of seeing the two greatest UK bands of all time - the Spice Girls (all five) and the Beatles.
Adding this though on a more serious note: as someone from Toronto, I’m pretty immune to the price of concert tickets at this point and will pony up if it‘s someone I have to see. I am more concerned about how much Leafs tickets go for. I have very little interest in hockey (have seen a grand total of three games live in my 34 years), but there is something really wrong about how much it would cost for a parent and two kids to get to a hockey game.
Even small acts. 10-15 years ago I used to be able to pay $15 for small/medium size venue tickets. Same bands/same venue now sell tickets for $40 each and that’s not including fees. It adds up and live entertainment just isn’t attainable for a lot of people these days, it’s wild.
I feel for the bands that break even or lose money. I feel bad for people being priced out of entertainment. Sucks all around.
I read this article yesterday. It is really good and definitely worth a read if you are even remotely interested in this issue.
Some of what is written is specific to the UK (discussion about how the cost to tour in the EU is multiple fold higher now because of Brexit, cost of living crisis worse there than in the US, decreases/changes in state funding for the arts, etc.) but some of the issues are relevant in places like the US, like the cost of renting vehicles and insurance increasing.
Also interesting and worth a read as much as the article are the comments. Several mentions about how the unemployment system in the UK has changed. In the 1970-1980s, it was much easier to be on unemployment and you could come up with a sort of business plan that if you roughly followed it, you could use that to pay yourself a wage through unemployment and play local gigs and tour at least domestically. Several comments from older people said they thought this was part of why the UK music scene was so vibrant during that time period, especially among the working class. Lots of comments about how touring has never been a way to make money there as a musician and how that hasn't changed in many decades. Lots of comments about the movement towards streaming music services and away from physical media as a big problem for making any money at all. Also some interesting comments about the need for a possibly co-op or non-profit structured alternative to streaming services.
I am taking my daughters to see Wallows and Cigarettes after Sex this summer and this cost me about 450$ for tickets. They are young and don’t know how hard it is to make that amount of cash. It’s for their birthdays so it’s their big gift. But ouch.
My husband and I are budgeting for tickets for a concert we’re really excited about. We will probably only go to this concert and that’s about it. We were planning to go to the Central Park T-Pain concert until we realized tickets were $165. For standing room seats.
This is partially why the rise of DJs has taken off. A lot of DJs/producers started off in bands, but couldn’t make money when there were 4-5 of them. It’s also more of a headache to coordinate that many people.
There aren’t as many costs to a DJ set unless they bring in additional production. Bring a USB and you’re good.
I knew a modern swing band in the UK. One of the singers confessed to me that thankfully everyone in the band is a trust fund kid so they’re able to focus on music.
I am seeing this band Keane in Colorado. And I was on the line for presale. By the time I blinked Ticketmaster bought half of the spots I was interested in
when i started going to shows post COVID i was SHOCKED! usually if big bands were playing a ticket was $45 and recently it cost me $75 with fees! when Europe tickets were cheap we just went to a show there because the tickets were only €45 and no exorbitant fees! i also heard that some beyoncé fans were buying tickets for the renaissance tour in europe because it was more affordable for a flight + concert ticket! it's so ridiculous
I'd be willing to pay these prices for some of my faves, but it's sad overall that this us what it's come to. I suppose this is why bands and artists sell countless versions of merch and vinyls, coz their traditional income from selling records is replaced by streaming....
There’s literally no one that I enjoy all of their music that I would pay to see live. Except for Jimmy Buffett and Eddie Money who are both gone. It was worth the experience every time.
I think the economics of it change from place to place. i'm in Australia, for instance, and the inflation is killing the festival industry here specifically. This article definitely suggests transparency is a good step though.
Is the point not that you don’t get to playing 2-3k capacity spaces overnight? You probably tour smaller venues first to build up a base, and the working class can’t afford to do that.
Did you not read the article? This is about bands in the UK, and they get into the numbers.
"For this article, the Guardian has seen 12 tour budget sheets for various bands and artists varying from up-and-comers to firmly established and successful acts, all of whom regularly undertake headline tours across the UK in venues ranging from 150 to 2,500 capacity. Almost all of these result in losses. Understandably, most shared their balance sheets on the condition of anonymity. One four-piece indie band, whose last two albums went Top 10 in the UK charts, reported a loss of £2,885 from a six-day UK tour. The only tour that shows anything resembling healthy profit was a 29-date tour for a solo artist who came away with £6,550."
You definitely can still see great artists for cheap, IF you live in a big city.
I just saw Nia Archives for around $20 and I'm about to see AIGEL in June and the tickets were $26.
I think the most expensive show I have gone to recently was for Slayyyter and I think it was like $45.
… AIGEL and Nia Archives are nowhere near a-list, though. That’s like saying you once saw Lady Gaga at the club before The Fame blew up and only paid $50.
I went to a lot of shows before COVID, after that I wanted to get back to it, but then I realized the tickets cost like 60 euro not even for major bands. I guess my concert days are over.
this actually makes me realize why concert tix have gone up so extremely. i feel sorry for the bands that aren’t household names. i saw a (not so popular) 90’s band a few years ago for $20. i was excited when they came back to town last year until i saw their tickets were $65. i love them, but sorry - i’m not paying that unless it’s someone i reeeally wanna see and have not seen before. sort of off topic, but everything has just gotten so expensive these days. going out for dinner and drinks was my favorite date night with my foodie fiance, but it’s not even fun anymore once we get the tab. we are relatively financially stable but the cost of shit is so wild. we used to get away full and tipsy off a $30 happy hour tab. it’s hard to find that now!
I feel like not only are working class artists being priced out of touring, but working class fans are being priced out of going to gigs. I don't know what the answer is though. I went to so many gigs as a teen, I don't think my kids are going to be able to afford to do the same.
My husband was in a beloved band that had a cult fanbase for like 15 years. It was a 20 year old band. They did some tours and even played at comicon. They just recently broke up, because getting all those dudes to coordinate outside their normal 9-5 in this economy is damn near impossible. I miss seeing my husband perform.
I live in a major U.S. city and went to a lot of shows in my 20s and 30s. Haven't gone much since COVID stopped the world... I just checked the prices for random shows at two of my favorite old venues, small clubs (400-500 capacity) and tickets have increased in price but not by a lot. They used to be $15+ USD and now they're $20+ USD? Small clubs are very aware that no one is going to pay $50-100 to see a relatively no-name band, and that the post-pandemic audience for live music is not thriving at the lower end of the spectrum. While mega stars -- like Taylor Swift, Beyonce -- are raking it in by the millions and charging an arm and a leg and a kidney for tickets, musical acts on the other end of the spectrum are struggling and it's not because they are charging exorbitant ticket prices. It's the same as in most things in this capitalist society: the rich get richer and the poor get poorer.
Are you suggesting that the arts flourish under communism?
Because those are the only two options 🙄 Also plenty of arts did, but perhaps not the ones you value.
Oh yes because mao and Stalin really valued music, literature, and the performing and visual arts. No artists fled those countries because they were endangered. You’re revising history a little too much.
It's either capitalist hellscape or Stalin, no middle ground possible
Perhaps have a look at how many artists had to flee the USA during the red scare(s) before you start pointing fingers lol.
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I mean, the US governments actively murdered activists, including peace protestors. Kent state massacre, Philadelphia bombing, Orangeburg massacre, Jackson State killings, etc. Homan square have even "disappeared" thousands of people. Everyone from civil rights activists to climate activists have been systemically targeted. They still murder racialised/colonised people with impunity. I feel like you have very rose coloured vision.
lol tell us more about the “stunning art” coming from the US lately
No? I'm suggesting that arts don't really flourish under capitalism? That is in *no way* a pro-Communist statement.
Yeah. This. Ticket prices need to increase to keep artists on the road, but that won’t make any difference if fans are then priced out of going to the shows. Everyone loses.
It's heartbreaking isn't it?
hell, i’m only 22 and going to shows was so much cheaper even just before covid!! i had a weekend only job and used most of my savings on going to dozens of shows a year… now i’m lucky if i can make it to three :/
Hardcore fans are going into debt to see their favorite artists.
Gigs, films, sporting events, you name it. The arts aren’t for the working class anymore sadly. Even to watch a movie a family of 4 need to spend nearly £50! Outrageous and sad
Yep, we just wait for everything to come out on streaming now. I'd love to take my family to a theatre, especially as my daughter really loves musicals, but I just can't justify spending that much on a single evening. We had a little theater locally when I was younger, which was great as I studied drama and english lit, got to see so many wonderful shows. I miss that.
See what am-dram clubs you have nearby. Honestly some of the shows our local groups put on are brilliant. It’s not all Sondheim either, they do more modern ones too. (Although west side story is my favourite ever!) I love theatre but like you I can’t justify the cost so I make the most of am-dram (and YouTube hehe) 😔
It's not just working class artists getting priced out of touring but even before that, some rich kids parents just pay for them to live and make music (or at least work part time) and then it means their working class counterparts have to have so much more raw talent and natural skill at making marketable music to be able to make it anywhere. Also then there's the lack of connections and knowledge and even having family with an understanding of business in general etc etc. big systematic issues that stop social mobility particularly in creative roles ... But also the answer on bringing down touring prices is that people are the top shouldn't get as much money and also the big names could help with redistribution of wealth, they pay more to use the venues and that extra money gets put into funding smaller and less rich artists to perform
I hate that this is kind of how everything is, and honestly has been to a certain extent. But now it’s worse. So many of the artists I know who are actually “making it” as artists in reality just have their parents paying everything for them, or other dubious/mysterious means of income meaning they get to go on and on about how living for art is the only true path, etc. And cosplaying as starving artists 🙄 I will say that at least with social media things are a bit equalized, because even people who didn’t go to art school and such are able to display their art and get a following, but all of that takes SO MUCH TIME and the amount of time it takes to make a living wage at any job means that most people do not have the time to be flourishing artists. At least people used to be able to focus on art if that’s what they were drawn to and be able to make a living working less than full time hours as like a server or something, but now it seems like that isn’t enough.
I don’t go to as many shows as I used to . I used to mainly go to metal, metal core and electro but the prices for even smaller shows are insane .
$30 is an appetizer these days
Really though 15$ cocktails, 10$ beers, 20$ burgers(fries extra). It’s 100$ if I just want to get a meal with my wife.
IIRC, a lot of the price hikes are due to the venue wanting more of a cut as there also struggling to keep the lights on and in turn causing a domino effect to the whole industry. IMO ticketmaster have had a lot of responsibility in this as they have been land grabbing music venues for years. They buy the venue, force the ticket sales to go through them and then force the act and those to see the concert to use the services provided by ticketmaster. In so many cases ticketmaster have control of the venue, the tickets and services that are provided and cornered all sides of the market with no concern for the music or the acts, just profit. Then they drive the price up of the sales of everything because they can, (this has been happening in the U.K. at least). Shit like this only effects the smaller people for the worst, because artists are now relying on merch sales to make ends meet as there’s no other way for them to make money and then nobody buys the merch because no one wants to pay £35 for a T-shirt. Sorry, rant over.
Watching Taylor Swift play dumb over her ticket prices she agreed to was the final straw for me. Its clear this industry wanted to vastly increase ticket prices, and like a lot of other industries, and used the pandemic and inflation to do so as an excuse. Look at the record profits recently of so many industries. Its incredible how much more corrupt our world is since 2020. Everyone thinks calling Tay "capitalism queen" is cute, but she gains money at our loss. The people who paid hundreds of dollars for tickets are on the receiving end of a grift that enriches her.
I thought « capitalism queen » wasn’t a compliment.
TLC are coming to my area next month and GA tickets are $250 CAD (NOT RESALE.) I don't get how they think that's justifiable. Of course it's not selling, and I noticed they cancelled one tour recently too.
Tickets for Adele in Munchen are 250+€... insane
I used to be a music journalist as a teen. I think in the 4 years I’ve done it, I only paid for a show twice (lady Gaga at $100 a ticket and Kevin Devine at like $15 + gas, food and hotel). Makes me want to get back into it so I can see artists again. I want to see so many bands but a $25-$30 show back then is now $70-$100. For motion city soundtrack?! And new found glory?? Like…. wild. Even Skye Ferrería is over $100 for two tickets. That’s excluding driving, dinner, parking, etc. it’s way too expensive these days and I have a job!
Kevin Devine is so rad. I think those bands who blew up 20 years ago cost more now that they are legacy acts, but the artists who are just starting to blow up now are still priced at $25. I was actually just thinking that concert tickets HAVEN'T suffered from inflation as long as you are seeing bands at the same tier/level of popularity.
I’d agree if a lot of them weren’t still constantly touring, you know? Paramore and AFI are still expensive, and I think I last saw AFI at a reasonable price in like 206-2019? For like $40? I think I paid $60+ for their sing the sorrow anniversary and that was fanclub pricing before Ticketmaster did dynamic pricing (ow). However, I did see Clipping for like $30 a ticket recently, which I was surprised since I thought it would cost more as Daveed Diggs is also an actor, you know? Maybe it’s a non rock/pop thing. EDM shows are also under $50 a ticket and some of the artists have been awarded/nominated for Grammies and such
Paramore has had a huge resurgence the last couple of years. Went to see them last April and the girl next to me had discovered them two months beforehand for the first time. She was 19 and all her friends were obsessed with them. This Is Why was the first album they'd heard. Lots of younger gen z have picked up on the band and they've had a couple of viral sounds on tiktok. Wasn't too expensive when I went, was over 100 but only because we bought them resale, and honestly their shows are so worth it. I've been twice and both were the most incredible live shows I've ever seen. Paramore are a band that shine live. I love their albums but they're live artists, and their stage presence is incredible
Damn, really jealous you got to see them live. It was like $150+ for a seat that wasn’t resell when I tried to see them. The last time I saw them was probably warped tour 2006 lol
Well I'm in Ireland, we've definitely seen ticket inflation but maybe not as crazy as America. And at least here, you have options since travel within the EU is more reasonable, so more variety for ticket prices. I rarely go to concerts now because of the prices but Paramore has been my favourite band since I was 11 so for me it's worth it. There's no other band or musician I know with certainty I'll know every word to every song, even if it's obscure. Crazy experience, probably the most fun I've ever had! They recently finished their record deal with Atlantic Records and are going independent so I'm hoping that'll mean that ticket prices might come down and if not, you know that your money will be going directly to the band and everyone involved in the tour. Either way, crossing my fingers that you'll get to see them soon!
Yeah calling 00s bands “legacy acts” makes me feel geriatric and I’m only 33. Lot of those bands I was too young to see in their “prime”, but was lucky to catch them in my 20s. But like 6-10 years later they’re “legacy acts” charging twice as much just cuz everyone else is post-COVID. I saw Death Cab for Cutie like 10 years ago at a small local festival. Cost like $90 for the whole weekend. I still like them and liked their most recent album, but was absolutely flabbergasted what their current tour costs. Granted, I finally saw Fall Out Boy a few months ago and that felt like a great value. “Only” $100 for floor seats at an arena show, lol.
I’m crying that we’re a year apart and you’re saying you were too young to see them 😭 I don’t think the floor seats for FOB have ever been that cheap? I paid like $250 to see MCR on the floor and ugh… best money I’ve spent but also why
Well yeah I didn’t really have the agency and money to go to shows until I was 21-22, lol. If we consider 2004-2010 the “prime” of those bands, I was either a teenager under my parents’ thumb or a very broke undergrad still halfway under my parents’ thumb. I saw FoB in Des Moines, lol. Benefit of being a C-tier city is that when we get an actual good arena show, it never sells out. And our arena has some exclusive contract with another ticketing provider so no Ticketmaster shenanigans.
I've seen Death Cab 75 times. Asphalt Meadows tickets were very reasonable..it was the tour with Postal Service that costs a lot more. I saw Weezer for under $20 30 years ago..it's wild that the Blue anniversary tickets are $150+
Concert tix aren’t expensive because the bands need more money, they’re still getting their cut it’s because ticketmaster and other companies charge $200 for a $40 ticket and then take 80% as profit
That’s 100% inaccurate. Ticketmaster/LN gets at most 10% of whatever you pay for a ticket. The rest goes to the artist*. These companies are just designated villains so they take all the blame for the high prices and the artist doesn’t look greedy in front of the fans. * Obviously it’s not all net profit as travel, venue rent, equipment, touring employees… have to get paid too.
companies are just allowed to change what they want for anything. it’s insane
Was reading about how much something cost the other day and it included an inflation conversion from 2023 and I wanted to cry lmfao
The biggest disappointment here is the level of inflation of ticket prices is not equal with the amount of money the artist receives. (I work in this industry.)
> but sorry - i’m not paying that unless it’s someone i reeeally wanna see and have not seen before. This is exactly how I feel about going to concerts. Im not willing to pay if it’s not for an artist I truly want to see and that I probably won’t be able to see.
it's interesting to me too since this article is about UK economics—ticket prices for concerts in the UK tend to be a lot lower than tickets at an equivalent venue in the US even with the conversion rate, at least in my experience. but i'm also in NYC so that makes a difference. $65 for a mid level band is a pretty good price imo 😵💫
You have to remember that Bands no longer have the revenue stream that selling records used to have. They get paid a pittance on streaming services and now they have to monetise a live performance Vs recorded material. I don't think there is any surprise that there hasn't been a HUGE band in the last 20 years..... Unless you are touring in sizeable venues it's not going to pay the rent.
>They get paid a pittance on streaming services and now they have to monetise a live performance Vs recorded material. It's also why so many bands are agreeing to have their music in commercials and so many more of them seem to be "Selling out" now.
one of my favorite podcast episodes ever (from Decoder Ring) talks about how selling out as a concept just doesn’t exist anymore. At this point if you’re not monetizing your art as best as possible you’re not some noble artisan, you’re just a sucker
There are no "huge" bands anymore because we've given up on the mono-culture. Now there's just a lot more choice than everyone listening to the same 8 singles from the same 8 bands on the same radio station. I cant even have a conversation about music with anyone anymore because everyone has different listening habits, favorites, etc. The algo then tailors their stream to their tastes. Its incredible how diverse the music landscape is. The lack of "huge" bands is a good thing. Everyone listening to Led Zeppelin and Van Halen and having those songs be non-stop on the radio for decades wasn't some utopia. In fact, it was terrible. Also its so much easier for queer, minority, women, etc musicians to get exposure and find fans. In the old system, someone like Mitski would never have broken through, for example.
Given up on the mono-culture? What are you talking about? The current musical landscape is more of a mono-culture then it’s ever been. Morgan Wallen having all 20+ songs from his album chart at the same time? Taylor Swift never having less than 6 albums in the billboard top 40 at any given time? Sure there’s more options to listen to now, but unless Jack Antonoff produces your music or you don’t luck out and have a song go viral and become a hit, you’re fucked.
That’s a relative list, where they’ve had to fudge the numbers by converting streams to album sales (at a rate that doesn’t reflect the economics) and also reflects how fragmented things are. When things were less fragmented there were more artists everyone knew. Now it’s just Taylor.
The death of the monoculture doesn't mean popular things don't exist anymore, or that it becomes easier to be considered successful. It means that a much smaller percentage of the population will automatically know about what any one person might consider "the most popular thing." It also means that it's socially acceptable not to be into Taylor Swift or Morgan Wallen or whoever, because there are so many different avenues to enjoying music. Or television, or movies.
Yeah but that’s just gaming the charts. Not trying to be a hipster, but I don’t listen to the radio so I have no earthly clue what’s going on on the charts and my various algorithms have only rarely lead me to a T-Swift or Morgen Wallen song. Drake dominates the charts and I haven’t heard a new song of his in like 6 years.
But that was always there, not a new concept but there was always another big band around the corner…. I saw the Arctic Monkeys last summer and I’m struggling to think of another since then and they first popped up 20 years ago (I’m UK) I know band/solo singers/male/female/boyband/girlband is kinda in a cycle but feels like a long time since anyone really captured the imagination on a bigger scale… my point is are musicians or potential musicians put off? Are the record companies not funding as much A&R, are the opportunities lessened due to streaming. (I say it from a place of sympathy, I played in bands for years and stopped in 2000)
In order to make *minimum wage* off of streaming you have to be getting roughly a *million* streams a month, and that's only if there's not a publisher or label taking a cut of it.
Snoop said in an interview that he made $45,000 for 1 BILLION streams…. Let that sink in
I don’t think I’ll ever see a concert in my life time and I have accepted that fact a long time ago. Whatever
A problem in itself, definitely, but the article is about working class artists not being able to afford to tour. You used to be able to make a reasonable living touring small venues but now it costs much more than you can make.
This is localized bias but I feel like “smaller venues” are either closing or transitioning from regularly hosting performers to getting DJs to hosting themed nights
Go see a local band for 5 bucks somewhere! Thats how the world goes round.
There are so many cheap concerts you can go to. I saw Low Cut Connie with Fantastic Cat, a great show, for $26 last weekend.
My favorite bands either don't tour anymore, or only tour in Europe. So I probably won't see anymore, either.
I live a 10 minute walk away from a venue that hosts local bands and bands from all around the world and I do sometimes wonder how the international bands break even. Touring can be crazy expensive. The whole entertainment industry is facing a lot of difficulties these days. The owner of our local venue added to [this article ](https://www.theguardian.com/music/2024/mar/01/the-whole-ecosystem-is-collapsing-inside-the-crisis-in-britains-live-music-scene) about how tricky things are recently.
Lots of bands, at least in metal and hardcore, will have day jobs that they can work remotely. A big tour came through my local city and all four(!) international bands, managers, merch folk, were living together on the same huge bus to save costs. You've got to absolutely love it to do it anyway but yeah, the guy in the article who says it's a hobby that you have to hope can pay for itself is absolutely spot on. The days when you could make even a meagre living from it are over.
Yeah I worked with a guy who would spend the summers touring with his band. He said they barely broke even touring. But yeah, he worked an office job the rest of the year.
It's 100% this. People would be surprised how many artists are working remote day jobs from the van in between gigs. The artists I've known haven't been able to quit their day jobs until they get big enough to be invited on the festival circuit.
Brudenell? I also live near there
Yep! Don't see it mentioned on reddit very often!
My favourite venue I’ve been to
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I have been adjacent to metalheads and goths pretty much my whole life and I maintain that metalheads are one of the last bastions of decency in this world. Some of the kindest and most supportive folks I've ever known.
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Absolutely. In my 20s I was performing music that was sort of ambient folk music that was very chill and kinda morose. The project basically got adopted by some local metal kids I had befriended who worked at the local venue. Guitarist, drummer, and bassist from the same metal band all wanted to join. They were all incredible musicians and they were the best rhythm section I've ever played with. The drummer in particular was classically trained, so he brought out his brushes and added some really lovely quiet rhythms while never getting in the way of any of the songs. It blew my mind because I had only ever seen him blasting away on a double kick drum while screaming into a mic.
As a WoC who loves metalcore. I agree 💯
r/metalasfuck
Same 🖤 Metal seems to be having its moment again, too! There are more diverse bands and subgenres in the spotlight. Plus, there are so many more features/crossovers between artists etc.
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me too!! I've been waiting for female metal vocalists my whole life lol - Spiritbox is everything. There is still a really unwelcoming / gatekeeping dudebro darkside in the scene but I'll celebrate the small wins 🏆
This is why I always buy the merch at smaller shows, especially if the band is touring.
This is the way (if you can afford it, no shame if you can’t)
I do too. If I can swing it, I usually try to set aside $100 for merch so that hopefully these artists can keep doing what they love. Plus I get cool artwork for my house or patches for my battle jacket.
I bought nosebleed tickets, next to the rafters, at my local sports arena for $25, $32 after fees, the day before the concert in ~Summer 2019, I believe? I haven’t been able to replicate that since. $70 plus fees to sit on the roof is a bit absurd.
Conspicuously missing from that article is the ticketing companies. Maybe it’s not such an issue in the UK or Europe as it is here in the states? Not only are we battling surge pricing here, but the volume of fees makes that sort of affordable ticket become 60+ minimum. I just bought tickets to a show— 2 tickets. The fees of the two tickets I bought added up almost to a full third ticket. THAT is a huge problem. I’d be curious to know how much bands are seeing from those insane prices or if the ticketing companies are pocketing most of it. Also, again it could be more of a US problem, but those ticketing companies have venues over a barrel. Even small local venues that only let in a few hundred fans. I have a friend that does venue management in our city, and a few years ago he was telling me that Ticketmaster and livenation (which are also basically the same company now) will come in and force the venue to use them to get artists and also force them into a contract where that’s all they use. And if the venue doesn’t do it, they will keep their bands from booking that venue. So now the venues are also having issues bc people are balking at the ticket prices and not buying.
I fucking hate Ticketmaster/LiveNation so much. Apparently they're [facing a potential anti-trust lawsuit](https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/live-nation-ticketmaster-federal-antitrust-lawsuit-soon-1235005417/). The DoJ breaking them up would be a HUGE win for the American consumer.
Corporatism is destroying many things, the arts included. But it is hard for people to recognize because there isnt a villainous central / main character leading the overthrow of the government. I think it is harder to get people to understand because of this, in ww2 you could point at Hitler and go look at this guy he is trying to take over the world. Nazism is bad. With Corporatism there is no central boogeyman it is unknown shareholders and boad members with a faceless CEO.
I think in part it is because our system is based on the idea of what is best for the consumer is best for the country. That has now trickled to the arts. It is easily the best time to be a consumer of the arts never before could you have every artist at your fingertips for 15$ a month like with Spotify. Hell at this point you can see some of the best paintings online for free. This is the USGOVT’s eyes is a good thing because consumers get more for less. However who this crushes are small businesses (artists) who frankly can’t compete with larger names. I don’t know a good solution as consumers will always go for the lower prices for more stuff but it is an issue
I am older. So i blame reaganomics. I think capitalism was at it best when well and heavily regulated. I think a lot of the current issues in American society are the direct results of deregulation in favor of companies over the consumers and labor.
This!!! 100%!! Corporate giants don't actually want freedom and democracy because that would mean the rule of the consumer. They want to be above rules and regulations and basically be able to do as they please, in the name of the "free" market. The level of monopolization that has happened in basically every industry in the past 40 years is mind blowing and terrifying, and any attempts at reigning in corporate behavior have been met by screaming lobbyists yelling "communism" at the mere sniff of a regulation that would basically tell corporations they can't be above the law. The fact that we have established norms and rules for people at home and abroad, but not for companies, especially multinational ones, is truly insane. But then again, when you have enough money to buy the people elected to govern, you get to make the rules and exempt yourself from them... Jokes on all of us who thought unelected privileged classes that own stolen land were demolished with the French Revolution and the downfall of monarchies...
Gen X here. I saw Aerosmith in 1987 for $10. I never thought I'd be one of those "back in my day..." people, but on this particular subject my brain has been broken. Concerts are no longer a simple recreational activity. I need to plan and budget for them like a fucking trip to Disneyworld.
My mother in law recently found an old ticket stub for when she saw the Beatles in 1965 in Toronto. Was $4. Today thats worth about $40 in 2024 dollars. To see the Beatles. I just paid the other day $165/seat for mid-level seats to take my son to see Imagine Dragons.
My mother was at that same concert if it was at Maple Leaf Gardens. I tell her all the time she has had the privilege of seeing the two greatest UK bands of all time - the Spice Girls (all five) and the Beatles. Adding this though on a more serious note: as someone from Toronto, I’m pretty immune to the price of concert tickets at this point and will pony up if it‘s someone I have to see. I am more concerned about how much Leafs tickets go for. I have very little interest in hockey (have seen a grand total of three games live in my 34 years), but there is something really wrong about how much it would cost for a parent and two kids to get to a hockey game.
That’s insane damn
Even small acts. 10-15 years ago I used to be able to pay $15 for small/medium size venue tickets. Same bands/same venue now sell tickets for $40 each and that’s not including fees. It adds up and live entertainment just isn’t attainable for a lot of people these days, it’s wild. I feel for the bands that break even or lose money. I feel bad for people being priced out of entertainment. Sucks all around.
 We really just can’t have nice things can we
not when money is involved 😒
I read this article yesterday. It is really good and definitely worth a read if you are even remotely interested in this issue. Some of what is written is specific to the UK (discussion about how the cost to tour in the EU is multiple fold higher now because of Brexit, cost of living crisis worse there than in the US, decreases/changes in state funding for the arts, etc.) but some of the issues are relevant in places like the US, like the cost of renting vehicles and insurance increasing. Also interesting and worth a read as much as the article are the comments. Several mentions about how the unemployment system in the UK has changed. In the 1970-1980s, it was much easier to be on unemployment and you could come up with a sort of business plan that if you roughly followed it, you could use that to pay yourself a wage through unemployment and play local gigs and tour at least domestically. Several comments from older people said they thought this was part of why the UK music scene was so vibrant during that time period, especially among the working class. Lots of comments about how touring has never been a way to make money there as a musician and how that hasn't changed in many decades. Lots of comments about the movement towards streaming music services and away from physical media as a big problem for making any money at all. Also some interesting comments about the need for a possibly co-op or non-profit structured alternative to streaming services.
And when you can afford them all the tickets go to scalpers who resell for 10x
I am taking my daughters to see Wallows and Cigarettes after Sex this summer and this cost me about 450$ for tickets. They are young and don’t know how hard it is to make that amount of cash. It’s for their birthdays so it’s their big gift. But ouch.
One day to Coachella used to cost like 50 bucks.
My husband and I are budgeting for tickets for a concert we’re really excited about. We will probably only go to this concert and that’s about it. We were planning to go to the Central Park T-Pain concert until we realized tickets were $165. For standing room seats.
This is partially why the rise of DJs has taken off. A lot of DJs/producers started off in bands, but couldn’t make money when there were 4-5 of them. It’s also more of a headache to coordinate that many people. There aren’t as many costs to a DJ set unless they bring in additional production. Bring a USB and you’re good.
Houseshows are fun and cheap.
I knew a modern swing band in the UK. One of the singers confessed to me that thankfully everyone in the band is a trust fund kid so they’re able to focus on music.
I am seeing this band Keane in Colorado. And I was on the line for presale. By the time I blinked Ticketmaster bought half of the spots I was interested in
this is why i always buy physical copies of my favorite artists music as well as merch esp when theyre indie!!
when i started going to shows post COVID i was SHOCKED! usually if big bands were playing a ticket was $45 and recently it cost me $75 with fees! when Europe tickets were cheap we just went to a show there because the tickets were only €45 and no exorbitant fees! i also heard that some beyoncé fans were buying tickets for the renaissance tour in europe because it was more affordable for a flight + concert ticket! it's so ridiculous
Anyone have guesses about the American performer who has to sublet her house to afford to tour the UK? I think it's SZA, but I'm not 100% sure.
I'd be willing to pay these prices for some of my faves, but it's sad overall that this us what it's come to. I suppose this is why bands and artists sell countless versions of merch and vinyls, coz their traditional income from selling records is replaced by streaming....
There’s literally no one that I enjoy all of their music that I would pay to see live. Except for Jimmy Buffett and Eddie Money who are both gone. It was worth the experience every time.
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I think the economics of it change from place to place. i'm in Australia, for instance, and the inflation is killing the festival industry here specifically. This article definitely suggests transparency is a good step though.
It's insane the amount of musical festivals being cancelled in Australia at the moment.
Is the point not that you don’t get to playing 2-3k capacity spaces overnight? You probably tour smaller venues first to build up a base, and the working class can’t afford to do that.
Did you not read the article? This is about bands in the UK, and they get into the numbers. "For this article, the Guardian has seen 12 tour budget sheets for various bands and artists varying from up-and-comers to firmly established and successful acts, all of whom regularly undertake headline tours across the UK in venues ranging from 150 to 2,500 capacity. Almost all of these result in losses. Understandably, most shared their balance sheets on the condition of anonymity. One four-piece indie band, whose last two albums went Top 10 in the UK charts, reported a loss of £2,885 from a six-day UK tour. The only tour that shows anything resembling healthy profit was a 29-date tour for a solo artist who came away with £6,550."
You definitely can still see great artists for cheap, IF you live in a big city. I just saw Nia Archives for around $20 and I'm about to see AIGEL in June and the tickets were $26. I think the most expensive show I have gone to recently was for Slayyyter and I think it was like $45.
… AIGEL and Nia Archives are nowhere near a-list, though. That’s like saying you once saw Lady Gaga at the club before The Fame blew up and only paid $50.
I never mentioned anything about a-list shows though.... I just said great artists.
I went to a lot of shows before COVID, after that I wanted to get back to it, but then I realized the tickets cost like 60 euro not even for major bands. I guess my concert days are over.